patience

Flowers Become Fruit: An Homage to Simon & Elaine’s Garden

Published on June 8, 2013June 19, 2021 by thewholeruth4 Comments

Every time I see a flower on a fruit tree or a garden vegetable, I get hungry. Maybe this is common knowledge, but I didn’t know until recently that where ever there is a flower on a plant that grows fruit, there will be a fruit! It’s like an awesome movie trailer of what’s to come. Or even better, the X on a pirate map of where the treasure is. Or even best, a beautiful flower that’s come to say, “I will soon be a tasty piece of free food for you to eat!”

When I was farming, we would weed the strawberries regularly, and take all the brown parts off of them in client’s yards so they would be pretty, or pot them up to sell. And I slowly noticed that the little yellow center of their happy white flowers would get bigger and make a dome. And sometimes I’d see pre-ripe, young, small strawberries that hadn’t turned red yet. But it took me a while before I saw the same little yellowish strawberry emerging out of the center of a flower. Holy crap! “Does each flower become a strawberry?!” Continue reading “Flowers Become Fruit: An Homage to Simon & Elaine’s Garden” →

Meet Fat Bastard The Live Avocado

Published on June 7, 2013August 9, 2016 by thewholeruthLeave a comment

#meetfatbastard #hesingsbass #bigthickmf

I’m excited for you to meet Fat Bastard. He’s the size of a small tennis ball. Which means he isn’t the size of a tennis ball… He’s the size of a golf ball- and a half. He’s the size of a large plum… He’s his own man and his own size and he doesn’t need to tell you or anyone else about it. He’s the big fella at the party who just sits in the corner and is quiet most of the time and after things get going, ends up being hilarious, but still quietly. And only if he feels like it.

He came from our CSA box. That is a Community Supported Agriculture box. If you already know what that is, please *skip ahead to find out about who Fat Bastard is dating and his hobbies. A Community Supported Agriculture box (try to say that five times fast) (you totally can) (I just have trouble with it) (but practicing just now helped more than I expected) is a box full of vegetables from a local farm. Continue reading “Meet Fat Bastard The Live Avocado” →

Wilbur’s 83rd Day Birthday

Published on May 31, 2013October 30, 2014 by thewholeruthLeave a comment

You can click the first photo for a slideshow with a little story of Wilbur’s journey. Click only if you feel like it. No worries, either way.

He’s a bacon avocado, thus the little piggy name.

Wilbur was the first to root and grow of his 14 or so siblings and cousins. This is him on April 18th. He was born March 9, 2013.

By April 24th, he’d sprung up with vivacious little green leaves!

By May 5th, he was almost as tall as me!

And his leaves were perky!

And his roots were salsa dancing for Cinco de Mayo, despite having what looks like miniature styrofoam popcorn at each connection point. Every avocado in our house has them!

This encapsulates how big I felt he was.

And a few days before May 12th, I moved him to a larger glass, thinking more root space would be nice for him. But he got a little brown spot instead.

And today, he has yet to forgive me for making him homesick for his original glass. His leaves became droopy and a few tips turned brown too.

But he’s still tall and strong. I took him “for a walk” here hoping some fresh air might help.

His roots are still full and happy. And still have balls.

And over the past few days, he has grown new baby leaves up top and they are radiant! Happy Every Day Little Wilbur.

Duck Banter

Published on May 14, 2013January 20, 2015 by thewholeruthLeave a comment

#nosyneighbor #statefarm #wherearethetrannyhookers #hollywood #potsibilities

The other day, while I was home working, I heard a man and a woman arguing outside. Like really yelling, back and forth, with the speed and intensity that only a couple that has been together for a while could organically volley. Being a good neighbor, I went to the window to be entertained, and/or make sure everyone was all right. And there was a tan man, probably 5’10” with gray hair, fit, with a thin woman, who was shorter than him, with dark auburn hair, and he was saying, with complete sincerity, “Yes, I love you, but you’ve been pushing for a long time, and now I WANT TO PUSH THE CART!” And he was pushing a red shopping cart filled with garbage bags filled with recyclables down the very center of our street.

Ha! This homeless couple, who may be thin from hunger or Meth, seemed like a pair of ducks who mated for life, and despite the actions they were taking, their words were said in the exact same manner that any middle class sweet pair of ducks would argue. I loved it.

It makes me wonder if incredibly rich people banter in the same way too. “Yes, I love you, it’s just that your space butler/chaeffuer/secretary has been managing the family business for the past hour and I want MY space butler/chaeffuer/secretary to manage the business now!” Or whatever incredibly rich people may argue about. Maybe they will come have a conversation outside of my window and I’ll find out.

Morning Mind Seed Curiosity

Published on May 9, 2013April 30, 2015 by thewholeruth1 Comment

I’m embracing my thoughts. It’s a whole new world and I’m the carpet AND Jasmine. And Aladdin? Hmm. AND the monkey! Yay! Who is the tiger?

Anyway, I’m letting it all flow free and seed is what I woke up curious about. I’m collecting seed, but I don’t know much about it. Here is a fine mind ramble from Gamble that may come in handy later. It also may just scare/confuse you/me, so if you want to read something more sane, skip to the photo caption below. Also, many of these questions probably have answers. I was just having fun relishing in wonder this morning…

Seeds have protein, so wouldn’t strawberries have a bit of protein?
Is the protein in a banana in the seeds or the meat?
What do you call the banana part of a banana? Other than banana? Or meat?
What makes us eat certain seeds and not others? Cashews (big) vs. lemon seeds (smaller), I’d think we’d eat the smaller one… Is it just taste? Or texture? Or some other biological reason?
Many seeds are designed for animals to eat, travel around with in their belly, and poop out later to spread the seed. Some scientists think avocados were designed for bigger animals to eat, digest, and poop out the seed. Does that mean I am really over-stepping my boundaries as a small person every time I eat one?
Do all seeds have tannins like an avocado seed?
How come those large animals could process avocado seeds while to some smaller animals, avocado seeds are toxic?
When we chew seeds, doesn’t that kill their chance of survival?
And doesn’t that go against this idea of ingestion for poop seed sowing?
Is that why seeds and beans are harder for humans to digest?
Because chewed seeds are stickin’ it to the man?
Are you upset by that bad joke? Is that a joke?
I heard that when flax seed is eaten whole, we don’t get its full nutrients so its better to eat ground flax seed. But we end up chewing it when it’s whole, so what’s the difference?
But it’s true that when I eat whole flax seeds, so many end up in my poop fully intact. Seems like that would be good for them- why wouldn’t the flax seeds make that option appealing to us nutritionally?
Nuts, seeds, beans, peas, and legumes are all seeds. Why do we call them different names?

#savingseed #cdtower #seedytower #getit?

Avocados are a virtue

Published on May 7, 2013March 23, 2016 by thewholeruthLeave a comment

I’m bringing the guacamole to the party… in 13 years!

This is the 100 year old avocado tree in our back yard. Beautiful.

I just found out that it takes 5-13+ years for an avocado tree grown from seed to bear fruit! Whoaholymybatmanthatsalongtimegoodness!

That made me realize that if we all understood how long it really takes for nature to move, for a tree to run it’s natural course, and we were the specific person that tended to that tree for all of those years, we would respect them in a totally different way. If I cared for a tree for 12 years and it got sick and died that year, the year before it fruited, I would be so attached to it at that point that I would weep.

Continue reading “Avocados are a virtue” →