Embracing "We"

Evolving backyard
with Shasta napping on her clover bed.

"The absolutely essential nature of life can only be comprehended by merging fully with the flow of life, so that one is utterly a part of it." Deng Ming-Dao

The pandemic with the resultant sheltering in place is presenting each of us with new challenges to actually BE a part of the flow of life. Many people say they are "bored;" others seem to be chomping at the bit to resume their life as it was before the SARS-CoV-2 (the coronavirus that causes COVID-19 disease) made itself known in the United States. 

"When the pandemic ends it will be all new,

the old will die with the virus. 

Some say a portal will open, 

a gateway to a new world 

just big enough to walk through,

our old baggage left behind." Barbara Robidoux

Old objects of stunning beauty as well as utilitarian,
returned recently to their origins,
are now displayed locally for the enjoyment of each of us
so fortunate to live in, or to visit,  pueblo country.

History tells us that our country was founded by rugged individuals who wanted the freedom to do as they pleased. It seems to me that the struggle of each individual is to let go of "me" and embrace "we". Wearing a mask and social distancing whenever meeting others when we are outside of our house is now the new normal. 

This rugged individual stance was magnified when after World War II families were disrupted by companies that began moving about their employees. Thus each and every person was on their own, so to speak, instead of having a strong sense of family and community. Present day we are seeing the resultant attitude as people say, "no one is going to tell me" to wear a mask out in public or not gather with all my friends. These individuals are focused in totality on themselves ( I ) and unable to embrace the well BEing of everyone ( We ).

Purple Coneflower (Echinacea purpura) amidst

Indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans)

in our backyard.

Our itty bitty in statue but "bigger than life," dynamic, fireball governor has implored all New Mexicans to wear masks, to social distance and to stay home as much as possible. Yet as Shasta and I walk along the Santa Fe River each morning we encounter a half dozen or more persons who do not have on masks. When asked, "where is your mask?" many get nasty and/or belligerent.

The below appeared in our last Friday's local, daily newspaper:

"Responsible at last

To those of you who boldly exercise your right as free Americans

to flout medical advice and the news of nature 

by refusing to wear a mask or observe social distancing,

I have a proposal. 

Instead of a fine for disobeying society's compact, 

your citations would be entered into a database, like a DWI, 

which would be made available to hospital admitting desks

around the county.

Should this COVID-19 "hoax" 

somehow leave you in need of care,

you would be given the news that the bed you seek

is unfortunately being held 

for those who've done their best to avoid it.

You will be given the chance to truly be responsible

for you own actions,

and the rest of us would be free of obligation to pay for them."

Steve Shaw

Santa Fe

I thought this is a fabulous idea to hold individuals accountable for their behavior. Perhaps if such a practice was in place it would support each and every person to refocus on "We" rather than "I"? I as well as many others believe that life before the pandemic will not return. Our daily lives have been shaken from the foundations. We will create a "new normal" which conceivably will be a vast improvement, especially for the well BEing of our planet, and all of her inhabitants.

The heart leaved Hoya purchased from the Phoenix Botanical Gardens
so many years ago has not bloomed since our departure from
MuRefuge. This late Spring I experimented with hanging it outside on the back portal
with protection from direct sunlight.
I am so delighted to see many buds forming and this flower beginning to open.

As each of us examine, and perhaps modify, our attitudes, behaviors and beliefs during this time of global crisis, may we

Garden

"The garden makes the gardener." Wendy Johnson

THEN:

Hoop house over one of the two longest backyard raised beds.
Dwight completed it just in time to set out the Cascadia pea starts.

Late Winter with Cascadia peas just planted into the soil.

NOW:

West end of long hoop house with Cascadia peas plants
removed (we had an abundant crop!)
now with tomatillo, brussels sprouts
and Chinese  cabbage.

Midsection of long hoop house
with lemon cucumbers, kohlrabi
and the ferny plants are asparagus
which is very slow growing here
in the high mountain desert of Santa Fe, NM.

East end of long hoop house with Shin Kurolda carrots (my very favorite!),
Wild Garden lettuce mix (also my all time very favorite lettuce mix!),
Summer savory, Genovese basil and bulbing fennel just emerging;
and on the far end are another tomatillo plant and more asparagus plants.

