₦airaland Forum

mydreams25:
Pls mums i want you to enlighten me on the necessary drugs am supposed to have at home as first aid for my child. A woman was talking beside me yesterday and was saying that she has a container she stores drugs in for her children and i think i should have too or what do you think mums? Common paracetamol i dont have at home o,i buy and throwaway when am done with it, again i do hear of ORS, pardon me i dont know it is it a mixture or drug? even ZINC? Am i suppose to have all these&some others at home? Pls help a worried mum. My son is a year old.
Cc: modath, onegai, firsttymum,kaffybill,ozycy and all other great mothers.

Paracetamol (either Calpol (Ibuprofen) or Infant Tylenol (Acetaminophen) or a good brand), bandages, Methyl spirit 70%, plaster, Neosporin, maybe a multivitamin. But the most important thing I'll tell you is: ASK YOUR PAEDIATRICIAN. Because I (and other mamas) don't know what challenges your baby may have medically. Those I listed are the basics, but before you dish out any drug, please ask your doctor. Not a pharmacist (because my pharmacist sister won't answer me unless the Doctor siblings have given an answer), but your own doctor. Who knows and treats your child.

I don't have a cabinet of drugs. I know someone who (because her husband had access to drugs) ended up in the hospital all in the name of popping meds that she didn't fully understand. what I'd get is a first aid kit, because I know kids hurt themselves by falling and playing, not drugs (that an inquisitive toddler will swallow as play and you end up crying in the hospital). That's just my opinion, I'm sure everyone feels differently.

babythug:
*she hates being disturbed* ........ I am with your sister, you're finished LOL

My sister, as we speak, big years are rolling down my cheeks, I'm in pains. I'm watching Cbeebies with no option of changing it, unless it's to SuperSport and Football (she likes the teams' bright jersey colours and the green of the pitch). I dare not complain...

@onegai, I hope you are ok its been ages we read from you.

My sis, tenkyiu for checking up on me. we are good, how are you guys? How's your LO? Other senior mamas, I dey hail una o.

(I saw small wahala stroll here a while back and said to myself "abeg "

Baby E is teething so we are being nice to her and she is taking advantage of it. She now sleeps on our bed, her father sleeps across the edge of the bed and I sleep on the floor because we don't want to chop slaps and kicks with her rolling and she hates being disturbed. According to one of my sisters "you guys are finished, she has trained you people. She will drive your car on her 1st birthday and you'll be too scared to say 'pim"

Milkbush

I rarely see people planting this indoors here but almost every professional gardener sells it in Lagos. Now, I'll ask that you avoid this plant until you are a very experienced gardener. Its sap is super-toxic and gushes out once you cut it and easily absorbed through skin and eyes. Repercussions are bad, we are talking anaphylactic symptoms (your eyes will feel like they're burning off and you will have shortness of breathe and all sorts) and you need to go to the hospital to get an Antihistamine shot. The symptoms are worse if you have a latex allergy (which we don't check for here). Professional gardeners abroad recommend using gloves and eye goggles when pruning this plant and scrubbing (yes scrubbing) your hands off afterwards.

Raft foundation and I hope you have deep pockets because it won't be cheap. Otherwise, you'll be like those who built at OPIC estate back in the day. Just use it for farming rice.

congrats to her. But I don't think she's the first I (hubby and a classmate of mine may have had some years ago).

Can planters

In case you don't have much space and can't afford a planter, grab some empty tins, pgetut some drainage holed at the bottom, some paint or spraypaint and DIY it. You can grow herbs like Aloe, sweet basil, bay leaf, mint or succulents in them. Make the can planter match your decor and put them where they can get sun.

Anthuriums are great in wedding bouquets and flower arrangements. They are extremely long-lasting. I've seen them as part of church flowers.

So no picture of Aunty Jumoke? Na only papa picture

Congrats namesake. Keep grooving your Shina Peters m'dear

Anthurium

Anthurium are a native of the Americas. They are a very interesting-looking plant. The flower of it feels like a plastic flower. Infact a healthy blooming Anthurium plant should look like fake plastic flowers. I know it comes in colours like pink, red, white, green and blue but the common colours are red and white in Nigeria.

