National Garden Meditation Day 2021

According to a web-page for National Calender Day, today, May 3rd is National Garden Meditation Day. Here is part of what they have to say re this hoiday: 

"National Garden Meditation Day, annually on May 3rd, encourages everyone to take time for one’s self and relax. Working in the garden, tending to the plants and flowers, or resting quietly on a bench on a beautiful day in the garden are forms of meditation. Both can be restorative to the soul and a refreshing way to be out in nature. Meditation and gardening offer many benefits. When you couple it with the outdoor peace of a garden, you also get to enjoy the benefits nature has to offer."

Part of my National Garden Meditation Day was spent working with Juan V (JV) in my garden and the photo atop this entry shows how it looked when we finished in the early afternoon. At the northend of my garden I have a newcomer.

My Pumpkin Patch

PUMPKINS ON MY URBAN HEDGE VIEW ONE 

PUMPKINS ON MY URBAN HEDGE VIEW TWO

I now have a pumpkin patch in my rooftop garden! The photo atop this entry shows views of pumpkins atop one of my urban hedges.

Squirrels got this! "When this old world starts getting you down....." GO UP ON THE ROOF (Wednesday's Wisdom)

THIS SHRUB IS FEATURED IN VOL 1

I noticed that my visiting squirrel (whose antics have been covered here on my blog) has a "boo-boo" on his/her forehead (as seen in the picture atop this entry, where he/she is enjoying being in the home of my shrub known as a Pyracantha coccinea AKA Orange Charmer).

My Jumping Squirrel (Tuesday's Truths WK 189)

THIS SHRUB IS FEATURED IN VOL 1

In recent blog posts (including one published on 7-8-2020) and one published on 7-19-2020), I've been discussing my observations of a lone squirrel who has been spending a lot of his/her time in my rooftop garden.

One thing I've noticed is his/her's incredible ability to jump. She/he often enters my place by jumping from the trees in an adjacent courtyard on to one of the pole that supports my string lights and from there she jumps on to a stake in the container of my Japanese Larch (Larix Kaempferi) as seen in the photo atop this entry.

"Social Distancing" MAY be the wrong phrase. (Monday's Memo)

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR MY BOOK SERIES

The other day a lone Mourning dove and a young American robin came to my garden and spent time in the home of my Pyracantha coccinea (AKA Orange Charmer). She is a shrub that is featured in my garden-themed movie, The Kiwi Speaks! Fifteen Minutes of Fame... almost, which can be viewed on Vimeo and/or You Tube. These birds spending time in the home of my shrub can be seen in the image atop this entry and if they look familiar to you, dear reader, it may be because I included them in yesterday's blog post.

Sunday's Sequel (Re my 7-8-2020 Blog Post)

Squirrel Visiting My Rooftop Garden
(which is the setting for my book series)

Squirrel Visiting My Rooftop Garden
(which is the setting for my book series)

As I mentioned in a recent entry, A Day in the Life of my Pyracantha coccinea (7-8-2020), here on blogger, I've had a new visitor to my rooftop garden and he/she can be seen in the images atop this entry.

During all the many years that I've had my garden, I've never seen a squirrel here, nor have I seen one in the trees within my courtyard. Upon my seeing this quirky character, I did some research to see what poets as well as scholars have said about squirrels, and I was thrilled to come upon the following words of Saint Francis of Assisi:

A Day in the Life of my Pyracantha coccinea

A squirrel was digging up the soil in the container (in my rooftop garden) that houses my shrub known as a Pyracantha coccinea (also called Orange Charmer). I’ve never seen a squirrel in my place but that doesn’t mean one hasn’t been here. As soon as I realized the creature was there, she/he jumped into a tree within my courtyard and then to another tree (an image of this creature can be seen in the picture atop this entry.

HEY! HEY! HEY! It's Garden Meditation Day!

MY GARDEN IS THE SETTING FOR "WORDS IN OUR BEAK"

Earlier today I posted my tandem tale for the week and since that time it has been brought to my attention that today is Garden Meditation Day.

According to Holiday Insights (HI), "Per C.L, Fornari, the creator of this special day: Garden meditation day honors the fact that when we're working in the landscape we have the opportunity, if we choose to take it, to let the rest of the world fall away." 

Therefore. in honor of Garden Meditation Day, I've posted an image atop this entry which features a partial view of how my rooftop garden looks on this "holiday."