The second raised bed which is closer to the house is now devoted to mostly to tomatoes. Unlike most vegetables tomatoes like to grow year after year in the same area. Previous years' tomatoes grew in the raised bed that is now the above depicted hoop house so alas, now the tomatoes have to adjust to a different location.

The varieties of tomatoes are Snow White Cherry, Chocolate Cherry and Chadwick's Cherry.
The larger variety of tomatoes are Black Krim and Cherokee Purple (both heirlooms)
as well as Fireworks which is a more recent creation and "best grown in a dry climate".

Along the North side of the house on either side of the slim 500 gallon catchment tank are seven large Italian clay pots with Silvery Fir Tree tomato plants. This is my all time very favorite red tomato variety which I learned of in Animal, Vegetable, Miracle: A Year of Food Life by Barbara Kingsolver. If any of you avid gardners have not read it, I highly recommend reading this wonderful book. Among these tomato plants are nasturtiums and Genovese  basil. All of the plants in these pots are flourishing this year as I have finally figured out the right soil amendments.

To grow vibrant healthy plants in the red colored soil here, so unlike the rich black soil I learned to garden in while a child in Iowa, requires ambitious feeding. The single very best additive is locally produced worm castings by Reunity Resources. Other additives (which I order from KiS Organics) that I now use include alfalfa meal, Azomite, feather meal, kelp meal, green sand and oyster shell flour. At MuRefuge I only used Azomite, feather meal and oyster shell flour, all of which I purchased at Harmony Farm Supply. The green sand, of which I was unfamiliar while living in California, seems to be crucial for the high mountainous desert soil. And I have to be very vigilant when applying the feather meal because Shasta thinks it is very tasty.

Between the front of the first long raised bed and along the back portal cement is a narrow strip of planting space now filled with four circles of Ashworth sweet corn, which is an heirloom with "full bodied old fashioned sweet corn flavor", one each of Yellow Crookneck Squash and Costata Romanesca Squash (zucchini), and four Minnesota Midget Melons. The latter are split between the two middle corn circles. 

Shasta loves nibbling on the melon leaves
which Dwight think are beautiful to look at.

We have already harvested two meals of  the two Summer squash . . . delish! as well as made zucchini muffins and cake. And small little melons have begun to appear. With this second planting of corn the tassels are beginning to appear.

Between the walkway to the shed and the East facing ends of the two long vegetable beds, there is also a planting strip in which circles have been planted with "the Three Sisters": beans, corn and squash. Into these circles the corn was planted the earliest and we are about ready to pick our first ears of corn. The corn, as usually happened in Iowa when I was growing up, was not ready for the 4th of July celebrating. It seems to me that germination is slower here . . . the climate? the soil even though it is fed well with nourishing nutrients? or am I just more impatient since the garden is so visible and requires attentive watering which is done by hand, not automatically?

The two varieties of Winter squash are from Native Seeds/SEARCH in Tucson, Arizona. One variety is Navajo Hubbard; the second is Rio Lucio Pumpkin which is not the typical Cinderella pumpkin but rather a rustic looking Winter squash. This is my first growing of both of these so I am looking forward to eating the results.

Rio Lucio Pumpkin
a Winter squash in its early development.

And then there is the small hoop house where arugula grows most all Winter.

Now there are peppers growing among the carrots which you can see below: 

Below you can see onions growing among the Wild Garden lettuce mix, which contains all the kinds of lettuces grown on their farms, and more carrots.

The grass growing in the front of this small hoop house is (Bouteloua gracilis)   blue grama grass. It is a long lived, warm season perennial grass, native to North America. This beautiful grass, and new to me, is most commonly found from Alberta, Canada, east to Manitoba and south across the Rocky Mountains, Great Plains, and U.S. Midwest. It flourishes here and is often used in reclamation projects. It seems to me a very cheery grass.

Even here in the high mountain desert I continue to "companion" plant. I find companion edibles planted together thrive as though there is magical synergy. And some plants produce above the ground while others bulb below the soil line so the root formations are different.

Gardening, as I like to say, is not for the faint of heart here where the growing season is short and the days in Summer are HOT, hotter this year than any previous year we have been here. Presently the heat is a major topic of conversation among our neighbors here on short circle within Casa Alegre, a Stamm home development of the 1950's. It also is the weather person's primary focus during the local weather we watch on an Albuquerque television station.

