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grumpygreenwitch · 4 years

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Summer Gardening.

So it’s been a while, and for that I apologize to the... 200+ people who follow me. I’m sure y’all are here for the cat pics and the nekked men, but TOO BAD. Today you get to suffer through pics of my green children. Also, I do share seed. My seed list link will be up later in the year. To begin with, the summer flowers are out en force:

Echinacea Purpurea, the original echinacea. I do save yearly seed from these guys, although it’s an incredibly pointy, stabby and bleed-y job.

Mountain Phlox. Unfortunately, all of it around the house is afflicted with powdery mildew, so I will not share seed. But it’s still pretty to look at, and the clearwings (hummingbird moths) love it. Not pictured is the white variant, who grows on the other side of the house. Look, it was hot and I was already melting.

Peppermint Balsam. This thing is basically indestructible, for an annual. It will reseed freely (to truly Lovecraftian levels) and blooms continuously from late spring until mid-fall, when the seed-pods set. There is a dormant genetic in it for double flowers, but when it pops up it’s always been sterile. It just pops up occasionally from the peppermint seed.

I may give the roommate hell over the hostas (I hate them. They’re so useful to protect toads and control weeds, but I hate them), but they do put out pretty flowers. There are several variants around the house - white-edged, blue and green, but hostas in general are very, very hard to start from seed. I will save it on request, only. We were also incredibly lucky to have a Moth Mullein sprout in our porch bed, along with some Variegated Solomon’s Seal.The SS doesn’t put out seeds, and I don’t have enough to share bulbs (yet), but the mullein has been exceptionally generous with seed pods, and it repels bugs. It repels ROACHES. It’s going everywhere. And I may be convinced to part with some seed.

Onward!

A view from a hill. Can you see the garden? That’s OK, I can’t either. Those are peach trees, on the side of the orchard closest to the house. Unfortunately a freak storm during early spring killed all the blossoms. Also, don’t mistake ‘orchard’ for ‘organized’. There’s a pear, some apples, a plum, some nectarines? And front and center are two walnuts. I’ll probably be plunking my laurel there to see if it survives winter. And someday when I have a job and money again, I would like to drop a few Chicago Hardy figs, and maybe a kiwi trellis.

This is the big garden (and fortunately not my responsibility, or I would cry). The guys are ‘handling’ it. The weeds say otherwise.

The jasmine tree and the roommate’s garden. Because of a bad back injury that refuses to heal, I’ve been helping them on and off with it. And if you thought jasmine was supposed to stay a delightful little bush, AHAHAHAHAH. Yes, that’s a light-post next to it. For size comparison.

MY CHILDREN. Please ignore the dead soccer ball. That’d be a dog toy.

Lemon balm, amaranth, and a new bed that I’ll be finishing off during fall, for use next year. The lemon balm is a permanent row - it will overwinter just fine, and it will even keep growing through the mildest part of December. Mine didn’t die back until a few solid days of sleet in January. Unfortunately the weed fabric under the amaranth turned out to be an old roll, and fell apart on me (no big, the whole point is for it to fall apart eventually), so the weeds have kinda eaten it alive.

Unfortunately, both cucumber beetles and blister beetles love the amaranth. Fortunately, it does not seem to give a damn. It’s an incredibly resilient plant, not minding weeds, bugs, flood or drought. We’ll see what the grain actually tastes like, but so far it’s looking like a good candidate for continuous growing.

The lemon balm is lemon-balming. Planted on a lark, it’s proven to be a fantastic wind-breaker - because it grows so early and so quick, it keeps the colder winds that come down through the hollow from my more fragile seedlings, like the lettuce, dill and cilantro. You can see here where the spent flower-heads are dying but there’s new growth underneath; I really have to get in there and behead it. It makes nice hot tea, meh cold tea, and hanging fresh bunches of it around the balcony keeps the skeeters off. It also seems to be a decoy for cabbage moths.

Canary Zinnia. The seed was sent to me as a gift with one of my seed orders, and this is my first year growing it. -If- I can save some, I’ll definitely be sharing and growing again. It’s a lovely plant, very sturdy, and the bees love it.

Dwarf Castor Oil. I don’t think there’s anything dwarf about it, but then I’m a short green witch myself, so maybe it’s all about perspective. Don’t let the pods lie to you, until they dry the spikes are relatively soft. However, it being castor oil, I don’t recommend it to anyone with ducks, chickens, goats, or anything that might accidentally try talking a nibble or pecking at the beans. I do, however, recommend them from jewelry if you know how to pierce things and so on. They are a gorgeous tiger-stripe pattern.

Say hello to the chard! Say goodbye to the chard! Nothing else, absolutely nothing else since the limas, has given me so much trouble. The deer love getting into my chard bed and destroying it (ergo all the forks). And once I managed to chase those off, the blister beetles showed up in force. This will be the last year I grow it - we just don’t eat enough of it to make it worth my while, and it only occasionally sold at the Farmers’ Market.

