I’m thinking about gardening. 1) Weeds and my disdain for them 2) New potatoes? Yes or no? (I say no — I want to save them in the hope they’ll grow into bakers. Big, fat baking potatoes to bake for an hour at 375 degrees, then cover with sour cream, butter and salsa, and devour. 3) I’m trying not to think about the new deck. It’s ugly underneath. What do you do with the underneath part? Lattice? I’m not a fan of lattice. (Outdoor furniture, walkways and woodwork are all part of gardening, it turns out. Trellis for wisteria, anyone? Lattice, covered with wisteria? Possibly.)
I’m thinking about the rocks in my yard. I just made a couple of new flower-bed borders today, and an extremely ugly, yet functional, walkway that leads from the back door. They’re river rocks — large and smooth. They’re not painted.
I’m thinking about the river rocks my grandfather (Dad’s dad) painted every year. They formed a large circle around an even larger apple tree. With four kinds of apples hanging from it! (In my mind it was five kinds of apples.) (In reality, it was grafted from possibly two trees. But still! A tree with two different kinds of apples? How magical is that?) My grandpa, Gene, worked at a paint store, and he knew paint. He painted the rocks circus colors — bright yellow, red, blue and green. The paint was never faded or chipped. In the soft, dewy mornings I would sit out there on a rock and breathe in the fresh morning air. Once a neighbor’s dog came and sat with me. We breathed. We sat. I had on my favorite dress — a yellow jumper. The dog left. That, my friends, is a sublime morning.
More magic — my grandparents’, Gene and Jean (awww — they matched!), had two gardens. One was behind their garage, and the other one you got to by sneaking down a magical, tree-lined path, ducking through a hidden doorway… and then, you were there.
They were Depression kids, both sets of my grandparents. With my dad’s folks, the Depression hit in the early years of their marriage. Man oh man, did they ever learn from it. So when they found out their neighbor 1) Had a huge yard 2) Didn’t garden and 3) was willing to share, they helped themselves to a large plot in her backyard and made a wonderful “fairy garden” for their two little granddaughters. They shared the produce, they split the water bill, all was well.
To get to the fairy garden, we cut through another neighbor’s backyard, then walked through a “gate” cut out of the laurel hedge. It was like going to an enchanted land — I can still remember how it looked. I think of them always on these hot summer days, weeding, watering, and wondering if I should paint my rocks circus colors.
[tags]garden, fruit, vegetable, food, the great depression, kids, grandparents, family, history[/tags]
Photo graciously provided by capsicina, through a Creative Commons license, some rights reserved
10 responses so far ↓
Wacky Mommy // Jul 28, 2007 at 11:14 pm
C’mon, guys. No welcomes out there?
Betsy // Jul 29, 2007 at 9:23 am
I love the way kid memories stay with us - the thought of you hanging out with the dog wearing your favorite yellow dress and being happy doing absolutely nothing tickles a few long-dormant memories of my own.
But you’re not serious about the new potatoes growing into bakers, right…?
Hope // Jul 29, 2007 at 10:39 am
Your description of the hidden garden is so inpiring I just might do some gardening today.
Roxie // Jul 29, 2007 at 10:52 am
My grandparents also had a magical backyard. I loved their grape arbor, a cool shady place with Concord grapes that were both sweet and sour. And their huge Bartlett pear tree that had the best pears I have ever eaten in my life . . . period!
The irises! There were always bees hovering above them collecting the sweet nectar within. How I love the smell of iries because I am transported right back to my childhood!
My grandpa was a beekeeper. There was always honey at their house and it always tasted of the flowers in my grandparent’s yard. My cousins and I would sneak honey out of the recycled margarine tubs, chewing on the honeycomb after all the sweet goodness was gone. Talk about a sugar high!!! After that we would race around the house and slide down the stairs.
I could go on and on. Thank you for reminding me of the part of the magic that was my grandparents backyard.
Oh, and I really like the wisteria idea. I have a passion vine that is filling in the ugly spot below my deck. It is gorgeous. You might as well plant something that you love because you are creating your own magic!!!!!
Wacky Mommy // Jul 29, 2007 at 11:17 am
Betsy,
Yes! I am serious about waiting for the bakers. I’m always tempted to dig up the potatoes early and leave none for fall. We roast them with onions, a curry seasoning mix, and mustard seed. Yum. The kids like them fried with salt and pepper, ketchup on the side.
Hope,
Glad it inspired you.
Roxie,
Happy memories, eh? They’re the best. I love the passion vine idea, thank you.
Wacky Mommy // Jul 29, 2007 at 12:19 pm
ps — if anyone else has any happy gardening memories, grandparent stories or recipes to share, please leave them in comments! I love to hear from everybody.
Ash // Jul 31, 2007 at 7:29 am
Awesome post. I love stories about the good old days.
Nicole // Jul 31, 2007 at 1:39 pm
I’m making baked potatoes for dinner tonight, 375 degrees for an hour. I’ve been thinking about them ever since I read your blog a few days ago. Yum! Thanks for the dinner idea!
Wacky Mommy // Jul 31, 2007 at 4:30 pm
You just cannot go wrong with a baked potato.
edj // Aug 11, 2007 at 3:26 pm
I love the images in this post. You’re a great writer.
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