Sick Bay, Intensive Care

I removed all, well almost all, of the bad leaves from the plant and put it in solitary. I see some signs of insects, sticky spots and a few traces of white web. I wonder about spraying. Rubbing alcohol has been recommended, but it is poisonous and we do use the bay leaves in cooking. I have to wonder if vodka would work just as well. Some people add cinnamon to the spray , some detergent, and some cooking oil. I'm conflicted! At this point I'm taking a wait - and - see approach, not wishing to make my care overly intensive.



Now that most of the leaves are gone, it is more obvious that the tips of the branches are dying back. Now I think perhaps some cutting back is needed too. But what to do next? That's the rub. (Please forgive the little alcohol joke. Puns are fun!) I'm not cut out to be a plant medic. This is a good reminder for me. I used to buy pathetic looking plants when they were on sale. I have since learned that I'm much better at taking care of healthy plants. That being said, I still would really like this sweet bay to recover.

It's sunny but cold here today. This afternoon Ed braved the cold to dump my kitchen compost and to fill the bird feeder. Today is his lucky day because as he came around the shade garden wall to get the bird feeder, he came face to face with a skunk. It's been very cold for days, after a long nap a deep-sleeping skunk gets hungry. The skunk raised his tail in ominous warning. Ed backed away in a hurry. The skunk took off in the opposite direction and headed for cover. Once he was long gone, the birds got their seed. It's likely later when it gets dark , the skunk will return too!