All You Need is Love
This month I’m taking a mental break and writing a fun “about me” post!
My husband and I are celebrating our wedding anniversary this month and it’s fun to reminisce about our relationship and, especially, our wedding.
We were married in the Italian Gardens at Maymont Park in Richmond, Virginia. It was early June so everything was in bloom and it was so beautiful.
My dad and I walking down the aisle to the ceremony
We are not particularly religious, so in lieu of a unity candle, we wanted something that was more “us” and felt more meaningful. What we settled on was a tulip magnolia tree - it was maybe 3’ tall at the time - that we potted up for the ceremony. I chose a tulip magnolia because my parents had one in their yard, planted in memory of my brother, and I always remember seeing the mass of beautiful blooms every spring right outside the living room window.
I didn’t know at the time, but the tulip magnolia symbolizes perseverance, nobility, and hope. Very appropriate for a wedding!
Beautiful Tulip Magnolia Blossoms
Tulip magnolias are known for their early spring bloom, often appearing even in harsh weather, which can evoke a sense of resilience and the promise of new beginnings. The magnolia tree itself is also seen as a symbol of magnificence, due to its size and impressive flowers. I think it’s really fitting and I love it even more knowing its spiritual significance.
For our wedding ceremony, our parents brought a pot of soil from each of their homes (our childhood homes) and during the ceremony we poured the dirt into the same pot as the tree.
The tree was then planted in the yard of our first home (that we purchased two months before we were married… oh the youthful energy of moving house and getting married within two months!).
The poor thing happened to be planted a few days before the 2012 derecho tore through Virginia, but it’s solid and strong, and barely took any damage. Can’t say the same for the rest of our yard - ¼ acre of our forest burned to the ground after a power line came down during the storm. It has since grown back but was our own personal Christmas tree farm for a few years when the trees were just the right size to bring inside.
My husband and I can’t help but use this tree as an analogy of our relationship. I mean, we call it the Love Tree after all.
The first time it bloomed was the year after our son was born. We tell him that he literally made our love (tree) bloom!
Since then, it has grown taller than probably all three of us combined and delights us with its showy pink and white blooms every spring. It’s one of the first things that blooms after winter finally lifts its icy grip.
May Farm Updates
May was my busiest month yet. The How-To Festival, Mothers Day, the Maker’s Market, prepping rows, planting, rain, planting, rain, harvesting in between. April showers bring May flowers, so all of these May showers must mean more blooms in June! Alas, I’m exhausted, so this will be a short update!
Mother’s Day was a whirlwind of a weekend with pop up markets at Daily Grind and the Maker’s Market happening on the same weekend. Then I got to enjoy Mother’s Day with breakfast in bed and doing absolutely nothing all day. A much needed rest!
We took a trip to get some “llama beans” (a.k.a. manure) from our friends at Lower Sherwood Farm. I can’t tell you how happy I was to be absolutely surrounded by llamas! There’s something about them… I mean, look at those faces! The super social ones that they take to shows are trained to ask for kisses. So now I can say that I’ve been kissed by a llama. I didn’t realize that was on my bucket list until it happened.
The flowers hit the ground running this year. The spring flowers have yielded over 1200 stems so far. Just wanted to throw that in here to show that you don’t need a lot of space to grow a lot of flowers! My growing space is 0.25 acres, spread out over our property.
I’m having a lot of fun indulging in my data-loving side and tracking everything I harvest. It’s not just for fun though, all of this data will be helpful in figuring out what to plant next year. One of my favorite things about this job is how much I learn every day.
And speaking of learning… I lost almost all of my summer starts. UGH! Between the rain storms we’ve had over the last few weeks, I planted everything and then immediately covered them with row cloth to protect the little plant babies from the downpours we experienced nearly every day. And then the sun came out. I didn’t uncover them soon enough and they baked under the row cover. I lost over 400 plants. That’s a LOT of time, energy, life, and resources lost.
The summer rows… where there will eventually be flowers. Thankfully the sunflowers and lilies are almost ready!
The pathways are mulched and I use Bio306 biodegradable weed barrier in the rows. I don’t know what I’d do without it! Otherwise weeding could easily be a full time job with all of this planting space.
Thankfully I had some extra seeds and reseeded everything that didn’t make it. I’m at least a month behind now (all of those seedlings were 4-6 weeks old) but I still have sunflowers and perennials. The show must go on!
I’m so very grateful for all the rain Mother Nature has been sending our way. It has taken the task of watering off my plate for a few weeks and the plants have been loving it! Along with the flower farm, I grow a small vegetable garden for my family, which has also been turned over for the summer and absolutely loving the rains!
The fall-planted veggies fed us well throughout the winter and into the spring, with carrots and peas still producing. Check out the Manpukuji carrots I grew in my raised beds!
These carrots are no joke! And really delicious!
I love Baker Creek seeds and when I saw these carrots, I couldn’t pass them up! I’ll be sowing more in the fall to see if I can grow them even bigger - they can get over 3’ long in the right growing conditions! Challenge accepted.
Stay tuned for summer fun - the flowers are just getting started and there is a lot to look forward to! I’ll also have a trellis tunnel update next month - the vining flowers and veggies have sprouted and started climbing up!
Cheers!