It's May! It's May! (Tuesday's Truths Week 82)

OTHER TULIPS ARE  FEATURED IN VOLUME 1

OTHER TULIPS ARE  FEATURED IN VOLUME 1

Welcome to the eighty-second week of my Tuesday's Truths series, which this week is coinciding with the beginning of the month of May, and as has been the case in bygone years, a song (It's May! It's May!) from Camelot is on my mind.

Thursday's Thoughts

On this last day of August for 2017, I'm finding it difficult to write about anything because it seems my content is unworthy in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey, which has devastated so many lives in Texas. As I compose this posting Harvey is on his way to Louisiana to wreak havoc and his demise is occurring during the anniversary week of Hurricane Katrina, which occurred during the time period of August 23, 2005 – August 31, 2005.

Jazz, the dog pictured above was rescued during Katrina, but ultimately abandoned at an animal shelter because he is blind. Someone I know (TT) here in NYC is from New Orleans and her family was there during that hurricane. The mother (Mrs. T) of TT (who lives near to me) was supposedly working at the aforementioned shelter and she adopted Jazz. 

Ultimately Mrs. T died of cancer, unrelated to Katrina, and TT bought Jazz to NYC. She was not always able to care for him and I introduced TT to someone who has been able to help her care for Jazz.

In any event, I certainly am keeping the folks impacted by these hurricanes in my mind, and I have yet to find out how Juan V's family is faring. They live in Texas, but I'm not sure what part, and, I don't usually communicate with Juan in between the days we work together in my urban garden.

The next time I see him, which will be a week from today, I will be able to ask him if his loved ones were affected by Harvey.

Is Spring of 2013 FINALLY, FINALLY springing? (PART FIVE of FIVE) ASK THE PLANTS, ORNAMENTAL GRASSES and a few FLOWERS!

MAC, A MALE CARDINAL

April showers woke-up Ajuga flowers! These are the light purple ones seen here where they "live" with my Crocuses in the "home" of my Actinida kolomikta and Actimida (Kiwi Vines). They are all thrilled to have Cam's beau alight on their "home," especially this morning when the crocuses and ajuga are scheduled to be some of the "things" featured in today's post: part five of my series (which I introduced this past Friday on Blogger) where the things I grow are assisting me in answering the question: Is Spring of 2013 FINALLY, FINLLY springing?

Both the ajuga and the crocuses share the "limelight" today with my plants (Farfugium japonicum AKA 'Cristata', Creeping Jenny, and my Pyracantha coccinea AKA Orange Charmer Firethorn), as well as my ornamental grasses (The Hakanechola Macra Twins AKA Japanese Forest Grass All Gold and my Ophipogon planiscapus Triplets AKA Black Mondo Grass).

ek-in-AY-see-uh's the name . . .

"Ek-in- AY-see-uh", my lovely and playful coneflowers (shown above), said, after the herbs, vines, plants, flowers, shrubs, and trees which I grow in my urban terrace garden wondered how the new arrivals pronounced their name. These new-comers to my terrace garden snuggled easily into their new home; however, their entrance was bittersweet. 

The Echinacea plants were a gift from a dear friend, who gave them to me as a form of consolation, because my Honeysuckle Vine, a vine which I have discussed in a number of posts, including ones which you may refer to by clicking here as well as here  and here, was attacked by mildew; possibly caused by an exhaust fan that was put in the window of someone who lives in the building directly west of me. 

There is no space in between the buildings, so it is likely that the recently installed fan blew fumes onto my Honeysuckle Vine, which was vulnerable to such an appliance. Hence, there was no way to protect my sweet Honeysuckle Vine —  such is one of the tribulations of maintaining an urban garden, where things grow in containers, making them very susceptible to the consequences of man-made things. 

In any event, the Honeysuckle Vine had to be pulled down immediately because, as any gardener knows, mildew, such as the variety that attacked my vine, would spread quickly and destroy other things that I grow in my garden. 

Celebrating Texture

Since last Saturday's posting of honoring the days of November and beyond, I've been reminded that November is the month of remembrance that began with All Saints Day on November first. 

This feast day is followed by the solemn celebration of All Souls' Day on November second, and for the remaining days of November, special homages are made for all who have died. "Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted," is a consolation of November. With it getting dark earlier due to going back to "standard" time, and the apparent focus on the dead, it is good to recall that November is a textured month, and so while people honor the dead during this time, it is also a month very much intended to remember the living.