Playing in the dirt

This weekend was full of sun and so much dirt-- rich, deep, delicious two yards, two truckloads full of dirt. Naturally, with the arrival of the dirt came the creatures who love dirt! Abby's boys wholeheartedly helped move the dirt. Oh, the joy of the freedom to embrace soil. Then, following the dirt came the seeds, the tiny capsules of plant just waiting to spring into action.

Nestled in all of that lovely dirt are:

• pumpkin seedlings (Thank you, Eden!)


• chinese lanterns


• two varieties of cucs


• peas


• lots of beans


• giant sunflowers


• enough salad greens to fill a bowl the size of Alberta St. (or maybe that is a wee exaggeration)


• chard (Thank you, Heather!)


• kale


• nasturtiums (heart)


• beets


• carrots


• Indian corn


• zucchini


• yellow squash


• tomato seedlings (Thank you, Heather!)


• some other beautiful seedlings (Thank you, Heather! what else did you give us?)


• basil


• garlic (Thank you, Meg!)


• peppers


• hops for the teepee (we still need a few bamboo poles)


• and we still have to build and plant the strawberry wall & plant the artichokes out front

Abby also created a fairy ring planted with cosmos, sunflower, lupine, viola, and daisies. And, we now have a little treehouse play structure and outdoor kitchen set and a few ride around cars, thank you to Sierra! Behind the stage-gazebo we can trim the bushes a bit and create a sweet little nature house.

Maybe Heather can concoct some brilliant garden art projects to add a little sparkle and shine to the mix. I love our garden.

Thank you, Abby and Dave and kids for all of your dirt moving muscle and gentle seed planting. Thank you Heather, Eden, Meg & Josh, and Abby for the plants and seeds and such. Thank you, Sierra for all of the outdoor toys.

Come out and play in the garden!

crafty/creative family: make a garden guardian

Meet Zopanoni, so named by my 3 1/2 year old, she is the guardian of our little sprouts, tender buds, and hopeful harvest. Inspired by scarecrows, fairies, and strong women, she has yet to be fully adorned with all of her sparkles and bells; she is a work-in-progress achieving her regalia and ephemera as the garden waxes then wanes. But she has enough right now to make beautiful music and a loving presence in our sweet little garden.


To create her, we used:

• bamboo for the vertical pole
• grape vine for the horizontal (arms)
• straw and grape vines bundled with twine for the head and wild hair
• fabric, bells, sparkles, mirror bits, ribbon, beads, etc. from SCRAP and around the house

Use what you have available in your yard and house! On a Nurture-neighborhood garden-ogling tour, my daughter and I met a woman who made her scarecrows with old brooms. We didn't have any old brooms, but we were very inspired, so we basically made one out of straw. The more bells, chimes, and shiny things you add, the more your garden will sparkle and sing and the safer from the birdies it will be.