Gardening and women's rights?

[SuperLoudPoppingAction]

There are three things keeping me relatively sane at the moment. One being discussion with like-minded women who are passionate about women's rights, another being (surprisingly, as I am dysphraxic and a bit crap at it) swimming.
The most reliable, though, is being out in my garden. I love being in nature generally. If I had more energy I'd like to go on walks more, but I've been fairly knackered lately.

The cyclical nature of planting, growing, harvesting etc feels very significant to me.
Also, the fact that I can make mistakes and that everything will still basically be ok is so lovely. It's an antidote to anxiety that I feel with loads of other stuff.

I've had such lovely conversations with women about gardening. One woman gave me some of her tiny gooseberries from her allotment and I made chutney with them. Another woman told me that parsley only thrives in a household run by a woman.

Alice Walker talks a lot about gardening. alicewalkersgarden.com/2010/10/in-search-of-our-mothers-garden/
Susan Brownmiller [[http://www.nycitywoman.com/the-feminist-gardener/]]
I love this as well. www.slate.com/articles/double_x/doublex/2015/03/margery_fish_s_we_made_a_garden_is_a_feminist_manifesto_disguised_as_a_gardening.html
"a harmonious, informal, frothing sort of a garden, its borders filled with “green” flowers, its shady corners crammed with hellebores, primroses, epimediums, and, most important of all, her beloved snowdrops."

I keep thinking about how important it is to experience a Space of One's Own. Even if it's a terrarium with a couple of air plants in it (like in my last house, where the garden was not private enough for me to enjoy it).

It's not going to revolutionise gender politics in itself, but is nurturing a connection to nature something that anyone else connects with feminist politics?

Just wanted to share this bee on my the borage from seed!
Its lovely to witness the flowes serving their actual purpose in the natural world, other than lookin beaut and being edible!

Is anyone on here into permaculture?

A lot of what people have said about watchin their land and letting the land take the lead reminds me much of that... mind you, before i even knew what permaculture was i beleived and practiced many of the principles (it seemed like common sense)

I have an allotment. It's in a rather blustery spot and I share it with deer, pheasants, rabbits and many many slugs!
Have to admit I don't really know much about permaculture. Some of my fellow allotmenteers follow 'no dig' principles - is that related?

Can I ask...when did you all become interested in gardening? It is something I feel I would LIKE to do but don't know anything at all about it...I couldn't tell you the difference in hydrangeas and rhododendrons! Does it take long to learn? That will probably sound like a really stupid question!☺️

It is difficult to follow permaculture principles on an allotment as most of them involve perennials...aka permanent culture...putting the crops over to perennials as much as possible. Whereas allotments tend to be annual or biennial crops with a few fruit trees bunged in for good measure. I'd love to; but we aren't allowed fruit trees over 2m tall; and the lack of care in neighbour's allotments means that we are forever firefighting new and interesting weeds that other people don't seem able to control.

I practice permaculture at home; I have a forest garden and many fruit trees and bushes; even though it is a smallish garden. My rule of thumb is to keep the trees manageable; and if it isn't doing what I need it to do then out it comes. I grow on different layers - tree, shrub, lower and ground level and roots; and I have a windy path going through the trees and shrubs, down to the canal; which is grass and so I mow it every week and either use the mowings as mulch or add to the composters.

I also do no dig where I can - and have covered all my beds with woodchip at the allotment [a permaculture method] to increase the organic matter in the soil, keep moisture in and I also have a Hugel bed there which I made around 8 years ago; but it is now quite couch grassy so we have covered it with fabric to reduce the power of the couch grass, and I'll dig it all out in the autumn ready for next spring. I also grow licorice and other crops in the pea family, to add nitrogen to the soil and just chop it back and compost the tops.

I wouldn't worry about the difference between hydrangeas and rhododendrons; I teach hort and I can never remember what either are called. I focus on edibles. If you want to make a start, I recommend a few herbs in pots in the sun outside the back door. Plus a Lemon Verbena for the smell - it is heavenly. Then just adapt to the space you have. There is still time to buy a tomato or two; or a chilli pepper, which you can tend this year and start to learn about plants.

