“Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending.”
~Maria Robinson
Every story has an end,
but in life every end is just a new beginning
"Transcendence is the power to be born anew, to make a fresh start. to turn over a new leaf, to begin with a clean slate, to enter into a state of grace, to have a second chance". ~Robert Fritz
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Long chill spring times like this one afford gardeners plenty of time to split and divide perennials. Some folks take advantage of the extra cool weather, using this time to re-vamp tired soils in existing garden beds. I’ve already consulted this season with quite a few folks who just wish to make their current garden beds look a little more healthy, vibrant, diverse, and full. I’ve been telling these folks it must be their lucky year. In years like this we have plenty of time to lift out the newly emerging perennial plants, re-work the garden soils where they came from with a healthy amount of compost, and replant the original plants together with some exciting new selections. In past extended cool seasons I’ve had impressive results from this very practice. I helped a friend through this process a few years back and he referred to the farm-compost that we worked into his soil as “super-poo” by the end of the growing season. I always tell folks the same thing, once the bed is empty of plants or grass, just turn in 6 inches of compost with a shovel or garden fork, leaving large chunks of existing soil where it’s possible. Once the soil and compost is turned together use a couple more inches of compost as a mulch layer. Plant, water, and Stand Back! Transplanting existing iris, coneflower, sedum, and a host of other perennials in this manner leads to such abundance that you may just have to back up after you water in your new gardens so you’re not shoved aside by the rapid growth! If your replacing sod and you haven’t got any transplants to fill the space then starting with baby plants in a temperate season like this is also an excellent idea, as the cool weather helps reduce the shock of transplanting seedlings or starter plants. In the St. Paul yard show to the left you can see how we’ve reworked the soil, and replaced the struggling sod with a garden of baby plants that are already showing signs they’re enjoying their new home. As this garden fills in the roots will penetrate the earth sending water deeper then grass could ever thereby feeding the trees in the yard and the water tables below. The diversity of plant life in this garden will be a home to birds, bees, butterflies, and a menagerie of other native wildlife, yet another task that a sod lawn could never perform. It may just be this gardener’s opinion, but the new garden should surely be more delightful for the passing neighbors then even a perfectly healthy grass lawn could ever be. We’ll be sure to check back in with this young garden later in the season to see what our fresh start has produced. Sometimes in life we wish we could just start over. If your compost bin is half empty then maybe you’ll be thinking how much work all this sounds like, but if your compost bin is half full then maybe you’ll see how lucky we are to be given the rare opportunity to begin again. The Seed Vol. 15 May. 20, 2008 A Giving Tree Gardens Newsletter
Photos by Russ Henry ©2008 ,Text by Russ Henry ©2008 by Giving Tree Gardens, all rights reserved.
“You may have a fresh start any moment you choose, for this thing that we call 'failure' is not the falling down, but the staying down.”
Plant Profile:
Rhododendron
The state flower of Washington, and West Virginia, as well as the national flower of Nepal, this widely distributed blooming shrub is a favorite around the world. Valued in the landscape for it's abundant flowering, and evergreen foliage, as well as it's tolerance for shade. I love to use rhododendrons in shady urban spaces, the briliance of a Rhododendron in bloom will brighten up dark corners and add year round texture in the garden. Make sure to use plenty of compost and a healthy dose of soil sulphur in your rhody's earthen bed as these shrubs need a well drained and slightly acidic soil to truly perform. The P.J.M. Rhododendron is pictured to the left, and this is an excellent selection with prolific blooms. Many other great selections are available in colors from red to white. A close cousin of the evergreen Rhododendron is the deciduous Azalea, also an excellent choice for a dazzling spring show!
Fresh. Local. Flavor.
What Makes Our Market Unique?
Shopping at the Midtown Farmers' Market turns a chore into a celebration--a celebration of our land, the seasons, our communities. It connects us to the people who grow our food, and to our neighbors, just as it connects Minnesota's honored farming heritage with its vibrant, modern city life.
The Midtown Farmers' Market is not unique in offering locally grown or produced foods, but we are uniquely devoted to a healthy, prosperous, sustainable future for our families, our land, our neighborhoods both urban and rural. That's why all of the fruits and vegetables you'll find at Midtown are grown in Minnesota and Wisconsin. The freshest seasonal produce graces the growers' tables at Midtown, and all of the other food products for sale at the market--from artisan breads to tamales, from pickles to cookies, maple syrup and honey, eggs and cheese--are produced locally. The same goes for the naturally raised chickens, beef, lamb, pork and other meats you'll find at Midtown.
Be sure to stop by the Market this Saturday the 24th when Russ Henry of Giving Tree Gardens will host the Giving Tree Gardens thrifty gardener game and garden discussion!
Game times are 10am and 12pm!!
Giving Tree Gardens in the Co-op news!!!!!
Here today, here tommorrow! Blooms on these little Bloodroot (top) and Dwarf Iris (bottom) persist in the mild temperatures.
A Season To Begin Again
If you’re the kind of gardener whose compost bin always seems to be half-full then maybe you’ve been witnessing how much longer the blooms on your tulips, crabapples, and spring ephemerals like jack-in-the-pulpits and trilliums are lasting in this long chilly spring. If however you’re the kind of gardener who is certain that the compost bin is half-empty then perhaps you’ve noticed how much longer it’s taking the trees, shrubs, and grasses to leaf out this season. Whether or not we prefer the cool weather, nature seems not to care. Our only recourse (as per usual) is to get out there and get our hands dirty!
Sod grass lawns are a relic of the past! A hand me down from competing british royalty who had slaves or endentured servants to manicure it daily. Without a slave labor force of your own, it's probably best to plant gardens instead.
Mighty Oak in full bloom, The catkin is a most subtle beauty.
This Jack-In-The-Pulpit is already blooming just days after being planted in a new garden. Good soil and a cool spring lead to healthy transplanting.
The yew above and the chokeberry below will add robust foliage textue at the same time they invite birds and butterflies to the front yard.
Give yourself a fresh start! Once the tired sod is removed and the compost is turned into the soil, put in your plants and stand back!
