3rd week of June 2009

Spring Carrots We've had a stretch of rain with several thunderstorms and even a small twister that went through just a few miles south of us. The rain has been great for everything green but it makes it a little challenging when flowers or veggies need to be picked. Sometimes the pickers end up getting soggy and there's plenty of mud to wash off the veggies. But we will be thankful for sufficient rain when so many areas are experiencing drought in the western US. Coming out of the garden are some carrot thinnings which the children gobble down in a hurry, dirt and all sometimes. Along with the sugar snap peas there are snow peas and soon the shell peas will fatten. The green beans that were started under plastic are now several inches long and we're carefully watching a Sungold tomato that is starting to add color. Along with oodles of garlic scapes (the flower head that we take off the garlic plants) we are also starting to eat some of the fresh garlic which is wonderfully mild. Herbs like lemon basil and rosemary are large enough for picking too. I'm getting hungry for cucumbers and zucchini which look like they could be abundant. The sweet cherries are ripe for picking and they make delicious snacks for anyone willing to climb the trees or a ladder. It is definitely a tasty time of year.

Amish Reception A special experience this week was to provide flowers for an Amish wedding and my daughter and I also attended the wedding. After a morning of drizzle, we were able to pick 7 or 8 buckets full of flowers - feverfew, calendula, coreopsis, bachelor buttons, yarrow, coral bells, Bells of Ireland, tansy, blue ceruleum alliums - plus a few extras from a friend like yellow lilies and hosta. We took the flowers plus our stash of blue quart and pint jars and worked with the bride's relatives to arrange 30 bouquets for the reception tables. The bride herself was quite nervous and arranging flowers was stressful so we sent her on to work on something else. Preparing for an Amish wedding is lots of work and the family had been cleaning, cooking and sprucing up landscaping for weeks. The few days before the wedding there were several relatives there to help with final preparations like peeling potatoes, setting the tables for 300 plus and preparing desserts. Being at the ceremony the next day was a very rich and holy experience even though we couldn't understand a word of the German. There were sermons given by several of the ministers present, a prayer time with everyone kneeling and a brief portion where the couple took their marriage vows. I especially enjoyed the singing which resonated beautifully in the neighbor's woodshop where the service part was held. Then everyone hiked across a hay field to the bride's home where the family's woodshop was amazingly transformed into an elegant banquet hall with sunny flowers and plenty of delicious food. We were among only a handful of English folks and I was thankful for the Amish lady sitting with us at the meal who graciously answered our questions about the ceremony.

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