The Spot Where I Dance

 I designed a large garden for the Veterans Healthcare Facility in Rocky Hill Connecticut in 2018.  It wasn't only my doing, many volunteers came together to build this wonderful spot.  If you believe in angels, then you will believe me when I say, there were many.  There were many in human form and in spirit.  Without getting into all of the story, I thought I would put an update here about the Lavender after three years of thriving. The lavender, "Hidcote", pictured above, did wonderful in the beginning of this summer.  It was a showstopper.  Then the rains came and wiped them out.  Not all of them, but most.  I cut all the dead parts back, took out the plants that didn't make it and will wait a little while before planting new.  I'm so glad I took this picture though, they were truly amazing. This is what it looked like after the rains.

I’ve scaled down in my holiday decorating. I chose a few things to decorate and did them up nice. I used to make dozens of wreaths. Not all for me of course but for customers and family. This year I made two, one for me and one for a dear friend. After making many wreaths for years, this year seemed so easy. I didn’t need a lot of greens. I walked my yard and collected some nice twigs and greens, and a friend offered me some greens from a black pine that he needed to cut down. I decided to use ribbon as the contrasting color. I’ve used berries and variegated plants before, but this year I didn’t have many choices. I made the wreaths extra full with greenery and used more ribbon than usual. Merry Christmas 2019. May the season be peaceful and the new year be a healthy, happy, and a prosperous one.

We decided this year to get a rental through VRBO for Thanksgiving. I was in need of a new atmosphere for the holiday. It was becoming so predictable it was making me depressed. Not that I don’t like the holidays, I just needed something different that we could all enjoy. We live in the northeast, so I had many choices. I chose the beach; I hadn’t been to the shore yet this year, so I could fill my need to see the ocean while celebrating gratitude, how perfect. We arrived on Wednesday, and on Thursday, Thanksgiving, we woke up to sunshine, cool air and wind. I had to get out to see the water and feel the weather on my face as soon as possible, so I bundled up and out I went. Sunrise from our bedroom window. It was a wonderful day. I was able to walk a few times each day while there and fill my soul with gratitude the way I imagined. It was special being able to spend time with my one son and husband in a new place and perhaps a new beginning. This is a wetlands area...

I closed up the Healing Garden last week. I emptied pots, pulled annuals, and did some final weeding. I planted more bulbs, grape hyacinths, and a few more blue flowering bulbs. The garden did so well this year. The soil was perfect, the weather couldn’t have cooperated better, and everything took root and did exactly what it was supposed to do. Even the grass looked good. I worked the gardens every week as promised, and I met some great veterans that always managed to say thank you.  It’s wonderful to do something for someone that appreciates what you do, isn’t it? So until Spring arrives next year, I will be hibernating and educating myself on what to do for next year. Here are some photos from throughout the season.

November 12, 2017:  We worked at the Healing Garden for a little while today.  We've had a little dry spell, so we, Bud and I, thought we would get some grading done on the hill.  Bud picked up a few more donated bales of hay from Nate O'Neil in Woodbury.  We've been using hay as a barrier for erosion control, it works pretty well.  Some topsoil was moved to the center of the garden and grading was done on the hill, but not in it's entirety.  It was still pretty muddy in sections, so those areas need to dry out more before grading can be completed. The garden doesn't look as good as it did in past weeks.  The leaves are falling from the oaks and making a mess everywhere.  This bothers me a little.  I know it's a construction site, but I really want it to look nice for people that come to see the progress.  I keep imagining what it's going to look like when it's done; I see green grass, the flowers blooming and the trees planted....

November 4, 2017:  We had another volunteer today, his name is Paul Fortier from Woodbury.  He was a hard worker!  We needed to reseed a lot of the area that we seeded due to some washout from the rain.  This time we came with bigger guns, so to speak.  We had some straw that comes in rolls that you put down on top of the grass seed.  We held it down with staples that we put in the ground and small rocks to keep it from blowing away on a windy day.  This seems to be a good solution, so let's hope for the best. Paul raking the topsoil for the second dose of grass seed. That's Bud Neal Paul and Bud posing for today's photo Grass seed down, one more time.  I think this time, we have a solution. Special thanks to Paul for his time and work. It was a pleasure getting to know you. Until next time:  Persistence: continuing firmly or obstinately in a course of action in spite of difficulty of opposition. source   I have le...

