Before the seed there comes the thought of bloom,
The seedbed is the restless mind itself.
Not sun, not soil alone can bring to border
This rush of beauty and this sense of order.
Flowers respond to something in the gardener's face—
Some secret in the heart, some special grace.
Yours were the rains that made the roses grow,
And that is why I love your garden so.
~E.B. White for his wife Katharine on her birthday
Gardens feature often in E.B. White's work along with dogs, weather, ducks, chickens, and, yes, spring pigs, too. If you've never read his essays or his poetry, treat yourself. I'm rereading my collection now. I know that I've spoken of E.B. White's admiration for his wife's gardening *before,* but thought this poem perfect for the first day of spring.
Stumbled upon Leslie Land's web site again this morning...such a good one! She wrote The 3000 Mile Garden along with Roger Phillips. This book was also made into a PBS special that you may remember seeing. I enjoyed the premise immensely, which was about a gardener in Maine — Leslie Land and a gardener in Great Britain — Phillips who correspond and share tips and techniques for growing their respective gardens. Wonder if they still do???
So, if you're interested in gardening tips (and a whole lot more) you can't go wrong to read those included in Leslie's corner. Her recipe section is marvelous, too!
Happy spring to you, Dear One...
Edited to Add: Leslie tried to leave a comment here answering some of my questions and yours. Because of my new settings and trying to weed out spammers, I've weeded out Leslie. Wah! You can find her comments, along with a wonderful crisp crust walnut pie recipe, *here.* She also provided Roger Phillips's web site: Roger's Roses. Thanks, Leslie!
What a great post today as I head out into the 'garden' myself. My tulips are nearly blooming and here I have remnants of last fall's scatter here and there...must clear the 'deadwood'. Have a great weekend!
ReplyDelete"Happy spring to you, Dear One..."
ReplyDeleteI like that. You are wishing Happy Spring to the ONE who is reading your post. I like that a lot.
Methinks we'd all do better [maybe] if we wrote that way... Wrote our posts to the ONE reader, who is reading our blog, at that particular moment.
I did it, once upon a time, in another of my Blog Land Incarnations. Just might go back to it. See Vee, you are ALWAYS inspiring me!!!
And a happy and gentle Spring hug to you, Dear One!
I love that poem (o:
ReplyDeletethe tassel is great...it is so much fun to win something
We had 7 inches of snow yesterday
so my tulips and other flowers that were up...
have to be strong (o:
That book looks good
I wonder if they ever met in person???
hi vee!
ReplyDeletewe share a love for e.b.white.
what a lovely tribute to his
wife!
as always, your posts are thoughtful
and seasoned with goodness.
blessings,
lea
Lovely post --- and happy spring to you too!
ReplyDeleteLaTeaDah
How appropriate...since I'm on my way outside to garden...in a moment! You always have such neat places to send us...and goodies to share with us.
ReplyDeleteHappy Spring to you Vee!
ReplyDeleteA nice sunny spring day here. :-)
Happy Spring to you too, Vee. Hope the back is doing better and you will be able to garden soon, if you so desire.
ReplyDeleteLovely post today for this first day of spring. Our weather is in the 70s and delightful. I was working in the garden several hours yesterday. The link you are sharing sounds great to me. I will be checking it out as soon as my work is done.
And Happy Spring to you sweet Vee! I loved your post, so perfect for this weekend. We have been out in the yard and garden all afternoon and have enjoyed it so much. I hope you guys are warming up too and you can soon be out in your gardens. Thanks for the bbok sugestion and website. It'll be great to check out while sitting in the hospital with Audley this week.
ReplyDeleteJennifer
As a master gardener, you would think that I had heard of E.B. White. This was new to me and lovely. Thank you for sharing it. I always enjoy "visiting" with you. It's a gentle place to sit, rest, and be inspired.
ReplyDeleteHi Vee!
ReplyDeleteLovely poem and interesting looking book.
I planted some herb starter seeds as a windowsill garden this afternoon, in anticipation of repotting them outside in May when frost danger is past. It felt good to be playing in the dirt again! :=)
Vee,
ReplyDeleteThank you for the reminder of the first day of spring, with so much going on here I completely forgot about it. I did enjoy the smiling faces of the jonquils nodding at me through the window as they danced in the drizzle.
Hi Vee,
ReplyDeleteWhat a great poem! I really enjoyed it. I love spring and all the flowers blooming too. I always in enjoy my visit with you.
Take care now and have a great week.
Big hugs,Elizabeth
Well I've already spend about 30 minutes looking at her site (should be exercising)! Thank you! I'll probably be spending alot of time looking through her posts today - which will be fun as it's raining and I can't go outside anyway.
ReplyDeleteHappy Spring to you!
Manuela
Happy Spring to you as well, Vee.Great post for the first day of spring, It seems a book store and website is on my list of things to do. Beautiful poem.Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed todays post as well.
Blessings
Sue
oh - I had not heard of that book before - I'll have to check it pit - thanks!
ReplyDeleteRoger's Roses, wow that was a great find Vee. I have an old copy of that book. Now it is on line! Amazing.
ReplyDeleteYou do find your way around blog land. You are kind of becoming a "Yellow Pages for Bloggers" for me :)
Hi Vee,
ReplyDeleteIsn't it great how lovely the past few days have been? This morning is looking awfully glum though.. aahh well. It was nice while it lasted. These are good days to get teh rest of spring cleaning done. I hope your back is feeling better. They are so hard to fix! We really must get together some day for tea. Perhaps you could come when the garden is blooming and the grass is green...
:) Abbie
Thank you sharing gardener-and-web-site article . I read it
ReplyDelete