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Gardening with Men and Framed Embroidery

This is one of the pieces I finished years ago.  When I look at it now, I don't know how I had the patience, but I'm glad I did.  The phrasing is special to me, as I do love to garden.  I'm pretty shocked the colors haven't faded, but the fabric looks like it has moved a titch, there is almost a rhythm in the stitches to match the words and the sweet breeze from the birds' wings.  I used the bottom part of this embroidery piece to make the label button in the sidebar. 

When I was young, my backyard neighbors were an elderly couple. The man loved to garden and had a combination English Cottage style garden and then rows of precise and upright flowers.  He enjoyed everything about his garden.  The pear tree he had along the dividing fenceline gave us an abundance of delicious pears each year.  Our lilac bush grew up huge and he asked for cuttings to give to his wife.  Sometimes I think the request for lilacs was his way of thinking he was getting paid for his pears.  We used what fell in our yard and never crossed over the fence to take more.

He introduced me to foxgloves, lilies of the valley, bluebells, and other small delicate looking plants and foliage.  Between he, my grandfather who grew veggies, my uncle who was a powerhouse planter who grew, canned, and shared his harvests, and my father who planted our yard with roses, hedges, mimosa, forsythia, apple, lilac, poplar, pine, and more- I feel blessed to appreciate the work and the value in gardening and farming.  My  disappointment is that I can't do as much as I would like and every single houseplant that I have brought home to this house in the past seven years, has expired, nearly on contact.  I've never had that happen anywhere else, I think there must be something in the environment inside the house.  Bouquets of cut flowers don't last here, either.  My outside plants are growing well.

When we moved the last time, I had to give away my plants, that hurt, this was the only trip where things had to go into storage and obviously, plants can't live in storage.  Do you have a green thumb?


8 comments :

Craftymoose Crafts said...

Sounds nice to have grown up among all those gardeners! I remember an uncle who was very proud of his garden of both flowers & veggies. My Mom canned tomatoes, but back then you could buy them by the bushel very reasonably. We grew tomatoes to eat.

I enjoy gardening although we don't have a lot of room and indoor plants--mostly cacti and hanging baskets of spider plants. I do okay when I remember to water & feed!

ArtSings1946 said...

This is such a nice post. My dad had a huge garden, vegetables and flowers. Everything was organic and he was way ahead of his times or perhaps he kept the "old ways", I guess it depends on how you look at it. I always felt that gardening was spiritual and a way to keep in touch with who we really are.

Happiness to all.

Dee ⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️⚜️ said...

Hi Gloria,

Your embroidery is so pretty. How nice to see you still have it.

I adore gardening and do it as much as I have time for.

Dee

Lucy said...

I understand the meaning behind your pretty embroidery and think it is great you have such treasured memories :)

Magic Love Crow said...

What a great post Gloria! You know, I don't know if I have a green thumb, but I enjoy being outside. I enjoy talking to my plants and trees and they know I love them ;o) I grow hardy things! Things that don't need too much watering, but I still give them lots of care ;o) Have you ever checked the air quality inside your home, seriously? Gas leak, mold? You should check, because house plants, shouldn't die that fast! Please have an expert check my friend ;o) I have to change your blog button! Hugs ;o)

Gloria said...

Debbie, artsings, Dee, Lucy, and Stacy waving hello with my withered leaves- just kidding! TFV!

Stacy- yes, I have thought to have the air tested, will look into some of that this week, will let you know what transpires. Thanks!

Additionsstyle said...

Great post and what a lovely embroidery piece! It must have been so nice to grow up learning to appreciate gardening. I have a neighbor who is really into gardening. Not only does he have the most wonderful garden full of veggies, he takes such good care of his grass it looks like he has green carpet in his yard.
Valerie
Everyday Inspired

Gloria said...

Thanks, Val! Green carpet, ahh those are the ones I want to walk barefoot on.