Red lettuce - Merlot and Lollo Vino, a combination of bought and saved seed. I planted a red romaine of some sort, too, but unsurprisingly it bolted in the heat. The darker reds of my favorites, though, keep bugs off them, keep deer from noticing them, and keep them from bolting. It’s just now threatening to, and at this point its kind of allowed. I need more seed for next year. Seed for this will likely be shared by the teaspoon-ful.

Calendula! I searched for a long time to find the plain ol’ calendula officinalis ancestor, rather than a cultivar where I would have no way of knowing if the medicinal principles would have been sacrificed for looks. It’s supposed to work well as poor man’s saffron (color, no taste), and I’m going to be soaking the heck outta my feet on it during winter. The plant is... not pretty. It gets leggy and the leaves get grotty very quickly. But it’s very sturdy and as long as you cut the flowerheads off as fast as you can, it’ll keep blooming until well into winter. I usually leave it to go to seed around late September.

Green cilantro seeds. You pick ‘em when they’re brown, but before they drop off the plant. Or you pick ‘em when they’re brown-ing, and put them in a paper bag so they’ll finish ripening there and you don’t end up with fifty wild cilantro plants in your garden >_> Most of the row is already gone, and I’ll be putting in a late dill crop in its place. No such thing as too much dill!

Don’t let lemongrass lie to you. Unless you tie it up, it will not grow up neat and tidy, as most grass does. Instead it will sprawl like a dramatic wilting Elizabethan lady and do its best to end up under your feet so you’ll feel bad about it. I just tie it up with a half-blade of grass; it dries up and withers away before it can hurt the plant.

I ordered pennyroyal seed because... Well, because it’s something one should have on hand, considering the way the world is going. What I got was Creeping Pennyroyal, which doesn’t care if you step on it (mint family), smells absolutely delightful, and has the most adorable, tiny purple flowers. I plan on harvesting, drying and sprinkling it everywhere in the crawlspace under the house. Making war on cave crickets, wood roaches, and other such sundries, me.

The thyme and Spicy Oregano took a beating in the heat, but they’re slowly bouncing back. The bed behind them is more pennyroyal, desperately in need of weeding, but there’s only one of me, y’know.

SIGH. Just. You absolute, ill-mannered monster of a creature. That would be horseradish, gloriously happy to be alive, as horseradish should be. Also, NOT IN ITS BASKET. Because never mind the rules, I guess.

I don’t even know how I’m gonna dig that up come winter. With some construction equipment, I GUESS.

Decorative gourd! It’s the only one producing so far, but being the seed was 10+ years old, I’m very pleased.

And an apple gourd (I think?), from a mixture of drying gourds that was only slightly less ancient. Snake, apple and birdhouse gourds. There’s a bunch of them competing in the basket at this point, we’ll see what we will see.

And this, I think, is a great use of a dead canopy frame (the dogs ate the canopy. No, I’m not making it up.) I hope to coax the gourds to grow me a lil’ roof so I can sit in shade, surrounded by pennyroyal anti-skeeter barriers, eating my maters.

My Peter Peppers (nrehehehehe) aren’t producing yet - it takes them a while. But my Chinese 5-Color are getting started. It’s a lovely pepper, both edible and ornamental, with (so I’m told) about four times the heat of a Jalapeno. They’re tiny, with deep purple undertones to the plant. They’ll go purple-white-yellow-orange-red.

The bullhorns, on the other hand, are fairly sizable SWEET peppers on very tiny plants, and I honestly suggest staking them while they’re young so they grow a sturdy trunk, else you might end up with all of them growing at a slant.They’re just now beginning to turn colors. Keeping in mind I’m virulently allergic to peppers (less so sweet than hot, but allergic to all of them), the roommate loves ‘em.

It’s a small pepper bed - mainly to refresh my seed on the hots, and to grow sweets for the roommate. Pardon the nekked bed, the autumn lettuce hasn’t sprouted yet. And yes, that’s a mixed basil/dill bed next to it. My basil grew in patchy holes (NEVER buying from those seed people again), so I filled the holes with dill. Unfortunately, dill seed heads are so fine that they’re hard to photograph well.

The tomato row. After arguing with them for this long, I went the extra mile. Every plant has a metal stake. There’s also a double line growing at the top supporting the stakes so they don’t fall over. And they still fell over. Because why not, you unruly children, why not.

Green, white, pink and brown cherry tomatoes. Delicious!

Two kinds of cucumbers, some of the only decent shots of the dill seed-heads, and a special guest hiding in the shade. I usually plant dill as soon as the cucumber sprouts, to keep cucumber beetles off it. Otherwise I’d have no cucumbers and a lot of fat beetles.

The Muncher is a small cucumber, somewhat delicate. It’s very sensitive to temperature changes, and it’s candy to cucumber beetles - basically, it’s impossible to grow it without a heavy curtain of dill, or a heavy duty decoy. This year I got lucky enough to have both. It’s also delicious pickled, keeping its crunch and getting a good ooomph in flavor.

The Japanese Long is, as the name implies, long. It’s also incredibly bitey, and absolutely scrumptious. It’s sweet! And unlike the average cucumber, it does not go metallic when salted.

