Monthly Archives: June 2019

Why have a nose?

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If not to smell mint?

Yesterday the plant came home from the grocery store in plastic.  Last night a pouring rain beat it down.  Later this summer I will try to establish this out in the yard.

I live among pines.  While I don’t know the history of this land, my guess is that this entire street was someone’s farm.  Once farming ceased, pines were either started, or they simply took over.  Then the land was sold.  Homes were built.

Years ago I read The One Straw Revolution, by Masanobu Fukuoka.  I am starting to think that his approach should be my approach to gardening.  Just try planting stuff. See what actually grows.

Instead of imposing my will by creating a garden, sew seeds in the woods and observe what grows.  Don’t work too hard.  Don’t work against nature.  Learn to work with it.  Fukuoka found that certain radishes did well on his forest/farm.  Maybe I’ll start there.

 

 

Sprouts

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Not sure what sprouting has to do with God.  However, assuming that God does exist, and that God is the life force of the universe, then sprouting must have something to do with God.

Keeping a garden is a good use of time.  There is nothing like caring for your own food.  Only you can ensure that you are eating the freshest most nutritious food possible.

The system keeps us alive.  The machine.  95% of us in cities.  The rest growing our food.  The system works.  But the food is not the freshest nor the best-est.  It can’t be.   The system has to provide for everyone.

Muscular dystrophy now prevents me from keeping a garden.  I can hardly move around, let alone dig clay.

My gardening efforts have been reduced to a few potted plants, and kitchen counter-space, enough for a few sprouting-jars.

I used to work hard in the yard, digging soil.  Planting seeds.  Weeding.  Watering.  Making compost.  In the lower deserts of Arizona it was possible to eat something home grown every day, if you were willing to work for it.  Now i live in North Carolina.  I wish i could start a garden here.  It should be possible to eat year round here too, with some winter protection.

Fruit trees are some of my favorite plants.  I love planting them.  I love to tend to them.  I loved raking leaves around the base of the trees in the fall.  Pruning trees in winter is a joy.  Lots of work.  Generally, about two or three weeks of eating.  Then, wait for next year, or grow something else.

Some lessons are learned the hard way.  Now that i can hardly move anymore, I grow sprouts because that’s about all I can do.  But, sprouting seeds is almost effortless.  As a food, sprouts are more nutritious than the adult vegetables.  Now I eat better, and with less effort than ever, by eating sprouts.  It took a lifetime of gardening to figure this out.  It took losing the ability to work as hard as i used to love working to figure this out.

What does this have to do with God?  I don’t know.  But sprouting is an easy way to keep a garden.  Gardens do have something to do with God.