Gardening as Winter Ends

Spring Countdown

 In 27 days on March 20 it will be spring.  I love the color burst of Spring. My love of this comes from my paternal Grandma.  Growing up, I helped her in her gardens.  I have fond memories of her yard in the spring bursting with colors.  I helped pull the weeds from around the roses.  While her children were growing up, she grew fruits and veggies.  She had plums, raspberries and blackberries when I was growing up. Summer flowers in Grandma's garden included: roses, zinnias, geraniums, peonies, pansies, petunias, snapdragons.  She had a second garden at the family cottage near Alexandria Bay, NY in the 1000 islands.  The flowers were in whiskey barrels at the entrance to the home.

 Backyard Visitors

Our suet feeder seems to attract a wide variety of Woodpeckers to my garden.  they enjoy the food in the winter we provide and in the warmer months they feast on the insects in the garden. It is nice to have a back yard habitat they enjoy. 

 My pond is right next to this feeder.  When it is warmer, the birds enjoy the waterfall and their bird bath at the top of it. Have you made a space that is friendly to local wildlife?  Always be kind ot others.  I was taught this by my Father and honor him by my practice of it.

 

 

 

 As I countdown to spring, the garden design is finished for the veggies.  Very happy to have a plan to grow by so I do not end up without space for a favorite vegetable.

 

As winter is winding down, my garden catalogs help me plan for the warm season.  As the designer in me is active, there as some new jewelry designs for spring, too.  Working on Earrings, necklaces, and bracelets in Copper and Sterling Silver. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Black Lives Matter

Free the People ROC is the group in Rochester, NY.  FB page  Free the People ROC

 I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and be ready to support our sisters and brothers.  

 

#bekind

#blacklivesmatter 

#stopasianhate

#standup

#listen

#lovewins

 

 

 

 

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Happy Birthday

 February is the Birthday month for two very important people in my life my Father & his Mother, my grandmother.  I think of my family and the fantastic gardens at Grandma & Grandpa's house when I was a child.. The cottage, their summer place my Grandfather built is where the fishing happened.  A good day is shown on the table below where many fishes were prepared for family meals over the years. The sound of the water takes me back to the cottage in the 1000 islands and long summer weekends with my father when I was a child.

This is a great photo I have of my grandmother, Clara from when my father was a child.  I always remember her with white hair.  Seeing younger grandma is inspiring to me.  I appreciate her enthusiasm for gardening even more with these younger pics of her.  Seeing the joy she has with her children show below,. 

Happy Birthday Dad. We miss you and know you are with us in spirit. You taught us by your example every day.
 He spent many hours with me showing and teaching me how to change the oil in the car or replace the brake pads.  I cherish those memories and getting dirty for hours with him.  As the kids from my neighborhood can tell you my father was the first to lend a hand when one of the bicycles needed to be repaired. He had a big heart and was always the one to step up and offer assistance.  It is one of the core values I have that he taught me. 

Older pic of my Dad,  his senior year I believe. #happybirthday #father #grandma #lovewins
#memories #young #bicycle #neighborhood

The results from a good day on the boat at the cottage.  This table has been part of preparation of many family meals for many children whom have enjoy their time at the cottage in the 1000 Islands. 

Grandma with two of her sons, My uncle Russell and my father.  The same day as seen in the above pic with the happy fishermen in the pic.  I am certain my grandfather caught a few of these also. as a rule all fishing people were taught how to bait their own hook.  We had help if needed in reeling in our catch.  

 Black Lives Matter

We are in this together. Wear a Mask, Stay home, Stay safe, Flatten the curve, Facts Matter.

We need to listen and be ready to stand with them.We have a local Black Lives Matter group in our city.  Free the People ROC.

 FB page  Free the People ROC

 

 

I invite everyone to stand up, listen to others, be kind and speak up. 

#blacklivesmatter

#standup

#speakup

#listen 

      Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website
Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
Instagram: Instagram

Why should we all shop small?  For every $100 you spend at a local business,  $68 stay in the community.  

 My Mother's Day brooch from a few years ago in copper to show the beauty of this material.

 

Memorial Day 2020

Happy Memorial Day 2020.  Harvested kale from my backyard garden for breakfast today.  Kale & farm fresh eggs were fantastic.  Today is a somber holiday as we reflect on our freedoms in the USA.  I have family whom served my Father, Uncles, & cousins, as many of you reading this have.  We do not need a huge gathering to remember and honor those whom have served this country.  Take a few hours today and teach your family what this holiday represents.  If you do not have children read history and remember why we have this holiday.

