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Angels in My Garden Week #21 May 25, 2010
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Hello Fellow Gardeners, This quote expresses so well what we experienced in our work in Guatemala. The beautiful women of El Remate - shy, often withdrawn, the products of a thirty year civil war that tore apart villages and families, came together to learn about gardening. Some of the most introverted, who had obviously seen a lot of pain in their lives, became the best gardeners. Now they have a catering business; some of them have sewing businesses, one of them has a small store and they teach other women to make the gardens. The gardens empowered them. You can pretty much complete your summer garden now. All danger of frost should be past. I planted beans this past week and yesterday put my pepper and eggplant seedlings in the ground. You can plant the seeds for zucchini, squash, melons, cantaloupes and cucumbers. The cucumbers will do nicely growing vertically in the northern section of your garden. The zucchini will need at least four squares for one plant and as it grows, you will need to “train” it out of the garden. The vines will be happy to lay on your lawn and do not, in my experience, do any damage. If you're going to do squash, melons, cantaloupe or pumpkin, you will need more room than a square foot garden can provide. These plants grow best on little raised beds, hills of about three feet in diameter. You should pick a site that gets plenty of sun. If the soil is not very rich, work in some compost and/or aged manure. Plant 4-5 seeds about 1 inch deep at the top of each hill. Water them lightly (so you don't wash the seeds away) every day until they sprout, which should only be two or three days. After that keep them moist but not soaked, by watering deeply every two or three days when it doesn't rain. Thin to two plants once they are well established. Pumpkins
are grown the same way. Make sure you have plenty of room around the
hill because they spread out like crazy. They're a great way to engage
kids in the miracle of Mother Earth's abundance. The seeds are large
enough for them to handle; they will see results very quickly and they
will have these big, beautiful, brightly colored pumpkins to harvest in
the fall. You
can continue to plant carrots, chard and beets until well into July. So
there's no excuse to leave any of your squares empty, even if you've
eaten every last delicious radish or beet that you've grown thus far. Notice: The only thing that Globl Coalition for Peace asks when we teach someone how to make a garden is that the recipients pay it forward, in other words, teach at least one other person what they've learned. If you would be interested in attending a Sattwic Peace Garden demonstration in late July, please let us know by responding to this email. We will go through all the steps of preparing the site and put in a complete fall garden. Printed material will also be provided. Reflection: Learning how to grow your own food is an important step towards self-reliance. Being able to teach this to others is a kind of power that lifts the spirit and brings one closer to God.
So long as we be able and may have the power, So long will we teach the people Concerning these Deeds to be done by them With faith toward the Heavenly Father, The Earthly Mother, the holy Angels, And all the Children of Light Who till the soil of the Garden of the Brotherhood, And in the desire for the coming of the Heavenly Orc Into their souls and their bodies. Thine, O Heavenly Father! was the Power, Yea, thine, O Creator of Love! Was the understanding and the spirit, When thou didst order a path for each of us and all. Through thy Power shall we go unto the people, And teach them, saying, Trust in the Law, And walk in the ways of the holy Angels, So shalt thou dwell in the land, And verily thou shalt be fed from the feast table of the Earthly Mother.
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