Author: Heirloom Bulb Girl

  • Gardening Super Truth

    There’s truth, and then there’s super truth. I prefer gardening super truths. Take, for instance, the super truth of the invasive Bermuda Grass, which contain root systems that grow straight down to hell. Or perhaps the super truth of trying to plant a peony in the full, blazing-hot summer heat during a Texas drought. Not gonna happen….Super truth. No arguing around the truth….it is what it is. It’s kinda like getting attacked by the “flower bulb bug” in your early 20’s and never recovering. There has never been a truer statement uttered out of my mouth, except for maybe “I do” spoken at the church 30 years ago. These super truths are ever present in my garden, but squishing in more flower bulbs into an already packed space is definitely a habitual ritual that borderlines a mental illness. Seeing garden space when there is none, and then thinking to yourself “If I only had a _________ and more_________, then the gardens would finally look perfect!” There’s no arguing with the ridiculous notice that “just one bulb” is needed to fulfill the space, because tomorrow another beautiful bulb will come along that I just *have to* have.

    This morning, after posting this funny meme about bulbs, I received a lovely email from a gardening friend who had been recently diagnosed with stage 4 cancer. Last year, her family surprised her with 450 bulbs from the “Bulb to Bloom” bulb sale to help create a legacy garden. My friend knows that Heirloom Bulbs are in it for the long haul, and that in itself is another gardening super truth. Long after the gardener says goodbye to their gardens, Heirloom Bulbs remain beautiful reminders of what was “once upon a time”. My friend has poured herself into the garden, squishing in as many bulbs as the garden can handle. The idea of “No garden can have enough flower bulbs” resonated with her as she continues to plant and spread inspiration to everyone around her. The truth is that she has created quite an incredible garden story for others to enjoy. Life isn’t easy, but it’s nice to keep our mind focused on the beauty of tomorrow instead of the hardships of today. Her bulb gardens exemplify hope in action. I even have some of her Heirloom Bulbs that I purchased at the bulb sale. If I was smarter, I would’ve put 2+2 together and realized that she was the same flower friend through email, but I’m not that smart (super truth) so I missed my chance to meet her in person. I plan to go to the bulb sale again next year just so I can meet such a beautiful gardening soul….and buy more flower bulbs. There’s always room for just one more bulb.

    If you have never been to the Smith County Master Gardeners Bulb to Bloom sale, it is definitely worth the drive to Tyler, Texas. The sale is typically in October. My family and I went 20 years ago for the very first time, when old gardeners still raced each other and literally RAN to get the bulbs. Something out of a gardening Twilight Zone. Definitely a blog for another day! They now have an on-line sale the week prior so no one’s pride gets hurt. There *might* even have a few items left after I buy every bulb in sight. Ha! 🙂 The sale is for a worthy cause and a great way to splurge for your garden’s sake. Remember to splurge….it’s the only way.

    Happy Gardening, my friends!

  • The Repairer of the Breach

    ”The Lord shall guide you continually, and satisfy your soul in drought, and strengthen your bones. You shall be like a watered garden, and like a spring of water, whose waters never fail. Those from among you shall build the old places, you shall raise up the foundations of many generations; And you shall be called the Repairer of the Breach, The Restorer of Streets to Dwell In.” -Isaiah 58:11-12

    The Repairer of the Breach…

    There are few phrases that stop me in my tracks and cause me to take notice more than this one. Not only are the words so poetic and lovely, but the beautiful imagery is exactly what I desire. What’s not to love about continual guidance by the Lord, spring fed gardens, waters that never fail, and promises of calm and safe streets to dwell in. The mere fact that we are called to become part of this beautiful verse overwhelms me deep in my soul. I love the fact that I, a little music-playing, flower-loving girl can be used for such a mighty calling as a “Repairer of the Breach”. It is said that the Lord takes the ordinary and enables them to do extraordinary things. Mighty indeed. In fact, the call to action before the poetic images seems almost insignificant compared to the blessings He will bestow upon us.

