I've been without words for a while but couldn't let another day go without this.
The plants at my neighborhood shopping center were changed out a week or so ago.
I noticed the change immediately. I didn't show up at 7 to get what I wanted. I didn't go at all.
Gosh only knows how many ajuga and lamium bit the dust. The thought makes me sad in my heart.
I would like to have a moment of silence for our rooted friends, who lost their lives for no good reason.
I can only hope they grow in debri and trash, because that's where they are now residing.
I've been thinking that, come fall, i may write the landscaping company and offer them lunch after they have made the change out so I can pilfer through the dump truck and see what I can save.
Just thinking about it.
One of my daughters has taken a new interest in plants and it has been interesting to hear her tell of creating her own outside grow space. Another daughter just put in her veggie garden and added a soaker hose that is connected to a rain barrel. I think that is neat.
I recall putting a shout out for iris and liripe last year to neighborhood elists, and so I did the same this year with rocks. I am trying to finish up some beds for a friend before her parents come into town. I offered iris in exchange and got a few takers. A friend at work brought me more than the Cabrio could hold almost, but I'm still about 15 short. Last year i was bordering with liripe. Maybe i need something more certain and stable in my hands this year. I like how they look, anyway.
Exchanging in this way feels comfortable and like a good thing.
The church yard is doing really well. This year, I've hidden 2 tomatoes, 2 eggplant and one pepper amongst the guara and daisies and pincushion plants. We'll see if we get to donate any food from them to Interfaith food shuttle. I sure hope so. It doesn't take much space to grow produce.
The periwinkle is slow going, but has doubled since last year, so i hope next year it won't look like a bad hair day out there around the pine trees. I've got 3 varieties going; intertwined might look interesting. At any rate, it would be more in keeping with life. We'll see.
Slower season is creeping in here at work church. Hope i can get some 'get ready' tasks done so fall won't be so hectic. Hope i can write more, too. Haven't done more than a grocery list in a while.
Hug someone today and say hello to a plant that catches your eye- both of those make a difference.
Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Showing posts with label garden. Show all posts
Friday, May 28, 2010
Monday, September 14, 2009
Every Little bit helps
The church yard is looking wild and wolly. The sweet peas are in bloom around one pine tree and the passion flower seems to be settling in. I can't wait until it blooms.
The lamiastrum is growing. Eventually, the pinestraw will be all green leafy plants.
Along the front, I will be adding mexican petunias in a couple of weeks for next year, and well, I will be pulling the tomatoes and pepper up soon in exchange for broccoli.
I snuck a few veggie plants in with the flowers this summer and lo! they are producing.
I took 2 measley pounds of roma tomatoes and a green pepper to the Interfaith Food shuttle today and you would have thought I carried a bushel basket overflowing with grand vegetables in. The response was so comforting. Every little bit helps. I hope to keep mixing vegetables in with the flowers until I can get approval for a small raised bed on the grounds. In themeantime, I'm proud of the work the few plants have done and I am grateful for their bounty. Someone will be enjoying them tonight.
The lamiastrum is growing. Eventually, the pinestraw will be all green leafy plants.
Along the front, I will be adding mexican petunias in a couple of weeks for next year, and well, I will be pulling the tomatoes and pepper up soon in exchange for broccoli.
I snuck a few veggie plants in with the flowers this summer and lo! they are producing.
I took 2 measley pounds of roma tomatoes and a green pepper to the Interfaith Food shuttle today and you would have thought I carried a bushel basket overflowing with grand vegetables in. The response was so comforting. Every little bit helps. I hope to keep mixing vegetables in with the flowers until I can get approval for a small raised bed on the grounds. In themeantime, I'm proud of the work the few plants have done and I am grateful for their bounty. Someone will be enjoying them tonight.
Tuesday, April 28, 2009
Community Garden in a new light
I’ve been wearing my flippers lately at work, trying to swim harder through the work muck.
Easter came and is still showing signs of renewal. I notice it in nature.
I’ve been hearing a lot about community gardens and sustainable communities, CSA’s. Buying local, pulling in and working on us from within instead of reaching out, way out, for the things we need and want.
I’ve been thinking of a way I can help build that kind of community from where I sit. Sure, bubblegum and pretzels sooth spirits and calm the unsettled souls. A cozy office invites conversation, and the bird feeders are now being emptied daily. Still, an idea for a broader connection with nature and building community through that escapes me. I’ve been thinking and thinking about how to build connections…. I'm not so comfortable in groups of people, but there is nothing more peaceful than visiting with a bed of plants. They are people, too and they want to grow just like people do, and they need help, too. Just like us.
The thought of a community garden thrills me. The thought of a community garden made by, managed and sustaining 3,000 members scares the poison ivy out of me.
