Amy in the Garden

Like every current event, the Growth of Myrtle has historical context. To merrily mix my metaphors (and alliterate [un]abashedly): When it comes to growing giant pumpkins this is not MH the Grower’s first rodeo.

His first entry into the Damariscotta Pumpkinfest Weigh-Off was in 2012, when he actually entered two pumpkins. Why? In his own words, “I didn’t know to narrow the plant down to one pumpkin.” The weights for those two fruits were 133 pounds and 100.5 pounds.

That explains the “Words from Others” quote for this post. MH demonstrated his superior intellect and competitive nature by learning from the past and insuring the future was brighter. He also demonstrated that he is not insane, by not doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.

I digress. In 2013 MH applied his experience and knowledge and grew what for him would become his personal best: A pumpkin that weighed a whopping 289.5 pounds. The fruit of 2013’s labors:

In 2014, there was no pumpkin entry from MH. He claims “Moving Maelstrom” and as anyone who has moved from one state to another (and I don’t mean from calm to frenetic) can attest, and has focused on the first few days in a new home just trying to find your spatula…. or pillow….because after a few days of being lost you almost don’t care which you rest your head on… moving is all-consuming, and growing a giant pumpkin drops to the bottom of your priority list.

So he took a break that year. 2015 saw another entry, and this beauty didn’t beat his previous record, but 265 pounds is nothing to sneeze at. Here is a photo of that year’s work:

You might note that the pumpkin from 2015, even though lighter in weight, looks larger than the 2013 record-holder. Attribute that to internal density and water weight. Every woman knows the facts about water weight, and that explains the text under this post’s “Appreciating” section. If you’ve never been a dieting female (and no such creature exists), you won’t appreciate the significance of water weight on appearance. Trust me, trust all of us 51%-ers, it matters.

So how is Myrtle doing today, and how does she compare to her predecessors?

MH decided that Myrtle was growing so quickly, that she needed protection from the UV rays from the sun. His concern was that her rapid growth would cause the rind to split. So he lightly covered her with floating row cover cloth, and propped up a special umbrella to shield his girl from the afternoon sun.

And Myrtle is responding to this extra TLC. Here’s what she looked like today.  Note that her girth pushed the umbrella off and to the side :

I don’t care if that size is due to water weight or just good pumpkin genes, but I think she’s on her way (weigh) to topping 289.5! Stand back and stay tuned….

WORDS FROM OTHERS:

APPRECIATING:

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The title of this post says it all: The pumpkin formerly known as “Powell 1548” has been re-named by MH the Grower. He is proving that he is a good parent by bestowing a name upon the pumpkin that will not elicit teasing as it grows to maturity, by naming her Myrtle. And if she continues to grow at this rate, she won’t be known as “Moaning Myrtle,” the ghost of Harry Potter fame, but “Groaning Myrtle,” as I’m already starting the stress about how we’re going to get her out of the garden and onto the weighing scale. Myrtle has until October 1 to make my fears come true.

Myrtle is a beautiful name! It is of Latin origin, and from the English word “myrtle” for the evergreen shrub. The shrub was said to be sacred to Venus as a symbol of love.

The diminutive is “Myrtie” and while her size won’t encourage that nickname, our deep affection for her spirit and energy will find us calling this pale behemoth Myrtie at every opportunity!

It is also an unusual name. It was first used as a given name in the 19^th century – a time when girls were often given the name of a plant or flower.   1918 was the year the name was most popular, with 4,000 babies receiving the name. If you were unlucky enough, or unique enough to be a boy named Myrtle in 2011, you would have been #13,694 in the rankings of popular baby names.  Since 1880, a total of 116 boys were named Myrtle, while 135,266 girls were named Myrtle. Other fun facts about the name:

Are you a numerologist? Me neither. But here’s what the site “sheknows.com” says about the name from a numerology perspective:

“SoulUrge Number: 5

People with this name have a deep inner desire for travel and adventure, and want to set their own pace in life without being governed by tradition.

Expression Number: 3

People with this name tend to be creative and excellent at expressing themselves. They are drawn to the arts, and often enjoy life immensely. They are often the center of attention, and enjoy careers that put them in the limelight. They tend to become involved in many different activities, and are sometimes reckless with both their energies and with money.”

Those predictions work for me. Myrtle is absolutely setting her own pace in life, and is absolutely the center of attention!

So, let me show you what she looks like now. Myrtle is growing by leaps and bounds. The blossom was fertilized on July 19^th and  15 days later it looked like this:

And now it has been 29 days, and she looks like this:

The tiny blue piece of foam core is woefully inadequate to cover the bottom surface of this monster. At this pace, I will be posting significant updates about her growth almost daily.

Myrtle, Myrtle, I am groaning already.

WORDS FROM OTHERS:

“[Exit, pursued by a bear.]”

— William Shakespeare, “A Winter’s Tale”, Act 3, Scene III

APPRECIATING:

During peak growth, the pumpkins can add as much as 50 pounds of weight per day.