Anthuriums like coarse well-draining soil which can hold some water (ask your gardener for peat soil and put pebbles at the bottom of your potting container, I used gravel) They like water but don't drown them (like I did), water every 2-3 days and mist their leaves with water (the best misting bottles I've got came from Shoprite, N400). They don't like direct sunlight and are a great indoor plant, but they do best in bright indoor light (close to a window). The brighter the light, the more they flower. They don't need much fertiliser as well.

ifyalways:
Thank you Onegai. I was once attending Fuzion dance classes but got tooooo busy .I'm so getting back my groove one.

Back to Flowers, any tips on growing peace lily flower indoors? That's one flower I would love to grow in future.

Oh dear. I got a peace Lily, went to play at Rosety Gardens where they told me "only a foolish person can kill a peace Lily", then I proceeded to kill mine . However it wasn't all my fault, I bought a sickly plant, placed it a container filled it clay soil and no fertilizer and proceeded to over water it. Then my mum left it outdoors all through the rainy season. Poor thing never stood a chance. So my next post will be on it.

Please, I'm seeing some peeps peeking in and quietly moving off. Don't be shy, all friendly posts are welcome and add your own pics.

cococandy:
It does look like lady parts

Well, if one decides to be slutty and send her man a picture of this and a picture of an Indian Head Ginger for Valentine's day, I'm sure he'll know what is happening that night

Butterfly Pea Vine

It has the most delicious name, ladies.

Get ready... (clears throat):

"Clitoria Ternatea". Because apparently they said the flowers resemble lady parts.

Scientists are Hot, it is clear to see. Why else will all these naughty names exist to name flowers??

So, I saw a Butterfly Pea vine today in Ikoyi. Really pretty! It's a vine and a climber, so you must plant this and support it with an arch or a doorway or metal arch because it can't stand on its on. It likes moisture. The flowers give a beautiful blue dye which is used as food colouring and its fruits are peas. So it's safe and edible. It actually improves soil quality when you plant it. So it's a good plant, just remember, water and an arch for support.

Btw, the gardener selling this plant called it "roseling". She had zero idea of what it was

As a hobby, it's fine and gives the employer a more refined idea of who you are. But why not write: "musician/instrumentalist (Guitar). That sounds more polished and well-trained and a skill than just writing "playing guitar".

tearoses:
In the first picture, the purple flower is a Lupin (poisonous so don't plant if there are kids or pets around that may eat it)
The green bush is a Hosta
The pink single flower is a Rose
The red tall flower is an Antirrhinum

The purple one in second picture is a trailing petunia & a with a geranium in the middle (Hot pink)

The single flower in the third picture is a clematis. They climb so you can place them against walls or train them up a trellis.

I'd have assumed the last picture was a Stargazer Lily. Your garden is pretty, I love the Lupins. Do you use organic or artificial fertiliser?

ifyalways:
Hmmm. Lovely Onegai.

I love flowers but growing and tending to it like the OP is not my thing cos:

1. I be confirmed "Kpako"
2. No time to tend to it after all the daily lagos hustle
3. The ajekpako factor yet again .

I just dey admire from afar. Onegai, you are a woman of many gifts. Well done.

Dear, I'm a kpako too. And please don't let the hustle of Lagos living take away your God-given right to enjoy his hand work. Have you seen those professional gardens? I know 2 in festac, one around Anthony, Freedom park and Muri okunola park on the island. Go there, just go and hang out in peace (I used to take my paintbox and sketchpad). You can also ask them if you can help them out at the small gardens (the ones in festac, the owner is a wonderful lady), they will never refuse free help and you get to have a garden without the stress of having your own personal space).

Most Nigerians are not good at relaxing and stress is killing everyone. I have friends who go fishing in Lagos lagoon, friends who go salsa dancing, friends who go painting for pleasure, etc. Very chill group of people. They know they cannot die on top traffic and one job that won't even be decent and close down on the day of your funeral sef. Just find ways to unwind and enjoy.