    “If you extend your soul to the hungry, And satisfy the afflicted soul, then your light shall dawn in the darkness, and your darkness shall be as the noonday.” -Isaiah 58:10

    Simple words with a huge impact….Extending ourselves to those in need. Seems pretty basic to me, but yet the need is overwhelming. Where to even begin? How do we repair the huge divide between people, and heal the brokenness? Not just the physical brokenness, like the Heirloom Crinum I was holding in the photo, but the emotional brokenness among people. To repair is to mend something, consciously and collectively, whether it be a broken relationship, a garden plot or even an Heirloom Crinum that had been run over by a bulldozer. In most cases, it is easy to sit back and let others do the repairing. It is hard and messy to get in the middle of a breach to begin restoration. I have to admit, buying a new Crinum might be easier than breaking shovels trying to salvage the old ones, but I really like watching the process of restoration. I love the idea of being a “repairer”. Sometimes the breach is too big, but repairing something that is broken is always worth the effort. Here are a few simple ways to be a Repairer of the Breach….

    *Draw closer to the Lord….“There is a God who created man, and there is man who created their own gods through power, money and strength.” It’s good to know the difference.

    *Affirm others’ dignity….“Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength. And Love your neighbor as yourself.”

    *Speak words of encouragement….“Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace to the hearers.”

    *Sacrifice selfish tendencies and place others’ needs in front of your own wants….Ouch. What a contrary statement to what our “me first” society preaches. Change starts with me. Michael Jackson’s song Man in the Mirror says it best. “If you want to make the world a better place, take a look at yourself and make a change.”

    The Repairer of the Breach. Lots of breaches out there to repair, especially during this Election Day. Remember, just like one salvaged Crinum will bring years of beauty, the repaired breaches can put real change in motion.
    Happy Gardening, my friends. Be that change agent.

  • Hollie’s Crinum Baby Bulbs

    A few months ago, I collected a bunch of Crinum seed pods at my daughter Hollie’s graduation from Texas A&M. When I say “a bunch”, what I really mean is that my cup runneth over and flooded the potting shed. I honestly didn’t know just how many I had until it was time to start the growing process. This weekend, I finally got most of them planted. I’ve had a few gardeners reach out lately regarding the blog post with free Crinum seed pods, and wanted to give you a quick update.

    As you might know, growing bulbs from seed is not for the faint of heart. Remember the fruits of the Spirit you learned about in Sunday School way back when? “Patience”, “Hope” and “Longsuffering”? Yep….Those fruits are put to the test when starting those little seedpods. Here is a small glimpse into the process of growing Crinum from seed pod (the average gardener’s way)….

    First, you must pick the right amount of soil, light and water. Then wait.
    And wait.
    And wait.
    And then wait some more.

    Finally, after you accidentally forget about the seed pods, they decide to sprout. You get mad at yourself because some of the cute little pods dried up and died. You do a quick scientific analysis of the problem. Probably too much water, but actually not enough water. Along with too much sunlight and not enough sunlight at the same time. You feel much better knowing that you still maintain the “average gardener” status, and didn’t sink down into the level of “killing-everything-in-sight gardener” (that status is reserved for your houseplants, which are on a day by day life expectancy).
    You quickly give the surviving seedpods a blast of water and then go about your week until you accidentally forget about them again.

    Please tell me I’m not the only absent-minded gardener.

    Anyhow, this dead-almost-dead drudgery carried on throughout the summer. Luckily, Heirloom Bulbs (even as seedpod babies) are way smarter than I am. Heirloom Bulbs are survivors, so about 400 plus little Crinum babies survived my ineptness. I am happy to report that I have planted about 25% of the bulbs in pots. Then I got impatient and planted the rest in an empty veggie garden raised bed. I still have about 25-50 little bulbs left if anyone out there wants some. The good news for you is that I’ve already mentally muscled through the hard part of seedpod planting, so all you need to do is stick them in the soil. 🙂

    The greenery will freeze in the Winter and bulbs in the pots will freeze too. Keep your infants inside and keep them growing. The bulbs grow quickly and in a few years, they might even get to be of blooming size. Remember, Heirloom Bulbs will survive your Grandchildren’s Grandchildren. These bulbs are in it for the long haul. To me, it is glorious to have these old gals take root and share their blooms year after year. Email heirloombulbgirl@gmail.com if you’d like your own little Crinum.

    Happy Gardening, my friends!

