Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
GroHappy has been a bit quiet for the last week or so not for lack of ideas or activities but because of them. Casa Keller has been a whirlwind of activity as we have been reclaiming our yard and replanting bulbs, shrubs, grass and trees. The septic men have left and with their departure came […]
Every time I tempt my family into the garden, I am often accused of inflicting horticultural therapy upon them. They may be right. My wife needs little prompting, as she better appreciates the diversity of plants than I and finds great solace in nature’s grasp. My daughters are a different story as when I have […]
With Labor Day a recent memory, we are now entering the days between the end of corporate summer and those of the calendar. These are teaser days on the cusp of seasons as they serve up cool nights promising of fall and warm hot afternoons reminding us of what we will soon be missing. Such […]
A recent cartoon in the New Yorker reminded me that the beach is usually not for gardening. You are surrounded by nature, but your reactions are muted by a type of voyeurism that says look but don’t touch. You are surprised by the lush inhabitants that flourish, grow and display themselves unambiguously for all to […]
One of the fundamental joys of gardening is to build a new bed. Sometimes its creation is part of a long thought out process, often started in the depths of winter, other times an opportunity or inspiration that presents itself in a serendipitous manner. In either case the new bed becomes a joy to start […]
As I mentioned in my prior post, I will be growing a new lawn that will be simple to care for. But before the new lawn goes in, the old lawn and plantings of years past must go out. Or be trampled, crushed, mauled, etc. by the Kubota equivalent of WMDs. To preserve as much […]
The wonderful thing about a garden is that you never really know what will grow and when. We can pretend that we know that if we plant a lettuce seed and follow the directions that it will sprout within a week. But sometimes that doesn’t happen for a variety reasons (poor soil, old seed, not […]
Surprises in the garden aren’t as rare as one might think though some are sweeter than others. Next to my vegetable garden I have one of my three compost heaps each placed on different parts of my property based more on my laziness to walk all my plant waste to a single location than the […]
Even though I read every guide book I can lay my hands on, when ever I travel I always discover a surprise. On this trip, my surprise is the result of a conversation with my good friend M.R. Rangaswami, who has one foot in the high-tech world and the other in a green one. As […]
Leaving one’s garden as it is coming into its own is a bittersweet event filled with mixed emotions. I now pack for a lengthy and hopefully exotic stay on a beach in Kauai. After spending the last half year in dormancy and now bursting out in full bloom, my garden calls out with the most […]