The Gardeners Anonymous Blog

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The Gloves Aren't Off

I was flipping through my new Martha Stewart magazine and I noticed an article. It was called “Digging In” or it might have been called “Digging In, Touch” or “Touch, Digging In,” I really couldn’t tell by the design.

But it looked pretty.

Anywhoo, the article, by Stephen Orr, starts out, “I am a gloveless gardener.” The article has a beautiful photo by Thomas Straub of these wonderful weathered hands, suntanned beyond recognition, tugging on a young lettuce plant.

I read it. It was short—just one page. It was what you’d expect—how it’s better to feel the soil, and feel the firmness of fall bulbs, feel the roots of a plant when you are re-potting.

The article mentioned how clean soil really is and sometimes all you have to do to clean your hands is wash them with soil and water or just rub your hands together until the soil falls away and—voila—they are clean.

What has this guy been smoking?

Has he ever heard of MRSA or pinworm or centipedes or black widows or...THE DREADED...

(Cue Slasher Movie Music)

THE DREADED...




Yes, that’s right, the Potato Bug, aka The Jerusalem Cricket, or, as I know them, THE SPAWN OF THE DEVIL.

The mere thought of these abhorrent creatures will remind me to keep my gloves on while gardening from now until I am pushing up daisies around the pearly gates and maybe even after that.

Today, I ran into to one those appalling beasts while doing some winter clean up. (see above)

I am a brave person but when my GLOVED HAND touched it, I threw down my trowel and ran screaming into the house to get my husband, who dutifully picked it up with a rake and took it away, far away.

As long as The Spawn of the Devil exist, I will keep my gloves on.

BTW, gardener’s hands can look nice even after hours of daily yard work, please see my post “Nail Tips”

Goodness, I sound like an advertisement for myself.

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Dog Sitting and Gardening

Sadie sitting on wall watching over the garden

Dog sitting and gardening.

What do they have in common?

Nothing.

I was dog sitting my friend’s dog and I was gardening at the same time today.

It had been a long time since I spent any time outside gardening for two reasons:

1. My son’s play.
2. It has been raining and raining and raining so much that I was spending way more time making sketches of ark designs than gardens.

Today the sun came out. The temperature rose to about 67 degrees and I started to clean up my garden after the winter deluge.

My friend’s dog had a great time, lying on my discarded sweatshirt and basking in the elusive sun.

Tomorrow there will be more gardening and dog sitting.

My husband told me that this article needed an ending. I told him that gardening never ends.

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Monkey Business

My son Kaa, the snake and his friend the Peacock

My heart is full.

Just in time for Valentine’s day, I have a full heart.

I just finished production of my 5th grader’s school play The Jungle Book-Welcome to the Jungle.

The play has kept me from gardening and cooking and cleaning and exercising and doing everything that I normally do every day. But I am happy, joyful, and fulfilled.

I was able to spend a lot of extra time with both of my children, the elder of whom gave technical support to the production.

Every one involved gave 110% especially the kids who showed up everyday and became their characters and got along with each other and worked as a team.

The moms and dads were amazing, each bringing with them their own special talent and graciously giving their time even though a lot of them have full time jobs and other children.

In the end the producers were given special gifts and here is mine.

It’s a rose that’s actually called Monkey Business.

They know what I like.

 
A container full of "Monkey Business"

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