Bird's Nest and Primrose

Bird's Nest and Primrose

By ~ William Henry Hunt
 

I

I heard the spring wind whisper
Above the brushwood fire,
"The world is made forever
Of transport and desire.

I am the breath of being,
The primal urge of things;
I am the whirl of star dust,
I am the lift of wings.

"I am the splendid impulse
That comes before the thought,
The joy and exaltation
Wherein the life is caught.

"Across the sleeping furrows
I call the buried seed,
And blade and bud and blossom
Awaken at my need.

"Within the dying ashes
I blow the sacred spark,
And make the hearts of lovers
To leap against the dark."

II

I heard the spring light whisper
Above the dancing stream,
"The world is made forever
In likeness of a dream.

"I am the law of planets,
I am the guide of man;
The evening and the morning
Are fashioned to my plan.

"I tint the dawn with crimson,
I tinge the sea with blue;
My track is in the desert,
My trail is in the dew.

"I paint the hills with color,
And in my magic dome
I light the star of evening
To steer the traveller home.

"Within the house of being,
I feed the lamp of truth
With tales of ancient wisdom
And prophecies of youth."

III

I heard the spring rain murmur
Above the roadside flower,
"The world is made forever
In melody and power.

"I keep the rhythmic measure
That marks the steps of time,
And all my toil is fashioned
To symmetry and rhyme.

"I plow the untilled upland,
I ripe the seeding grass,
And fill the leafy forest
With music as I pass.

"I hew the raw, rough granite
To loveliness of line,
And when my work is finished,
Behold, it is divine!

"I am the master-builder
In whom the ages trust.
I lift the lost perfection
To blossom from the dust."

IV

Then Earth to them made answer,
As with a slow refrain
Born of the blended voices
Of wind and sun and rain,

"This is the law of being
That links the threefold chain:
The life we give to beauty
Returns to us again."

 

 

Happy Spring and Happy Gardening!

 

Pammy

Making Seed Starting Pots Using Loofah Sponge

 

Lettuce Sprouts in Loofah Sponge Pots

This has been one of the most exciting garden experiments EVER! I have to give total credit to Mr. Garden, (husband Bryan) for his awesome "Out of the Box" thinking skills! Not only are we finding a successful earth friendly seedling pot, we are growing them ourselves as well. 

I had so much fun growing Loofah last summer. They were quite beautiful in the garden too! They proved to be a vigorous source of shade growing over the trellis keeping the soil cooler underneath. 

 Loofah on trellis in June

Once June arrived the Loofah came into full production by blooming profusely with exotic yellow flowers. This gave refuge for heirloom melon vines to grow below and on out into the rest of this part of the garden.

With the success of nice big baskets of harvested and dried Loofahs I began searching further for more alternative uses for them other than the luxurious sponge they make in the bath. I found all kind of artsy things that folks were making with them, from slippers to adding them to homemade bath soaps. 

  Our first Loofah Pots

It wasn't until December was ending and the quest for a more sustainable seedling pot was weighing heavily on my thoughts that this experiment first began. Although we've always been keen about recycling used plastic pots, the resources for them are not always available. We of course refuse to buy them new since plastic contributes an outlandish amount of trash to landfills that simply does not decompose.

I experimented earlier in the summer with making seedling pots out of toilet paper tubes. That worked just fine and was a great way to recycle them. Although I find such things can be simply composted as well, it does take the stress factor out of unnecessary consumerism.

But for a person seeking true sustainability, how could I possibly resist our homegrown Loofah Sponge revelation. 

Since each gourd contained tons of seeds I was able to save enough of them to grow some serious quantities of Loofah this summer. This should prove to provide me with loads of seedling pots at the end of the growing season. I may need to discuss the need for more greenhouses with Mr. Garden! :))

Happy Gardening!!

Pammy