The reason I considered an Acer, aside from the obvious colourful merits, is that when we moved into this house the previous owner (who clearly wasnt a gardener!) had left an acer in a pot outside with no care or attention whatsoever. I didnt expect it to be very healthy so also havent bothered with it, but actually it is still going strong and, because of the small pot, has really become a large bonsai! We are south facing and have a small courtyard type area just by the back door, so I could offer a sheltered spot to whatever I choose if I DO decide to go for a pot...
Logan - thanks for sharing your picture. Id originally intended on keeping his ashes inside the house but we have two other dogs and 3 cats... Im 30 years old and kept thinking that by the time I'm retirement age I could potentially have more urns than I could cope with!!!! Its a definite downside to pet ownership that they dont live as long as us.... We all know that it is going to happen eventually, but that doesn't prevent any heartache when the time comes....
Here is a picture of my dear old man anyhow. We rescued him when he was about four years old... He was a very naughty boy and totally destroyed my first house.... Trying to train an adult dog not to use the house as a toilet, not to eat furniture (or carpet), not to pull on the lead or run away when he was loose was no easy task, but I think the blood, sweat and tears only made me love him more and ultimately brought us closer together. I had 8 years and four months with him and wouldnt have changed a moment of it. This is Bruce (though he became known as Boo-Boo)
He's gorgeous and his behaviour problems sound a lot like our Bonzo - he gets called Bozo quite lot. Took just a week to get him house-trained and stop him eating shoes, furniture, kitchen bins but he's still scared of anything or anyone new and panics. He either pulls or walks with his nose at the back of our knees but he does always return - eventually - when he's galloping off lead.
I recommend potting your existing acer on to a bigger pot. It will be root bound so soak it well first and then tease the roots out with your fingers or a hand fork to encourage them to grow out into the new compost and not keep spiralling round the pot.
Vendée - 20kms from Atlantic coast.
"The price good men (and women) pay for indifference to public affairs is to be ruled by evil men (and women)."
I'ts nice have a place to remember your beloved pets. We have seven buried in and around our garden and I know that should we ever move then I'll take cuttings with me.
I understand why it feels like it's just the one chance, but I think that treating it like it's one-chance-only you're adding another layer of stress which you could do without in this situation. If the plant dies, you can, after all, mix in some more compost and plant something else. That's all part of the cycle of nature, after all. (I really don't mean to imply that this isn't an important project. I just think it can be made less stressful by approaching it in this way, without compromising it in any way.)
Would you be willing to set up more than one pot, with different plants? That way you wouldn't need to worry so much about the effect of the ashes, because there would be less of them in each pot, and you could also try different plants. Or several different plants in one huge pot.
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Yes. Fond memories, Aym.
Mark, sorry about your loss. We've had 4 golden retrievers cremated, and their all on the sideboard.
From left to right, Bramble, Willow,Moss and Logan.
Moss went 12 days after Willow.
Last edited: 03 January 2017 13:11:43
Goodness me! Thanks guys! Lots to think about!
The reason I considered an Acer, aside from the obvious colourful merits, is that when we moved into this house the previous owner (who clearly wasnt a gardener!) had left an acer in a pot outside with no care or attention whatsoever. I didnt expect it to be very healthy so also havent bothered with it, but actually it is still going strong and, because of the small pot, has really become a large bonsai! We are south facing and have a small courtyard type area just by the back door, so I could offer a sheltered spot to whatever I choose if I DO decide to go for a pot...
Logan - thanks for sharing your picture. Id originally intended on keeping his ashes inside the house but we have two other dogs and 3 cats... Im 30 years old and kept thinking that by the time I'm retirement age I could potentially have more urns than I could cope with!!!! Its a definite downside to pet ownership that they dont live as long as us.... We all know that it is going to happen eventually, but that doesn't prevent any heartache when the time comes....
Here is a picture of my dear old man anyhow. We rescued him when he was about four years old... He was a very naughty boy and totally destroyed my first house.... Trying to train an adult dog not to use the house as a toilet, not to eat furniture (or carpet), not to pull on the lead or run away when he was loose was no easy task, but I think the blood, sweat and tears only made me love him more and ultimately brought us closer together. I had 8 years and four months with him and wouldnt have changed a moment of it. This is Bruce (though he became known as Boo-Boo)
He's gorgeous and his behaviour problems sound a lot like our Bonzo - he gets called Bozo quite lot. Took just a week to get him house-trained and stop him eating shoes, furniture, kitchen bins but he's still scared of anything or anyone new and panics. He either pulls or walks with his nose at the back of our knees but he does always return - eventually - when he's galloping off lead.
I recommend potting your existing acer on to a bigger pot. It will be root bound so soak it well first and then tease the roots out with your fingers or a hand fork to encourage them to grow out into the new compost and not keep spiralling round the pot.
Big Acer fan too - every garden should have one (or several!).
Bruce sounds like he was a special friend - so handsome as well.
I'ts nice have a place to remember your beloved pets. We have seven buried in and around our garden and I know that should we ever move then I'll take cuttings with me.
I understand why it feels like it's just the one chance, but I think that treating it like it's one-chance-only you're adding another layer of stress which you could do without in this situation. If the plant dies, you can, after all, mix in some more compost and plant something else. That's all part of the cycle of nature, after all. (I really don't mean to imply that this isn't an important project. I just think it can be made less stressful by approaching it in this way, without compromising it in any way.)
Would you be willing to set up more than one pot, with different plants? That way you wouldn't need to worry so much about the effect of the ashes, because there would be less of them in each pot, and you could also try different plants. Or several different plants in one huge pot.