And now for the SPECIAL CHILD OF MY HEART. Seriously. I have been lusting after Blue Tea Peas since I first saw them offered, and every single time they’d be sold out pretty much the day of. This year I finally got some and... remember me mentioning that freak freeze that killed the peach blossoms? Yeah. Guess what it also killed. But two plants soldiered on. I have them heavily shielded by the cucumbers, dill and chamomile, and really I have no words for the blue. Pics don’t do it justice. I won’t have the tea this year, I’m saving as much seed as I can, but I am so pleased to have it at all!

Last, but not least, and it’s a poor shot of it, the chamomile. I cannot drink chamomile to sleep - it does put me to sleep, but it also gives me bad dreams. I plan on using it as a skin wash for all the bug bites, along with the calendula, and to give me some respite from dry skin during winter.

Stay green! See you in fall! Now back to our normal schedule of frogs, cats and nekked men!

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emorganh98 · 6 years

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Appendices

Appendix A

Interview questions with Chelsea Rice on 5/27/18:

How do sales differ from season to season?

What emotional or visible changes do you see between life outside vs. life in the store?

What are some of your feelings about flowers and the world?

Any meaningful stories that have happened in the store?

What emotions do you associate with flowers? Are there noticeable emotions that you see when people are in your shop?

How did you get involved with flowers originally?

How do you see price affect the purchase of different flowers?

Do you market based on seasonal holidays or seasonal flowers? Why?

What is a flower that is important to your culture? Why?

Appendix B

Observational Notes 05/15/2018:

NAGEL DINING HALL: 11:00 am - 12:00 pm

The photo to the right shows the display that I put out on the check-out stand. The text says:

The Lupine ~ Voraciousness & Imagination

Miss Rumphius by Barbra Cooney

“Lupines. Now they call her the Lupine Lady. Sometimes my friends stand with me outside her gate, curious to see the old, old lady who planted the fields of lupines… ‘When I grow up,’ I tell her, ‘I too will go to faraway places and come home to live by the sea.’ ‘That is all very well, little Alice,’ says my aunt. ‘but there is a third thing you must do.’ What is that? I ask her. ‘You must do something to make the world more beautiful.’”

And the box says take one, leaving it up to the viewer to take a paper or a flower or both or even not to take one. I sat in the corner and observed the different reactions of people.

ll of the available tables inside are full. 71 degrees right now, and 50% of the outdoor tables are full. There is fluctuating line at the register as of 11:05.

Staff to patron ratio: 8:30

11:30 From where I am sitting I do not hear any music. No predominant smell. Taste: I ate a salad, it tasted like water. Tables and general area is pretty clean.

There is a girl picking her teeth which is pretty gross. Only two people eating alone, they don't seem to be uncomfortable… I got chips, the people checking out are nice /friendly… I am in an indoor environment, so there are no naturally occurring flowers around me except those that I have laid out.

2:45 less people by more than half.

What surprised me? That approximately 75% of the people just walked by the flowers without even noticing them. They are in a completely unnatural environment, so they stood out especially because of the bright box they were in.

What intrigued me? How quickly the amount of people changed in the eating area!! In only 30 min. For the people who did stop to look at the flowers or take one without saying anything or having a visible reaction, I would have liked to know what they were thinking.

What disturbed me? tHe girl picking her teeth & my watery salad. The one person who rolled there eyes, who does that to flowers...?

Here are some quotes that I picked up on:

« i lové lilacs, i have a new lilac bush in my house »

« this is so sweet « smiles « who did this »

"i want to read this book"

75% walk by without looking

people take read and smile

smiles and nods « look at this cute message « 100 percent of ppl who have taken them have been girls

five people around it all talking about it... some start talking about their favorite flowers

one person rolled their eyes

miss suzie came and said that this is the sweetest thing she’s ever seen and that she would parade me around her family

the one guys stopped to smell the lilacs

one girl took a flower and put it behind her ear while she was eating

I wonder if there would be a different reaction if the bouquet was bigger or if i actually had lupines

Appendix C

Survey Results:

Q1:

Q2:

Q3: What is a flower that is important to your culture? Why?

The rose exemplifies untamed beauty and grace

5/29/2018 2:16 PM

orchid

5/29/2018 12:24 PM

Trinitaria, brings color to life

5/29/2018 11:52 AM

Roses, as an expression of love

5/23/2018 11:44 AM

Rose - love

5/23/2018 11:10 AM

I dont have just one culture?

5/21/2018 9:09 PM

Lilies. In our culture this flower represent unity and sympathy for our families and friends.

5/20/2018 6:02 PM

draniaums idk how to spell- reminds me of America and home

5/20/2018 4:17 PM

Roses. I don’t think that it is specific to my American culture, but I think the social culture of our time has made roses a symbol of romance.

5/17/2018 3:23 PM

Rose. I grew up going to the rose garden in Portland. Lots of memories

5/17/2018 2:36 PM

Roses because many people get them on special occasions like Valentines Day.

5/15/2018 5:59 AM

White lilly: French language symbol and spring (my favorite season.

5/14/2018 4:38 AM

No flower is important to my culture

5/12/2018 5:13 PM

5/12/2018 11:12 AM

Snapdragons. Easy to grow in my climate.

