Growing Medium

Throat - Communication

2010-12-18T12:03:00.000-08:00

I found I could say things with color and shapes that I couldn't say any other way - things I had no words for. ~Georgia O'Keefe

In writing it is said that you must develop your voice, a term used to describe the writing style of an author. Some authors do this remarkably well. Who can mistake the unique voice in the horror writings of Steven King, the epic dramas of Ayn Rand, or the moving poetry of Mary Oliver. These writers put words together with passion and personality, so that when you pick up a novel or collection of poetry it is because you are anticipating a certain feel, and honesty in the writing that draws you into the work. The writing is a signature unique to the writer.

Landscape Design is the same in that the flavor of an artist's vision and personality will shine through in the composition of plants and structures. It is easy to pick out the distinct "voice" of Frederick Law Olmsted at the Arnold Arboretum (pictured here), the Boston Common, Central Park and along the parkways that traverse the eastern states. The rolling, flowing earth forms accented with groves of trees, ornamental focal points and running carpets of turf grass. Olmsted was able to emulate the natural flow of the of the Northeastern landscape while also adapting it to accommodate the new style of American life.

Likewise, it is impossible to miss the cultural voice communicated in landscape styles throughout the world. The ordered and clipped French garden style as in the Tuilerie in Paris (left) and Public Garden in Boston (right), the flurry of blossom and texture in the English cottage garden style and the serenity of the Japanese garden style. Each has a distinct ability to share feeling and sentiment about the cultural connection to nature.

The throat chakra is all about one's ability to communicate. It is generally thought of as the pouring forth of "You" in an audible way. So this chakra is connected as much to the ears and hearing as it is to the voice and speaking. It is also the expression of creativity, linking it to the second chakra. The sanskrit word for the throat chakra is Vishuddha meaning PURE or more directly translated as "poison removing". The power of speech and sound to cure, heal and honor is represented in the 5th chakra.

As a landscape designer, I see the act of gardening as an expression of passion, personality as well as a way to communicate. And while the overt form of communication is through the visual senses if you go deeper it becomes clear that a garden will communicate volumes beyond what the eyes see. To do this work well it is imperative that listening is a part of the equation. To be sure, this mean listening to your clients list of needs and desires, so that the creative process includes the creative impulse of the owner. However there is a subtle and energetic listening that is needed to truly reach the masterful level of design that has defined cultures.

The element represented by the fifth chakra is AIR and the color

BLUE. Air is of course essential to the survival of plants. The element of air can be translated as the flow and movement within a landscape. The ability for air to move through and refresh the available oxygen to the plants. Air also feeds the invitation to walk through the garden yourself and feel the flow carry you through. Blue is a coveted color in the landscape. I have heard that if someone could come up with and patent a blue rose they'd be an instant millionaire! Somehow the color blue resonants a nurturing energy like the comforting voice of the Mother reaching out to calm the air that surrounds you.

Energetically this fifth chakra is about speaking and expressing YOUR inner truth. Georgia O'Keefe stated that her way of speaking was through color and flowers (her painting here expresses the chakra energies through the progression of color). She, like many artists found a medium that worked for her. Gardeners, both professional and amateur, have reached into the medium of nature to express themselves. Interestingly, this medium really talks back. I mean Nature speaks up...there is a dialogue. The thing that I find so cool about this is that Nature is always honest, always pure and always about shedding poison. Humans, well we need help with that, so gardening is a way to learn through the process of communing with Nature.

There are some great plants to use to express the 5th chakra. Red clover sown over a vegetable patch as a cover crop will promote Nitrogen within the garden. The plant literally pulls nitrogen from the air and transforms it within its cells and root system delivering it to the soil for use by other plants. How's that for communication! Add the fluffy pink flowers to a salad for a fun nutritious boost. The scent of basil is a 5th chakra-opener. The flavors of peppermint and sage make a perfect throat chakra tea. All wonderful herbs to grow, cook with and make teas from. Sometimes the act of growing a plant, handling it, tending it can be just the ticket to inspiring thoughts and ideas to give energy to your voice.

