A Natural Sense of Wonder

Brian Doyle at Orion Magazine recently reviewed Rick Van Noy's A Natural Sense of Wonder: Connecting Kids with Nature through the Seasons.

Brian gets it. And I need say nothing more.

The Rude Garden

In the grocery store today, I overheard a mother say sternly to her young, spirited child who was enjoying the store's music as only young, spirited children can: "Spencer, stop dancing. This isn't dance class. You don't see anyone else dancing, do you?"

How often do you hear that same voice in your own head? Does it keep you from having a garden that's truly yours? Does your front yard not sing or dance because none of your neighbors' does? Or maybe you had an idea for a feature you'd really enjoy in your back yard, but abandoned the thought because you've never seen it anywhere else before?

As a living system, the garden is one big experiment, and it will evolve regardless of how much or how little we're involved. Our landscape is "ours" for a relatively fleeting moment in time. So why not make the most of our short visit? Go ahead, wield your hand — try colors, combinations, specimens, and features that truly delight you. The worst that can happen, really, is that others might think your garden dramatic, eccentric, or even downright rude. Can you imagine? You could be "that garden" of whispers and legend. The "dangerous" one. The one that says to your neighborhood, "I live here."

If the very idea thrills you a little bit, you've got some work to do. I'm no therapist but there's no question that gardens, and gardening, can be therapeutic. Wouldn't it be great to dance again, like a young, spirited child?

My Green Valentine

If you have children of a certain age, over the next couple of days you'll be inundated with kitschy little valentines bearing various Pixar and Disney characters — and you'll be under pressure to reciprocate. We're in the same boat (x2), but I'm drawing my line in the sand. Instead of perpetuating the waste of perfectly good paper (i.e. trees), we're giving valentines of homemade seed packets.

You could buy your own at the nursery, but we're fortunate enough to have Common Ground in our neighborhood, who sells seeds in bulk (which reduces manufacturing, packaging and transport costs). In each little wax-paper pouch there's 1/2 teaspoon of the following:

Cornflower (20%)
Nasturtium (20%)
Scarlet Flax (20%)
California Poppy (20%)
and a mix of California wildflowers, which are redundant with some of the above but also include other surprises.

We sealed the bag with a little foam sticker (OK, so we're not totally green here) and each packet goes into the schoolmates' mailboxes with a note that says "Plant Me!"

(If you're the lucky recipient of one of these and clueless about how to plant them, I would have my kids help me cover the seeds with about 1/4" -1/2" of potting soil in a terracotta pot on my windowsill and keep the pot moist, not drenched; the first seedlings should sprout within a few weeks.)

The total cost was about $2/packet, which beats most pre-packaged seeds and has a lot more character to boot. I figure, hey, the worst that can happen is the seed packet goes in the trash; and to my mind, better some seeds than a cartoon-branded tree.

Hey, I know that guy!

For a sneak preview of the class I'm leading next weekend, check out the cover story of this week's Palo Alto Weekly. (You can also download a PDF of the issue, with photos.)

For another angle on the same topic, you can also see my thoughts in a recent MarketWatch article.

But don't stop there: sign up today to attend the class, because I've got a LOT more to share!

Calling the Do-It-Yourself Gardener

If you've been wondering how to start planning your own home garden, or what types of landscaping elements are best for kids, or how to attract butterflies and "good bugs," then please register for the class I'll be leading at Gamble Garden in Palo Alto next month.

In a 3-session series, you'll learn how to analyze your property and assess your needs; how to determine what structural features will be useful, beautiful, and safe for your entire family; and how to determine what plants will be best suited for your family's garden. We'll also explore plants that are toxic for children and pets, review different types of swings and play structures, and lay the foundation for creating your own landscape plan.

Once you're registered for the class, please feel free to contact me with advance questions or topic requests. Whether you're already working with a landscape designer or contractor, or thinking of planning and installing the garden yourself, I guarantee you'll learn something useful (and have fun in the process!). There are only 25 seats per session, so sign up now! I hope I'll see you there...

To Market, To Market

It's official: Palo Alto will get our second farmers' market, opening Sunday, June 3 just steps from my office on California Avenue. It may be slightly more slickly produced than the Saturday downtown market, but can you really have too much?

My three favorite reasons why farmers' markets are great -- apart from the camaraderie and the quality of the food:
1) When else do you get the opportunity to actually talk with the people who grow the food you eat? The corn doesn't come from some faceless Nebraska corporation, the bread isn't shrink-wrapped. Wondering how to know when a persimmon is ripe? Ask the grower. These people are genuinely excited about what they have produced. Somehow, that makes their food taste even better.


2) They are a wonderful way to get in touch with the seasons. No plums, Pluots® or Apriums® in March, please -- not even organic ones. The bad news is, this will shake you out of your comfort zone when you can't buy asparagus in August. The good news is, this will shake you out of your comfort zone when you get to try cardoon in August.

3) What's more exciting than trying new food? By definition, small local farmers have small local farms. And they're not going to waste their resources trying to compete with the big farms that grow big quantities of the most common fruits and vegetables you'll find shrink-wrapped in Safeway. Thus, cardoon. And homemade marmalade. And heirloom eggplants. And purple cauliflower.

(By the way, kids often enjoy this kind of diversity -- give 'em a few dollars and let them choose their new favorite vegetable for tonight's dinner -- and it's nice to learn that food comes from the Earth, not the aisle.)

I hope I'll see you on California Ave. on June 3!

Go Outside and Play

When you were a child, was there a favorite place in nature you loved to play? A seminal, memorable moment spent outdoors? Did some way of being in contact with nature help make you the person you are today? Without that contact, who will today's children be tomorrow?

Richard Louv's fabulous article from Orion magazine raises big and important questions regarding our children and nature. It's not a "how to" piece. It's why to. And after reading the article, you'll agree it's not even a question.