Beverly Duncan is known to her Ashfield neighbors, and colleagues at Mohawk Trail Regional High School as a friend, as a helpful worker, as a gardener, and as an artist who sells cards and sketches of flowers and other plants at Elmer’s Store. Some know her as a freelance artist and illustrator for books and magazines, but many are not aware of her reputation as a fine botanical artist whose work has been exhibited at the Denver Botanic…
Beverly Duncan grew up amid the lush landscapes of Hawaii, and her art has always tended toward the natural world, but it was not until a dozen or so years ago, when paintings that she had done of autumn leaves for a Buffalo (NY) Science Museum, that she rejoiced "to have found a place in the art world".Those paintings caught the eye of someone at the Hunt Institute of Botanical Documentation at Carnegie Mellon University and she was…
The seed catalogs are filling my mailbox. I’m starting to make lists of vegetables to grow, paying particular attention to those that can be stored with the least amount of trouble and energy, including winter squash and root vegetables like beets. Of course, I need lots of veggies like lettuces, green beans and tomatoes, too. Many of the vegetables I plant get seeded right in the garden, but I usually buy a few flats…
Yesterday, February 2, was the day the whole United States celebrated the groundhog. TV cameras were set to watch Punxsutawney Phil come out of his burrow to determine whether or not spring is upon us, or whether we will have six more weeks of winter It is recorded that about 90 per cent of the time Phil does see his shadow which means spring is only six weeks away. While the United States, or at…
Yesterday, February 2, was the day the whole United States celebrated the groundhog. TV cameras were set to watch Punxsutawney Phil come out of his burrow to determine whether or not spring is upon us, or whether we will have six more weeks of winterIt is recorded that about 90 per cent of the time Phil does see his shadow which means spring is only six weeks away. While the United States, or at least readers of the…
Simple Gifts'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free,'Tis the gift to come down where you ought to be,And when we find ourselves in the place just right,'Twill be in the valley of love and delight.When true simplicity is gain'd,To bow and to bend we shan't be asham'd,To turn, turn will be our delight,Till by turning, turning we come round right.This little song was written by Elder Joseph Brackett at the Alfred, Maine community…
Since I have just posted about Spring Festival, the Chinese New Year, I thought I would continue with a mention of the Three Friends of Winter, the pine, bamboo and plum blossoms. These plants symbolize survival under adverse conditions.The pine is considered the chief of trees. Its trunk is straight and powerful (although I have to say that the pine that shows up commonly in Chinese art is less than tall and straight) like an upright man of…
Garbage isn’t always garbage. Sometimes it is the beginning of an indoor garden. Who among us hasn’t taken an avocado pit, planted it in a pot and enjoyed a large lush houseplant? It would never bear fruit, but it was fun to see this large seed grow into a substantial plant. Growing seeds, roots and tubers from the kitchen is a great way to remind children of the different ways edible foods are propagated. This…
For days now Chinese people have been travelling all over the country to return to their home towns to celebrate Spring Festival, the beginning of the lunar new year. During the two separate years (1989-90 and 1995-96) we spent in Beijing we learned about the importance of this holiday.In the west, New Year's Eve means a party and greeting the new year at midnight, but in China it means 20 days of celebration with family, surrounding themselves with…
There are times when it is impossible to be out in the garden - when its pouring, snowing, sleeting, freezing or too damn hot. While I do read a lot of garden books, and own a LOT of garden books so that I am never at a loss, I always have a mystery novel going as well. My friend B.J. Roche, who teaches journalism at the University of Massachusetts and writes for various regional and national publications, decided that…