When I am trying to figure things out, I tend to fill my time with busi-work. Messychef cooking, or knitting or sewing or gardening- writing. I rent a small townhouse with a little yardette and gardenette and they are lovely, but not enough to sustain my need to figure out some questions knawing at me, so last year I asked a friend if I could work in her yard. I think I’ve overwritten about this. Well,the job is going swell. With money a problem- or lack thereof, I discovered ways to get plants at little or no expense.I sent out on a few neighborhood elists an offer to thin irises, daylilies, daffodils and liripe and got a good response. I discovered that if you hit the shopping centers at just the right time, you can save the plants used for landscaping from a frightful death by bringing along a pitchfork and taking them home when they are being traded out during the seasonal changes.
I’ve traded irises from my house for liripe from a work church friend’s house.
Now, a year into the project things are coming together. This one yard has had a ripple effect. There are plants all over this city from other places in town.
I offered to help a friend at work get her garden started, and now we meet almost weekly and have a wonderful time learning and planting. She is so delightful and willing to accomodate my short time. I mean, all this gardening is not like hiring a landscaping company. A middle aged arthritic woman cannot be compared with a team of workers with tillers. I come equipped with gloves, a pitchfork and short amount of time. These projects are being created one bit at a time.
Children in the preschool have been helpful, and an assistance person helped me once. At work, the maintenance crew helps me with the hose - It's a village. Truly.
I think we are also creating a community garden here at work church with a twist.
A year ago, the grounds were abound with greenery. With the brilliantly colorful idea of my boss, we welcomed spring with a church fronted with daffodils and crocuses that I put to bed in the Fall. The color brought about an awakening in some folks, and so I have been trying to keep the color coming along on the church grounds with the goal being to have something alive and looking good all seasons.
I visited one church member and saw the most beautiful purple blooming plant. I asked if I might thin them out, and move them around and she said very kindly, ‘Have at it. My yard is your yard.” Some of her purple plants are now under the dogwood tree.
Another has been bringing me vinca to add to the starter periwinkle around another tree.
A second friend noticed, and has offered to bring some as well.
Someone heard me mention Lenten rose, and said she’d bring some for me later in the season.
I traded irises with my front desk garden buddy and now we have some of hers and mine popping up like mad.
A member from home church opens her yard to friends, and I have visited her site many times. Work church is holding some of her plants.
I pass one member’s house on my way to work, and inquired about helping her thin her late blooming daffs and I brought her a bag of irises yesterday.
Our work church garden, as well as the other friends who let me piddle in their yards are all benefitting from neighbors’ nature. If that’s not building community, I don’t know what is.
Our community garden is not just one. It has rippled out and multiplied in many good directions.
Easter came and is still showing signs of renewal. I notice it in nature.
I’ve been hearing a lot about community gardens and sustainable communities, CSA’s. Buying local, pulling in and working on us from within instead of reaching out, way out, for the things we need and want.
I’ve been thinking of a way I can help build that kind of community from where I sit. Sure, bubblegum and pretzels sooth spirits and calm the unsettled souls. A cozy office invites conversation, and the bird feeders are now being emptied daily. Still, an idea for a broader connection with nature and building community through that escapes me. I’ve been thinking and thinking about how to build connections…. I'm not so comfortable in groups of people, but there is nothing more peaceful than visiting with a bed of plants. They are people, too and they want to grow just like people do, and they need help, too. Just like us.
The thought of a community garden thrills me. The thought of a community garden made by, managed and sustaining 3,000 members scares the poison ivy out of me.
When I am trying to figure things out, I tend to fill my time with busi-work. Messychef cooking, or knitting or sewing or gardening- writing. I rent a small townhouse with a little yardette and gardenette and they are lovely, but not enough to sustain my need to figure out some questions knawing at me, so last year I asked a friend if I could work in her yard. I think I’ve overwritten about this. Well,the job is going swell. With money a problem- or lack thereof, I discovered ways to get plants at little or no expense.I sent out on a few neighborhood elists an offer to thin irises, daylilies, daffodils and liripe and got a good response. I discovered that if you hit the shopping centers at just the right time, you can save the plants used for landscaping from a frightful death by bringing along a pitchfork and taking them home when they are being traded out during the seasonal changes.
I’ve traded irises from my house for liripe from a work church friend’s house.
Now, a year into the project things are coming together. This one yard has had a ripple effect. There are plants all over this city from other places in town.
I offered to help a friend at work get her garden started, and now we meet almost weekly and have a wonderful time learning and planting. She is so delightful and willing to accomodate my short time. I mean, all this gardening is not like hiring a landscaping company. A middle aged arthritic woman cannot be compared with a team of workers with tillers. I come equipped with gloves, a pitchfork and short amount of time. These projects are being created one bit at a time.
