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In this issue...

• Dear Organic Gardeners
• Farm Report: Transplanting Party
• Soil Fertility Basics: Organic Matter
• Garden Help: Foliar Feeding
• Recommended Reading: Two on soil and one on cut flowers
• New Products Available On Our Website
• Organic Cut Flowers
• Garden Story: White Rose, One Very Special Gift
• Photo Tips for Gardeners: Photographs are Rectangles
• Letters to the Editor

It's that time! It's the time when gardening reaches a frenzy. As the last frost dates pass in many parts of the country, we're all busy transplanting starts, working beds, planting seeds, making compost, incorporating cover crops, harvesting our first green salads, and maybe even digging a few new beds for everything that doesn't fit. (Who needs a lawn anyway?) It's also one of the few times when our soil is laid bare, a good time to get intimate with it as we imagine bountiful harvests and fragrant bouquets, and to ask the question: Does our soil have the nutrients, organic matter and biological activity that our plants need to thrive?

This month, our Agricultural Planner Steve Peters sheds a little light on the subject of soil with the first installment of his series on basic soil fertility, while Research Farm Associate Lee Gearheart reveals some of his foliar feeding secrets. In conjunction with our focus on fertility, we are pleased to introduce the complete line of "Earth Juice" liquid organic fertilizers and foliar sprays to complement your soil building program. Micaela Colley takes a break from the Farm Report this month to share her passion for cut flowers, and in her stead I've put together a photo essay on recent activities at the farm.

Last month's piece on GMO's created a wave of response, some of which you'll find in the Letters to the Editor. And as always we've got photo tips, a Garden Story and other goodies.

Happy planting,
Scott Vlaun, Editor
editor@seedsofchange.com

As you can imagine, they're busy out at the farm. With thousands of starts ready to be set out in the fields, the crew recently got a big boost from the annual transplanting party. Some office staff from Santa Fe and a host of other friends showed up Saturday afternoon, May 19th. By early evening, dozens of flats of tomatoes, brassicas and onions found their way from the cloches, where they were hardening off, to the fields that the farm crew had prepared. So scroll down, visit the farm and meet a few of the unsung heroes of Seeds of Change.

Photo right: Many hands make light work as hundreds of alliums are transplanted.

The key to growing healthy, nutritious plants is maintaining fertile soil. Much more than dirt, garden soil is a richly complex ecosystem that is as dynamic and diverse as a tropical rainforest. Most soil activity, however, is invisible to the human eye so we tend to think of soil as merely a medium for holding up plants. Nothing could be further from the truth. A single gram of soil can host billions of living organisms!

The most important component for sustaining a healthy, living soil is organic matter (OM). OM comprises all organic substances in varying stages of decay including plant roots, stems, and leaves, microorganisms, and added organic materials such as compost, manure, and straw. When organic matter reaches its most mature and stable form it is called humus, a dark and fragrant, nutrient rich substance essential for long term soil fertility. OM, and in particular humus, serves many vital purposes. It attracts and holds essential plant nutrients. It acts much like a sponge by retaining moisture. It produces vitamins, hormones, and other growth substances important for plant health. It is also critical for maintaining good soil structure by binding the mineral portion of the soil into loose aggregates. This permits air to reach the roots, allows for capillary movement of water, and enables roots to penetrate the soil.

Finally, and perhaps most significantly, organic matter is the food source for soil based organisms, including bacteria, fungi, actinomycetes, yeasts, soil-dwelling insects and earthworms. Without these living organisms plants would cease to exist. They perform a variety of critical processes including: 1) Converting organic nitrogen, which is unusable to plants, into inorganic nitrogen compounds (ammonia and nitrates) which are available to plants; 2) fixing atmospheric nitrogen and making it available to plants; 3) producing organic acids that make mineral nutrients soluble and available to plants; 4) living symbiotically on plant roots and aiding the plant in the uptake of many important nutrients and growth substances; 5) preying on pathogenic organisms that would otherwise be detrimental; 6) contributing to soil aggregation by producing gum-like polysaccharides; and 7) producing carbon dioxide (CO2) which is released into the atmosphere and is essential for photosynthesis.

As a home gardener, the best way to increase the organic matter content of your soil is to add mature, high quality compost. Composting is that seemingly magical process that transforms raw organic residues into a stable, sweet-smelling earthy substance that contains a balanced blend of all the essential plant nutrients. Compost can be applied to the soil at almost any rate without fear of toxicity or loss of nutrients, although more frequent, smaller applications are preferred. Compost provides a slow and steady release of nutrients throughout the growing season, and can cure a variety of problems including high or low pH or a nutrient imbalance. Mature compost is particularly important in sandy soils which lack the ability to retain much water or nutrients.

