A nincompoop's uncertain first stabs at not killing plants

OK I soooooo don't know anything about plants, flowers or other living green stuff.

(Once upon a time, people still gave me a plant every once upon a while - which would usually die quickly enough. Except for the one amazingly stubborn tree, which survived all the abuse I've piled on it throughout the years with admirable bullheadedness. More on him later.)

Yet I have a balcony, which I'm gradually filling up with stuff in pots. I mean, it just was there when I moved in here two and a half year ago, I didnt build it or anything, and it wasnt used except by A. to smoke on, anyway.

I tried first time last year. Not very succesful. My pretty Japanese willow - a "hardy" little tree according to the net - died an ignomible death. Hakuro-nishiki is what the tree's called. Perhaps it was because I only repotted it into a big pot after a coupla months (you know, you buy it in a plastic pot, and I'd just left it in there). Or perhaps I should have taken it in for the winter (though I think I read somewhere that you needn't ...). Or perhaps I gave it too little water (it apparently needs a lot of water in spring) or too much (apparently it needs less water after spring).

See, I'm learning some stuff - even if I still dont know what did the poor thing in.

Some weeds sprang up in the pot next to it, though, which we've lovingly nurtured since. A. one day came a-fluttering in all excited about little mushrooms too, which had appeared in the pot that morning, though they'd subsequently disappeared too. They're cute, I've seen them since as well, although I strongly doubt they actually are tiny round white mushrooms - even if thats what they look like.

The two other plants I'd bought seemed to have died as well. But one was supposed to (one-year plant), so thats OK. The other I kept on the balcony by ways of decoration, seeing how its nostalgic brown suited the overall scene - and lo and behold, its got all kinds of new green leaves now, the dead brown stalks of old waving above them. I saw one on the flower market last month (with live stalks), same leaves, so I know its not just weeds this time.

Anyway, this past month or two, I've been going up & down to the flower market some Saturdays and bringing stuff back. I have a new Hakuro-nishiki, for one - always one to defy fate. I really want it to survive. It's so pretty, its vulnerable-looking leaves going from lightgreen to white to pinkish ...

I also bought two plants with pretty blue flowers and two with pretty yellow flowers -- that was before I realised it could be useful to remember what stuff you buy is called, so that you can later look up how to treat it. But I think the yellow ones might be Bidens and the blue ones Felicias or Brachycomes. They're one-year bloomers I think so I'm probably happy nuff if they survive into summer.

I have some "zilverblad" (Helichrysum lanatum silver?) in a black pot and some similar-looking plants, with smaller size-leaves of the same colour. I have some pretty green things that I remember are called something starting with "wolfs" and that I saw in masses down the verge of a polder-dyke when I went cycling the other day. Long stem with a few sturdy pointed leaves, and some 15 cm above, light-green round leaves with tiny bell-shaped leaves within. Very cute. They're in a long rectangular flower box, the rest are in bigger and smaller pots (and damn, pots are expensive!).

I also have a pot of forget-me-nots and finally, in my ultimate wisdom, I bought a yellow paprika plant last month. Yes, I've read the tag now, its supposed to go in a glasshouse and needs a fair table-sized plot of earth to stand in. Oh well.

Anyway. Is it OK for me to come ask stupid questions here? Its amazing the stuff you dont know **** about. The stuff I dont know **** about, I mean. Positively embarassing. I suppose its the stuff you're supposed to have learnt from your parents or something. My mother was a great gardener (at least, our little garden always looked very pretty to me), but I never asked her anything.