Shoulder stand is a restorative yoga pose that opens the 5th chakra and also stimulates the thyroid, improves blood flow and is relaxing. This is one of those poses that deserves some practice and slow progression into the full pose. Once you get there, it does wonders for improving perspective. I highly suggest this when you feel like you are stuck in a creative block. Sure you could just get up from the computer or drafting table and stretchy your legs with a walk, but why not really turn things upside down and see if you can stir the creative juices and tap into that voice!

Happy Gardening

Heart - Core Energy

2010-11-09T18:51:00.000-08:00

"And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom." Anais Nin

It has taken me six months to muster the courage to write this post. Turns out the Heart is a hard one for me, little did I know! For some reason I couldn't bring myself to research or to address the Heart chakra. But then, like a beacon of light, my heart caught fire to the idea and I felt the warmth of inspiration.

I learned something over the past six months through making some life changes. The first is that living with a closed heart is not living. The second is that opening your heart is hard only initially (W-D 40 might be necessary), but once you start it is really hard to close it up again. The third is that paying attention to the heart means listening, through stillness, to your feelings (yikes - scary), but again, once you start tuning in you get pretty blown away by what you hear.

So how does this relate to plants you ask? Damn good question! Let's see if I can get this out in under 200 words!

My take has been that you can pretty much think your way through anything that life sends your way. If you are creative, employ some ingenuity, and add a dash of guts on the side, you can manage your way through the challenges of life - both the cool ones and the crappy ones. It was a "mind-over-matter" mentality and let me tell you it has worked pretty well for lots of years. This life tactic can be a great skill, but in the absence of some heart centered grounding it will only take you so far. If per chance the adversity you face no longer has you at the center...let say your parent's lives start to fall apart, or your child almost dies...then what? Where's your illusion of control now? Where is your power coming from? Mind-over-matter? I think not! Something else has to kick in. WHAT?

I have been asking myself this question for about a year now. I have been told time and time again to sit, be still, and meditate. That is like telling a monkey to hang out with a bunch of bananas and not feel any cravings! I mean ME sit STILL? Seriously though, I am working this meditation thing hard. BUT what I do when my brain gets so itchy that I felt like scratching it with a screw driver is I go to the plants. I walk and talk to my gardens (I know, certifiable). I take deep breaths and envision the oxygen I take in as a gift from the plants. Then as I slowly exhale I give my gift of carbon dioxide back to the plants in reverent gratitude. Little by little, through this practice, my heart started to warm up and I started to feel - OMG did I! Like years of it. All the hard work to keep it shut and safe behind some artificial barrier began to unravel and the thing is I couldn't stop it. And when I felt like I'd get swallowed up by it...I went back to the plants.

If you want others to be happy, practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion. ~Dalai Lama

Turns out that the Heart Chakra energy is symbolized by the color green; the color dominated by the Plant Kingdom. The element represented by the Heart Chakra is air; the air we share with plants everywhere. Anahata is its sanskrit name which means unstruck or unhurt. This confused me initially, but the idea is this; under all the hurt, worry, and suffering is an energy center more resilient and whole than we give it credit for. When you look at plants you can see heart energy in their greenness, and you can witness it in their resilience. Think of the strong oak, the flexible grasses and all the fabulous flowers that come and go each year without giving up - even though they "know" winter will come and kill them off. Think of how love works...it is an amazing force within the human soul that drives us forward far more powerfully than any measure of will ever could.

A plant that is revered in folklore, herbalism and even conventional medicine is the Hawthorn. This tree symbolizes the trust and safety we can all feel by embracing an open heart. This plant, it has been suggested, is instrumental in the functioning of blood flow to the heart. Add to that the beauty of this tree as a landscape specimen and it becomes a "must have" for those wishing to work on their heart: Crataegus viridis 'Winter King.

