The Elanor Garden

[primsong]

On a more positive note...

We had our annual spring clean-up for the Elanor garden in Beaverton on this past Saturday, and though the rainclouds rolled over us deep and dark, they gave us merely a sprinkle. The clover had spread its nefarious tendrils thoughout the groundcover and the dozen of us spent the morning and into the afternoon just weeding it and pulling up grass that was trying to choke the lavender. We were all quite grateful for Lalaith and Bekah providing us with a lovely and deliberately 'hobbity' luncheon out of their own generosity, and were able to tackle the remaining weeds, trimming, the tilling with the Reluctant Tiller that Would Not Start and our favorite part, the Planting of the Flowers.

And what flowers! Pansies and alyssum and several I don't know the names of... lavender and wildflower seeds and lots and lots of "Red Hobbit" columbine. The Elijah-blue Fescue and Sweet William are already there - all we need now is some of those Loth Lorien daffodils.

The day passed all too soon and darkness found us frantically flinging organic humus by the bucketful, the children running back and forth with their sand-buckets filled, the stiff adults shuffling along with wheelbarrow and rubbermaid bins. By the last of the fading light, the Endless Pile of Humus that Would Not Die finally found its demise and we swept the parking lot and sidewalks clean.

It looks lovely! We are planning on refinishing the deck this summer, and will also have a Fall clean-up. The benches need a new coating and gravel too. The newly made stepping stones will have their ceramic literature quote discs set into them once they are ready - thanks so much, Jeanine! - and it's a garden that Samwise would be proud of. He was in fact - sent each of us volunteers a letter that said he hoped to return one day and work in it again. (thank you, Sean!).

Elanor lives.

Comments

[siradaono.livejournal.com]

I am sorrowful to have missed this day. I spent it cleaning at church and installing(on the roof) a new satellite system. A day s work none the less. Perhaps my pressure washer would come in handy this summer on that deck?
Please send me the address via e-mail, ok?

[estellye.livejournal.com]

It sounds so marvelous, Prim! I hope you will visit again with your camera and share some images. I am especially curious to see the result of the stepping stones with their ceramic additions.

[the-tinidril.livejournal.com]

we were kind of grounded that day, I don't think we had enough gas to get there and back... I'm sad to have missed it.

About those benches... what if I practiced doing calligraphy with my woodburning tool... I could inscribe the benches or deck boards with more literary quotes...

Hello

[faramirgirl.livejournal.com]

It does sound beauitful ((((Prim)))) did you take pictures so that we can see the beauitful garden?

[primsong.livejournal.com]

We missed you! What a cool idea - but I have no idea how well it would weather. Those poor benches are much in need of sanding/sealing and a new coat of rustoleum or something. I suppose new slats of a better wood could be a possibility too, if we had a woodworking kind of person.

You are so creative!

[primsong.livejournal.com]

So am I. We started out intending to stamp them all with quotes using letter stamps, but when we went to do it they just weren't readable. Ended up smoothing them out and pressing fern-fronds and an assortment of leaves into them for leafy impressions and making a circle in the center that the ceramic could be affixed to. They're various shades of dark cream, depending on which batch that we mixed was poured into which form. The ones that are there are plain grey cement and look very primative, like the words were drawn in them with someone's finger. :-/ This will be a nice upgrade.

[primsong.livejournal.com]

Certainly - I'll have to look it up. It's right across the street from the Beaverton Library.

Re: Hello

[primsong.livejournal.com]

I wish! My camera was dead, but two others had cameras so hopefully we'll have some shots to share eventually. The only ones I have were from last year's clean-up, before the bushes and groundcover filled out so well.

[the-tinidril.livejournal.com]

I don't know how well it would weather either, but I'm betting it'd last as long as the wood of the benches... which may not be saying much!

[wadearturo.livejournal.com]

It sounds like it was so lovely. I wish we did something like that here.

(((((((((Prim)))))))))))))

[voontah.livejournal.com]

I'd love to see some pictures if the other people share them. Hopefully I'll be able to stop by and see for myself before too long.

[solodancer.livejournal.com]

I'm really glad that all the stupidness that sprung up around this project hasn't spoiled what the original intent was. And I'm glad Sean knows that too.

Someday perhaps I'll get to see it too.

[primsong.livejournal.com]

We'll be a bona-fide non-profit pretty soon, One Small Garden, and one of the goals is to help facilitate other groups in other areas to do the same thing with one organic charity garden in their area, maintained by their own set of volunteers. We'd like to have one named for each of Sam & Rosie's children eventually. :-)

[primsong.livejournal.com]

Out of the ashes...

It was hard work on the part of more than one of our people that reconnected us with the Astins. Sean wanted to see which one was "Allie's" (the rhododendron she planted with his help when she was here) so we were sure to get a picture of it, even though it won't be blooming until this next month. I thought it was kind of cute that that would be what he remembered most.

[solodancer.livejournal.com]

That is cute and doesn't surpise me at all knowing what I know about him.

I hope he gets a boy this time.