Ok Terf - I will do that! Thank you. 😃 That sounds doable, even for me with black thumbs. My children are starting to show a little interest in growing herbs - Lidl was doing tiny little pots and that started their interest. I'd really like to develop that.

girlontheleft the beautiful thing about gardening is, that you don't make mistakes, you learn from life

most plants come with basic instructions and if in doubt you can look up more info on www.rhs.org.uk/plants/search-Form (for example) or ask neigbours or park rangers.

watch gardener's world, beechgrove garden, listen to gqt - it's nice, gentle, funny, positive

Thanks blue - and that sounds so right! I adore nature...I love how clear my mind feels and how peaceful my soul feels when I am in the midst of it so I think gardening would be a wonderful hobby for me. And my children too.

top tip for newbies - plants need water but not too much!

So either water every day and let the water drain away; or sit all your pots in trays and add half an inch of water when the pots get light, let the plants soak that up and anything left after 30 mins, tip it away. Don't leave them in standing water unless they are celery.

Terf I know I have done that before!!🤭

LastGirlOnTheLeft
Always- it seems like anyway! When i was little i used to help my dad. The sight of those beautiful white new potatos peeping up through the dark soil as we dug them up is one that stays with me. Both parents and my gran loved growing flowers like roses too. I feel close to them when I garden and the smells sights and sounds bring back lovely childhood memories.

Terf your forest garden sounds amazing!

But yes, as someone touched on earlier the thing about allotments is they want them to be tidy and proper and sometimes a little bit of wildness is good for everything!

Lastgirlontheleft... ive always had a little interest but never had any space apart from pots... i would say i dont really know much tbh haha but like others say you can just learn as you go... buy some seeds or plants and give it a go!

Peas are a pretty easy quick crop.

Id also reccomend going to a community garden if there is around too! Often filled with likeminded.. but all different types.. of people!

My allotment is messy round the edges (sometimes in the middle too) but I like to leave spaces for wildlife and I always plant flowers for bees and other pollinators and let some plants bolt so they flower.
I used to spend a lot of time with my Grandad on his allotment as a child, but my own interest only really blossomed after I had a child. I wanted to show her about nature and growing, and to not be alarmed by a bit of dirt or a worm. I like the ebb and flow of the seasons too. Plus I have finally learnt how to make jam. Luckily one of the few things that grows well her is soft fruit, I have plenty of blackcurrants every year.,

What is this?

The bit of gardening I enjoy most is hacking things back - so therapeutic! (Probably another sign of my unfeminine nature, though.)

Thanks everyone - inconsistent and Olive especially!! I'm about to drop off to sleep but I will read and start taking notes! Actually the reason I ask is because my DH and I have a gorgeous plot to build a new house and I have this dream of making a beautiful garden there too.

Another picture. Eventually lots of small white flowers came out.

Have you got a better picture of the flowers?
Is it growing in your garden?

the beautiful thing about gardening is, that you don't make mistakes, you learn from life

This is so true.

I started with tomatoes and peppers in the conservatory and an apple tree and a plum tree in the garden. Everything tasted so nice, I just expanded from there. If it goes wrong, no biggie. If it goes right - YUM!

Leycesteria formosa.

Aka pheasant berry. Nice.

Himalayan Honeysuckle

www.rhs.org.uk/plants/details?plantid=1149

I think your plant might be a Himalayan honeysuckle, it looks similar to one in PIL garden. Flowers for a long time, butterflies like it. Can be cut back hard to be shrubby, but will grow to the size of a small tree otherwise. Leaves look similar but can't really see enough to tell.

Thank you Picasso, Terfragette and Beamur. It appeared last summer.It grew furiously. I don't garden. We have a gardener for a few hours once a week during the summer, less often in autumn and winter. He cut it back but it's flourishing again and has appeared in another spot.

Terf - does your no dig method work on heavy clay soil? We've got twelve raised veg beds and they are very clay with lots of stone thrown in for good measure.

The carrots did not like it last year ended up growing them this year in chimney pots with compost.

Carrots won't like clay, no. Or stones. Most people grow them in pots because of that and carrot fly.

Yes no dig is good for clay soil; I find the best thing to put over clay is woodchip - but the really best stuff is woodchip that has been composting for a few years. The best thing ever was when we piled old woodchip that had been down for 3 years, onto a raised bed whilst we relaid the paths and put slate down. That bed is the best we have ever had. It is now part of the forest garden.