I find this gardener . . . me, to be contemplative as I water and weed although I must say there are very few weeds since the entire yard (front, side and back) has been heavily mulched. I am connected with the garden: the fruit orchard, vegetables and the native habitat, in a way I was not at MuRefuge which was a bigger space and in "the country". This gardener is more focused and filled with awe and enjoyment BEing in her garden.

People walk by and often stop with questions about the mulching process, where the native plants were purchased and the water catchment storage tanks. Many individuals have delightful comments on the beauty of the "design" or wondering who was used to create the "design"? I find it extremely curious that many are surprised that the plants in the front and side yards are all natives and are so spectacularly beautiful especially now that the bushes and perennials are in full bloom.

The "spent" penstemon flower stocks are chock full of seeds which, especially on the Rocky Mountain penstemons, are now almost inhaled by the Goldfinches. These precious little birds are seen hopping about the stocks especially in mid morning when it has yet to reach the high 90 degree temperatures common last and this week.

As we garden, whether in pots or the ground, or thoroughly revel in another's garden, may we

Trees

Pinon Pine (Pinus edulis)

I love Pinon Pines! I was first introduced to these stunning

trees in the Eastern Sierras in the Bridgeport/

Mono Lake area where we spent usually a month around

Thanksgiving. We got a permit to cut a Pinon Pine from the

National Forest and took it to MuRefuge for our Yule tree.

The above tree is the third attempt at planting a Pinon Pine in this area of the front native garden. The previous two were 5-6 feet in height; neither survived. This tree was purchased from Plants from the Southwest in a 5 gallon pot and reported to be about 5 years old. Since Pinon Pines start as a seedling in the protection of their sister trees the Junipers, shade has been provided as well as a burlap windbreak since the fierce wind barrels down the street to this corner.

Why plant trees? We think the following excerpts from “Soils and Men”, 

the 1938 Yearbook of Agriculture published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, explain why. Copied from Tooley's Trees website.

“The earth is the mother of us all-plants, animals, and men. 

The phosphorus and calcium of the earth 

build our skeletons and nervous systems. 

Everything else our bodies need 

except air and sun comes from the earth.

Nature treats the earth kindly.  

Man treats her harshly. 

He overplows the cropland, 

overgrazes the pastureland, 

and overcuts the timberland. 

He destroys millions of acres completely. 

He pours fertility year after year into the cities, 

which in turn pour what they do not use 

down the sewers into the rivers and the ocean. 

The flood problem insofar as it is man-made 

is chiefly the result of 

overplowing, overgrazing, and overcutting of timber.

This terribly destructive process is excusable 

in a young civilization. 

It is not excusable in the United States in the year 1938.

We know what can be done and we are beginning to do it. 

As individuals we are beginning to do the necessary things. 

As a nation, we are beginning to do them. 

The public is waking up, and just in time. 

In another 30 years it might have been too late.

The social lesson of soil waste 

is that no man has the right to destroy soil 

even if he does own it in fee simple. 

The soil requires a duty of man 

which we have been slow to recognize.”

“Within a comparatively short time, 

water and wind have flayed the skin off the unprotected earth, causing widespread destruction,

and we have been forced to realize 

that this is the result of decades of neglect. 

The effort to relieve economic depression 

for farmers has also forced attention on the soil.”

“In agriculture all roads lead back to the soil,

from which farmers make their livelihood.”

Netleaf Hackberry (Celtis reticulata)
I am looking forward to berries on this trees
providing the "fruit" loving birds with food.
It has been located in the back garden so
that the tree can be seen through the 
sliding glass door.

Humans are still engaged-- did they ever really stop?-- in egregious acts that degradate planet Earth. Just recently one of our newest additions to our neighborhood shared how he is planting a "forest" in the front yard of the house he and his partner recently bought and moved into. He related how he "loves aspen trees" so planted several in the front yard. 

