Growing up I was surrounded flower and vegetable gardens. My parents, not content to just grow plants, enlisted my sister and I in maintaining the gardens so we could get up early on Saturday mornings to sell both flowers and produce at the the village farmers market. Besides sneaking off into the village on Saturday’s mornings to purchase ice cream at Taylor Drugs or ridiculously sour warheads candies at the gift shop, I remember the gorgeous bouquets that were put together by my parents to sell and the many others put together by individuals creating their own floral masterpieces. There were snap dragons, lilies, zinnias and dahlias bursting with color – just to name a few. My mom gained the reputation at ‘the flower lady’ during that time and I gained an appreciation for nature. While no longer peddlers at the local market, my Dad to this day still maintains acres of gardens where I snap away photos that I like to imagine my mom would be proud of.
Spring Beauties
For me, the long gray days of winter are all but forgotten when I see that first Crocus appear. A sign that the world is still turning and that spring, with its abundance of new growth and fragrance, will soon appear.
The diversity of it all is what I love. Shades of pink, purple, white, yellow and red set against fresh shades of leafy green. Even more impressive is the diversity of conditions that come together to make an environment conducive to the growth of these beauties. Take trout lilies for example, which grow in eastern American woodlands. They require nutrient rich soil which means they thrive prior to to the forest trees gaining their leaves. The common dandelion on the other hand can be found in abundance in moist areas full of sun.
They floral delights support a society of pollinators and other insects, making them another important link in the chain that allows life to function on our planet earth. Let us cherish their place and