Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
Now that it is summer, my granddaughters Charlotte and Olivia will be spending a few days with us each week. Never one to ignore the opportunity for free labor, I put Charlotte to task in helping me prepare sachets. I use them as a kick-off aromatherapy exercise during my talks promoting my book, A Therapist’s […]
“I’m good with 60/40,” says Charlotte when it comes to sharing strawberries (Fragaria x ananassa) with her little sister Olivia. They invade our garden together for the first time ever looking to pick strawberries and some vegetables. Olivia is a bit young and new to the garden but she is enjoying the feel of the […]
It has finally warmed up enough so I can move all my seedlings from the indoor germination table and light to the greenhouse. The tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum) are in the most need of transplanting and Charlotte is here to help. With nearly 50 plants to pot up, she wields the Sharpie pen and labels each […]
We have an heirloom rose bush on the corner of our property that has been there ever since we purchased our house over 30 years ago. Our neighbors at the time told us that this bush has always been part of the original estate, which our structure is part of, and is likely to be […]
Visiting my daughter Sarah and grandson Charlie a few days ago, Juana, Charlotte and I take advantage of the splendid day we are presented with and travel to a local wildlife sanctuary in Ipswich. The first thing I spot is an artistically stacked wood pile that has a massive branch cutting through it. I don’t […]
Juana was cleaning out the closet the other day and found two of the many bibs she made for Charlotte years ago. The first, with vegetables and fruit, and the second, with farm animals, had been stored with the hope that someday another grandchild would be able to wear them. And that day is now […]
I’m not sure when I got the idea about writing a book about my horticultural therapy experiences, but it was probably around the time Charlotte was born. I was pretty much retired and Juana and I were taking care of Charlotte during the day and my horticultural therapy program was starting at Ann’s Place. Prior […]
After all the snow is shoveled, Juana and Charlotte decide to take a tumble to make snow angels. They try to coax me to fall in the cold and frigid snow. I decline their kind offer.
Though it has warmed a bit, I decide to start some microgreens early. Prior to the big freeze we had last week, I brought in the two trays of Corn salad (Valerianella locusta) I had dug up in the fall. They had been surviving well in my greenhouse, but I did not want to tempt […]
At the entrance of a drab, red-bricked building hidden in the woods, I push the buzzer on the intercom, identifying myself and the persons I am there to see. A crackly, static-laden voice acknowledges my request, and after a minute the large, gray steel entry door swings open toward me. I am led down a […]