5/11/2018 11:58 PM

Tulip. I grew up in the Netherlands and one of my grandmothers loved them

5/11/2018 9:55 PM

Sunflower. Midwest United States they grow.

5/11/2018 9:52 PM

/Sunflower

5/11/2018 9:50 PM

Cherokee rose, Cherokee legend says that if a baby died on the trail of tears, a flower would grow where the mothers tears fell to the ground

5/11/2018 2:07 PM

I’ve never associated a flower to my cultural background, but Tulips were a flower grown close to where I grew up in WA which impacted part of the economy there

5/11/2018 1:52 PM

silver rose , because it’s really beautiful and i like it

5/11/2018 11:45 AM

The King Protea. It is a symbol for change and transformation.

5/11/2018 10:53 AM

Can't name just one.

5/11/2018 9:42 AM

I think roses are important to my culture as they symbolize important life events (marriage, funerals)

5/11/2018 9:32 AM

Forget me not-recognizes the Armenian genocide

5/11/2018 8:06 AM

Lilac. It was a flower on our farm growing up.

5/11/2018 7:42 AM

Not really important to my culture, but roses are more of a traditional favorite when givng and receiving flowers as a gift.

5/11/2018 7:39 AM

5/11/2018 6:22 AM

None

5/11/2018 5:41 AM

Poppies. Because they often grow in the south of Spain. A famous song called 'Amapola' was written about this flower in the 1920s.

5/11/2018 4:43 AM

Pansy

5/11/2018 3:20 AM

Orange blossom as we put it in a many traditional beverages

5/11/2018 3:01 AM

Lilac - familial significance

5/11/2018 12:53 AM

Not sure that a specific flower has more importance than any other

5/11/2018 12:36 AM

Trillium as it’s the official flower of the province of Ontario and it’s endangered.

5/11/2018 12:13 AM

Calla Lillies. In Mexican Art, famous painter Diego Rivera has painted many paintings using calla lillies. Due to this fact, they have become well known and a respected part of Mexican culture.

5/10/2018 11:22 PM

White Lillie’s- for funerals

5/10/2018 10:52 PM

Sunflower, because sunflower seeds are the backbone of America's favorite pastime, baseball.

5/10/2018 10:44 PM

Gardenia reminds me of home - always had them when walking into our home on front porch area

5/10/2018 9:25 PM

Roses. Represent love, friendship, celebrations.

5/10/2018 9:17 PM

Red roses, symbolize love

5/10/2018 9:12 PM

Iris. My great grandmother had acres of them and when she passed, my grandma dug several bulbs up and transported them to AZ. I’ve then taken cuts from my grandmother’s garden!

5/10/2018 9:02 PM

nomad, so many

5/10/2018 8:03 PM

The culture I grew up in inside my household really never had much to do with flowers. However, my family is Argentine and the national flower of Argentina is the Erythrina so I guess that would be the most important flower of my culture.

5/10/2018 7:29 PM

Carnations because the last the longest.

5/10/2018 6:57 PM

The Indian blanket flower. It's the state flower where I live.

5/10/2018 6:10 PM

Roses. They were part of a miracle that happened in Mexico in the 1500’s when a native was visited by the virgen Mary. She ordered him to go pick up roses from the hill (which at that time there were no roses since it was not the right season for them). He went anyway and found the most amazing roses he had ever seen. He put them in his cloak and took them to the bishop. There, he showed him the roses and an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe had been imprinted in his cloak.

5/10/2018 5:50 PM

Symbol of love and appreciation

5/10/2018 5:36 PM

Rose for weddings

5/10/2018 5:22 PM

None

5/10/2018 5:10 PM

Dandelion. There is no better bouquet for a mother than one picked every spring!

5/10/2018 5:05 PM

Cactus blossom, native flower.

5/10/2018 4:42 PM

Rose because we make rose sented water to use as natural medicine

5/10/2018 4:31 PM

N/A

5/10/2018 4:29 PM

Rose. Associated with love.

5/10/2018 4:28 PM

In the sense of a culture of a nomadic military family- all flowers are important- from every region, worldwide. They symbolize the importance of blooming where you are planted and appreciating the beauty found in diversity

5/10/2018 4:17 PM

None

5/10/2018 4:01 PM

Roses because I always received them for my birthday

5/9/2018 7:53 AM

Rose because there is a special type that is native to the African continent

5/8/2018 11:53 PM

I would have to say Roses because they are seen as elegant and a gift to women as a romantic gesture from men.

5/7/2018 9:16 PM

Strawflowers are used in decorating in Sweeden and Norway. The winters are harsh and not many flowers are common there.

5/7/2018 8:26 PM

Roses. My country is a big transport for Rose scent. It's also a big part of my childhood memories. They're generally pink roses with small pedals. My country also has a huge Rose festival each year.

5/7/2018 6:15 PM

amapola flower

5/7/2018 9:41 AM

The poppy because we remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty.

5/7/2018 8:59 AM

Girasoli (sunflowers) Italian regions such as Tuscany are well-known for growing sunflowers and are representative of happiness, peacefulness etc.