  • The Fallow Ground

    Fallow ground….A long period of just nothingness in hopes of restoration.
    Apparently, it is a good farming technique that allows the land to rest and recuperate after numerous hard farming seasons. Waiting on fallow ground to recover can actually take years. Those are hard seasons to wait upon.
    I don’t like those seasons. I honestly don’t like to wait. I wanted my Tasha Tudor gardens planted “now” (or yesterday). But, in my studio’s case, the fallow ground was all I had to work with.
    I grumbled, complained and begrudgingly stuck salvaged flower bulbs anywhere I could, completely avoiding eye contact with the land of nothingness. But things changed after the flood. ALL the gardens at the flooded house had to be relocated. I had to look eye to eye with that piece of fallow ground and begin restoration.


    Restoration of the fallow land was indeed a lofty goal. Quite frankly, I wasn’t sure if I was up to the calling. The long “wait” was just too long. The Lord was actually trying to do good things in the fallow ground, but my heart was too hardened to take notice. I needed more time in the “wait”. Maybe I’m just stubborn and didn’t have eyes to see what He was doing. Maybe I was used to grumbling over the imperfections, or maybe the Lord just wanted me to look upon stillness for a bit to watch the restoration unfold. Whatever the case, I was stuck with a whole lot of nothing. Literally…..a house lot of nothing but stickers, rocks and thorns.

    To the gardener, fallow ground gives the field a chance to rest. Over planting and plowing, (or in my case, chicken and duck grazing) causes stress to the earthly balance of nature’s ecosystem. The delicate world of microorganisms is destroyed and the soil becomes depleted. Letting the earth simply rest allows restoration and balance to simply step in, and work the soil back to heath naturally. The “wait” is the hardest part.

    Here are a few steps I took to begin the restoration of the fallow land.

    Step one….I had to be ok with the fact that my garden was not Pintrist-perfect. This sounds so silly, but my mental game was the largest hurdle I had to cross (just ask my husband). I struggled when I walked into the back part of the studio grounds and saw nothingness. “I remember when my other gardens had rich soil full of earthworms, but *this* land is_______” I had a lot of choice words that I could fill in the blank. The conditions of the land played a negative mental trip on me. I didn’t like the ground I had to work with, so I simply gave up on that part of the studio. I had to step back and rethink my vision. So, step one is simple…a much needed attitude adjustment in the mind of the gardener.

    Step two….let the wild things grow. After stepping back from my negative attitude, I began to see the fallow ground in a different light. Little native flowers were appearing out of nowhere. My favorite flower to come on the scene was Stork’s Bill, a beautiful purple flower to emerge in early Spring. The seeds are fascinating to children and truly do look like a stork’s bill. I even had adorable little, native rain lilies appear like they owned the place. Why had I never seen them before? I slowly encouraged the good natives to grow as I pulled up the stickers and thorns that had choked out the flowers and overrun the land. What is it with thorny things that love delapitated conditions?!

    Step three…pull out the stones and rocks that weighed the potential gardens down. Nothing grows in stone. Even people avoid stony personalities. After digging in the fallow ground, I found piles of underground stone that had been dumped onto the land. Apparantly my studio grounds had once been a dumping ground for unwanted rubble. How apropos. I dug the little pieces of rock and created a pathway throughout the property. The more I dug, the more little native flowers appeared. The larger rocks were used to create garden beds. True fallow land is complete rest, but I felt the nudge to “just do something” in the long wait.

    Step four….just keep digging. The road to restoration was long, and for many days, I was tired. I was tired of filling up my bucket of stickers after violin lessons. Tired of my hands hurting. Tired of digging and finding only rock. Tired of looking at nothingness. Just tired. But the Lord stepped in, as He always does, and quietly whispered “Just keep digging”. I’ve realized that the restoration of the fallow ground wasn’t just a destination, but a journey. Every day, I watch the redemptive process in the land I once called fallow. Every day I wake up excited to see new flowers. Every day I hope to find more worms in the earth and butterflies in the air. Every day is a journey.

    ”Break up your fallow ground and do not sow among thorns.” Jeremiah 4:3

    The beauty of the Lord’s doing wasn’t intended for hardened hearts or thorny ground. I had to wait, during the process of restoration, to remove thorns and rocks that only choked out the good things to come.
    Happy Gardening, my friends. Even in the fallow ground, the Lord is ever present, doing a great and mighty work in the land.

