Carpets of violets - Butte County, CA 2021
March has arrived with all her colorful flirty beginning overtures toward Spring. These overtures may be a bit fickle for some time, but now on the last stretch towards the Vernal Equinox (Saturday March 20th, 2:30 am Pacific), Spring will become increasingly committed.
And colorful.
And warm.
Here, the nighttime temperatures are still in the 30s, and we (thankfully) still have late winter/early spring rain in the forecast, but color is popping up all around: blankets of violets lighting up the oak leaf duff, white and pink primula (previously Dodecatheon...) are out - and you have to love that common name of Shooting Star? They are small but mighty compelling in the dampish spots of otherwise dry meadows.
Saxifrages, tasty claytonia, cress in the creek, the later manzanita, wild cucumber, the first of the ceanothus....the parade that is Spring's 'Experiment of Green' is gaining on us in the northern hemisphere daily.
And it is a daily gift to greet the flowering phases of these constant companions again this year. They are lessons in the cyclical nature of life, to be sure.
That cyclical nature of things seemed to me a strong theme throughout my conversations on Cultivating Place in February - from Melanie Falick to Eric Hsu, from Dan Pearson and Midori Shintani to Page Dickey re-rooting in her new place. The need to engage with our plant families is a recurring and joyful force. As always the direct links to listen to last month's episodes are at the bottom of these monthly updates and views from here...
A white shooting-star: Primula clevelandii
Today marks the 1 year anniversary of the publication of T he Earth in Her Hands, March 3, 2020. Wow.
One amazing and very challenging (in all the prismatic meanings of this word) year later, I am so pleased to wish this book a very happy birthday. It landed in a time when we really needed to hear the messages and modeling of the women working in plants whose journey stories are shared inside its covers. And this remains just as true today. They are visionary leaders in so many areas physically, emotionally, and culturally.
I recently heard the book has gone into its second printing. 🎂🥳✨🙏🌏
A huge and heartfelt thanks to everyone who bought it, gifted it, read it, cheered such cultivators and cultivation on.
Here is to strong, inspiring, growing women, may we support them, may we be them, may we cultivate ALL such humans in all that we do. Thank you to every woman in the book for trusting me with their voices, and to Timber Press for the opportunity!
As we know, the earth is in all of our hands. Let's keep bringing our joy and taking the very very best care we can in our gardens and beyond.
Male carpenter bee warming himself on the back side of a daffodil - March 2, 2021.
I have several upcoming virtual speaking events in the coming month, including with the Northwest Horticultural Society on March 10th, and with the Garden Conservancy on April 1st, where I will be joined in conversation with the wonderful Roderick Wyllie, to converse in greater depth about Lands End Lookout in San Francisco, CA and the many message of Under Western Skies the design work there epitomizes.
Hope to see some of you for these events with these outstanding organizations/ You can always finds updates on events I will be taking part in on the Events page of the website.
I think most excitingly for me, I will be doing some presentations this year in which I integrate the mission and ethos of Cultivating Place with the living embodiments of this ethos in the great diversity of plantswomen growing a better world in The Earth in Her Hands, and the power and meaning of place-based gardens in Under Western Skies.
I so hope this finds you well - and growing in ways large and small in your place!
🙏🌲💫
Jennifer
and the Cultivating Place Team
LINKS to FEBRUARY 2021 CULTIVATING PLACE PROGRAMS
(just click the live link that is the green title of each program to get to the audio file and listen in....)
2.4.21 BEST OF: MAKING A LIFE WITH MELANIE FALICK
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