In yoga there are poses to increase the flow of energy through the Heart Chakra. Often they are hard back bending poses that may require assistance (well, unless you are a yogi). But asking for help requires opening to it, trusting in it, and then accepting it. WOW, you know that's a tall order for a do-it-yourself kinda chick like me. But life's circumstances have demanded that I wake up and smell the skunk cabbage. Asking continues to be difficult, but I am practicing the best I can. This I think is what the Dalai Lama meant by self compassion.

The Heart Chakra sits in the middle of the chest and it is a pivotal point between the lower three chakras (see past posts) which symbolize matter (yeah, I'm good with those) and the upper three chakras (yet to come) which symbolize spirit (more challenging for all who are tethered to the material world). The heart is a balancing force that helps us communicate between the two realms. Ever notice how plants can do that too? An expanse of healthy lawn dotted through with lush gardens, lightly shaded by trees; a bench in the distance calling you to come rest, breathe and get centered - balanced. Gardens are brilliant like that.

Every parcel of land, no matter how small, bubbles with this potential to assist in balancing the energies of our bodies and our earth. We, as humans, in the heavily (sometimes harshly) developed world have the gift of mobility, creativity and opposable thumbs. We can garden and nurture plants, so they can nurture us right back!

I am still working on this one. It just may take more than a blog post to get right. Gardening and communing with my plants are a mainstay for sure. Yes, I'll keep practicing the meditation thing too - monkey mind and all. Most importantly though, I think I finally get that I need to stay open and compassionate to myself as well as others as I navigate life. Oh yeah, and we all need to remember to BREATHE!

Happy Gardening!

Transformation

2010-04-18T11:40:00.000-07:00

Whether you think you can or think you can't - you are right. ~Henry Ford

The gardening season has been on for about a month now. I opened The Garden Continuum for the 2010 year on March 15th. It has been wonderful to visit all the gardens we care for to see how they are emerging from the winter. This year I have decided to reach out and connect with clients on a more personal level...something that has been missing for me since 2007 when I suffered a neck injury that took me out of the game for a spell. The reconnection with the people has been the most fun of all. Our clients are fabulous! I am reminded of why we connected in the first place and am inspired by their new stories - both the sad ones and the happy ones.

By revitalizing these connections I am coming away with a feeling of being empowered to keep on in the Landscape Industry. There have been times when I have felt like just hanging up my claw and clipboard and saying Bye Bye to the professional gardening world. Designing and selling jobs alone is not enough to inspire...it is the people and the plants that keep it rich. If you aren't connecting...you aren't inpired. Now, I feel like "Yes, I can do this." Hear the roar of the Garden Warrior!...or something like that.

There is this universal process of manifestation and transformation going on in life and it is crystal clear to see in the garden. One day there is nothing, the next there are buds, then blossom, or shoots then leaves. This is ENERGY that is changed in to MATTER right before our very eyes. It is a testament to the POWER of LIFE. And it reminds me why I love the garden so much. This power is embodied in each of one of us as well. At the area of the SOLAR PLEXUS just under your sternum is the MANIPURA Chakra. This is the fire center of your very essence and has a bright yellow resonant color. It is where you hold your self-esteem and your power of self-actualization.

Plants in this time of year are literally bursting forth announcing their existence and their right to live and grow and flourish in this world. The sun is a perfect symbol of the Manipura energy with its brilliant yellow light, its fire and its heat. Like a magnet it draws life upward into being. Ever notice how when the sun shines, especially when it has been gray or rainy, you feel uplifted? You could be having the worst time of your life, but a moment in the sun can penetrate right through you and draw up the energy of Manipura giving you a boost of positive energy.