Children in the preschool have been helpful, and an assistance person helped me once. At work, the maintenance crew helps me with the hose - It's a village. Truly.
I think we are also creating a community garden here at work church with a twist.
A year ago, the grounds were abound with greenery. With the brilliantly colorful idea of my boss, we welcomed spring with a church fronted with daffodils and crocuses that I put to bed in the Fall. The color brought about an awakening in some folks, and so I have been trying to keep the color coming along on the church grounds with the goal being to have something alive and looking good all seasons.
I visited one church member and saw the most beautiful purple blooming plant. I asked if I might thin them out, and move them around and she said very kindly, ‘Have at it. My yard is your yard.” Some of her purple plants are now under the dogwood tree.
Another has been bringing me vinca to add to the starter periwinkle around another tree.
A second friend noticed, and has offered to bring some as well.
Someone heard me mention Lenten rose, and said she’d bring some for me later in the season.
I traded irises with my front desk garden buddy and now we have some of hers and mine popping up like mad.
A member from home church opens her yard to friends, and I have visited her site many times. Work church is holding some of her plants.
I pass one member’s house on my way to work, and inquired about helping her thin her late blooming daffs and I brought her a bag of irises yesterday.
Our work church garden, as well as the other friends who let me piddle in their yards are all benefitting from neighbors’ nature. If that’s not building community, I don’t know what is.
Our community garden is not just one. It has rippled out and multiplied in many good directions.
Monday, November 10, 2008
AHM
I can tell fall is here in lots of ways... Nature's palate has shifted on the color wheel, for one. I want to hibernate, for another. I don't kick off the duvet in the night anymore and the cats are cuddling against me in bed without being coaxed.
The dark creeps in before I'm ready, and the morning sun has a chilled kick to it. The trees are beginning to do their strip tease and some are already naked and shivery. Fall is here.
The spider lilies tried to warn me a month ago with their red wispy fingery blooms, but I didn't want to do more than appreciate their beauty. I was in denial of the coming changes.
Pomegranites are in their prime right now, and that is a sure fire tasty sign that fall is not going anywhere . This year, pomegranites are the hot fruit, baby. They cure all, prevent what isn't even known yet and their nectar is available in lots of combinations of juices.
Many years ago, a very dear friend introduced us to a dish his mom made called, Ahm. She was from a far away culture, from another world.
We never knew how to spell it, so i made up the simple spelling and we've kept it. Ahm because it is Ahhhhhh and Ummmmmm all in one. The dish has pearled wheat, pecan halves, golden raisens and pomegranites in it with anise, the spice that resembles a licorice flavor.
As with any recipe, I've altered it over the years a little. The girls never liked the anise, so i cut it back until this year when I just didn't add it at all. The pearled wheat is sometimes substituted with bulghur but it isn't the same. Sometimes I put chopped pecans in instead of halves. Cranraisens or regular Little Miss Sunbeam raisins instead of golden. But to tell you the truth, Ahm is a simple, magical dish and substitutions don't do a thing for it. Aside from the anise, I rarely change the ingredients anymore.
The recipe is ancient, and has been in my friend's family for longer than he can say, and now we have made it a tradition in our own family- plus I've passed on this to my extended family as well. This year, two of my work pals were in my office, and suddenly one said, "Oh! pomegranites!! It's that time of year again! When will we have ahm???" I have to say that I just loved that. They both like it and my boss does too. I tell you, it is a magic potion.
There is a nice combination of TLC that goes into every batch. Comfort and calm, with a crisp burst of sweetness in every bite. The combination of the simple ingredients come together and mix around with each other and then suddenly a nectar is born. No kidding.
It's a love/hate thing. Most people either love it or don't care for it at all. It is chewy, but crunchy. Sweet and tart and it is fresh but feels like you are making an ancient connection somehow. Pomegranites have been around since Biblical times. I think that's neat.
When we first became spellbound by this delicious delicasy, we decided to add pomegranite plants to our backyard garden. We had plants shipped from Texas and they rooted well and settled right in with the cherries and apples and pears and kiwi. Fall came along, and we had 4 or 5 plants full of beautiful fruit. I entered one in the state fair and won first prize. The specimen was pretty amazing. The color was one that crayola has yet to create. The shape and size were in perfect sync. wow.
Problem was that the first freeze killed every blame one of them. NC just doesn't hold the heat long enough for the fruit to completely ripen. So close.... so close..... ugh.
