Good Time

The guys get good time for taking my class.  Sometimes the conversation revolves around good time and I nip it in the bud.  I want these men to see this class as an asset to them whether they get good time or not.  I want them to see that the skills they are learning are fantastic whether they like flowers or not.  I want them to know that they have something to learn whether they think they do or not.  In the end they actually have a “good time” from what I can see.

We realized the fence was too tall to hop over so one guy fashioned a gate that he was really proud of.

The potatoes came up in such a crooked line so we all had a chuckle about who planted them and how lopsided the rows are.  Oh and check out how one of the guys sprinkled carrot seeds ON the potatoes.  Not sure what he was thinking!  A stew?

The raspberries have the most delicate blossoms, hard to catch because they don’t seem to last long.  It still astounds me how the men never seem to get it that in order to get a fruit you need a flower.

Another guy did not think much of the huge strawberry patch til he bent over and counted 13 strawberries on one stem!  Holy Cow.  That was a great lesson in propagating things that work.  We do nothing for the strawberries, no water, no fertilizer, nothing, just divide them every couple of years and plant yet another patch.  Like the strawberries, I am trying really hard to go with what works.  Positive comments to the guys, real conversations, taking their input and not assuming I am being played.  Letting them work out solutions on their own, like the gate for the fence or the crooked potatoes (who really cares right?).   They are a pleasure to be with and as usual we have a good time, learning as we go.

May in the garden….

May in the garden is perhaps the most hopeful time of all.  Things are budding, coming soon, the anticipation is rich.  The peony buds are swelling and shiny and the stems are tall and reaching for the sun.

The strawberries have white fragrant blossoms turning into green fruits, there must be a thousand strawberries.

The raspberries too are going crazy.  This will be our first year to harvest raspberries.

The cabbage and kale were hardy enough and the soil moist enough to transplant them from 1 row to many rows.

We added more onions too between the rows of the already planted seed onions.

The squash garden got expanded this year since the strawberries we divided and replanted have taken over last year’s squash garden.

The newly planted roses are leafing out and the dahlias have started to put up their green stems.  Fencing went up, compost turned and nepeta divided and transplanted to make a hedge around the new rose garden.  All good, the men were happy and really surprised by the smell of the strawberries.  That was a neat moment when they were bending over looking at the flowers and saying how nice they smelled.  Nothing like a strawberry patch on a rainy day.

The men’s talents really come out when we are working outside.  We meet and access the garden then we break up and each goes to the area that seems to suit him.  One who is in charge of the compost from the kitchen gets the pitchfork and turns the piles.  One who speaks little English and is strong and capable goes and finishes the fencing.  Others get shovels and go off and rip up grass to start a new garden.  There is always a student who wants to weed with me and chat which is really nice.  Its always someone different and its always a pleasure to connect and here about their experience.  I always ask about their gardening experience and what they want to do upon release and how they might do it and how it all works out here.  It’s a great way to help them working side by side.  I wish it was a daily program.  I could go everyday and imagine what the garden would look like then!  Imagine how connected to the garden then men would be if they were out there every day.

In the meantime, they work in the Emerald Necklace Parks every other day getting fresh air, positive feedback, work skills and good time.  The maintenance collaborative is a great program and I am proud to be a part of it.

prisoners, poems, promise

I like the word “promise” when used as a noun and not as a verb.  He has promise rather than he promised.  It packs more hope and grace.

This month is National Poetry Month.  After a really nice morning of hard work in the garden  we went into the library and I handed each of the men a sheet of plain white paper and a pencil.  I asked them to write a poem about their morning in the garden.

Here is what they wrote:

P

O

E

M

(I told this guy he was a minimalist!)