5/7/2018 8:02 AM

The lily because of its use in Imagine Me and You

5/7/2018 6:24 AM

Roses. Each color represents/communicates a different emotions/message: Love, friendship, innocence, gratitude.

5/7/2018 2:41 AM

Roses

5/7/2018 12:40 AM

Rose, symbolizes love in my family.

5/7/2018 12:30 AM

The Columbine is the Colorado State flower

5/6/2018 10:34 PM

Tulip and it represents happiness

5/6/2018 9:35 PM

Not sure

5/6/2018 9:29 PM

Hydrangeas are my favorite flower. They aren’t necessarily important to my culture we’re my grandmothers favorite as well as my moms and now they are my favorite as well as my sisters. They are important to my family.

5/6/2018 9:21 PM

The rose because of its intimate use in Western culture

5/6/2018 9:13 PM

Maga flower

5/6/2018 9:12 PM

Idk

5/6/2018 9:07 PM

Naked man orchid (orchis italica) because

5/6/2018 9:06 PM

I don’t know Elise I’m sorry I’m allergic to flowers so I don’t get a lot of them

5/6/2018 9:05 PM

Most people think roses are pretty neat. I don’t know why though cuz they’re average at best.

5/6/2018 9:03 PM

Sunflower because I said so

5/6/2018 9:02 PM

Q4: If you were buying flowers for yourself, what would they be? Why?

Tulip. It’s may favorite flower

5/29/2018 2:16 PM

orchids

5/29/2018 12:24 PM

Roses of different colors, delicate and a sense of elegancy

5/29/2018 11:52 AM

Any flowers, so that I could plant them and see them grow

5/23/2018 11:44 AM

Daisies

5/23/2018 11:10 AM

Whatever is the prettiest

5/21/2018 9:09 PM

White rose. It bring smile to my face and brighten up my day. No matter how bad and tiring my day was, just by looking at this flower bring peace to my heart.

5/20/2018 6:02 PM

hmm probably like a bunch of different ones like a bouquet because i like assortment

5/20/2018 4:17 PM

Roses, I love the color and the way they look.

5/17/2018 3:23 PM

Any type. I can't choose. I like almost all flowers

5/17/2018 2:36 PM

Lilies because they remind me of the love of my life.

5/15/2018 5:59 AM

Simple bouquet with lots of daisies...they last longer and are colourful.

5/14/2018 4:38 AM

Bright colored. I like almost all flowers. They bring beauty to my space.

5/12/2018 5:13 PM

Mixed flowers because I like variety and color.

5/12/2018 11:21 AM

Red rose because of their color and beautiful aroma

5/12/2018 11:12 AM

Daisy. Love the color

5/11/2018 11:58 PM

Tulips and daisys. They just make me happy

5/11/2018 9:55 PM

Sunflowers. I like them.

5/11/2018 9:52 PM

Colors colors colors! Happy happy happy!

5/11/2018 9:50 PM

Anything light and happy

5/11/2018 2:07 PM

Peonies. I love their large blossoms. They’re also special to me because they were in my wedding bouquet

5/11/2018 1:52 PM

rainbow rose

5/11/2018 11:45 AM

Primrose. They have a strong scent and are easy to maintain.

5/11/2018 10:53 AM

The only flowers I buy for myself are daffodils. They remind me of where we used to live.

5/11/2018 9:42 AM

I would buy myself orchids because I think they are very simplistic but very beautiful.

5/11/2018 9:32 AM

Sunflowers. The live a long time.

5/11/2018 8:06 AM

Orchid. Reminds me of being overseas all my life.

5/11/2018 7:42 AM

Peonies or hydrangeas - because they seem extravagant and I'm worth it!

5/11/2018 7:39 AM

Sterling Silver roses - favorite color, favorite flower

5/11/2018 6:22 AM

White roses. Classy.

5/11/2018 5:41 AM

I never buy flowers for myself.

5/11/2018 4:57 AM

Daisies, daffodils or jasmine flowers. Because they are all white and smell fresh, so they would lighten up the atmosphere of my home and give it a summery feeling.

5/11/2018 4:43 AM

Tulips

5/11/2018 3:20 AM

Roses with a few irises because their combination gives an incredible smell

5/11/2018 3:01 AM

Roses not because they’re my first choice but the best option for the money. And they’re beautiful. Roses

5/11/2018 2:43 AM

Sunflowers - happy and bright

5/11/2018 12:53 AM

Lilacs because the smell so good

5/11/2018 12:36 AM

Yellow tulips. They make me happy.

5/11/2018 12:13 AM

Sunflowers. They, along with tulips, are my favorite flower. They remind me of happiness and everything that is right with the world.

5/10/2018 11:22 PM

Wildflower mix...all natural and local

5/10/2018 10:52 PM

Peonies, they are pretty

5/10/2018 10:44 PM

Tulips or peonys

5/10/2018 9:25 PM

gerber daisy - makes me happy

5/10/2018 9:17 PM

Yellow tulips, memories

5/10/2018 9:12 PM

Sunflowers. They’re happy and sturdy.