So, rather than staying parked behind your computer for eight hours or rushing around day in and day out with out a moment of rest...take a short break next time to see the sun shining. Turn toward that fiery orb, lift your face to receive the light, close your eyes and breathe in slowly and deeply in until your lungs are completely full. Rest for a moment with the breath in you as you feel the heat penetrate your skin. Then slowly release that breath. Repeat at three times. if you can.

This is an exercise of RECEIVING light, CREATING energy within your third chakra, and then RELEASING tension within you. Try it where ever you are and remember the plants in your landscape are doing this exercise every moment of everyday and they are growing, blooming and flourishing...don't you want that for you too? Come on, I know you can do it, you garden warrior!

Happy Gardening!

Creation - The Shoots

2010-03-25T11:25:00.000-07:00

Movement is a medicine for creating change in a person's physical, emotional, and mental states. ~Carol Welch

This spring has started in what I think is a fantastic way. Last week was amazingly warm and inviting. It was impossible not to move and feel more alive than in the winter months. Of course, in true New England fashion, the cool down came along with the rains and this weekend it should be back in the teens. I think Mother Nature wants an assurance that we will appreciate fully the potential of spring when it finally settles in.

Like the second chakra, spring is full of creation energy. Called Svadhisthana this chakra represents water, movement, pleasure, nuturance and the emotions. In the body it is located just at the navel point and is the place of procreation energy and creativity as well as all our feelings. When the smells and sounds of spring begin to appear I can't help but feel so happy. It just bubbles up! When I can comfortably be in the outside air, I walk through my yard to see my sleeping gardens and invariably the happiness turns into excitement which gives rise to new ideas.

What creative ideas are bubbling forth for you?

I have been thinking about the vegetables I want to plant...I already have my lettuce seeds perched at the front door waiting for the perfect time to sow them directly into my waiting garden soil. Do you have vegetable plans?

With all the rains and flooding, I keep thinking about rain gardens as the perfect storm water solution for more and more residential properties. These fabulous gardens (also called Bio Retention Cells) are built to hold excess water runoff so that it can gently percolate down and recharge into the ground without causing flooding. The water is cleaned by the plants and the soils as it seeps back into the earth. These gardens are planted with both herbaceous and woody material that are very attractive to look at as they do this important environmental work.

The winds of today and yesterday remind me how important it is to be flexible and invite movement into my life. It is the woodier plants that are susceptible to breakage under the pressure of wind. But the ornamental grasses, oh how they flow with such grace and ease. Managing the growth of trees with careful and thoughtful pruning right from the start will train them into balanced forms and offer them more grace and flexibility to withstand winds. Find an arborist today that can help you keep your valuable woody ornamental and shade trees in healthy balance.

Each year gardeners get a new opportunity to nurture the earth whether it be a tiny vegetable plot or acres and acres of gardens. The creativity and passion that go into the tasks of gardening are most rewarding and fulfilling. You can't help but feel empowered to create and move when playing in your garden!

Happy Gardening.

Grounding - The Roots

2010-03-05T08:22:00.000-08:00

Mountain pose teaches us, literally, how to stand on our own two feet.... teaching us to root ourselves into the earth.... Our bodies become a connection between heaven and earth. ~Carol Krucoff

Standing tall and straight in the pose described above - Mountain pose - reminds me of how I felt as a kid standing on the peak of Mount Monadnock with my Mom and brother, Christian. I felt proud and alive; vital to my core. We had accomplished something special and we stood for so long on the rocks feeling the sturdy mountain beneath our feet. It was exhilarating.

The First Chakra - at the base of the spine - is called the Root Chakra or in Sanskrit it is called the Muladara Chakra. This is the stabilizer, the source of our survival instinct and our drive for success. It is a place to also learn patience and find deep balance.

For plants, there is no other option but to set roots. A tree for example must first set roots, spread them wide and far. The roots are less deep than you would imagine - check out this image of a Pine tree blow down - huge pancake! Only as the roots mature will the tree that you and I see respond with proper growth of the trunk, branches, twigs, leaves, flowers and fruits. The roots offer all the stability, balance, nourishment and patience that the tree needs.

