Musings on horticultural therapy and the soothing effects of plants and nature
This quart of blackberries gives the appearance of plenty but the truth is slightly different. This haul represents three days of not picking while in a typical year, it is one. We made the decision not to water the berries given the current drought and this decision has had an obvious effect. Our berry haul […]
September is a bittersweet month a summer ends and fall begins. It’s is the time when the largest bounties of the gardens’ flowers, vegetables, and fruits are harvested. Some leaves begin to turn to orange, yellow, and red, while migrating birds and monarch butterflies make their way south. [This year, however, is quite different than […]
Hand watering the garden can be done with either a hose or can. Both have their place, but watering with a can is more contemplative for me and more necessary this season given the drought. Just filling up a container from my one of my water barrels has a soothing and calming effect. Cracking the […]
This year has been a strange one in the garden and the latest surprise is the emergence of a trio of blooms on one of our flowering quince bushes. Typically these bushes sport their red-rose-like flowers in mid-spring and then produce a few tiny fruits that never seem to make it to maturity. This year, […]
During these languid, slowing days of Summer, sometimes the best activity is no activity. Between the heat and humidity, it is prudent to be economical with movement, particularity in the afternoon. That is why perhaps the backyard is the best place to visit to throw down a blanket and watch the clouds roll by. High […]
It is a strange summer. And I am not sure if some of my plants in the garden know what to make of it. Both the tomato and blueberry plants have been fruiting for nearly a month. Yet the fruits just sit, unripened. Blueberry harvests have been meager and we have yet to taste a […]
Today should be the last day of the heat wave we have been having in the Northeast and I am grateful. Juana and I have stayed inside (and away from the gardens) more than typical for July. We have been fortunate, however, in that we open up the house and shut off the air conditioning […]
The heat and lack of water this July is showing up in all kinds of ways though we have minimized its effects in the garden. Our lawn of native grasses and “weeds” is cut high (only when needed) and is lush and green. This is in contrast to a neighboring lawn that is cut low […]
From the July chapter of my book, A Therapist’s Garden. July is the month of heat, homemade ice cream, and the desire to remain cool. It is an ironic time, as the weather and gardens have flipped into high gear after a long stasis. The warm evenings find fireflies illuminating the background for all the […]
Because we have a shallow well, all of the perennials in our gardens rarely get watered. They are left on their own without a supplemental drink regardless of the heat and lack of rain. It may sound cruel, but I don’t think we have lost a perennial yet to lack of water. Potted plants, annuals […]