Plumerias can be in potted containers but it does need sunlight. Every colour of it, I've seen in Lagos alone. It's so pretty. Give it plenty of sunlight and water and it can be grown from seeds or cuttings.

Plumeria

Also known as Frangipani. This is one of my favourites. A tree with stunning flowers in all sorts of colours and it is literally everywhere in the south of Nigeria. This is probably the native tree of Hawaii, as it is used to make leis (the flower necklace placed around people's necks when they go to Hawaii) and the Balinese take Plumeria arrangement very seriously. It is associated with worship and Love in many cultures, like in East Africa. It makes gorgeous bouquets (they will sadly last for only the wedding day).

Below is a wedding bouquet of Plumerias and other flowers

cococandy:
This is a very nice flower though.
It just looks so lush

If you touch it, it has a nice velvety feel, not like a flower at all. And it is great as a bouquet or centrepiece because it lasts.

@cococandy Queen of the Night, hmm, I vaguely remember it. I'll ask one lady I know who is a great gardener for its proper name.

Roses need cool weather to grow. So many people (including myself) have tried growing roses and unless you're in Jos, one very small pitiful looking flower will come out that's it. Almost all the roses in Nigeria are imported and that's the annoying thing, florists abroad will buy 50 roses to choose just the 10 best ones for your bouquets (that's what makes it pricey) but Naija florists (most of them) will just pick random roses (wilted or not) and give you like that and still charge you pricey. Which is why i recommend brides not to have just roses in their bouquets, max 5 roses and tropical flowers make a modern, lovely arrangement that lasts.

@Freecocoa, their vegetable garden grew with flowers. Below is Celosia or Cockscomb, the leaf is Soko leaf (that is used for vegetable soup). I've accidentally grown waterleaf and I wish I knew how they started.

I'm glad to help you when you're ready, though I'm just learning myself sha.

cococandy:
I want to start one but more than half of the year it's so freaking cold. I can't even imagine staying outside in the name of gardening in that freezing cold.
But I'd so love one.


I think I'll consider potted ones instead and leave them in the back patio so that they can get some sun. I doubt any indoor flowers will get sun in this kind of weather except during spring or summer.

These ones look nice.

ooohhh, pretty. The U.S. is nice in that they have assigned zones to each part of the country, you can look up where you live and see what zone it falls under. That will tell you the plants you can grow there. And at least you have access to good commercial potting soil. Have you considered Orchids? my friend has some in the U.K. and they're indoors and she gives them an ice-cube and that's it (she probably sings to them to make them bloom).

Boston Fern

I think this is one of the most popular ferns out there. I remember my sister bought one and killed it due to wrong care . It's a lovely indoor plant, though it can manage in full sunlight. Place it right by a window because it likes bright indoor light, give it plenty water (it loves humidity) and even get a bottle mister once it starts growing to mist its leaves. It doesn't need much fertilizer. Why not hang it indoors in place of a ceiling fan, as a nice way to decor?

freecocoa:
Lol, stepping on poo was one of the most annoying things ever back then, I
Remember peeps used to threaten to pour pepper on and then torch the sh1t, claiming it would burn the poo owner's bum, Kai! The things we used to believe.

The average naijarian no send flowers so I can understand why they'd poo in a flower garden, probably plucking some to use as toilet paper. #sad

Did that fire and pepper thing ever work though

I think Nigerians do o, just that they don't gather to discuss it. In Lagos, it's mostly older people who like gardening (though there's this young lady who has a blog on her garden). It's a nice hobby to have. Which is why i started this, im hoping we can eventually organise meetings and start a proper horticultural club. Besides, there's serious money to be made in being a professional gardener (there's a guy in Benin city with 2 ha of plants and garden, who supplies almost every in Edo, Ondo and Delta states with bouquets, altarpieces and wreaths). Heck, the Orchid Garden in Lagos sells orchids for N18, 000 and people buy.

I remember the first (and only time) I grew yams in my former garden. I planted it and waited happily to show them off... a month later. See as my mum finished me with mouth "if you used to go to the village, you'd have known yams take MONTHS to grow and not in this clay soil and you planted in dry season ". At least I still harvested them (small as cocoyams) and they still ate them sha!

cococandy:
There's one incident I'll always remember and my siblings still laugh at me until today whenever I talk about flowers.