As gardeners we need to always consider the roots...first and foremost. It is easy to forget about them because they are "out of site, out of mind". But we do so at our peril...and the tree's.

When you choose a plant for your garden, stop and think about the web of life that will evolve in the soil beneath and around that plant. This focus is a sure way toward ensuring success, because you will be moved to think about soil, nutrients, location, and the community of other plants.

Similarly, take a moment to think about your base energy. How are you surviving? Do you feel stable and patient? Are you feeling successful in your endeavors? These questions will remind you that you too need to think about your environment and community as sources of sustenance.

To boost your Root Chakra energy take a walk outside and find a big, old tree that you feel drawn to. Get as close as you can and be with that tree. Yes, it is okay to hug it if you really want to - it won't mind (or run away). Take note of the base of the trunk where it flares out as it enters the earth and contemplate the vast root system that is spread out all around you. It will be impossible for you not to feel a boost of energy. The tree will share with you - happily.

I assure you there is energy healing to be had all around you. Give it a shot and let me know how you do! This exercise may sound a bit earthy crunchy, but hey if it was good for Buddha!

Happy Gardening

Energetic Landscape

2010-01-29T10:11:00.001-08:00

We do not inherit the earth from our ancestors, we borrow it from our children.

~Native American Proverb

There is a natural connection between children and the landscape. They are born still tethered to the energies of the universe. A simple stream will inspire awe, wonder and curiosity without any pushing or prodding from an adult. In fact, it is the adult that needs the nudge to move closer.

I am often deeply moved by watching how easily my children embrace the land with full acceptance. How they are able to find intrigue in the simplest forms of nature. For adults it is much harder. We have lost the purity of youth that leaves the door to flows of energy wide open. Children just sense the life...or the lack of it...with a profound acuteness.

In practicing yoga this winter, I am taking a journey through the chakra system of the body. It is a delightful practice which surprises me often. Starting at the base of the spine, at the base of this energy system, we are exploring how we are rooted, grounded in life. It is hard for me not to make a connection to the earth and to plants as I start this journey. I am a novice and open, like a child, to the newness of this teaching.

This energy system is unseen (for most of us anyway) and it takes a certain stillness to tap into the body in this way. It takes some practice and some faith. For me, connecting this to the energy of plants is helpful. I love them so much and am so inspired by how they emerge from dormancy each spring into a full and glorious picture of life and then slowly wither and fall into a dream state of stillness again as winter returns.

The landscape industry is a fast paced business of aesthetics that has a hard time remembering that each and every plant is an energetic whole. That each garden is a community of plants interacting energetically (as well as biologically) with one another. It is easy to use up that energy with careless use of our earth. We see that with each account of environmental shift reported in the news.

My wish is that in 2010, I am able to connect with a community of garden lovers that want to restore the environment one small garden, landscape or park at a time. By acting locally with our own small borrowed slices of earth we can effect change by adhering to sustainable landscape practices, by considering the garden as an energetic community, and by committing to conscientious design, installation and care of the land we are borrowing from our children.

Next time we will explore the first chakra, earth energy, and the root systems of plants...

Happy Gardening

Bradstreet

2010-01-15T12:47:00.000-08:00

"If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant;

If we did not sometimes taste the adversity,

prosperity would not be so welcome."

Anne Bradstreet (1612-1672)

Reading Anne Bradstreet's quote reminds me of how much gardeners anticipate spring. Not being a winter sport kinda girl, I bundle up and wait out winter. I don't ski (down hill or cross country), snow shoe, or get into snow ball fights (cuz I'd lose! Have you MET my husband?), nor do I generally venture out with a sled (much to my children's chagrin). I don't mind ice-skating and actually get a kick out of shovelling the walk (2 or 3 times...tops!) and feel a pretty nice power-rush workin' that snow blower. I have been known to help with a snow man...but Chris beat me to it this year! Mostly I am waiting for the thaw. As beautiful as the snow and bare branches are, I still feel cold and miss the greenery of the growing season.

