Mindful Gardening Newsletter No 36

Roses, Rosehips, Houseplants, Oyster Mushrooms and more

Mindful Gardening Newsletter No 36

Today Sunday the rain persists so I am writing this newsletter tucked up under the covers surrounded by a cat and dog.  One of the things that really helps with producing this newsletter is the lovely little camera that my dear friend Micheal McCann gave to me some months ago. 

Very often I walk around the garden with it in my pocket.  This week it seemed to pack up and I am now promised a replacement. I love the simplicity of this camera which is a Fuji FinePix L55. It’s a simple point and shoot.  I have a more sophisticated camera, but it has so many features that it puts me off learning how to use it.

Collecting Rosehips

Rosehips from rose planted in memory of Dennis

This week I noticed that one of the roses that we planted in memory of a friend who we knew from the One Voice Choir had produced rosehips. 

This reminds of the time when we use to collect them and earn money for doing so.  It was a time when my mother would dose all her children regularly with rosehip syrup.  Apparently, rosehips have twenty times more vitamin C than one orange. The syrup was intended to ward of colds.

I am thinking of splitting these hips and planting them in some well-draining seed sowing compost to see if I can grow a rose.  It will be of interest to me because we bought this rose as it was sold as a purple rose.  It turned out to be a beautiful yellow.  I am good with propagating roses from cuttings so let’s see if I have the knack with rosehip seeds.

Growing Mushrooms

Irish Gourmet Mushrooms – King Oyster.

This week on some of the decaying wood from blown over trees there has been a proliferation of mushrooms.  I had intended to photograph these, but the small camera has packed up.  I went over to my friend Micheal’s schoolhouse to see if he could fix it and was given a packet of mushroom spores which I will attempt to grow on some of this decaying wood. 

Will do some research on how best to grow these but should be fun to see how they go and even more fun to be able to cook with them.

Propagating Trees

Alder slips with heal.

One of my favorite trees here in Cordressagagh is Alder.  This loves the conditions here because it grows in the wet.  Alder is the wood used to build houses on stilts in Amsterdam.  So, we had another willow blow down last week in the high winds and I took slips from the existing alder tree that has stood for more than twenty years despite all the high winds.

I have been successful with growing alder trees using this method of pulling the stems from the lower part of the tree while ensuring that they have what is called “a heal.”  So, I have put them in water before I go off to Enniskillen to source some root gel.

Trees are poems the earth writes upon the sky, we fell them down and turn them into paper, that we may record our emptiness. -- Kahlil Gibran

Not sure if I totally agree with this favorite writer Kahlil Gibran.  However, one of the things I do love to do is plant trees that become poems that soar into the sky.

Bulbs for the Monet Way

Bulbs for the Monet Way and Stewarts Grove

A large array of bulbs arrived this week.  I am inspired by the book Planting Schemes from Monet's Garden. Monet loved iris’s so this week Bee planted around three hundred mixed iris along the path that leads into Stewart’s Grove. 

My garden is my most beautiful masterpiece - Claude Monet

He mixed these with nasturtium that spread unto the path that was framed by an archway.  The archway I am growing is one created from willow steams which I weave together. So, I will be sourcing some nasturtium seeds to grow on in pots and will plant these with the iris later next year. 

The rest of the bulbs which include bluebells, crocus and snowdrops are going to be planted in the shade at the back of the butterfly bench in Stewarts Grove.  This will give spring color and provide a food source for the bees and other insects as they emerge from their winter hibernation.

Willow Tree Down

Willow Tree blown down in high winds.

This week I bought a mini chainsaw in order to cut some of the smaller branches from the fallen willow tree.  I will have a professional cut up the thicker pieces rather than my using a normal sized chainsaw which I am scared of using.  I would need to buy some protective trousers as I already have the proper gloves and would use the helmet that is used with the garden strimmer.

The mini chainsaw came with gloves that are suitable for child hands.  It came with a small container that holds the chain oil with no oil inside.  I have ordered a liter of chainsaw oil from Screwfix which I will collect early next week when Bee and I go to Enniskillen to support the program called The Art of Life.

Mini chainsaw for cutting branches from fallen willow.

Building Bird Boxes

One of the things I love to explore is finding positive news on YouTube.  This week I discovered a channel, and it featured an interview with an elderly man who when he retired decided that he needed to assist the bird population of swifts which is now on the list of declining species.

I love that one man (or woman) can have such an impact on the environment in a positive way given that they support what they love.  Given that I have some woodworking tools that I want to make more use of this is an idea I have to make some of these for the garden.

Walking in Nature

The wonderful John Wilmott – The Woodland Bard

Bee and I used to belong to the group called Bards in the Woods lead by the wonderful John Wilmott, who is sorely missed.  We would go walking in the woods and take poems, songs, stories and a lot of food. 

I discovered this YouTube video which promotes the walking in nature which is more effective for some than taking medication.  I have thought that walking in nature should be part of the arsenal of prescriptions available to doctors.

Caring for House Plants

House plant recovering from overwatering

Each time I am in a garden center or big box store I love to look at the house plants.  I am beginning to amass a large collection.  One issue I have with buying these in places like Tesco is that they often come in lovely little pots with no drainage holes.

So, the above plant I bought recently looked as if it was struggling.  I took it out of the pot to find the root ball saturated.  I set it on some newspaper and the paper got soaked.  I replaced the paper and that got soaked as well.  This happened several times.  I have researched how to drill holes in ceramic pots so when I am in Enniskillen this week, I will pick up a diamond tipped drill bit.

Mindful Reflection

Last of Emile Bronte roses on alter with Swan Feathers.

This week Bee cut the last of the Emile Bronte roses (David Austin).  Here is a mindful invitation from Baha’u’llah the founder of the Baha’i Faith which is a mix of Christian and Islam faiths.

O FRIEND! In the garden of thy heart plant naught but the rose of love, and from the nightingale of affection and desire loosen not thy hold. – Baha’u’llah, The Hidden Words.

What is it that you plant in your heart?  What is it that you listen to with affection and do you hold your commitment to this unfolding within yourself for your highest good and for the highest good of all.

Conclusion

Bee presenting The Art of Life

Its been a very wet day but this allows me to spend time writing this Mindful Gardening newsletter with is really a fun thing for me to do.  It is seriously helped by having a small easy to use camera courtesy of my Captain Micheal McCann.

I had thought that over autumn and winter I might not have enough material to use to create a weekly edition of this Mindful Gardening newsletter.  It seems as in that regard I was wrong.  I hope you have a great mindfully aware week and allow the best that is designed to flow through you to be made manifest.