5/10/2018 9:02 PM

lupines, because of miss rumphius

5/10/2018 8:03 PM

Random buque of flowers from a street vendor. Don’t go out of my way to buy a certain type of flower.

5/10/2018 7:29 PM

Mixed bouquet. They brighten any room.

5/10/2018 6:57 PM

variety bouquet w/ roses, sunflowers, baby’s breadth, lily because the variety of shape and colors

5/10/2018 6:47 PM

They would be sunflowers. I love the color.

5/10/2018 6:10 PM

Roses and anything else that looks pretty at the time.

5/10/2018 5:50 PM

A mix of everything because I love picking color combination

5/10/2018 5:36 PM

Roses, smell lovely

5/10/2018 5:22 PM

roses

5/10/2018 5:10 PM

Lilies because I enjoy the fragrance and beauty. They also last a good while.

5/10/2018 5:10 PM

Tulips. They are a sign of new life in spring.

5/10/2018 5:05 PM

Peonys because they are so beautiful and they’re my favorite

5/10/2018 4:49 PM

Carnations, they smell good and last forever.

5/10/2018 4:42 PM

Rose because my mom likes them

5/10/2018 4:31 PM

Anything very colorful

5/10/2018 4:29 PM

They would be simple tulips that are relatively cheap because flowers are beautiful but I'm not trying to go broke

5/10/2018 4:28 PM

Tulips. They just make me happy. The multicolored flowers are lovely at every stage- they are just as beautiful when standing tall at attention -with the petals tightly huddled together- as they are when they reveal their faces to the world, and they are still beautiful when they descend in a bow and collapse over the vase.

5/10/2018 4:17 PM

A rose because they look beautiful and i love their smell

5/10/2018 4:01 PM

Very colorful and not too expensive

5/9/2018 7:53 AM

Tulips because they’re so frickin cute!

5/8/2018 11:53 PM

I do not buy flowers for myself

5/7/2018 9:16 PM

An assortment of many different flowers, they will brighten up my day and usually last longer than roses.

5/7/2018 8:26 PM

Gladiolus. Its named after the gladiators, it is given with the meaning of strength and to not give up for freedom. It's encouraging.

5/7/2018 6:15 PM

Sunflowers

5/7/2018 9:41 AM

A bouquet of roses because I think they are beautiful.

5/7/2018 8:59 AM

Peonies because of their intricacy and delicacy.

5/7/2018 8:02 AM

Rose because I like them

5/7/2018 6:24 AM

I would buy the most colorful of the options. It would depend on the event, the season and what was available at the time. Roses with Baby's Breath always work.

5/7/2018 2:41 AM

Peonies

5/7/2018 12:40 AM

Daisies because they are so simple but so pretty.

5/7/2018 12:30 AM

Peonies

5/6/2018 10:34 PM

Peonies. They remind me of my aunts garden

5/6/2018 9:56 PM

Sunflowers because they’re nice

5/6/2018 9:35 PM

Roses , because they’re elegant and beautiful

5/6/2018 9:29 PM

Hydrangeas

5/6/2018 9:21 PM

Anything colorful

5/6/2018 9:13 PM

Tulips bc they are my moms favorites and they remind me of her

5/6/2018 9:12 PM

The candy ones because candy is cool

5/6/2018 9:06 PM

Colorful ones

5/6/2018 9:05 PM

I’m a dude. I wouldn’t.

5/6/2018 9:03 PM

Sunflowers because I love sunflowers

5/6/2018 9:02 PM

Q5: If you were buying flowers for your significant other what would they be? Why would they be different?

A rose. As stated previously a rose has more cultural significance than my personal preference

5/29/2018 2:16 PM

rose

5/29/2018 12:24 PM

They would be the same

5/29/2018 11:52 AM

Roses as expression of love. Tea. Roses were flowers I used to grow many years ago.

5/23/2018 11:44 AM

Roses because they express love

5/23/2018 11:10 AM

whatever I knew they liked

5/21/2018 9:09 PM

It would be lilies. This flower help me express the unity and the trust I have for this person.

5/20/2018 6:02 PMV

pink roses-- my gf likes pink roses

5/20/2018 4:17 PM

Roses. I just really like roses.

5/17/2018 3:23 PM

Any colorful type.

5/17/2018 2:36 PM

It would actually depends on the occasion. Something with roses and lillies because it makes more of an impact.

5/14/2018 4:38 AM

No difference. I buy whatever strikes my fancy and looks fresh.

5/12/2018 5:13 PM

Something significant to the occasion or a flower I knew was their favorite.

5/12/2018 11:21 AM

Roses

5/12/2018 11:12 AM

Daisy.

5/11/2018 11:58 PM

I’m not sure. But something that would exemplify strength

5/11/2018 9:55 PM

Whatever was their favorite becAuse the flowers would be for them.

5/11/2018 9:52 PM

Same

5/11/2018 9:50 PM

Roses as they symbolize love

5/11/2018 2:07 PM

It depends who I’m buying for. Sunflowers for my mother because they make her happy. Orchids for my sister because she likes easy-to-care for plants

5/11/2018 1:52 PM

purple rose

5/11/2018 11:45 AM

Roses. This is due to them being associated with romance.

