re-treat

One of my favorite people said it best:  this week has felt like I'm a pair of running shoes banging around and around in the clothes dryer.  It has been a time of many stark and irreversible changes; some that were expected and others that popped up, like a ring of mushrooms, out of the proverbial Nowhere.  So I thought it would be the perfect time to re-visit two previous posts about The New England Peace Pagoda.  This is one of the relatively local destinations I keep in mind, carrot-on-a-stick style, when I'm doing the unglamorous and baby-step riddled work of building physical stamina and strength. 

Elsewise it's seed catalog season.  Have felt really certain that I'll be modest and sensible with any purchases I make.  And then I actually opened the Seeds of Change catalog.  They are offering varieties of raddichio that weren't part of my trials last summer!  My heart started racing over this.  Got way too excited at the mere idea of doing another round of variety trials.  Now there are several dog-eared pages in the catalog.  And that's just one of four ... 

Comments

[Marti]

For me it is the catalog of Southern Exposure Seed Exchange with its mix of gorgeous hand drawn offerings as well as photos. They have stories and photos of the Virginia farms where they source their seeds; committed to heirloom seeds and seed saving. Every year, in September, they host the Heritage Harvest Festival in Monticello, Virginia, home of Thomas Jefferson. Right now I'm just transfixed on the pages of heirloom tomatoes, names like Mule Team, Old Virginia, German Red Strawberry, Good Neighbor and one of my most favorite, Brandywine.

[deb g]

I'm ordering potatoes tomorrow... seed catalogs are dangerous territory.

[Acey]

Hi Marti, its inspiring, isnt it? The places seeds go and the people they meet. I have longed to visit Monticello for many years now. Am currently reading the book Founding Gardeners so the desire has grown extra strong. Andrea Wulfs initial inspiration for this book (which is outstanding in my opinion and so Ill be reviewing it at some point here on the blog) came from an autumn visit to Monticello and she describes the gardens beautifully.

[Acey]

Hi Deb - today I discovered its also dangerous territory to go poking under the straw mulch on a warm January morning. I wanted to uncover EVERYTHING just to see whats happening there. Hoping our soil will be friable enough for potatoes next year. Have grown them in trash cans before so thats another option if I cant control the urge to expand ...