Shades of Jade

I’ve never had a green thumb as my mother did. When she was younger and able, spring and summer was for planting and pruning the mix of perennials and annuals in her many gardens in the yard of our home.
Although I can plant and keep potted annuals on my deck (which I have received compliments on), I don’t have an eye for landscaping, and with three dogs, our yard is a disaster.
When Mom moved to her apartment this time last year I inherited three hanging indoor baskets from her. It was only supposed to be temporary while we waited for a maintenance man to come and hang some hooks from the ceiling in her living room. When he finally made it, she decided it would look too crowded with the plants and she told me to keep them.
The reluctant gardner that I am told her I would do my best. And I’m happy to report that I’ve kept these plants alive for an entire year.
Cacti are my thing. I think they’re pretty and best of all, you can ignore them for months and they will stay alive.
I’ve had a jade plant that my mother in law gave to me some years ago. Each summer when I place the plant outside, it thrives – even losing half of its plant during a sudden hailstorm several years ago didn’t kill it. Each winter, when I bring it inside, it start to lose some of its little green leaves and always looks a bit under the weather by the time I can put it back outside (usually after fear of frost around May 1).
This year, however, has been different. Like the turn of events that took my mother, the jade plant became sick fast this winter and I’ve fought to keep it alive.
I’ve talked to it and told it to “hang in there,” my aunt even talked to it while she was here. But it seemed, the more attention I paid to it, the sicker it became.
And although I’ve inherited even more plants (I already killed one of the sister plants Mom gave me to one of hers a couple of years ago), saving my jade has become a never-ending quest.
I even dreamed that my mother told me to water it more – something I now realized probably did it more harm than good.
The weather has finally turned warm enough this week to put it outside and I will be able to keep it out probably now through the end of the week.
But I have to wonder, if like humans, plants may not have a lifespan too. Do they grow old and week and tired, despite our best efforts to keep them with us?
Only time will tell now if my jade will perk up with the warmer spring temperatures or if its time has too come.