i mentioned in a previous post that i'd rather be in the garden. well, here it is. andy and i have put a lot of work into the raised-bed garden in our second year here. this year we took an organic gardening workshop with jeremy dutton, a local market gardener. the experience was invaluable as he taught us how to start transplants from seed. our plants (so far) are stronger and healthier. andy and i also feel more "connected" to the plants having seen them grow from tiny seeds. in the picture you can see a big black tank beside the garden shed. we collect rainwater from the roof of our house to water the garden. with climate change we anticipate more drought (though not this summer!). this tank will hold 1500 gallons which we hope will carry us through periods of drought with careful watering.
through being in the garden so much we've also discovered that we live in a birder's paradise. the birds that we share the land with include the: eastern phoebe (nesting), indigo bunting (nesting), rose-breasted grosbeak, scarlet tanager, baltimore oriole, catbird, whip-poor-will, veery, hermit thrush, red-eyed vireo, great crested flycatcher, pileated woodpecker, downy woodpecker, hairy woodpecker, flicker, wild turkey, broad-winged hawk (ate a baby robin the other day), goldfinch, common redpoll, robin, chickadee and many more i'm probably forgetting. yoga is all about using tools to connect to the present moment. birds are some of the best teachers for this -- through their song and beautiful colour.