Another important source of organic matter is >cover crops, which are grown specifically for soil improvement and are incorporated into the soil prior to growing vegetables and other garden plants. Cover crops can be grown any time of the year. Spring annuals (Oats and Triticale) are planted as soon as the soil can be worked in early spring. Summer annuals (Buckwheat, Cowpea, Sorghum) are grown only during frost-free months, while winter annuals (Austrian Winter Pea, Hairy Vetch, Winter Rye) are planted in late summer/early fall, overwinter, and resume growing the following spring. For longer term soil-building, biennials (Yellow Blossom Sweetclover) and perennials (Red Clover) can be grown. Cover crops are not as effective as compost for building humus, but they stimulate a greater amount of biological activity. In heavy clay soils, fresh cover crop residues may be preferred over compost because they help open up the soil and provide drainage.

Raw animal manures are not generally recommended for direct application to the garden because much of the nutrients are lost by leaching. They can also introduce unwanted weed seeds and pathogens, and can cause over-stimulated leafy growth because of excess available nitrogen. We recommend composting raw manures before putting them in the garden.

Many organic residues such as straw, leaves, and sawdust, are very high in carbon (C) relative to nitrogen (N). When incorporated into the soil, these materials will stimulate biological activity. The problem is, however, that because of a lack of N, the soil microorganisms tie up most of the available soil N, causing a nitrogen deficiency in plants. Eventually these microorganisms will die and release their N, but this could take weeks or months. Therefore, it is best not to incorporate these high-carbon residues into the soil but rather to use them in pathways, spread them as surface mulches, or to add them to your compost piles.

There are soil tests available through many cooperative extension services and private soil testing laboratories, which can give you an idea of the organic matter content of your soil. However, this is often not cost effective for the home gardener. A simple way to measure the biological activity in your soil is to measure CO2 respiration, which is associated with the breakdown of organic matter by soil microorganisms. Higher levels of biological activity in the soil reflect healthier soils, which provide essential plant nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorous. The Woods End Institute, a leading soil and compost quality laboratory, has developed a simple method for the home gardener to test for CO2 respiration in soil and compost. Please look for the Solvita Garden Care Test in our product offerings below.

Steve Peters, Agricultural Planner with his prized Paxton Hoe. (More on essential plant nutrients, composting, and soil testing in next month's eNewsletter)

Foliar feeding is just that: feeding your plants through the foliage. When nutrients are applied directly to the leaves, they are absorbed quickly into the plant through the stomata, tiny mouth-like organs on the leaves that facilitate nutrient intake and gas exchange. Mostly they are located underneath the leaves, especially in the sun-loving plants, so when you spray, be sure to get underneath the plant's leaves and allow some to drip onto the soil to nourish microorganisms and plant roots. Never spray during the heat of the day, as the food and magnification principles of the water droplets can burn the leaves. Early mornings and evenings are best. I prefer evenings because this gives the nutrients to the plant during its nighttime respiration period when the stomata are most active.

For large applications, a backpack sprayer is often used, but a hand held pump sprayer works well for most jobs. As for the number of applications throughout the season, I like to spray before the full moons, as the full moon energy pulls up and out through the plant. New moon applications are especially good for root crops, as it pulls energy downward. Be aware that foliar feeding isn't meant to supercede a good organic, soil-building program, but it does add that extra nutrient boost at key plant-life events. Critical times include: in the nursery (in cell trays, flats, or containers), before and after food harvest to stimulate and inspire continued healthy production, and around early and late season frost times to lengthen the growing season and increase plant hardiness to environmental stresses. Spraying for frost protection works because the uptake of nutrients increases the soluble solids levels in plant tissues lowering the plant freezing point.

There are a lot of foliar products available and just as many "recipes" to mix for their application. For large-scale farm applications, my favorite foliar spray so far is a blend of Maxi Crop, Algamin, Humex, and Therm-X 70. For garden-scale applications, or if you're not into blending your own mixes, Seeds of Change is now offering the "Earth Juice" liquid organic fertilizers and foliar sprays. Judging by the ingredient lists these should be very effective and can be used in various combinations depending on your needs. We'll keep you posted as we get results from our farm trials. Whatever you use, experiment, and come up with your own combinations. It's fun, and your plants will love you for it. They'll show their appreciation with such visible results: healthier plants, more, bigger, better tasting food, and taller, brighter flowers. Research backs it up, so give it a try.

