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Saturday, June 19, 2010

The Garden Simmers

It`s Father`s Day and I couldn`t help thinking how proud my Dad z`l would be to learn about the Shalom Community Teaching Garden.

Dad was a farmer and so were his parents and his grandparents. Like our people in biblical times, he had an intimate relationship with the land, its rhythms and seasons. Dad believed that everyone should know how to grow their own food from the land.

I used to bring my school friends home to our farm and Dad was always shocked when they didn`t know the difference between HAY and STRAW. `Hay is for eating and Straw is for bedding`, he would explain to my city friends, shaking his head in amazement. Dad only had the chance to attend school up to grade 8, but he was worldly wise and able to coax our rocky Grey-Bruce acres to grow all manner of abundance and care for all kinds of livestock.

I had my first teaching experience in the Shalom Garden this week. There`s not much there yet except 34 strawbales fermenting and some soil on top of the well done ones! So my first lesson was teaching the difference between HAY and STRAW. What a great way to honour my father!

Kehila students participated in planting some ground cover into the sides of our strawbales. We`re not sure if they will take off, but if they do our bales will be covered with greenery by the end of the summer. Luckily it rained this morning so I didn`t go in to water.

Come and see the garden simmering. Next Sunday JUNE 27th is our planting party. We hope you will join us and bring a plant (vegetable and herbs please) to add to our garden.

HAPPY FATHER`S DAY

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