Well, it's November and the garden is in continual movement.  We've had some wonderful moves forward and few tiny steps backwards, but for the most part, I'm please with the progress.  I love how Mother Nature works with you when your planning something like a garden.  Sometimes, I feel like my work can be for nothing, but I found from past experiences, that if I slow down and stop trying to control everything, mother nature will show me how to move forward.  One thing that's always in the back of my mind is that I am only a worker, like an ant or a bee, on this wonderful planet.  What I do is temporary.  Nature will always be my supervisor, there's no union or employee protection, and there is no certainty in my results.  I need to watch and listen to what the environment that I plan to alter is doing, or what I do, will be for nothing. Our first attempt at seeding - left to right, Rita Smith, Chris Donnelly, and Bud Neal To date, our failure h...

I have a new project that is near and dear to my heart.  It's called The Healing Garden at the Connecticut Healthcare and Residential Center in Rocky Hill Connecticut.  It started about three years ago when a friend of mine, Bud Neal told me about wanting to plant a few trees at the Veterans Home in Rocky Hill.  He had been going there for years engaging the men and women that are either there short-term or living there.  He's a vet and commander of the American Legion in Woodbury, CT.  His credentials are a mile long with other avenues of business and life, but short term of it, he felt his connections would help in planting a number of trees instead of one or two which was the original plan.  He asked if I was willing to help, and of course I said yes. After walking the area that he had chosen for the trees, he and I brainstormed an idea of a garden with five trees.  He wanted all the trees to ultimately have the branches touch showing unity. ...

I love late fall when the holidays are approaching and summer seems distant.  Life slows down from the summer busyness and fall clean up, so I shift my thoughts to decorating for the holidays.  I have a few customers that like the look of natural greens for decorating, which is what I love also, so I make some of my own creations for them to hang on their doors or where ever they want them. This wreath was for a large piece of granite in the entry way of a fence. When I collect greens, I store them outside in the shade.  The days are cool in late November but the sun can still get pretty warm and dry the greens up fast.  I cover them with a tarp so if it snows or rains, I don't have work with the greens when they're wet.  I found the quality of the wreath frames are important when making wreaths.  The good ones hold the greens and don't bend when full.  The ribbons for bow making are also important when it comes to making full puffy bows.  ...

Usually when I do something in the garden now, I have a purpose.   I don’t just throw a plant in the dirt and hope for the best.   I usually have some knowledge behind my purpose and place a plant in a specific location because I’ve done a little research and know that the plant has the possibility of thriving in that area.   I am usually pretty sure that the soil has good nutritional value and the sun is about right for the plant.   Well, today I kind of threw that practice out the door and planted grass seed on a whim. It’s not that I’m completely ignorant to this; I’ve done it before.   I’ve also talked to a few of the old time Yankees that I know, like my dad, that have told me that this is a good time to plant grass seed.   It’s cold out, very cold for this season as a matter of fact.   The ground is still frozen in Connecticut, but it’s starting to thaw little by little.   We had a tremendous amount of snow this year so that makes the g...

I've been gardening since the age of thirteen.  My husband and I have owned four homes and we have done extensive rehabilitation on the properties that we have owned in different parts of the country.  The most recent property is here in Connecticut.  In 1997 I started expanding my gardening to other properties beyond my own.  After leaving my job as president of a non-profit in 2008, devoting my time to the outdoors has been my priority.  It was then, in 2008, that I started working for an arborist and began studying arboriculture.  I worked four years there learning about trees, diseases, and insects and am now involved with organizations like the Connecticut Tree Protective Association, I'm a member of the New England chapter of ISA, and have attended numerous seminars along with attending Arboriculture 101 (classes focused on the study of trees).  I entered the Master Gardener Program through the University of Connecticut in 2011 and graduated in 2...