Since that time, I look and buy in the stores. This year, I noticed the fruit is bigger than usual, and more readily available. I'm sure it is because of the health effects through marketing. I suspect in a few years we'll discover they've been genetically altered to give us the bigger and earlier availability, but until I know this, I'm buying and making and sharing. That's the best part. sharing.
Seeding the fruit takes a while. It is a very hands' on activity. I watched a great old movie and seeded 6 over the weekend. Steady working the seeds out is a calming activity for me. I'm sure to find pomegranite spots for days in random places. Lovely color, but the seeds are tricky. They spit quite a bit. Can you blame them? Working over a big bowl with some water in it helps. A soothing dish to make ......
Fingers don't absorb as much of the color as they do with strawberries, either. The hue is temporary.
I usually simmer the wheat while I'm working with the poms and after the wheat is the texture I like, i cool it in the colander and then it is just a matter of mix and store. It lasts about a week.
With the popularity of it around here, I'll be making another batch in a week or so. Fall is here. So say the pomegranites, anyway.
The dark creeps in before I'm ready, and the morning sun has a chilled kick to it. The trees are beginning to do their strip tease and some are already naked and shivery. Fall is here.
The spider lilies tried to warn me a month ago with their red wispy fingery blooms, but I didn't want to do more than appreciate their beauty. I was in denial of the coming changes.
Pomegranites are in their prime right now, and that is a sure fire tasty sign that fall is not going anywhere . This year, pomegranites are the hot fruit, baby. They cure all, prevent what isn't even known yet and their nectar is available in lots of combinations of juices.
Many years ago, a very dear friend introduced us to a dish his mom made called, Ahm. She was from a far away culture, from another world.
We never knew how to spell it, so i made up the simple spelling and we've kept it. Ahm because it is Ahhhhhh and Ummmmmm all in one. The dish has pearled wheat, pecan halves, golden raisens and pomegranites in it with anise, the spice that resembles a licorice flavor.
As with any recipe, I've altered it over the years a little. The girls never liked the anise, so i cut it back until this year when I just didn't add it at all. The pearled wheat is sometimes substituted with bulghur but it isn't the same. Sometimes I put chopped pecans in instead of halves. Cranraisens or regular Little Miss Sunbeam raisins instead of golden. But to tell you the truth, Ahm is a simple, magical dish and substitutions don't do a thing for it. Aside from the anise, I rarely change the ingredients anymore.
The recipe is ancient, and has been in my friend's family for longer than he can say, and now we have made it a tradition in our own family- plus I've passed on this to my extended family as well. This year, two of my work pals were in my office, and suddenly one said, "Oh! pomegranites!! It's that time of year again! When will we have ahm???" I have to say that I just loved that. They both like it and my boss does too. I tell you, it is a magic potion.
There is a nice combination of TLC that goes into every batch. Comfort and calm, with a crisp burst of sweetness in every bite. The combination of the simple ingredients come together and mix around with each other and then suddenly a nectar is born. No kidding.
It's a love/hate thing. Most people either love it or don't care for it at all. It is chewy, but crunchy. Sweet and tart and it is fresh but feels like you are making an ancient connection somehow. Pomegranites have been around since Biblical times. I think that's neat.
When we first became spellbound by this delicious delicasy, we decided to add pomegranite plants to our backyard garden. We had plants shipped from Texas and they rooted well and settled right in with the cherries and apples and pears and kiwi. Fall came along, and we had 4 or 5 plants full of beautiful fruit. I entered one in the state fair and won first prize. The specimen was pretty amazing. The color was one that crayola has yet to create. The shape and size were in perfect sync. wow.
Problem was that the first freeze killed every blame one of them. NC just doesn't hold the heat long enough for the fruit to completely ripen. So close.... so close..... ugh.
Since that time, I look and buy in the stores. This year, I noticed the fruit is bigger than usual, and more readily available. I'm sure it is because of the health effects through marketing. I suspect in a few years we'll discover they've been genetically altered to give us the bigger and earlier availability, but until I know this, I'm buying and making and sharing. That's the best part. sharing.
Seeding the fruit takes a while. It is a very hands' on activity. I watched a great old movie and seeded 6 over the weekend. Steady working the seeds out is a calming activity for me. I'm sure to find pomegranite spots for days in random places. Lovely color, but the seeds are tricky. They spit quite a bit. Can you blame them? Working over a big bowl with some water in it helps. A soothing dish to make ......
Fingers don't absorb as much of the color as they do with strawberries, either. The hue is temporary.
I usually simmer the wheat while I'm working with the poms and after the wheat is the texture I like, i cool it in the colander and then it is just a matter of mix and store. It lasts about a week.
With the popularity of it around here, I'll be making another batch in a week or so. Fall is here. So say the pomegranites, anyway.
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