Summer New Moon
A.T. used the chainsaw this morning. He cut out a mulberry tree growing in an unwanted (eastern) location. A.T. feels manly after he uses the chainsaw.
Kate and A.T. harvested peas, greens, beets and turnips, too. A.T. planted beans as a cover crop among the onions, where the garlic came out. A.T. plans a much larger garlic crop for next year. He has 9 or so large bulbs set aside for planting and set in an order for several new varieties. At the SSE (Seed Saver’s Exchange) conference over the weekend a speaker suggested planting the garlic earlier, even in August. A.T. asked SSE if he could get his garlic earlier than the September 7-9 ship date. Nope. Not to worry, he’ll plant his own in mid-August and check the crops against each other next June.
This whole gardening process now begins to blur the line between horticulture and agriculture. With crops meant for immediate consumption, but others for storage: potatoes, turnips, carrots, squash, beans, garlic, onions, greens and peas, plus the eventual fruit yields, our garden has become a substantial part of our lives. Substantial in the transubstantiation notion loved by Catholics. We eat of the body of our garden and our orchard and in our bodies it becomes use, transfigured from plant to human. A sacred event. Substantial in the way it requires the use of our bodies to realize its harvest. Substantial in the political sense since it cuts down trips by car, makes our place better than we found it and keeps us close to our mother.
The bees have added another dimension. An interdependent, co-creative collaborative effort.