Oh my gosh, I thought, having had the Aspen trees in our side yard dug up and taken away. As those of you who follow this blog know, the entire side and front yard landscaping was removed as the trees and plants found new homes before the 11.5 tons of Santa Fe rocks were removed by a gentleman who used them to cover his very long dirt road. Then sheet mulching began with native plants soon to follow. Oh how the night loving critters, as do the thrashers, love to dig in the mulch for the abundance of grubs that love the cool, damp dirt beneath the mulch.

Aspen trees are stunningly beautiful and all who live in Santa Fe can drive up the mountain where hundreds of aspen trees grow naturally near stream beds and form families of aspen trees of all ages. Aspen trees require water and cooler temperatures than in Santa Fe. Yet Santa Feians persist in planting these trees. And I watch them struggle in a climate not to their liking.

One Seed Juniper (Juniperus monosperma)

Santa Fe is in the midst of the Juniper-Pinon Pine forest. Juniper trees put their roots down extremely deeply while the Pinon Pine roots grow laterally and not so deep, thus severe drought conditions as happened in the 1950's often cause them to die. Neither tree grows particularly tall since there is limited moisture available here in the high mountainous desert.

Santa Fe's rainfall on the average is 15 inches and we average 26 inches of snow per year.  The United States average of rain is 38" per year and 28" of snow per year. In contrast Sebastopol, California's rainfall averages 37.1" of rain. Of course, we all know that what has happened in the past is not what is happening now.

At MuRefuge to provide shade from the ferocious West sun in the Great Room a White Locust tree was planted. Locust trees seem to be fast growing trees with lovely flowers in the Spring that attract all kinds of bees. This White Locust was so successful in providing cooling to our Great Room, a local native locust was planted to shade our library, which is a West facing bedroom of our house in Santa Fe, to do the same.

This New Mexico Locust was planted 1 1/2 years ago
and was about a foot tall in a 1 gallon black plastic pot.
I overwatered the first year so the tree shot up
with a very spindly trunk which is the reason the tree is staked.
This growing season the trunk has thickened
with the wind rocking the tree.

New Mexico Locust (Robinia neomexicana)
with first blossoms on this tree.

To celebrate my mom's birthday, she was born on July 04, 1914, I planted a mulberry tree from Tooley's Trees that I bought at Plants of the Southwest. So lucky I felt when I saw two of these trees sitting on one of the tables. The owner of my favorite place to shop for plants said she purchased them last season. This season they are not available from Tooley's Trees. 

As a child I remember going to my mother's mother's place in Wesley, Iowa, where we went next door and shook ripe mulberries onto blankets held beneath the neighbor's very large trees: a joyful childhood memory. So I am looking forward in the not too distant future to harvesting mulberries from the tree pictured below.

Russian Mulberry (Morus alba tatarica)
"Blackberry-shaped, sweet, mild, white fruit, sometimes pink or purple.
Dried like raisins. Staple food in parts of Asia. Also delicious fresh or in pie and jam.
Large spreading, bushy tree grows rapidly to 45-50 ft. tall.
Bears fruit in about 3 years. Tolerates poor conditions and practically disease free.
Self-fertile. Hardy to -25 degrees F.
Native to China, but naturalized around the world. Used to feed silkworms. "
--description from Tooley's Trees

This mulberry tree will eventually provide shade for our bedroom which gets West sun ... hot! hot! hot! in the Summer.

Way back in the mid 90's I saw my first Desert Willow and was blown away, so to speak, by its beauty. I had never seen such a tree although I am familiar from my childhood with its relative, the Catalpa Tree and its long seed pods. The below tree is planted in the back yard near our larger bedroom window. When I bought it from the Plants of the Southwest it was more of a shrub. I have since pruned it to form a tree. This tree is a cultivar so the flowers are darker than the native species and almost the same color as the Desert Four O'Clocks that are planted nearby.

Desert Willow (Chilopsis linearis ‘Bubba’)

Hopefully all these trees will flourish as have the fruit trees: 

               Apple

               Esopus Spitzenburg

               Westfield Seek No Further

               Thornberry 

           Apricot

                Hargrande 

                Harogem

           Peach

                 Reliance

           Plum

                 Green Gage

If so, our small, compared to MuRuge, city lot will have an abundance of trees. They will be providing both beauty and shade as well as food for both humans and other creatures that visit.

As we all sit beneath the shade of our favorite tree enjoying Summer, may we