Tag: memories
Sweet Peas
Sweet Peas by Donna Williams I am struggling to paint a bouquet of sweet peas. Picked this morning from my back garden, straight cat-tongue-hair stems that hold lacy light blossoms, self-possessed yet playful. The perfume, the perfume! Alberta honey and a daughter’s love. I mix […]
Lola’s Garden and Cherry Tomatoes
My earliest memories of plants all took place in my Lola’s garden. In 2006, we had just relocated from Montana to Lola’s house in Los Angeles. Back then, I hadn’t realized how poor my family was to be forced to live in someone else’s house. […]
The Pines of My Childhood
I’ve been in and among nature since I was born. Some of the earliest pictures of my family show my (most definitely sleep deprived) parents loaded to the brim with outdoor gear, with a backpack child carrier on each back. Having twins isn’t easy, but […]
Michele’s Fig Tree
My father, Michele, was born in a small town in Italy called Bitetto, about 20 miles from Bari. He eventually bought a house in Canarsie, Brooklyn, that had a plot of land where he could do some gardening. He loved gardening and planted a lot […]
Of Healers and Weavers: Bayabas
I spent my elementary school vacations at my best friend’s home in Los Angeles, California. We grew up in Historic Filipinotown, an enclave home to the city’s first wave of immigrants from the Philippines. Her home had avocado and orange trees, abundant kudzu, and plenty […]
Blåsippa
Hypatica nobilis syn. Anemone hepatica En härlig vårdag i april, solen skiner och snön har precis smällt bort. Vi tar oss ut till barndomens blåsipps-backar – dessa som brukar vara blåa av sippor – och mycket riktigt, så även denna vårdag. En yster liten vårbäck slingrar […]
Pickling Cucumbers in Maine [Interview]
Click to hear Jim’s story Me: Hi Dad. We’re sitting here in the backyard and I am hoping that you will tell me a story about a plant. Dad: When I was younger my parents used to take my sisters and I up to […]
My Mother Had
My mother had A garden She tended it in old deck shoes covered in mud Supervising her rows in cut offs and a canary bright halter top The family dog trotted dutifully behind her down the rows of […]
“A Genealogy, Mostly Plants”
“A Genealogy, Mostly Plants” By Pamela Banting I was born and raised in a place that takes its name from its trees. The name of the village in central northwestern Manitoba is the direct translation of the Swampy Cree name for the area, Wuskwi Sipihk, […]
California in my (Western bleeding) Heart
To live in Sweden in May is to experience a veritable explosion of blooms: with nearly 20 hours of sunlight, each day something new is blooming while something else fades away. Yesterday this bright pink plant caught my attention because it so resembled the Western […]