Caroline Gerardo's Blog, page 4

Flowers From the Field or in Containers

Cattelya orchids bloom on a long strand. I like to remove two lower ones and bind a little bit of floral tape to give them support in an arrangement. The first one is soft pink hues. Sometimes I choose one monochrome color, sometimes two, or just try everything there is no wrong combination
Nigella damascena, Eustoma, commonly known as lisianthus or prairie gentian, snapdragon, scabiosa, sea holly, and more in this white, silver, yellow, and blue bouquet above.
A bouquet of flowers starts with the greenery as the structure. Above is a white and green combination of orchids, roses, hydrangea, and anemone and more.
I planted these ranunculus bulbs two years ago.Tecolote is supposed to be a medium pink but here she is in a pot on the porch all hot magenta glory. In California they are easy care and I don't pull them out to protect from cold. 
Potted flowers act as wonderful flower arrangements that can receive full sun outside then come in to be enjoyed while in full bloom. I dead head off the petunias and geraniums to keep them repeat blooming. Containers need good compost and drainage as I like to crowd the plants to make them sing together.
Nigella in the field. Black and white,the blue ones didn't pop up this year.
Be fearless to combine flowers that bloom at the same moment. Above is a wild combination of colors and textures. Change the water daily to cut down on bacteria and keep them cool.

I'm playing with these vertical tubes to be able to grow more on the patio.
A simple white container has held ten years of spring arrangements. This is the first year I have had success with petunias. In the picture is this is Easy Wave Yellow that I traded seeds with on the seed exchange. In my ongoing war with slugs and snails I continue to try new organic methods. Snails love to eat petunias down to the roots. I don't know if you can see in a couple photographs I have dishes of beer, little plates of yeast and sugar, coffee grounds, egg shells, diatomaceous earth on the surface of pots or on the ground. Many years ago I had a friend who started a snail ranch (escargot) and the buggers always escaped the pen. Please eat escargot. 
Sage, thyme, and strawberries are another type of arrangement on a sunny wall.

I love borage for it's blue flowers and furry leaves. It has a cucumber flavor. Come on over I can make an exotic cocktail with the flowers. If you are not a drinker, it's also good mixed with fresh squeezed meyer lemon aid. I may put you to work on the weeds so we can enjoy it icy cold.





 

Botanic Gardens, Santa Barbara

Santa Barbara Botanic Gardens

 

Letting Go

 Letting go of Yosemite Snow

Murmuring

 
Murmuring
In a tide between evening or night

Larks catch every gnat in thin air
An indigo from bluegrass fair
Singing then calling in fright

Shed

 

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Alaska Trip

Our road trip in Alaska was amazing. The natural beauty of the wildflowers, seeing grizzly, whales, bald eagles, moose and wolves, and talking about the history of this landscape was mind jogging. We flew into Anchorage then drove a motor-home up to Denali. Then far north to Mukluk Land and south through Whittier and Homer. Caught fish that we barbequed. Hiked on a melting glacier and felt sad that the blue ice is going away so rapidly. 

I recommend Phillips Tour boat in Whittier and Crazy Rays for both the experience of hearing kittiwake gulls calling to the seals and Rays for a real fishing adventure.  

Denali is majestic.  Though you are required to ride a bus, you can get out and hike.

The Anton Andersen tunnel to Whittier is a feat of engineering. The abandoned Buckner building haunted by those who died in the 1964 earthquake is worth peeking in the chain link fence before they knock it down.

In Homer we had halibut tacos at the trailer The Tickled Pear. Rode the ferry with Coldwater Boats for a day trip to camp in Kachemak Bay State Park. We saw bald eagles fishing there and they remind how wonderful America is to see. Thank you everyone in Alaska for your kindness and warm greetings.

Wooly lousewort wildflowers
Cotton grass Eriophorum angustifolium often enjoyed by Canada geese





    All photographs are copyright  ©  Caroline Gerardo 
 

Cherry Blossom

The Nightjar and the Cherry Blossom

When I arrive in Angel Island to meet my new husband, I expect a man in white, but he has a dirty jacket. His face resembles the kind smile in his photograph.

“Sakura you are more beautiful than the cherry tree you are named after.”

I nod.

Our apartment is not what the Omiai promised. Dust enters through the walls and soon my case of clothing turns sooty grey. A women next door disappears at night, with her case. In the evening he comes to speak with my husband.

“Did you notice her leaving?”

“No I was repairing nets all day.”

“Did your wife speak with her?” He looks to me with crimson eyes. I say nothing. My husband is kind and pats my arm.

“Sakura never knew her.”

The next day my husband takes me to the fields.

“Don’t speak with neighbors.” He says softly looking at the ground.

"It's dangerous."

My mother would be ashamed if she knew I’m tearing corn, I don’t tell them in my letters. In time my palms callous. Rarely, I miss sleeping on linens in Osaka and rubbing camellia oil on my hands. The smell of my husband’s hair is now my home.

In the fields I hear news of the war. My parents never write about invading Nanking or oil embargos. The order comes. All Issei must pack.  

“Order 9066 says to pack what we can carry.”

“Can we go home to Osaka?”

“No.”

“Can we go somewhere else?”

“No.”

The next day we leave our apartment to walk to the corrals at the Salinas rodeo, then we board the train to Poston. Yuma County is a dusty landscape. Again, I adapt to a foreign place. The unit we are assigned, like the rail car slats has gaps from redwood shrinking in the heat.

Mixing adobe becomes my passion. I plan to seal up the unit before the baby arrives. If there is too much water or too much clay the effort to get the bricks to dry in the sun results in cracked and bumped blobs. If I add more sand to the mud, the blocks set. There are no guard towers, so at night I hoist two buckets on my shoulders to gather gravel from areas closer to the river.

Repeating the exercise makes me strong. My skin becomes dark and ruddy from the work, but my husband says I am beautiful.

As I walk to find grit, a buff nightjar follows me calling cuk cuk cuk. I step carefully under the starry sky. At this time when the cooler air rises I think of the petals of the cherry trees shedding the pink candy and flying to heaven.

 

copyright Caroline Gerardo 4/5/2021

 

 

Memory Swamp

MemoriesRoad trip with my childrenRide in the alligator swampRemember when in the carRain never stops explorers