  • Growing Oxblood Lilies by Seed

    Isn’t this the coolest? I am obsessed! Some Oxblood Lilies are still in bloom, while others are in different of the seed process. Some Oxbloods don’t produce viable seeds at all. For some odd reason, I find this utterly fascinating. I have chronicled the last few weeks of Oxblood Lily seedpod development on my Instagram/FB accounts, which has brought me ridiculous amounts of fun. I have managed to figure how to put music to reels (huge step into this techno-century). Even my daughter laughed at my latest dorky song choice….I laughed too. I’m still laughing. The absurdity of gardeners who love their plants is immense, and yes….borderline psychotic, but in a joyfully good way. I think we all need good diversions in life that bring us joy. For me, it is watching my lilies go to seed.

    If you Google “do Oxblood Lilies go to seed?” most sights will say no. About 15 years ago, I had a hunch that mine did. I spotted way too many rogue Oxbloods throughout the yard. The relocation of lilies by Squirrels and small children were a distinct possibility, I decided to do a little science project. I did the whole “seed in paper moist paper towels” thing, and much to my joy, they sprouted. I did plant them as they grew and quickly lost track of my seed babies. Now I’m more savvy. I’m not knee-deep in violin concerts alongside peanut butter and honey child-rearing. My littles have all grown up, I have a somewhat of an empty nest and a lot of Oxblood Lily seeds to cultivate. The last 15 years, I have allowed nature do what it wants to do with the lily seeds. This year, I’m more intentional. I’m collecting the seeds and germinating them.

    Lily seeds enjoy a moist environment. I have half of my seeds in the moist paper method, and half my seeds in tea cups placed all around my music studio. No, I don’t have a greenhouse so I have to take a chance that my young violinists won’t throw the cups at each other while my back is turned. So far, so good. It’s been a few days, so I happily wait for green little sprouts. Patience is a virtue in which I apparently need. That’s the only real explanation on why this process is so thrilling for me. I have offered up free seedpods to folks to try their luck at growing Oxblood Lilies by seed. I’ve never sent Lily seeds via mail before, so if you have any suggestions, I’d love to hear them. 🙂 Remember, I’m not a botanist, I just play one on Web MD.

    Happy Gardening my friends!

  • Oxblood Lily Season in the Fall Texas Garden

    Thank you for visiting this little flower blog.
    Gardens restore the soul, and let’s face it….we all need it.

    The Oxblood Lily is also know as the Redemption Lily. The hot days of Summer are over. The refreshing rain and cooler temperatures bring the Oxblood Lilies to full bloom. The soul of the gardener is restored and renewed.

    Happy Gardening, my friends.

  • The Flex of the Tropical Spider Lily

    If Tropical Spider Lilies could speak, there would be a lot of flexing going on with the other flowers in the garden….

    ”Really? Is that all you got?”

    ”You know what they say about bulbs with big blooms…”

    ”I remember blooming like that when I was just a wee baby bulb.”

    ”Oh, how sweet. You decided to bloom a cute little flower.”

    Come to think of it, even gardeners with Tropical Spiders flex among other gardeners. Take, for instance, my family friend “Bonnie” (name possibly changed to keep her bulbs safe from bulb diggers like myself). I received a private message the other day with a “Look what I have blooming.” Basically, an “in your face!” picture of a magnificent clump of White Spiders.

    “Where did you get those lilies?!”

    “You gave them to me.”

    ”Well, I want them back. I’m coming right over to dig them up!”
    Too bad she lives 3 hours away. She knew her bulbs were safe. I could hear her little chuckles through the typed words of her messages. I bet my Mother put her up to this….

    My Tropical White Spiders bloomed about a week after the infamous flexing message. Then my phone broke, which was probably a result of the bad words I had considered using when my Spiders had STILL had not bloomed.

    So I gave them a hefting watering. Twice. Then magically, just like that, my Tropical White Spider Lilies bloomed.

    If my phone hadn’t lost all my contacts, my little garden flexes to Bonnie would have been rampant.

    ”Mine are bigger than yours.”

    ”Here’s what a *real* Spider Lily looks like!”

    (And my favorite) “Anything yours can do, mine can do better” sung in the style of the old musical Annie Get Your Gun.

    Every now and then, some flowers in the garden simply stand out among the other peasant plants. Tropical White Spiders just demand your full attention. The blooms are large, captivating and completely over the top gorgeous. A perfect flower for a little playful banter with your friends, and a little flex among the other garden flowers….if only Tropical Spider Lilies could speak.