Once when we were younger, we were taking a walk and I saw a bush of flowers that I couldn't just resist. I went close to the shrub and proceeded to pick some only to discover that I'd stepped on someone's poo.
I wonder who'd chose to poo there of all places.
Some mighty stinky poo. Mehn. I stank all the way home before I could wash it off my sandals. (And their laughter didn't make things any better.)
Even after bathing I still felt like I was smelling.

It's funny now.
But that day, it wasn't funny to me at all.

OUCH

I don't have a garden now (we live in one of those service apartment type buildings) but we have one at my parents, and I'm helping my sister with hers. I'm going to get some indoor plants (we've got low light windows in the house) and take it from there. Once we get our place, I'm taking half the available space for a garden and library. You?

tearoses and cococandy,

una dey here dey give this matter energy when I have started this thread

https://www.nairaland.com/2894705/hibiscus-flower-society-calling-all

Una never reach that side?!!

Abeg leave trash for Lawma. Who are the other flower lovers here?

Rosy Periwinkle

Also known as Vinca Rosea. This is a shrub, native to Madagascar. It's an evergreen which like sunlight and a well-drained soil (don't over water it). It looks nice around the compound or around borders of the house. Sometimes it's called Dwarf Periwinkle because it's a short shrub. Chemical components from it have been extracted and used to successfully treat certain types of cancers (some lymphomas and children's cancers), but don't eat it as it is toxic in its original organic state. Vincas seem to bloom beautifully during February-March (before the rains).

Eketem:
Poor people problems.

Poverty mentality, more like.

Gasout:
Moving to the back sit wouldn't have make any sense, since am sitting there already...

If u're the wife in question, 'would U av allow me to move to the back sit for U?

Get up first, let me then tell you "oh relax, stay there". That's good manners, not a wifely thing. Simple, basic good manners. Not common apparently. But if it's too hard for you to understand, don't stress yourself.

Gasout:
@Onegie: let us not make a big deal out of this piece. Just trying to knw people's opinion. Perhaps, my perception towards that might change

It would have cost you nothing to move to the back, even if it was a petty little thing. Again I ask, if it was your female friend's car and she and you stopped to pick up her husband, would you wait till they give you a look to go sit at the back? You would know enough to respect another man but are unsure of according the same respect to a woman.

It says a lot about your mindset that in such a small matter, you didn't take the right decision concerning a woman. It's these little things that eventually build up to a small problem. You think you will always put your wife first then something happens and you realise you're shouting at your wife because of a friend. Or telling her she never makes them feel welcome but ignoring the fact you may have indirectly made it clear you held them over her.

Gasout:
Just wondering..

My friend and I went to pick his wife at her work place yesterday. I was sitting side to him in the front sit when his wife came out of her office. When she saw me at the front sit. Immediately, her countenance and look changed. perhaps, she was expecting me to move to the back sit which I politely ignore.

My opinion: whenever there is outing between I, my wife, and my friend, I think my friend should be the one to occupy the front sit. Though, yet to marry...

Nairalanders, what's ur take on this : "who should sit at the front sit between ur wife and friend?"

You see my problem with women! Why didn't she just take keke napep home when she saw her husband and his best friend (a whole best friend! ) were sitting in the car together.Chai! Even the Bible is clear: "a man leaves his father and mother and WIFE and cleaves unto his BEST FRIEND and the two shall become one" or how about "husbands, love your BEST FRIEND as Christ loved the church". Clear examples of how important a best friend is to a man, not his wife. His wife may be sharing his bed, his intimate thoughts, endangering her life by carrying their children, supporting him financially and caring for him, but you, you are certainly more important. I like you! When you get married, if your best friend says he wants to enjoy your wife for one evening, I know you will be obliging

Because even in the little things, you cannot respect a woman enough to move your car-less arse to the back of her own husband's car. Then you will later come here to complain "she doesn't like us hanging out, she's always squeezing her face when I come over"...

shey if it was a girl's car and her husband came in, your bumbum will still be sitting down in front..