Had to go to the garden after waking up late

but the fresh air and warm sun felt great

watching these flowers grow all though slow

makes me say woooo

got me thinking I can start my own when I go home

I actually could & would,  just gotta set that goal

Right now my goal is good time,

to go home sooner to seek whats mine

To day was a good day cuz

we had a nice day of work

in the garden and the sun was nice

and the teacher likes it nice

I enjoyed the weather this morning

picking rocks and catching worms

working in the garden is never boring

but it is full of germs

I seen a colorful pretty flower

and ate something sour

wish I could stay out there all day

but instead its just an  hour

Today I worked in the garden

amongst the flowers and butterflies

I tasted rhubarb and kicked it with Ferriss and the guys

I turned my compost pile and it smelled like @#%*

but with the garden its a great big hit

standing out there absorbing the sun

I had no worries, proud of the work I’ve done

Here are the potatoes we planted!  How promising!

Despite the drought….

I must say as I write this it is pouring rain which is wonderful as we really really need it, but despite the drought we have been in….

I want to tell you how well our garden has been doing all by itself.  The bulb garden is sensational, those little bulbs know how to store energy all winter.

Nature is pretty wonderful when it comes to perennials.  These primula we transplant each fall look fresh as the dew in the morn.  But look how dry the ground is around these luscious strawberry blossoms!

Even though it had not rained for weeks, or snowed for months and we have had record high temperatures the garden still knew what to do and did it well.

The rhubarb just gets taller and taller each week and look at how juicy these stems are getting.  Look at the ground though, dry dry dry.

The more organic matter in the soil the better it retains water.  The more perennial crops we plant the more successful our crops.  The less we water the less dependent we are on water.

Suddenly, it rains just in time to plant seeds directly into the soil.  Keep posted as we watch those grow.

Fences, fruit and fresh starts

It is really truly finally spring.  The seeds have sprouted,

the rhubarb looks like elephant ears,

the raspberries have sent out so many new shoots,

the apple tree has little pink blossoms,

the new fence posts are in.

After a long odd winter it is really time to garden in earnest.

Coffee grounds, seeds, stakes and tiny beginnings

Not much to look at yet, but these are coffee grounds on our new rose garden.  Every time I go to Starbucks I ask for coffee grounds for the gardens.  This is a new garden so needs a great deal of amendments.  Last year the city gave us compost which we will receive again in April.  When we planted the roses last week we did see some worms finally.  Little by little we bring the soil back to life.  Its such a rewarding endeavor to see a worm in our soil.

Inside under the grow lights we planted 9 different types of tomatoes, several different peppers and eggplant.  We also started zinnias and snapdragons for our cutting garden.

We staked the emerging peas.

How pretty are the primula!

We welcomed back all the perennials.  These will be big pink fragrant peonies before we know it!  Imagine.

The fruit garden looks great already, the raspberries have doubled in size and are sending up plenty of new shoots, the rhubarb which looked dead last week has lots of new growth in just one week.

The bulb garden is in full glory now too.  It is being taken over by the strawberries which is rather appealing.  The bulbs’ leaves will wither out as the strawberries come into bloom.  So appealing, so rewarding, such tiny beginnings.  We just have to take the time to stop and appreciate the baby steps for the new beginnings.  The fresh starts.  Kind of like the students, give them food, fresh air, energy, and they will emerge healthy and ready to do their job.  The students actually stayed an hour over time today because they were so eager to clear the woods surrounding the garden.  They heard me say we needed more light.  They were so proud of the work they did.  I must say though give 6 strong men some saws and loppers and they can really do some work in a morning!

Roses and Parsley

This week we planted roses and parsley.  We created a new garden last year for the tomatoes and in order to rotate the tomatoes and make room for a formal rose garden we took over the new spot.  We transplanted 2 Julila Child roses and planted two new roses , Senior Prom and Maria Stern.   We have some donated boxwood as well.  When the boxwood comes we plan to rim our diamond shaped rose garden.   It doesn’t look like much yet, but keep your eyes on it over the coming months.

We now have a fruit garden, an herb garden, a bulb garden, a rose garden, a perennial garden and several annual vegetable gardens.

We also planted 6 parsley plants as an edge around some stepping stones near the herb garden.  Parsley is a great plant, keeps coming up, edible and loaded with vitamin C.

Each year I save sticks from other jobs.  We will stake our peas with these sticks when the sprouting seeds emerge next week.  I learned this trick at Monticello.

This is ornamental grass clippings we are repurposing as a mulch for the garden.

I love teaching the men how to recycle.