Category: Gardening

The Brain That Changes

I was in the bathtub soaking up the warmth while listening to my special playlist. It’s comprised of songs that I like to sing along with, that for whatever reason make me happy. Some of the songs are not good and I don’t know why they carry such emotional resonance. Some of the songs used to carry a negative connotation, but don’t anymore. For example, when symptoms are unpleasant and my body is freaking out, one of the best...

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Childhood, Gardening, Places, Stories

Scylla’s Potatoes

There were not many gardens in my childhood, and the few that come to mind are not exactly traditional. This fact threw me off for many of my early years as a garden writer. That I did not have a quaint story with a family farm, a vegetable patch in the yard, or an elder who passed on gardening know-how made me think I was a pariah trying to enter a party to which I was not invited.

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Childhood, Gardening, Stories

Decolonize Garden Media

This morning I was reading on @decolonisethegarden an Instagram account created by Sui, about callously offensive & divisive remarks steeped in racial bias that were made by a co-chair of the UK Garden Media Guild. I also read the response from the guild, which, in my opinion came off as empty and an easy out from doing real work toward accountability and change.

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Gardening

Holes of the Backyard Garden

This is a chipmunk hole. There are several here, dotting the top and sides of the smallest garden bed nearest to the house. It makes sense since the ground is high and the soil is dry and well draining, while the rest of the property is too boggy and wet for burrows.

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Gardening, Places

Black Currants

I always seemed to be in the car when he got the inkling to score some weed. “Wait here a minute. I just gotta see a friend.” I think we were at odds about the real length of a minute because even factoring in kid standards, I know it was a lot more than that. It was often cold in the car and scary. I sat on edge, half expecting to be kidnapped or killed. “Here” was always some behind the...

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Gardening