Have fun, and happy spraying!
Lee Gearhart, Seeds of Change Research Farm

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We all know that soil, the living, breathing skin of the earth, is essential to our very existence. So why is it then that we know so little about it and the processes by which it is created and maintained? Learning about our soil is essential to successfully cultivating our gardens and farms and to creating a sustainable future for the planet. Grace Gershuny and Joe Smillie have devoted decades to unlocking the secrets of this mysterious and often maligned substance. They share their wisdom with us in this recent revision of a classic text.

From describing the major types, nutrient cycles and physical properties of soil, to lessons on composting and cover cropping, this book gives us the tools we need to understand the complex interactions that take place below our feet. Written for the lay person and professional alike, "Soul of the Soil" not only imparts a deeper understanding of the soil ecosystem, but also gives us the tools to evaluate and manage our gardens and farms. In many ways, this book is a gift to the world, as we work to turn the tide against the erosion, pollution and outright destruction of our soils.

For those not interested in delving too deeply into the science of the subject, but who are looking for good common sense advice on how to build richer, healthier soils, Soil from the Rodale Organic Gardening Basics series is just the book. This basic guide spells out the do's and dont's of soil management with lots of good tips on everything from taking a soil test to composting and mulching. They also offer up suggestions on tools to work the soil, and how to learn from the pervasive weeds in your garden. Plenty of illustrative photographs, "quick tips" and side bars make "SOIL" an easy read and a great first step in understanding the profound importance of this valuable resource.   S.V.

We've searched far and wide for the richest, most complete line of liquid organic fertilizers and foliar sprays available and EARTH JUICE is it! Its complex active formulas are highly concentrated and easy to use. EARTH JUICE contains not only organic forms of the major plant nutrients, but an array of micronutrients, natural hormones, enzymes, vitamins and more. EARTH JUICE will not burn your plants or harm the soil, in fact it will improve your soil by encouraging microbial activity. Great for seedlings, container gardens, soiless and hydro-organic systems, and even lawns. EARTH JUICE products can be used alone or in combination to suit your plant's needs at critical times like transplanting, flowering, and fruiting. Available in pints and quarts.

EARTH JUICE GROW is formulated for vigorous vegetative growth. It is a superb all purpose fertilizer that can be used through all stages of plant development, from seedlings though maturity. Normal dilution for gardens is 2-4 tbls/gal. of water (8-16ml/lit.) One gallon covers 100 Sq. ft. Recommended usage is once every 4 weeks. Listed by OMRI (Organic Materials Research Institute) for use in organic production. Derived from oat bran, sea kelp, bat guano, steamed bone meal, natural potash, blood meal, and feather meal in an active organic base. 2-1-1

EARTH JUICE BLOOM helps promote flowering and is best used prior to budding, flowering and fruiting to increase yields. Applied in the fall, it can help protect the root systems over the winter. Use alone or combined with EARTH JUICE GROW. Great for phosphorous loving plants like cactus. Listed by OMRI for use in organic production. Derived from ancient seabird guano, oat bran, sea kelp, bat guano, natural potash, steamed bone meal, and rock phosphate in an active organic base. 0-3-1

EARTH JUICE CATALYST "the crucial link" is a versatile and vital product containing an array of naturally occurring enzymes, hormones, vitamins, sugars, amino acids, chelates, plant acids, macro and micro nutrients and more. CATALYST provides what's missing in many soils and can be used through all stages of plant development. Best used in combination with regular fertilization programs. Can also be used as a foliar feed. Listed by OMRI for use in organic production. Derived from oat bran, kelp, wheat malt, molasses and yeast in an active organic base. .03-.01-.10

EARTH JUICE MICROBURST is a proprietary micronutrient formulation designed to correct nutrient deficiencies. Can be used as a foliar spray or in combination with other fertilizers. Derived from kelp meal, magnesium sulfate, borax, cobalt sulfate, ferrous sulfate, sodium molybdate and zinc sulfate.

EARTH JUICE ESCENTIAL is a scented foliage spray. Gardeners looking for an alternative to toxic sprays will love this formula combining a host of traditional plant aids with newly discovered ingredients. ESCENTIAL is blended from kelp wild quinoa bran, hot pepper extract, distilled oils of eucalyptus, rosemary, lavender, patchouli and tea tree, cold pressed orange oil and lemon grass.

For the seaweed purist, Maxicrop Kelp Extract is extracted from 100% fresh Norwegian Ascophyllum kelp which has been shown to be a growth stimulant and provide increased resistance to frost and drought. "Maxi" is a great source of trace elements and enzymes and is a long time favorite on the Seeds of Change research farms.

