Significance of the Summer
Today is the Summer Solstice. In pre-historic times, Summer was a joyous time of the year for those indigenous people who lived in the northern latitudes. The snow had disappeared; the ground had thawed out; warm temperatures had returned; flowers were blooming; leaves had returned to the deciduous trees. Some herbs could be harvested, for […]
Hanging herb baskets
Last week’s horticultural therapy class on hanging herb baskets at @annsplaceinc went exceeding well with 23 clients signed up both on-site and remotely. The remote option is great for some clients going though cancer treatments who have the will but not the physical strength to make the trek to our center. I am happy to […]
Refreshing the morning
The morning is a rough one for Shannon. A water pipe just burst in the basement and a storage room filled with client records is awash with water. She is stoic in going through dozens of boxes but I can tell she needs a break. “Come on, Shannon. You need some horticultural therapy,” I say […]
Backyard foraging
The popularity of my sessions at Ann’s Place vary widely. A recent one on how to forage for wild salads had smaller attendance than typical and less participation than normal. Though everyone loves the May wine I offer spiked with sweet woodruff (Galium odoratum) and strawberries (Fragaria × ananassa) as well as dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) […]
My lawn is crappy. . .and that is just fine with me
I needed to mow our lawn this weekend as tall tufts of grass stand high over adjacent dormant patches. Unlike many aficionados of a lawn comprising a monoculture of grass that is as smooth as a championship golf green, my undulating and ankle-spraining turf has countless varieties of plants. And I intend to keep it […]
Propagation 101: How to make baby plants for next to nothing
One of the wonders of the world is how easy Mother Nature has made it to propagate baby plants from existing ones. Anyone with a little bit of curiosity and care can reproduce many baby plants from a single one. Not counting seeds, there are many different ways to propagate a plant where you will […]
Zooming away or not
I had my last zoom horticultural therapy class this week at Ann’s Place. After a bit of a rocky start, we settled into a groove with good participation and satisfied clients. But with warmer weather on hand and increased vaccinations, it is time to move classes back to Ann’s Place in-person. (Not to mention that […]
GroHappy gets a facelift
Over a decade ago I started my GroHappy blog with the intention of writing about my adventures in gardening and horticultural therapy. And with the exception of a few bicycling chronologies, I have pretty much been keeping to that focus. But like all old plants, there is a time to repot, refresh and renew. So […]
Getting the sun(dial) out
Paper sundial One of the more favorite classes of my students at Ann’s Place is the making of sundials around the Spring equinox. It is challenging because while clients can be creative in some aspects of this craft, in others they need to have an exacting focus. Today’s class is a bit different as it […]
Starting over
Miner’s lettuce My cold frame has emerged from the two feet of snow that has been hiding it since January. What was a cold dark tomb, is now a hot, humid space. Thus I can now start to direct-seed as well as transplant the first greens of the season. With any luck we will be […]