Moss rose has tenacious vitality, and people call it the flower that refuses to die

This article has967words in total, and reading it will take about3minutes

AuthorWang Yujuan

"Chenxiang Hong Xiangjiang Literature 2018 cohort student." Born in the 1990s, part-time yoga instructor, likes literature and travel. Let us meet in words, to record and experience this wonderful life.

- Xiangjiang Literature Vol.049 -

On my balcony, windowsill, in front of the door and in the courtyard, colorful moss roses bloom everywhere, so that without leaving home I can enjoy a dazzling moss rose flower show all over the yard. Walking up to them and observing them carefully, their appearance as they strive to bloom looks just like a group of babies' smiling faces, with round little faces, and all kinds of colors looking even more vivid and eye-catching in the sunlight. Swaying with the wind, they look just like mischievous children, making people's hearts bloom with joy.

The flowers of the moss rose close in the morning, at night and on cloudy days, and only bloom once they see sunlight. Especially at noon when the sunlight is best, they bloom most luxuriantly, so people named it "sun flower" after its habit. Moss rose belongs to the purslane family, subgenus Portulaca, a succulent plant, a perennial upright herb, with strong vitality and extremely easy cultivation, so people also gave it the name "the one that refuses to die." My family's moss rose began as a piece of stem and leaf with its roots pinched off that I picked up from the roadside. At that time it had already been exposed to the sun and had wilted from loss of water. But I still brought it home, found an empty spot in the yard, planted it, added a little water, and watered it for several days in a row, and it miraculously survived.

After the "one that refuses to die" survived, our whole family fell in love with it and planted more moss roses in the courtyard. Before long, every corner of our home had actually been "occupied" by them, letting them sway their heads back and forth in the sunlight and wind like a group of mischievous children.

When I have nothing to do, I always like to walk into the courtyard, find an area where they are blooming most brilliantly, and squat down to observe them carefully. Its fresh, juicy, fleshy stems and leaves all have a purplish-red tinge, about 20 cm long, with stems creeping or slanting, and leaves pointed and fleshy, round and stick-shaped. The flowers are solitary or several clustered at the tips of the branches, and the flower colors range from deep red, purplish red, deep yellow, pale yellow, and white, to white with red dots, and many others, very beautiful and pleasant to look at. Sometimes I choose a densely grown spot, pick a few plants and put them in a flowerpot on the balcony. That part of the stems, leaves and flowers hangs around the flowerpot, and before long they bloom with abundant flowers and lush leaves. Seen from a distance, this small potted plant has a special charm.

The flowering period of the moss rose is very long. From early summer to late autumn, when stepping into the courtyard or in front of the door, one can always see their small and exquisite figures. After the flowering period, they grow fruits shaped like melon-skin caps, which split open when ripe and scatter some small silver-gray seeds shaped like crescent moons. I collect some, wrap them up and give them to relatives and friends, and the rest fall to the ground with the wind, waiting to sprout and grow in the spring of the next year.

Every year when the moss rose season comes, it is also the time for our whole family to mobilize together. I am responsible for picking them into pots to decorate and adorn the rooms. My father, who is a doctor, picks moss roses and gives them to patients for free, with medical advice: those with sore and swollen throats should pound them into juice and gargle with it; for burns or bruises and eczema, patients need to pound them and apply externally. My mother uses them to make dumpling filling, or picks some to steep in water and drink, so that in the hot summer days we can clear heat and reduce internal fire.

But once the rainy season comes, if a little water accumulates and is not noticed, the "one that refuses to die" easily rots at the roots and dies. Although its vitality is strong, in an unsuitable environment it is also not conducive to survival. If you want to grow a pot of moss rose well, try to keep it away from dark and damp places. Rather than watering it more, let it bask in the sun more.

Although the moss rose is ordinary, not as noble and magnificent as the peony, nor as fresh and elegant as the lily, if you love flowers and love growing flowers but always fail to grow them well, you might as well grow a pot of colorful moss roses! It not only has extremely strong survival ability, but also fills every day of life with sunshine.

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