One-Gallon Tank Sprayer
Great for foliar feeding with Earth Juice or Maxicrop. This ergonomical design has a 22 inch spray wand, adjustable spray nozzle, easy pumping, wand clip, automatic relief valve which vents excess pressure, shut-off valve, and a large easy fill 4.5 inch opening. Tank, pump and sprayer parts are made of durable high-density polyethylene. Built to last a lifetime for the home gardener.

Organic Soil Test Kit
Measure your soil life and health with this simple test so you can maximize plant health and minimize pest problems. Healthy soils are alive, hosting a diversity of essential fungi, bacteria and other organisms. Fertile soil "breathes" much as we do: a multitude of organisms take in oxygen and give off carbon dioxide. This kit analyzes the soil's "breath" by using a special gel that changes color when exposed to varying amounts of carbon dioxide which translates into precise, practical and easy to follow instructions to achieve full fertility in your soil.

Micaela's Cut Flower Seed Collection
Selected this month by Farm Manager and resident flower maven, Micaela Colley, this collection will inspire the flower grower in all of us. Plant them all for a summer full of color and joy.

Contains one pack each of Bachelor Buttons, Bouquet Magic Coreopsis, Picotee Cosmos, Blue Bell Larkspur, Pesche's Gold Marigold, Nigella (Love-in-a-Mist), Deep Orange Safflower, Gloriosa Polyheaded Sunflower, Mexican Sunflower (Tithonial), and Pastel Dreams Zinnia.

Fresh cut flowers are food for the soul. They make us feel good. As a gardener, growing, cutting and arranging your own flowers can be a deeply rewarding experience. It is a way to bring the beauty of the garden indoors, brightening your living environment and making every day special. I love bringing them to friends, the doctor's office or local shelters. People always light up when greeted with a big bouquet of beauty. My friend Carmen, who sells flowers at the Albuquerque Farmers' Market, attests to the therapeutic effects of being around fresh flowers. Since she started growing organic flowers on her farm, she says that she feels healthier and has increased vitality. Recognition of the health benefits of gardening and the presence of flowers has also shown much promise in the growing field of horticultural therapy. Whatever the reason for growing cut flowers, I know it makes many of us, like Carmen, feel really happy.

When I do buy cut flowers I always try to purchase organically grown ones. I have been asked, "Why buy organic flowers? You're not going to eat them!" Actually, I have seen several children and pets put them in their mouths, but beyond that, I think of the effects of toxic pesticides on the people who work in the fields and greenhouses, as well as on the environment. The EPA's allowable levels of pesticide application are often significantly higher for flower production than for food crops meant for consumption. In part this is due to the consumer's demand for "perfection" which is especially stringent in ornamental crops. The commercial industry has also become strict in grading cut flower quality. Meeting these standards has led to increased pesticide use and lack of variety in the industry. Certain stem lengths, flower sizes, and lack of blemishes are required to make the grade as a #1 flower on the wholesale market. Therefore, flowers are often bred for intensive production or specifications of size or length rather than beauty and fragrance. Yet, flowers are a symbol of love and beauty. I feel there is beauty in diversity, irregularities, and imperfection. Doesn't it make sense that food for our soul should be as healthy as the food for our bodies?

For many years the cut flower industry produced a select number of species for sale: roses, carnations, gladiolas, and a few others. In recent years, however, there has been a revolution in cut flower production. Because of innovative growers and the extensive research done by Alan Armitage (author of "Specialty Cut Flowers") at the University of Georgia, we now find flowers like Delphinium, Veronica, Larkspur, and Asters in many flower shops. Beyond these new selections there are endless possibilities for the home gardener. Growing your own flowers means that they travel straight from the garden to the vase and don't necessarily need to hold up for weeks, unlike a flower harvested, distributed, displayed in a florist shop, and eventually sold a week or two later. I like to experiment with cutting all kinds of flowers from my garden to see what will last.

At the Seeds of Change Research Farm we are conducting variety trials this year to evaluate our cut flower selection. Some of our varieties have been grown as cut flowers for years and we already know that they perform well in the field and hold up in a vase. Through our variety trials we hope to discover new, interesting varieties to introduce as cut flowers in the future. In addition to vase-life, we evaluate potential cut flower varieties for overall beauty and fragrance, stem length, size of bloom, plant vigor, plant health, abundance of flowers, and length of harvest.

This year each of our selections will be trialed at Four Sisters Farm, an organic cut flower farm in Aromas, California. (www.localharcest.org/farms/M1657) Four Sisters has been producing cut flowers for both wholesale and retail markets for the past 20 years. Their professional experience will give us information about the performance of our varieties in an organic production system. If you're interested in learning more about growing an abundance of organic cut flowers, please scroll down to our review of The Flower Farmer, an Organic Growers Guide to Raising and Selling Cut Flowers by Lynn Byczynski.