• New York Botanical Gardens

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I was witness to an event that was neither immaculate nor improper, and had nothing to do with storks. Because this post was written by me, it is G-rated. I appreciate science, but when it comes to love, I vote for mystery. I hope you’re not disappointed.

It was time. The Powell 1548 had added enough heft and reach to the Mother Vine that it was time to select The One True Pumpkin, the one that would receive all care, nourishment, love, and admiration. A lot like the first child in every family.

Here’s a photo of the Mother Vine, ready to have her life changed forever:

She sported blossoms of both sex, male…

…and female.

And MH the Grower found the best positioned female blossom along the vine, the healthiest specimen, and gave a thumbs-up (actually, he pointed) to the blossom that would bear fruit:

The first step was to cull all competing fruits. Some of the blossoms had already been pollinated by bees, and so they had to be removed.

Pumpkin vines and fruits are loaded with sap, or chitin. Chitin is a derivative of cellulose and functions in much the same way as keratin. Insects, arachnids, and crustaceans have chitin, and so does Powell 1548. So the broken vines needed to be tied off to prevent them from depleting too much sap from the plant.

MH demonstrated how much chitin is in the fruits themselves. He ran a thumbnail down one of the culled fruits and the sap leaped out. It binds the wound, hardening and protecting the plant from further injury. It’s like a liquid bandage, but doesn’t come with cartoon characters on it:

The next step was to select two promising male flowers and peel the petals back, revealing the stamen, the male organ of the plant.

Once the petals were removed, the two candidates were compared, and one was selected to be the pollinator.

The female blossom was opened:

And the pollen-filled stamen was applied to the sticky pistil, transferring pollen grains.

MH closed the female blossom’s petals around the male stamen, holding the stamen in contact with the pistil:

And tied the blossom closed around the stamen:

The petals firmly tied, the stamen was in place to do its job.

And MH the Grower anticipated the size of the swelling fruit to be in the next few days.

He was, as always, completely correct. The next post will show just how correct he was!

WORDS FROM OTHERS:

APPRECIATING:

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Powell 1548 is thriving, but there were some tense moment a few weeks ago. The warm weather encouraged the overwintering striped cucumber beetles to swarm over the growing leaves. The beetles had harassed my zucchini and zephyr squashes last summer, and I battled them with weekly applications of Captain Jack’s Deadbug Brew:

MOFGA describes the active ingredient, spinosad, in this product as follows:

“Insecticides available for organic growers include pyrethrin… and spinosad…Pyrethrin is primarily a contact toxin, while spinosad acts both as a contact and a stomach poison. But, none of these provides a highly effective ‘knockdown” of beetle populations. Still if the beetles have already gotten out of hand and you need to do something, they will help.– MOFGA.org”

It was effective last year. But not this year. MH the Grower brought out his own concoction that included small amounts of sevin and Dawn dishwashing liquid, and a generous amount of water, and that did the trick. Fewer of these beetles were spotted after the application:

The damage the beetles do is not limited to eating holes into the leaves. The fruit is scarred, and the larvae feed on the tender stems, girdling them. But the most damaging result is caused by the cucumber beetle secreting bacterial wilt from its stomach. The bacteria spreads to the plant’s vascular system, and causes the leaves to wilt. If not treated, the plant will die.

And, as misery loves company, cucumber beetles attract other cucumber beetles. As someone who is phobic about things that swarm, this was a challenging time.

I am happy to report that MH’s method worked, and Powell 1548 is growing! Stay tuned – I will post, very shortly!, about The Chosen One. Yes, one fruit has been anointed and is receiving rock-star attention.  I am already in love.

WORDS FROM OTHERS:

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I am intoxicated. Not by love, ingested substances, or the drumbeats of war, but by anticipation. I am suffused with anticipation, awaiting panicles that will bloom and release a fragrance that will fill my garden this summer, enticing hummingbirds and humans alike to breathe in, to drink, to find beauty and solace from the white blossoms. Today I planted a healthy specimen of clethra alnifolia, also known as summersweet.

I first encountered this plant on Martha’s Vineyard, years and years ago. The large shrub attracted clouds of happy, humming bees, and filled the air around it with a sweet perfume. The scent was not heavy or cloying. It was as light as a sea breeze, and as sweet as summer itself. I have dreamed of this plant ever since.

And yet the actual purchase and planting of this shrub was NOT planned. I had recently moved 14 struggling echinaceas out of a spot that was borderline “partial shade” and into the full sun of another location in the garden. The echinaceas immediately responded with better posture and a welcome change of attitude. (Nothing worse than a sulky coneflower.)

So I had this large circular area, UNPLANTED. Can you imagine the effect this had on me?  A section of garden, dug, edged, and…empty. It was almost unbearable.

My first thought was to plant a baptisia, a false indigo. But….at the risk of sounding petulant, I don’t like them very much. I’ve planted them before. They’re members of the pea family, and jeez, there are SO MANY lupines blooming right now. Yes, yes, they’re beautiful, they’re iconic, I love them every June, but how many dark-blue pea blossoms can a girl stand all at once? I’m full up. I am replete with pea plants. (I am also a little bored.)