5/11/2018 10:53 AM

I would buy them tulips because they are easy tot air care of and not hard for them to take care of.

5/11/2018 9:32 AM

I’d buy the same ones

5/11/2018 8:06 AM

Orchid

5/11/2018 7:42 AM

Probably roses, because they symbolize love.

5/11/2018 7:39 AM

Would not buy him flowers, he doesn’t appreciate them

5/11/2018 6:22 AM

The same as mine. Simplicity.

5/11/2018 5:41 AM

I’d buy flowers that they would like, so the type depends on who my s.o. would be.

5/11/2018 4:57 AM

I would probably buy roses, because they are symbolic of romantic love.

5/11/2018 4:43 AM

Pansy

5/11/2018 3:20 AM

Roses because they show love

5/11/2018 3:01 AM

Roses

5/11/2018 2:43 AM

Carnations - last longer

5/11/2018 12:53 AM

Roses were his favorite

5/11/2018 12:36 AM

Lysantheum—either white or violet—because they’re my second favourite and it’s all about me.

5/11/2018 12:13 AM

They would either be sunflowers or whatever the other person prefers, if I knew what that was. It’s always nice to surprise people with flowers that they love knowing it’ll brighten their day.

5/10/2018 11:22 PM

Wildflower mix

5/10/2018 10:52 PM

Honestly I don't know much about flowers

5/10/2018 10:44 PM

Spouse likes roses

5/10/2018 9:25 PM

Would not buy flowers for my husband

5/10/2018 9:17 PM

Bird of paradise, husband's favorite

5/10/2018 9:12 PM

Orchid. They’re dainty and require effort, just like a relationship.

5/10/2018 9:02 PM

lupines as well

5/10/2018 8:03 PM

Roses or buques from street vendors are usually the go-to’s

5/10/2018 7:29 PM

Their favorite because it shows that you care about them.

5/10/2018 6:57 PM

Roses, classic appreciation gift.

5/10/2018 6:47 PM

They would probably be roses. Who doesn't like roses?

5/10/2018 6:10 PM

I don’t know much about flowers so I just get a bouquet that looks pretty.

5/10/2018 5:50 PM

Probably less pink

5/10/2018 5:36 PM

Like beautifully arranged bouquets

5/10/2018 5:22 PM

roses

5/10/2018 5:10 PM

I only buy flowers for my Mother and she loves carnations because they stay nice for couple of weeks.

5/10/2018 5:10 PM

I would not buy flowers for my husband.

5/10/2018 5:05 PM

Probably roses because they are deemed more romantic

5/10/2018 4:49 PM

Roses because he likes them.

5/10/2018 4:42 PM

I would buy roses because my mom likes them

5/10/2018 4:31 PM

Anything colorful

5/10/2018 4:29 PM

I would be an arrangement for my mom, particularly anything purple, because flowers are special and that's her favorite color

5/10/2018 4:28 PM

I would try to find out what flower they love- and bring the ones that make them smile.

5/10/2018 4:17 PM

A rose too because its romantic

5/10/2018 4:01 PM

They would be that persons favorite flower, not mine

5/9/2018 7:53 AM

Tulips because I like them so much

5/8/2018 11:53 PM

I would buy an assortment of different flowers, maybe ones that smell good

5/7/2018 9:16 PM

If I don't know their favorite, I would choose something I liked.

5/7/2018 8:26 PM

Gardenia

5/7/2018 6:15 PM

Roses

5/7/2018 9:41 AM

For my mom I would buy her tulips.

5/7/2018 8:59 AM

White orchids because of their timelessness.

5/7/2018 8:02 AM

The rose or lily

5/7/2018 6:24 AM

Roses or daisies. It would depend on the occasion.

5/7/2018 2:41 AM

Rose

5/7/2018 12:40 AM

Roses, because to me, they symbolize love.

5/7/2018 12:30 AM

Lavender because he really likes the smell of lavender

5/6/2018 10:34 PM

Roses and sunflowers, I think they are drastically different but somehow look beautiful together which is cool to me

5/6/2018 9:56 PM

A mix of roses and sunflowers

5/6/2018 9:35 PM

I’d buy roses as well

5/6/2018 9:29 PM

I would try and get their favorite flowers if I knew them, but if I didn’t know i would probably get roses.

5/6/2018 9:21 PM

I would get whatever I knew she liked regardless of my personal feelings

5/6/2018 9:13 PM

I have no idea

5/6/2018 9:12 PM

Rose

5/6/2018 9:07 PM

Something cheap

5/6/2018 9:06 PM

It would be ones I knew they liked

5/6/2018 9:05 PM

What ever is cheapest cuz we ballin on a budget

5/6/2018 9:03 PM

Yes they would be more assortment and I would pick them myself

5/6/2018 9:02 PM

Q6:��

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thomasreedtn · 7 years

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Garden Update: Late Summer Colors, Crops, Kundalini and Moldavite

I’ve been waiting for the asters to bloom before putting up a new garden update. Finally, they did this weekend! Last Friday brought such chilly temperatures that I actually needed to turn on the cozy fire while writing in my morning journal:

Those cold temps meant one struggling tomato plant gave up the ghost and got replaced by more chard, spinach and golden beet seeds. The lettuce I planted a couple weeks ago is also enjoying the cooler weather — good thing, too, because all my other lettuce has gone to seed!