    Happy Gardening, my friends!
    Love, Keenan @Heirloombulbgirl

    ””

  • The Superpower of Bulbs. Finding Faith by “Dodging Death by Dormancy”

    Here we are, sweating hot and grumbling in 105 degree summer heat, and the Crinum be like “Nope. Not havin’ it. I’m going back to sleep.”
    I want to have that superpower….the ability to simply remove myself from heated situations or troublesome times. I want to magically take myself out of a hot environment, cool off and simply wait for some rain to bloom beyond anything else in the garden. What an incredible superpower to have!

    Crinum are indeed a special bulb. Most of the hot summer, they sway back and forth between a green clump with a gorgeous lily, and a haggard-looking pile of death. Last summer, during the drought, the Crinum looked like they were all at death’s door, merely stubs of crispy brown remnants of foliage. Ah, but they weren’t dead at all. Not even close. The Crinum were just saving their strength and resting in the cool of their little sanctuary below the ground. Dodging death with an incredible ability to remove themselves from the heat and just wait for their perfect opportunity to re-emerge with a boom.

    There are many bulbs that sleep quietly and hide out underground during their dormant seasons. I find this attribute utterly fascinating. For instance, how does a bulb determine it’s specific season to grow and bloom? How does an Oxblood Lily or Spider Lily not get fooled by the summer rain, only to wait quietly and bloom like no other in the first downpour of the Fall? The mere fact that flower bulbs have unwavering fortitude to wait in the hard seasons, blooming beautifully when the rain comes is nothing short of the description of faith….the ability to believe in things that are not seen, hoping for things beyond their circumstances.

    Crinum are my summer reminders of faith. Crinum give me hope through the heated struggle of gardening in a Texas summer, when everything appears to die before my eyes. When times are tough, Crinum simply retreat to their quiet place….a sanctuary. They are restored, renewed and recharged. Crinum don’t fight their circumstances with yelling, screaming, debating or grumbling. Crinum simply find their quiet place, believing beyond the 105 degree weather that “this too shall pass.” The weather *will* cool off, the rain *will* come and the beautiful Crinum *will* share its bloom again….believing in things not yet seen, hoping for things beyond their circumstances. I need flower bulbs like Crinum to remind me where my true source of power is….not in myself, or a perfect environment, with perfect people in a perfect world. On the contrary, my superpower is my faith in Him, Who created it all….seasons of great beauty and seasons of wait. I rest in the quiet of the sanctuary of the Lord, fully knowing that He is the true power source of all…even the little Crinum.

    ”O God.

    You are my God;

    Early will I seek You;

    My soul thirsts for You;

    My flesh longs for You in a dry and thirsty land where there is no water.

    So I have looked for You in the sanctuary;

    To see Your power and Your glory.” -Psalms 63:1-2

    It is another hot summer afternoon. The garden is showing off it’s many shades of crispy brown foliage, but the Crinum are all in wait…..their season is coming. Remember, your Heirloom Bulbs aren’t dead….they are simply cooling off below the earth, dodging death by dormancy. 🙂

    Happy Gardening, my friends! Love, Keenan @heirloombulbgirl

  • Finding the Balance

    There is a fine line between “going natural” with native plants, and the complete and utter gardening chaos that consumes everything in its path (including cool garden art and small children). My gardens usually tip-toe close to the line of chaos, but this particular year, the balance had to be reestablished. The local natives were abundantly fruitful with all the beautiful rain. The studio grounds have been lost in a sea of Tie Vine and Widow’s Tears. Although the bees were pleased in the overwhelming native landscape, I had to find some sense of balance in the garden. Too much of a good thing becomes borderline toxic….so I set out with my dull scissors and bucket to thin out the natives.

    Balance is a word used a lot in our society. “Find the Balance” can be heard in every realm of life. Balance between work and play, healthy eating habits and a delicious three-layered coconut cake, good parenting and self-focused alone time, screen time and naturally unplugged time….you get my drift. The need for balance is in every aspect of life. Our modern society is not just walking the fine line between balance and chaos, it is grossly out of balance. It’s easy to feel like a little Crinum bulb that has been engulfed and suffocated by the overrun vines. How do we find a healthy balance when everything around us is trying to choke out the beauty we are trying to create?