And then, from the depths of my aging mind, I remembered: summersweet, the shrub that entranced me so long ago with its sweet fragrance and lovely appearance. Would it grow in Maine? Would it grow in this particular spot in my garden? Would it be the right height, the right width? I raced to the internet.

I learned that summersweet is considered “native” to Maine. Oh joy! Oh rapture!

Would it grow in full sun, partial shade, or full shade? Yes. What?! But the cultivation requirements were clear: summersweet will grow under each of these conditions.

It is fragrant and attracts hummingbirds. (Knew that.) This particular variety can grow to be 8’ tall – uh oh. Too tall. Until the garden expert at Moose Crossing (Yes, my local nursery has that charming Maine-appropriate name) said flatly, “It won’t grow to 8’ in Maine. You’ll get a 6-footer…..Maybe.”) Perfect!

It is also listed as being low maintenance (thank you), its season of interest is both summer and fall (also works for me), and its habit is “upright.” Well of course it is. I would bet it’s both upright and upstanding as well.

Here are a few photos of my newest darling:

And finally, the budding panicles:

Fragrance-to-come. Anticipation of intoxication. This summer is shaping up nicely.

WORDS FROM OTHERS

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Every time I think about social change, I think about a sea star eating a clam.  It is a long, exhausting, and unpleasant event.  The sea star slowly gathers the clam into a death-hug.  It pries the clam’s hinged shells far enough apart so that it can push part of its stomach inside the shell and excrete digestive juices.  The clam is liquefied, and the sea star drinks its meal.

It takes a long time.  It is messy.  It is, ultimately, inevitable.

Social change is initiated because of outrage.  It is accomplished by patience and persistence.  People have recognized this since Shakespeare’s time.  He said:

“How poor are they that have not patience!  What wound did ever heal but by degrees?”

These days, the social issue of the day is same-sex marriage, and I keep thinking about that sea star.  I think about it every time I see a furious, impatient comment on FaceBook or in the media about how long it is taking for this concept, this right, to gain universal legality and acceptance.

I’m with you.  I’m impatient, too.  But history has shown that, like the sea star and the clam, some things are inevitable, and history is moving along a lot more quickly than it used to.

Think about the Suffragette Movement.  While it started in the United Kingdom, the Americans had their brave women, and reluctant men, wrestling over this issue too.  It was part of the Liberty Party’s presidential platform in 1848.  And while Wyoming and Utah granted their women the right to vote much earlier (1869 and 1870, respectively, and God bless the American West and its recognition of practicality over social mores), women were not fully granted the right to vote until the Nineteenth Amendment was passed in time for the 1920 presidential election.  That’s a long time to advocate – to suffer beatings, imprisonment, and ridicule.

Those women, born from the time of horse-drawn carriages to the invention of the automobile, knew this truth (from William Eardley IV):

“Ambition is the path to success, persistence is the vehicle you arrive in.”

The Civil Rights movement formally began in 1955, but African-Americans were not granted the right to vote until 1965 – a very long ten years for the country, and for those beaten, and imprisoned, and ridiculed.

Inter-racial marriage was another enormous social shift.  While 1887 saw the first states repealing anti-miscegenation laws (including my new home state of Maine), it wasn’t until 1948-1967 that saw another large scattering of states repeal these laws (mostly states in the mid-west and far-west), followed by the Deep South that finally joined the rest of the nation in 1967.

Inter-racial marriage, from the days of Shakespeare’s Othello the Moor marrying Desdemona, to 1967:  That is a very long time to wait to legally marry the person you love, if that person is of a different color, race, or ethnicity.

And now, same-sex marriage.  By contrast to those other monumental societal changes, this event is happening quickly.  In 2004, Massachusetts became the first state in the nation to legalize same-sex marriage. As of last month, January 2014, 17 states in the U.S. have made same-sex marriage legal.  This issue is making the news almost daily, with changes in the law moving to make same-sex marriage the law of the land.

My personal impatience is with the opponents of this issue who fail to appreciate that marriage is, at its core, a civil event.  You can get married without the involvement of a church, but you cannot get married without your state government issuing you a marriage license.  The involvement of the church is a personal addition to the ceremony, and as such, is a choice and consideration that belongs only to the married couple. The state issues the license, and the couple determines the rest.

I cannot wait for the day when people say, “Can you believe people had to fight for this right?”

I appreciate the impatience I hear every day over this issue.  I regret the outrage and unpleasantness it too frequently sparks.  I will be persistent in voicing my opinion and lending my efforts to seeing same-sex marriage become legal for all.  I will be patient until this happy day arrives.  Because, as Albert Ellis, psychologist, observed:

“The art of love is largely the art of persistence.”

WORDS FROM OTHERS
“Energy and persistence conquer all things.”

— Benjamin Franklin, Founding Father (1706-1790)

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