Still Standing

Perhaps the weather outdoors which has more closely resembled that of April than January in Wisconsin had something to do with the early perky performance of the potted narcissi. They may have let their little egos lead them to compete with the springlike activity going on outside the window, but probably vanity was not the reason for their success at growing straight and tall since they remain unbent even with the return of real winter weather. We must give credit where credit's due and thank the think tank at Cornell University for their well researched hot tip on keeping forced bulbs upright by getting them drunk.

Ten days later here they are erect and blooming with no threat of tipping.

This group knows how to hold their liquor. No blotto bulbs here!

Speaking of giving credit where it's due...we wonder if the lab assistant who discreetly dumped their libation in a convenient research pot when the department head showed up unexpectedly at the unauthorized horticulture department Christmas party eventually fessed up and got a bit of credit for the discovery of alcohol's effect on bulb growth? At least that's how we imagine it happening. What? It may have actually been an intentionally tested scientific theory? We like our version of the story better thank you, so we're sticking with it.