Mrs. Bradstreet seemed to have it right though, without the cold, stark winter season, how could we even fathom the glory of spring? How do they do it in warm climates where there is no fall foliage, winter blankets or glistening icicles? Hmmm, I am thinking I might manage if I were in Hawaii!

Married to Governor Simon Bradstreet, Anne Bradstreet was best known as the first woman to be published in the United States. Her works were mostly centered around religious themes, but she also was deeply observant of her surroundings. In the long lonely days of colonial New England winters, she managed to dig deeply into her spirituality and faith and find inspiration all around her. She did all this AND raised seven children! I am starting to wonder what I do with my time?

I guess I could start by being observant and finding inspiration in the resilience of the landscape which always comes full circle regardless of where it starts. Spring will come! The warm air and the lush new growth will follow with perfect predictability as well as with surprises.

And sure as spring comes...time will pass and winter will return.

Happy Gardening

Wyeth

2010-01-04T13:04:00.000-08:00

WHAT DO YOU SEE?

"I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure in the landscape-the loneliness of it-the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it-the whole story doesn't show."

Andrew Wyeth - American Painter - 1917-2009

"Art critics mostly heaped abuse on his work, saying he gave realism a bad name. Supporters said he spoke to the silent majority who jammed his exhibitions. “In today’s scrambled-egg school of art, Wyeth stands out as a wild-eyed radical,” one journalist wrote in 1963, speaking for the masses. “For the people he paints wear their noses in the usual place, and the weathered barns and bare-limbed trees in his starkly simple landscapes are more real than reality.”" - NYT see link below...

I love this man's wonderfully weathered face in this photo printed in the New York Times. I also deeply respect his approach to nature. He looked on it as it was and saw through any clouded belief about how it should be. He interpreted what was there and put no judgement upon it. What a skill.

I am forever looking at the landscape and judging it, maybe that is the designer training that has veiled my ability to just see. My practice for this winter is going to be to look at the landscape and take it in for what it is.

Of course at some point I will want to change it, improve it, update it or just pretty it up...I can't help it. But I believe that if I study what nature is doing a little more closely, the way a painter might, maybe I will get some of the most precious and valuable design tips ever.

Happy Gardening

Above NYT quote from...
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/01/17/arts/design/17wyeth.html

New York Times article - Andrew Wyeth, Painter, Dies at 91

By MICHAEL KIMMELMAN
Published: January 16, 2009

Snow - Form - Structure

2009-12-22T08:42:00.000-08:00

Snow is a gift in so many ways.

It is water...eventually!

It is an insulating blanket...immediately.

It is a tool...bet you wouldn't have guessed that one. Yes it is!

When the snow falls on the landscape it hides all the busy details of the land and plants. The simplicity of white covers all the other hues leaving only the light and dark interplay of form. What you are left with is a display of pure structure.

You can see the outlines of the walls, trees, walks (once shoveled!). Berries are highlighted as well as bark. Branching patterns and undulations of the earth are pronounced. Take a look at all the forms that pop into view under the snow. Often what you see is that one characteristic of a plant that is entirely hidden in the full swing of the growing season. You might also see a gap, a flaw or a missed opportunity for a focal element in your garden. This spot may be shielded in the lush summer, but entirely exposed in the clear winter months.

The leafless and snow covered time of winter lends an opportunity to the gardener to look at the landscape in "black & white". To crisply see the form and the structure and to work at improving the flow, the dance between elements.

Taking pictures is a perfect way to catalogue what you see. Print the images, write notes on the back, and be sure to log the date. This way once spring comes around, you will have a plan...to plant that one plant...that needed gem. What a nice feeling that will be!

Happy Gardening