Cottage perennial garden – 35 plants for $16.95
It would seem that I am meant to garden. Yesterday another Garden Angel appeared. It was actually a gift from one of my oldest and dearest friends. In a beautiful card covered with sunflowers she enclosed a check for $64 saying that it was an early birthday present “for my garden fund.” I will be 64 on April 30. I was so delighted I was beside myself and I spent last night and this morning over coffee trying to decide how best to make use of the money. I wanted to share it with you all because I love to share garden resources and because in an amazing turn of events I will now be able to plant my entire pot garden on my deck with plants and bulbs so I will have lots of flowers much sooner than having had to grow everything from seed. The seeds I purchased will go in the raised garden beds and random pots to fill in. The order I placed, for quite a lot of plants and bulbs, came to $55 which leaves me almost $10 to buy soil. This order was placed at Bulbs Direct which has wholesale prices, free shipping, and a 100% money back guarantee. Amazing! I will show you what I got with links to the items so you can see all of the details and the wonderful things they have there. (All of the plants included in the above Cottage Garden are listed on that page under “Contents.”)
In addition to the Cottage Perennial Garden I ordered…
The Serenity Garden, 100 Bulbs, for $8.95
Gladiolus ‘Mon Amour’, 10 Bulbs, Buy 2, Get 1 Free=30 bulbs for $10.98
Anemone Coronaria De Caen mix — 20 bulbs, Buy 2 get 1 free=60 bulbs for $9.90
Dicentra Spectabilis “Bleeding Heart” red — Buy one get one 1/2 off= $8.92
GRAND TOTAL: $55.70
… which, as I said, leaves enough for a bag or 2 of potting soil! Birthday money well spent! This is positively thrilling and I am so appreciative. There is nothing anyone could give me for my birthday that would make me happier than money for my garden fund. The transformation here, after 4 years of not gardening, is going to be startling! With each step forward I am filled with so much hope and joy I cannot rightly express what is happening to me, but it is positively grand.
This morning I went around to every bookshelf — there are bookshelves in every room in the house filled with books, even though many are blackened from the fire — and pulled off a number of favorite garden books with which to plan and dream and draw. They were going to destroy them but I said I wanted them back, blackened covers and all! In this way I got quite a number of my garden books back. I smiled as I opened dear Elizabeth Lawrence’s book Through The Garden Gate which is a collection of her writings from The Charlotte Observer from 1957 to 1971. My copy is dog-earred and marked up and deeply treasured. As I opened to the first page I smiled because there was one of my favorite garden quotes. I share it with you here in closing…
“This is the gate of my garden. I invite you to enter in: not only into my garden but into the world of gardens — a world as old as the history of man, and as new as the latest contribution of science, a world of mystery, adventure and romance; a world of poetry and philosophy; a world of beauty; and a world of work.
Never let yourself be deceived about the work…”
I am not, for a moment, deceived about the work. There will be a lot of work to be done here and I need to do it. It is going to bring me back to life. I am on the threshold of a whole new life and it begins in the garden, in my sketchbook (I plan, sometime in the next few months, to boldly step out and begin to sell paintings right out of my sketchbook. The art will support the garden!), and right here on the blog. There’s a book in here somewhere, coming out of all of this, but that’s not even something I’m thinking about now and probably won’t until I’ve finished this blog experiment. For now, I am just creating, inside and out. What happens will be a happy surprise.
Stay tuned, I will be sharing lots of resources. If you’ve never gardened, maybe you can begin, even in a pot or two. If you are a regular gardener you might enjoy some of the books and resources I will be sharing and I’d love for you to write to me in the comments and share yours with me. And if any of you have big bountiful gardens and need to divide or pare down your plants and would like to share some with me for the rebuilding of the garden here I would be just delighted. One day in the future when my own garden matures a bit I will be delighted to share too!
The Experiment ~A 365 Day Search For Truth, Beauty &
Happiness: Day 1 ~ Introduction To The Project
“Do or do not. There is no try.”
Yoda
A book and coffee
in my flowering garden
a true paradise
Lavish with beauty
my queendom ever changing
growing as i grow
To see the amazing array of plants and bulbs you purchased is pretty awesome, maitri!
I’m celebrating with you, and i bet we all are
xo
ka
Sweet Ka, what a beautiful poem, I just love this…
“A book and coffee
in my flowering garden
a true paradise…”
Indeed. I remember walking around my garden in the morning, a cup of coffee in my hand, a little notebook and pen in my pocket, delighted to see what had sprouted or opened up each day. I look so forward to that again and this order I was able to place today will be such a delight, to watch it all blossom right here in pots on my deck will be awesome! I will share lots of pictures!
Thank you so much for celebrating with me, gardens were meant to be shared, were they not? It all makes me so happy. And I look so forward to seeing more of your garden pictures as the seasons grow along.
Bless you dear sister, and I am sending you so much love…
M. xoxox
Maitri, when you are ready to sell your sketches from your notebook, I would love to buy one if it’s not too dear.
Thank you Marge honey, I’ll have the information on the blog when I’m ready. I really appreciate your interest. 🙂
I love the sense of adventure and delight that’s part of being in the garden each day. What’s new, what’s flowering, what shall I add or tend?
I had a lovely time tidying up here in our HomeExchange garden yesterday- simple weeding of bedstraw and foxtails and discovering what’s been planted here! I’m going to plant the window boxes and containers, too, as thanks for our extra time here. They’ll be here around mid-May for the summer.
Yes Lisa, it is truly a delight I can’t wait until I have things planted and can watch as the weeks go along as things sprout and bloom and grow. It is like being blessed with miracles and magic everyday!
And oh! I can’t wait to see pictures of the garden you are tending there. I loved the picture you posted on Facebook of Umbria. I can’t wait to see the garden. And oh how lucky they are to have you there! Did you ever see the movie, “My House In Umbria?” It’s one of my favovrites. Maggie Smith is in it.
Have a lovely day and enjoy your stay… 🙂
What a lovely gift, and oh what beautiful flowers! After seeing your quotes in your blog posts, I’m re-reading “The Secret Garden” by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I’ve just reached the part where Mary finds the key to the garden. It sounds as if you’ve found the “key” to yours! Much love to you Maitri. xxx
Oh Jenny it is a lovely gift indeed. I so appreciate funds for the garden, it’s the best birthday present ever! And I can’t wait for things to arrive so I can plant. It’s so exciting!
And oh yes, The Secret Garden. I’ve put the movie in my queue to watch again but I’d love to read the book too. I remember reading it to my children, what a delight that was. Enjoy! And yes, the key is in my hand, I’ve just been getting up the nerve to unlock the door…