    The first thing to remember is that too much of a good thing is not a good thing. If you have a plant, person, place or thing that has consumed every area of your life or garden, it needs some space. The problem with a lot of natives is that they are designed by nature to thrive, whether by seed production, tap roots or natural vigor, natives thrive against all odds. Native plants are great, until you can’t see your garden any longer. My secret weapon in the garden is a pair of gardening scissors. I am basically a female version of Edward-Scissorhands, cutting natives and invasive vines off at ground level. The Texas Tie Vine, for instance, is a charming vine with pink flowers and heart-shaped leaves that cannot be simply pulled up….the taproot is somewhere three block as away. Pulling the vine up sends plant hormones to reproduce TWICE the vine….No joke! Where’s the balance in that?? If left unchecked, the cute little vine will consume your entire block, children, husband and pets included! Balance is being able to enjoy the lovely pink flower in random spots without allowing the vine to ruin your entire life. I continually look for places being overrun and I continue to cut throughout the season. I also *try* to keep the space around specimen plants or bulbs sacred. Native ground covers and plants like Widow’s Tear can steal nutrients from your prized plants and drop a lot of seeds. A good healthy haircut, I mean plant-cut, is good for everything in the garden.

    Another way to create a healthy balance in the garden is to recognize native plants as healthy or toxic. There are beautIful things in life that can actually be harmful to our personal health or our garden. Take, for instance, the dreaded Poison Ivy Vine. The berries are so cute! The growth habits of the vine are delightful, until it’s not. Getting rid of Poison Ivy is also interesting, but that is an entirely different blog. Red wasps are another toxic garden pest. Organic gardeners try to find the positives in all species. I tried to coincide peacefully with the wasp until they ran off the bees from my old bee tree. Not cool. I eradicated the wasp population (I have no apologies either) and my bees happily returned! Protecting the good species from overwhelming troublesome species is much like sheltering a child from the darkness of the world. Yes, it exists, but our energy needs to be put towards raising up goodness, both in ourselves and in our gardens. Even well-meaning pollinators like the Cow Pen Daisy need to be kept in check, before the 3,978,645 seeds each plant drops overruns your delightful Rain Lily bed.

    Finding balance isn’t a “One and Done” activity. Balance is something to seek out daily. Politicians, Social Media and Bermuda Grass will never be completely eradicated from life, so it is best to create healthy space and balance. Don’t get overwhelmed with a job that is never fully completed. Every day is a new and glorious day. Choose the space that you are in, the people you are around, and the plants you have in your garden that bring you the most joy. Don’t get overwhelmed by invasive vines. Simply cut them off at the pass before they get out of control. Keep toxic plants (and people) at bay, and nurture the good things that are all around you in this fabulous garden called life. Balance yourself, and the beautiful things that the Lord has in store for you can grow and begin to be noticed. And next time you gaze upon the garden patch that you just weeded, enjoy that fleeting moment of perfect gardening balance fully….but always keep a pair of scissors in your back pocket just in case. 🙂

    “Take My yoke upon you. My burden is light.” -Matthew 11:30

    Happy Gardening, my friends!
    Love, Keenan @heirloombulbgirl

  • Oxblood Lily Give Away

    In an effort to continuously beautify the world, or at least a flower garden or two, I’m giving away Oxblood Lilies to well-deserving, bulb-loving gardeners. 🙂

    If you’d like some lilies, simply send me a email at heirloombulbgirl@gmail.com about what you love best about the Oxblood Lily (or any Heirloom Bulb). If you aren’t familiar with lilies, just tell me what you love about gardening. I will send you 2 lovely Oxbloods *free* (shipping/handling will be around $8.00). If you live close, come on by to the studio and get your lovely lilies without the shipping charges. Once your Oxbloods arrive, put right into the ground, water in and wait for the first heavy rainfall of the Fall….and Voila! A beautiful red Oxblood Lily.

    Oxblood Lilies are powerful reminders of the redemptive process throughout the garden. When droughts and overwhelming heat bear down heavily on the soul, the Oxblood Lily becomes a beautiful reminder of renewal and hope.
    Every garden needs an Oxblood Lily.

    Looking forward to hearing from you!
    Happy Gardening, my friends! love, Keenan