On blogging and poetry

Once again, let's be honest-- so far, this being my first blog (besides that way overly personal xanga blog I had as a silly college girl... embarassing), the hardest part of blogging has been choosing a name for my blog.  Since, what has it been?  2 weeks?  Since 2 weeks ago, I have spent a significant amount of time trying to find a clever that has not already been taken by someone cleverer out there.

I started with Michelle's Green Thumb, but discovered that was semi-taken as someone's established gardening page.  Not wanting to imitate, I changed it to Michelle's Greenish Thumb, thinking myself quite creative.  But again discovered myself unoriginal.

So now, after spending far too much time trying to think of an awesome name for a blog that only has a tiny handful of posts, I am changing it, for the last time.  You likely remember from high school, that this name references a poignant Walt Whitman poem which I have included below.  Given the recurring theme in my garden, I think the parallels are quite appropriate (refer to previous few posts!), don't you think?  

(My husband will think this a bit dramatic.  I disagree, I am not in the least bit dramatic).

O Captain! My Captain!

BY WALT WHITMAN

O Captain! my Captain! our fearful trip is done,

The ship has weather’d every rack, the prize we sought is won,

The port is near, the bells I hear, the people all exulting,

While follow eyes the steady keel, the vessel grim and daring;

                         But O heart! heart! heart!

                            O the bleeding drops of red,

                               Where on the deck my Captain lies,

                                  Fallen cold and dead.

O Captain! my Captain! rise up and hear the bells;

Rise up—for you the flag is flung—for you the bugle trills,

For you bouquets and ribbon’d wreaths—for you the shores a-crowding,

For you they call, the swaying mass, their eager faces turning;

                         Here Captain! dear father!

                            The arm beneath your head!

                               It is some dream that on the deck,

                                 You’ve fallen cold and dead.

My Captain does not answer, his lips are pale and still,

My father does not feel my arm, he has no pulse nor will,

The ship is anchor’d safe and sound, its voyage closed and done,

From fearful trip the victor ship comes in with object won;

                         Exult O shores, and ring O bells!

                            But I with mournful tread,

                               Walk the deck my Captain lies,

                                  Fallen cold and dead.

Iron, baby

Through the winter, as my Meyer lemon tree has labored to produce plump little lemons, I've run my garden like a ruthless overlord, planning with anticipation how I'm going to devour all its little lemon babies (with chicken, in pies, over parsnips! in a martini!! ...all very tasty, more in another post).  Having eaten the last of my Meyer lemons this week and because it warmed up a bit -- remember, I don't go out in the LA cold -- I took a closer look at my little Meyer lemon tree which has worked so hard to produce such delicious, sunshine-y fruit:

Yikes, oh my, what have I done to you my poor little tree?  If I'm honest, I saw the earliest signs of this a few months ago already:

But I had assumed that my plant just needed some citrus food ("I'll feed you, if yooOU FEED ME!! GRAARRW!!")  Wrong.  So today, a couple google searches have taught me that those yellow leaves with green veins are typical for iron deficiency.  Unfortunately, citrus plants become anemic pretty easily.  Fortunately, it's an easy fix... Iron pellets are readily available in your neighborhood nursery, just dump them on the soil and water.  Woohoo!

This also happened to my blueberry shrub last year, and look how nicely it healed up:

It's a little hard to see, but those veiny yellow leaves on the left, after a few months of watering over iron pellets have turned that beautiful blue-green color again.  So as of today, iron applied, plant watered... Let's hope our little lemon tree forgives me.

Let's be honest

Maybe I should call it...

...Michelle's not so green thumb?

Alright, alright.  I fantasize regularly about one day having a glorious SoCal garden-- lots of vegetables, bursting with flowers, with luscious fruit hanging from leafy trees overhead.  But despite my love of all things living and green, two things hold me back from that:

#1.  I only have a patio at this point, albeit a pretty nice one.

#2.  I tend to kill things.

I like to think that the second problem is a lack of knowledge and practice thing.  My husband would say I rapidly cycle through hobbies and my poor garden get neglected on a cyclical basis, especially if it's cold (and let's be clear, we're talking "LA cold") outside.

Shortcomings aside, this is a new year for gardening and I'm feeling optimistic.  I plan to document my successes and setbacks and everything I learn here, even if only I and my mom are the only ones to ever read it (hi mama!).  

Anyway, since we're talking firsts today, I leave you with one of my first gardens I ever had in LA.  Aww, it's so cute.  Here's to many more!  Yay flowers!