As an avid gardener, I did not know very much when I started my own gardens. 20 years ago.  We learned from my Grandmother as well my other half's parents.  To Further our knowledge we used tv and books.   Below are two of our favorites.

My favorite book is by Barbara Damrosch Garden Primer.Garden Primer  It is where I found the idea for a three year crop rotation which I use and helps keep my plants thriving.  Even in years of extreme drought, I have an edible harvest.  We also use companion plants and soaker hoses to water.  it is a great way to reduce the water wasted by sprinklers in a garden.  Many this year and starting plants because they have extra time & are home to see them blossom & grow.  Good luck with your new garden & remember to water daily for new plants and not in the hottest part of the day.

Our favorite show was The Victory Garden with Roger Swain, hom spoke about the origin of the term Victory Garden  Wiki defines. He described his memories and why he loves gardening and digging in the dirt.Trial & error as well as our lessons learned from others mistakes helped teach us to be better gardeners.  Failure is Impossible on one of my favorite quotes from Susan B Anthony.  I believe when we work toward a goal in is a journey; whether long or short enjoy your journey. 

Roger Swain Quote I love.



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We are all dealing with this time in our own way  Remember to be kind., flatten the curve, stay home and stay safe.
Honor this Memorial Day and always.

 In NY OMH Emotional Support Helpline: 1-844-863-9314

  help:https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/covid-19-resources.html

May is Here with Warmth

 Garden

Lettuce & snowpeas

 Mother Nature is warming up this week and we will return to normal temperatures.Having been about 20 degrees below normal for about a month, it is slow growing in the garden.  My experience & knowledge has kept my plants alive.   I have small greens right now and harvested some voluntary Chard from the 2019 planting. this is an image form a warmer spring. 

 

Zinneas

Why I love gardening.... from my Grandma on my dad's side. Growing up I helped her in her gardens.  I have fond memories of her yard in the spring bursting with colors. Some of the flowers in Grandma's garden: roses, zinnias, geraniums, peonies, sweet potato vine,  pansies, petunias, snapdragons and many others.  She had a second garden at the family cottage up north of Alexandria Bay, NY in the 1000 islands. The flowers were in whiskey type barrels at the entrance to the front porch.  She was always happy to tell me the name of any flowers we saw.  My favorite up at the cottage was the wild snapdragons which were everywhere along the privet road.  An especially fun activity for me was walking up the hill with my father.  As I was coming back down with snapdragons.Grandma always put them in a glass on the kitchen table.

Gemstones

I sell rocks! Do you know a jewelry designer or small local Jewelry store?  As a lapidary,  I custom cut my own gemstones.  There are many one of a kind cabochons I sell both retail and wholesale.  Please feel free to contact me if you have a friend with a shop who uses one of a kind gemstones. .  The rocks I sell are available uncut as slabs for those who enjoy the lapidary work as I do.  Always happy to talk about rocks, gemstones and lapidary passion.  Links at the end of this post.

Challenges

As we move into the the third month of the Covid 19 pandemic here in my state I feel a bit unsettled . As an artist, I feel the isolation and the difficulty of how this is affecting so many in the USA. When will it end, I often ask myself.  The unprecedented way the federal government is handling this pandemic is appalling. I am proud to be in new York state because of the fantastic leader we have in governor Cuomo.  His leadership is an example of what we want to see in a time of crisis like this.  He has created partnerships with other states and together they are making decisions which will benefit the greater good of all those in the north eastern USA.  I am reminded of the feelings I had before & during my recovery after  my knee reconstruction 5 years ago.  The main difference is I felt the outcome was certain as long as focused on & worked my PT(physical therapy) daily.  To thrive we must focus on what we can control and the positive things we are learning daily.  We will survive this and we will be educated on what needs to be done the next time we face a crisis.  Stay strong, stay home, flatten the curve &  use your favorite video app on your phone or computer to stay connected with your family at this time.

     Buy Local from the Maker 

My shop:  Panda Wear Website

Facebook:  PandaWire Facebook
Twitter:  Panda Wear Gems  
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 In NY OMH Emotional Support Helpline: 1-844-863-9314

  help:https://omh.ny.gov/omhweb/covid-19-resources.html

May the spring season bring new growth and life into your world.