What to grow in 2008

Galanthus nivalis close-up reproduced under a Creative Commons license

I'm back at work today and have company at home so will have no time to write a proper end-of-year summary for this blog or create gardening (or any) resolutions. Instead, I'd like to echo the 100 Mile Diet bloggers' Holiday and New Year's Wishes:

Take time; go simply; choose connection over consumption; live deeply in the place you find yourself. Remind yourself to care.

(Hmmmm......maybe I do have my ultimate list of New Year's Resolutions after all.)

Buy Nothing -- except Handmade -- Day

Keri Smith has 10 creative, fun, non-shopping, anti-consuming activities to do today and tomorrow. In fact, they would be 10 great blogging topics or themes. (Hmmm..... I think my blogging dry spell may be over.)

November from 2008 Satsuma Press Calendar

I'd like to bend the rules a little bit, however, and give myself (and you) permission to buy handmade from designers and artists like Lynn. Here's why: you are not only getting a beautiful, lovingly-crafted item, but also the story behind its development from inspired idea to final creation as well as a glimpse into the mind and heart of an artist. I think this kind of "consuming" keeps the spirit of the day because it's spreading beauty and joy--it's not just about getting more stuff we want but don't need.

Earlier this week I (buyer/consumer) opened eagerly-awaited packages containing these hand-created-and-cranked letterpress creations and immediately dropped everything to sit down and closely observe Lynn's exquisite depictions of nature, perfectly rendered by simple lines and rich colours. And I (card-and-gift-giver) know my mom and close friends (recipients) will be delighted by them also.

So I hope this kind of buying today and tomorrow is considered "OK."

Addendum: Based on personal, extremely positive experience, I'd also like to recommend purchasing handmade gifts from Magpie Girl, jen lemen and Christine. I ordered their inspiring, passionate, small and beautiful zines earlier this fall.

Mellow yellow

Sunny viola that always shines in November -- even on an overcast day.

Glowing Sedge

View from my balcony door at 4 pm today. You glow, girl. (I'm sure this flamboyant orange-haired beauty of a sedge is female.)

My Autumn Garden -- Inspired by Bloggers!

Creative projects -- I'm enthusiastic about beginnings and middles, but less energetic, focused or punctual about endings. That's why I signed up for Magpie Girl's Creativity Challenge. I'm about 90% finished my Autumn garden and think I will be able to meet the Challenge's November 1st deadline. I've posted some of the plant creations on Flickr and will be adding more photos and notes this coming week.

Decision-making -- for me, the process is never fast and rarely final.  This is another area where I need help and largely explains why I have trouble finishing projects on time if at all.  For my Challenge Project, I needed help choosing plants and creating container combinations. This is where my blogging friends came in -- little did they know. And I hope they don't mind how I used them. 

Note: I admit only the pansies, violas and wintergreen are -- technically -- edible plants, although I don't plan on eating them. Next Spring, I will be transplanting about half the Heuchera to my mom's garden and replacing them with lettuce, other veggies and herbs.  Yes, I'm one of those kids who stores stuff at the parent's place but in this case, my mom doesn't mind.

Here are links to the Flickr photos. I hope the plants and/or combos inspire you to try fall planting if you previously thought this was the season to put the gardens to bed. (Although I know in some growing zones, this is necessary.)

Magpie Girl -- a seasonal arrangement in Fall's classic colours
Moi in Copenhagen -- plants suitable not only for the Pacific Northwest but also, I believe, Copenhagen's growing zone. (In one gardening forum, a contributor said it was zone 7.) Summer alternative to the pansies and violas: the national flower of Denmark, the Marguerite Daisy (Argyranthemum frutescens).
Lemon & Mahogany -- lemon-yellow may not be a true Autumn colour but we need a source of sunshine during Vancouver's rainy, dull fall and winters.
Mondo Beyondo -- is the only word to describe this lush mound of Black Mondo Grass and two prolific pansy plants that have flowered continuously and abundantly.
Anchors & Masts -- this one is a bit like looking at clouds. Do you see the mast, the sails, the anchor?