Garden Dream

The night I blogged about "why do I plant a veggie garden?", I dreamt I was leading a garden group (kids and adults).  It was the 1st day and I was expecting an intimate group of 9 and found myself before 15-20 students.  We did all the exercises about "What is a Garden?" like,
    close your eyes and think about a garden-- what do you see?
    notice as you walk along what vegetation combinations please you.
    get down on the ground and look at an 8"X10" plot-- what does it look like?

What I remember most about the dream, was how excited I was to introduce these people to gardening.

Once, when I was doing a holodynamic tracking, I was tracking - why I had a disconnect with my veggie garden in MA.  Turns out it was about not being grounded.  Hanging out with the animals and spinning wool are two activities that help me get grounded these days.

I think EVERYONE should have a garden or gardens.  I recently overheard a young boy proudly telling some people about his garden.  His favorite crop was his pumpkins and they were already, by his hand gesture, bigger than a basketball.  It was only the end of June, but it turned out he was talking about the leaves.  Anyway, he was very excited about his garden.

I have thought about making gardens for the sheep.  I started a hedgerow, but they ate most of it.  I realize that is what gardens are for but they need to be sustaining too.  That was back when I was using fences the sheep did not respect.  I guess I should try again with different fencing or protection.

Cooler weather is coming soon,  I should make a plan or have a dream about sheep gardens and explore what kind of gardens I should have.

If Life Gives You Cucumbers.....

"When Life Gives you Lemons, Make Lemonade" is a phrase everyone has heard.  In the past week, 3 people have given me cukes, and each, at least 3.  So today, I made bread and butter pickles.  Charlie brought me more today, so I gave him a jar of pickles.  Why do I grow cucumbers?  Actually, I planted late so I don't have any yet.

It hasn't been raining much lately and I don't like to water the vegetable garden.  There isn't alot of water pressure and it takes awhile and I have animal chores in the morning and I am too tired at night and......
So, I have been thinking the last few days, that I should plant veggies in the compost pile where they never seem to need watering and plant something else in the vegetable garden.  I keep coming up with different ideas of what I should plant; it has to be something that doesn't need much watering- or maybe just much mulch.

I think the key is to plant something this fall when the beds are empty and it rains more and then when next spring comes I won't think I have to plant a bunch of vegetable seeds because there won't be any room.  Then, I can throw the seed in the compost pile.

We have 2 farmer's markets, 2 organic health food stores, a farm to you store, and a few CSAs (Community Supported Agriculture) farms in our county, why do I need to plant a vegetable garden?  Just because I have for the last 42 years, it doesn't mean I have to next year.

"The Best Laid Plans of Mice and Men......

They Are Getting Bigger

Sometimes when I am waiting for someone to blog, I read old entries and see how things have changed.  I hope anyone out there waiting over a week for me to blog does the same.  Many times I read my blog of a year ago near this date just to see what I was up to.  Last year, I was struggling to get to the barn with a broken ankle.

Cirrus and Sal have grown SO much so we built them an elaborate set up.

They love to practice flapping their wings.

The only problem was that Sal escaped twice the first day.  We thought she was flying over but then I thought maybe she was squeezing through a square in the gate so I put some smaller fencing over the gate and she hasn't been out since.

It is great that we don't have to move the pen every day like we were before we built the play yard.

They haven't gone in the boat pond yet

but they love to hang out in the little tub.

So far they have been going in their pen at night, bribed with grain.  I hope they will continue a little longer before I have to except the fact that I won't be able to protect them forever and they are going to have to take care of each other.  They are such a sweet pair of geese.

A Peaceful Summer Morning

 

It is often foggy when we wake up.  Sometimes up to the front porch but this morning was just partly foggy.  The chicory greeted me as I walked out the door.

 

 The Mullein appear to be on guard in the dyer's garden.  They  are some of my favorites.

A lovely delicate Queen Anne's Lace

 and the gift the hungry birds of winter planted for us.

Then out to the barn and pasture.

by way of the cabin which somehow did not appear to be hiding in the fog.

Peaceful Foggy Mornings are such a treat.