In addition to those glorious mums, the nasturtiums have filled their beds with gorgeous hints of autumn:

The impatiens look so much happier with some cooler days, as well. You can see them here next to more mature beet greens and some parsley. It’s been a bumper summer for parsley! I’ll need to figure out how best to freeze herbs, because the parsley this year has gone gangbusters.

The lone Autumn Beauty sunflower stowaway from Goshen so wants to bloom, but continues its shyness even today:

When it finally does bloom, I think it will match that purple maple, with hints of red, as well. The asters finally bloomed, so I have high hopes for this sunflower, visible right from the front window, too.

Wildlife continues around here, but I’m happy to report no groundhogs. The day I posted about the cat napping with me on the back porch, the larger groundhog, Kalamazoo Kal, reappeared after 10 days of no show. At first he just ate clover, and I thought, “Oh, should I just let him nibble?” Just at that moment, he glanced up and apparently noticed the backyard hostas for the first time ever. I could literally hear him think, “Hostas!!!! Yum!” and he immediately ran faster than you’d think a groundhog could run, directly towards the hostas, right under our back window.

And so, Kalamazoo Kal got the boot. Or in this case the window. I opened and closed the window, and he dashed away, never to be seen again. The cat came back the next day, and this morning I noticed we have a second, smaller kitty patrol for the days when my black and white friend makes rounds elsewhere. In any case, I’m happy to report that the pepper and coreopsis plants Kal had previously decimated have both recovered enough to fruit and/or flower:

That hummingbird mint above is also true to its name: I saw a hummingbird on Friday, as well as an eagle high above a native plant garden across the street. I also heard an owl land on our roof right above me last week, along with frequent flyovers of crows, hawks and geese. No shortage of wildlife here!

The front yard garden temporarily attracted a young bunny, but Ms. Rabbit got a little too aggressive with my tomatoes. Really?! Just one bite out of five of them? Gross. Soooo, I asked the cat to scent the front garden again, and I’ve not seen anymore damage to my crops. The bunnies are welcome to nibble on dandelions and chew down the grasses that I really need to weed out of the vinca/strawberry/thyme/clover beds. Really, have at it on the weedy ground! I just draw the line at sampling my tomatoes to the point of un-usability. Our counter currently has about 20 green ones pre-harvested just so we get some.

In any case, life continues transitioning from late summer into fall. The air feels crisp, and the backyard pots have sprouts of arugula, chard and lettuce, too. Garlic season approaches, along with daffodils, ornamental alliums, more irises, day lilies and fritillaria. I’m not entirely sure how I’ll get those hundreds of bulbs planted. In addition to the groundhog guidance to grow a smaller garden, a bizarre injury/kundalini expansion/magical discipline has reined in my normally huge garden ambitions and “forced” me to get a jump start on major research for future novels. It’s a neck injury, but it expresses as pain in my higher dimensional heart chakra.

I’m fine, so long as I avoid three particular motions, all of which get used frequently when gardening. Meanwhile, I can work out on exercise equipment in our basement with no problem, walk around the neighborhood with no issues, and do anything related to writing. If I get over-ambitious with the gardening, though, whammo! I get a huge ahem from my neck and chest. My chiropractor friend tells me that it’s a deep tissue injury that normally would be causing a lot more issues than it is. I attribute the minimal impact to the HUGE transition this move has been and continues to be for us.

David and I had set very clear intentions of how our lives would shift. I even made sigils to encode and support those intentions, and the level of guidance and synchronicities during this whole process have been off the charts, including all the shamanic gardening experiences. We are still in process of a great sea change. Anything I do moving in the new direction feels fine, strong, supported. Anytime I make a habitual turn towards something lovely that no longer serves a purpose in our lives, the “injury” stops me in my tracks.

I can feel my higher heart chakra — the area between the usual heart chakra and throat chakra — getting a complete reboot. In fact, the main thing that provides relief is wearing moldavite, a potent stone I also needed to wear for several months straight after a kundalini “injury” to my sacrum back in 2010, when I was also making a huge life change after my divorce but pre-David. I was painting portal doors in Chicago then, and our recent move feels like another huge revelation of how those doors have opened to real life. My biggest shift seems to be from urban farming to kitchen gardening, transitioning all the newly available time and energy towards research and writing.

I’ll share more some other time, as I’m also in the midst of some yet to be determined physical changes, including appearance. In one of those winks from above, my “injury” has forced David and me to switch sides of the bed, which means I literally wake up on the other side of the bed each day. From big to seemingly insignificant but symbolic shifts, we both feel carried along by change that flows steadily, though incrementally on. Whenever we catch our breaths, we realize just how fast the water’s moving and feel ever so grateful for this journey!

Blessed Be … and be the blessing.

from Thomas Reed https://laurabruno.wordpress.com/2017/08/28/garden-update-late-summer-colors-crops-kundalini-and-moldavite/

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