Today was wonderful. Party, coffee with a friend, beach trip, visitors. The party host had made gluten free food for my boy which was an unexpected extra effort and a very special gesture. The world IS generously peppered with wonderful warm hearted people. And if it seems they are only hanging out in my small town, then I truly hope some move next door to you all sometime soon.
So we admired my tulips this afternoon. I have them in a lovely profusion of colours and petal shapes which wasn't what the packet promised but is gorgeous.
Then tonight I was wandering the web and chanced upon Snapdragon's blog of flower love, growing and selling. She does eco-flowers for wedddings and I noticed one comment about the benefits of couples who trust her to find the right arrangements and flowers on the day out of what is growing best rather than the pressure of having to grow certain plants for perfection on that particular day.
I remember seeing the film Maria: Full of Grace a few years ago and between the grim lives I picked up on there and the chemical nasties and air travel involved in the relatively cheap bunches of flowers on offer at Tescos (UK), I decided that bought cut flowers was yet another ethicall dodgy item which I needed to avoid buying.
I don't know anything about the production line of cut flowers in New Zealand but I'm pretty confident that a large amount of diesel, if not airline fuel as well, will have been involved in getting cut flowers to our local (and lovely) florist shop here in small town.
So what is my point (you might well ask that of my every blog entry)? My point is that I'm moving more and more to thinking that I don't want a garden only of edibles; I want flowers to cut and share the love with as well. Come live in my small town next summer and I'll welcome you with home grown flowers.
So far I have calendula and marigold seed (and some flowering plants of calendula - for beneficial insects and companion planting and possibly to make eczema cream with), nasturtiums growing wild, and a range of spring bulbs which I've mentioned before. There are some roses and freesias out the front from the previous owners. Some of my herbs will grow beautiful flowers, like the echinacea which is currently 4mm high in the propogator but will one day be
a metre high, apparently.
I've had the Kings Seeds Catalogue out on this subject. A viola called 'Heartsease Miss Helen Mount' (right) is on the list on the lovely name alone. And below is a picture from the catalogue of a 'hardy easily grown perrenial' called Thistle Blue Glove which sounds just right for my leave it to do its own beautiful thing front garden.
I keep finding more and more. Of course there are also sunflowers waiting to obliterate, sorry decorate our lawn. Only three of the miniature ones from last year's seed packet germinated. Due in no small part to getting no special shelter to germinate at all when the weather was still very nippy. Next month I'll be planting the Skyscraper sunflower seeds. After they've colonised the back fence area, the neighbours will have no idea whether I'm hanging out the washing in my jammies any more.
So we admired my tulips this afternoon. I have them in a lovely profusion of colours and petal shapes which wasn't what the packet promised but is gorgeous.
Then tonight I was wandering the web and chanced upon Snapdragon's blog of flower love, growing and selling. She does eco-flowers for wedddings and I noticed one comment about the benefits of couples who trust her to find the right arrangements and flowers on the day out of what is growing best rather than the pressure of having to grow certain plants for perfection on that particular day.
I remember seeing the film Maria: Full of Grace a few years ago and between the grim lives I picked up on there and the chemical nasties and air travel involved in the relatively cheap bunches of flowers on offer at Tescos (UK), I decided that bought cut flowers was yet another ethicall dodgy item which I needed to avoid buying.
I don't know anything about the production line of cut flowers in New Zealand but I'm pretty confident that a large amount of diesel, if not airline fuel as well, will have been involved in getting cut flowers to our local (and lovely) florist shop here in small town.
So what is my point (you might well ask that of my every blog entry)? My point is that I'm moving more and more to thinking that I don't want a garden only of edibles; I want flowers to cut and share the love with as well. Come live in my small town next summer and I'll welcome you with home grown flowers.
So far I have calendula and marigold seed (and some flowering plants of calendula - for beneficial insects and companion planting and possibly to make eczema cream with), nasturtiums growing wild, and a range of spring bulbs which I've mentioned before. There are some roses and freesias out the front from the previous owners. Some of my herbs will grow beautiful flowers, like the echinacea which is currently 4mm high in the propogator but will one day be
a metre high, apparently.I've had the Kings Seeds Catalogue out on this subject. A viola called 'Heartsease Miss Helen Mount' (right) is on the list on the lovely name alone. And below is a picture from the catalogue of a 'hardy easily grown perrenial' called Thistle Blue Glove which sounds just right for my leave it to do its own beautiful thing front garden.
I keep finding more and more. Of course there are also sunflowers waiting to obliterate, sorry decorate our lawn. Only three of the miniature ones from last year's seed packet germinated. Due in no small part to getting no special shelter to germinate at all when the weather was still very nippy. Next month I'll be planting the Skyscraper sunflower seeds. After they've colonised the back fence area, the neighbours will have no idea whether I'm hanging out the washing in my jammies any more.
1 comment:
Oh, those all look pretty. I'm hoping my wild flowers all come up that I scattered around my front lawn.
Post a Comment