Sunday, January 10, 2016

The Gardener

This bird is all about gardening. All the fabrics in this bird are food-related.


It's also the time of year to start planning my own garden. This year I'm going to try to extend the vegetable garden and I hope to clear out the overgrowth behind the house.

12 comments:

SandraB said...

Loving the birds so much. It was wonderful to look forward to the new January days and see what birdie is gracing your blog each day. I can't wait to see what you do with them. You are so talented.

suzanne, dutchess county NY said...

Love this colorful bird! If you run out of space you can sew up grow bags from landscape fabric. Works great. My daughter even grew potatoes! There's a Pinterest tutorial.
Have fun planning. Seed catalogs are arriving at my house. Now to keep that under control. A bit like fabric shopping I'm afraid.

Mary said...

I love how your sense of humor shows in these blocks.

Quiltdivajulie said...

Have your ordered that Haz-Mat suit to protect you from the Evil Ticks?

Art by Rhoda Forbes said...

Love each new block, this one is a winner too, I can't wait to see them all together. Such fun you are having with fabrics.

Anonymous said...

Thought maybe she was a chef before I read your comment. Your fabrics are always so much fun. Who would have thought of celery!!! Laura

Millie said...

She could certainly be a chef or a good home cook who grows as much as she can in her home garden.

Millie said...

Thanks Suzanne. I'll check it outvb

Megan said...

Oh - Mrs Pickleton has made an appearance. Yaaaay.

When people (or birds) say that they're gardeners, most people think pretty flowers or sculpted succulents or perhaps even an artful arrangement of decorator pots. But Mrs Pickleton doesn't garden like that. She has been way ahead of the current trend to plant a few veggies in a planter box. She's been seriously working her small suburban yard for decades and has become renowned in her neighbourhood for her brussel sprouts, heirloom turnips and huge strawberries. In 1973, a choko (chayote) from one of her vines took out 'Best Gourd' in the Mulvane Fair. Since then, however, she chosen not to enter any competitions as she found that they caused her to focus too much on creating the biggest and most perfectly formed fruit and vegetables rather than gardening for taste - which is what it's really all about.

Mrs Pickleton was happily married for 32 years to Roy. Unhappily he died five years ago after a short illness. They were unable to have children, and this, perhaps, was one of the reasons why Mrs Pickleton invested so much time and attention - and so much nuture - in her vegetable garden. Although not especially interested in cooking, over the years Mrs Pickleton has become something of an expert in various ways of processing her harvest to ensure that it is all used: she's a real whiz when it comes to pickling, bottling, canning, dehydrating and fermenting (celery and spinach wine, anyone?).

It probably goes without saying that Mrs Pickleton's gardening is all done in an organic manner - no poisons, pesticides or man-made fertilisers have ever been used on her plot. Some believe that this accounts for her longevity and the vibrant colour of her beak even in her old age. (Yes - that's her natural beak colour!) Indeed, following the publication of a human-interest article about her garden in the Mulvane News and Bandwagon several years ago, she was contacted by a PhD student enrolled at Wichita State University who is now using Mrs Pickleton as a case study for his thesis, entitled: "The Long-Term Influence of an Entirely Organic Diet on Preservation of Beak Colour in Female Birds Native to the Flyover States". (He has some hopes of publishing it as a book once his doctorate has been awarded, so keep checking Amazon to pre-order it.)

Neighbours and friends have begun suggesting to Mrs Pickleton that it may be time to lay down her hoe and take things easy, but she's having none of it. Her garden makes her happy, and, now that she's a widow and can't possibly eat all that she grows, she's found extra pleasure in supplying fresh vegetables to the Kansas Zoo, where they are enjoyed daily by the giraffes and orangutans.

Megan
Sydney, Australia

Millie said...

Megan,

Thank you for making me laugh and smile yet again!

Lynne


Jackie said...

You are a hoot Megan.

Jackie said...

You are a hoot Megan.