Tips for growing cut flowers:

• Start with healthy soil and healthy plants. Phosphorous availability is especially important for the blooming cycle in plants. Research has shown that healthy, un-stressed plants also produce longer lasting cut flowers.
• To significantly increase the vase-life of the flower, cut your flowers when they are just beginning to open. Each variety has its own optimum openness for cutting, but this is a good general rule to follow. Almost all flowers will continue to open after cutting. Cutting flowers when they are too open and shedding pollen is often the biggest mistake new flower growers make.
• Harvest early in the day or in the evening. Morning time plants have had all night to take up moisture making stems more turgid and longer lasting. During the heat of the day plants shut down and will quickly wilt if cut.
• Place cut flowers immediately into water. I like to carry along a five-gallon plastic bucket with 5 in. of water in it and place each flower straight into the water in the field. It is even a good idea to re-cut stems (especially hollow stems) under water.
• Cut the stems long so that you have more length to cut off later as you arrange your bouquets. This also keeps the plant from getting shaggy looking and will redirect plant energy into the remaining shoots still growing.
• To increase stem length, cut back the apical (top) flower on plants like Zinnias, Asters, and Cosmos, that branch from a central stalk. Many plants such as these have what is known as apical dominance which means they are programmed to grow to a certain height. Once the lead flower has reached that height the side shoots slow down in growth. Cutting the lead flower back triggers a response in the side shoots, which then try to reach the height of the lead flower. This results in more side shoots with longer stems. Cut the apical flower before it blooms, just as the bud begins to elongate.
• Add about 1teaspoon alcohol (any kind); about 1 teaspoon sugar; and an aspirin, a squeeze of lemon, or a dollop of vinegar to the vase or bucket water. The alcohol helps kill microorganisms in the water, which break down the stems and make the water smell bad. The sugar serves as a food for the flower increasing vase life. The acidic additives (aspirin, lemon or vinegar) lower the pH of the water. Slightly acidic water is more easily taken up by the stem and also inhibits growth of microorganisms (Allan Armitage, Specialty Cut Flowers).
• Stagger plantings so blooming times continue throughout the season providing an ongoing supply of flowers for harvest

When selecting varieties for your cut flower garden, try to imagine how they will come together in a bouquet. Certain colors and shapes naturally compliment each other, but everyone has their own taste and sense of style. I like bold colors that set off one another. I call them Crayola colors: deep blue, bright yellow, vibrant red, and rich purple. Another approach is the calm beauty of an all white bouquet, or a subtle contrasting purple against predominately white. My best friend's wedding bouquet (which we composed together) was an unusual, eclectic mix of rich peach, and deep maroon set against chartreuse-colored foliage. Whatever your taste, let the artist in you compose your own creations.

Seeds of Change Favorite Cut Flower Varieties

• Bachelor Buttons: Everything looks good next to blue.
• Calendula: Especially good for early spring and late fall when not much else is flowering.
• Celosia, Orange: Bold unusual flower, eye-catching in arrangements, likes heat.
• Cleome, Purple Queen: Long stems and large, flowing purple petaled flowers.
• Coreopsis, Bouquet Magic: Open spray of flowers makes a nice framework and filler for bouquets.
• Cosmos, Picotee: Abundant producer as long as old flowers are deadheaded.
• Feverfew: Clusters of small yellow and white flowers make an excellent filler and contrasting background for other bright colored flowers like Cosmos or Mexican Sunflower.
• Larkspur, Blue Bell: Tall stately spikes of blue give added height and dimension to arrangements.
• Marigold, all varieties: Bright bold colors, long-lived cut flowers.
• Nigella, Love-in-a-Mist: Light, airy flowers and foliage give a soft look to bouquets.
• Rudebeckia, Gloriosa Daisy: Classic country garden look.
• Safflower, Orange or Yellow: Unique, unusual flowers with tufts of orange or yellow petals.
• Sunflowers, Gloriosa Polyheaded, Evening Sun, Tiger's Eye Mix:
• Tithonia, Mexican Sunflower: Bright orange flowers with velvety stems, nice mixed with yellows and blues.
• Zinnia, Pastel Dreams, Shades of Pink, Canary Yellow: The classic cut flower, a must for every garden.

Micaela's Cut Flower Collection: Bachelor Buttons, Bouquet Magic Coreopsis, Picotee Cosmos, Blue Bell Larkspur, Pesche Gold Marigold, Nigella, Orange Safflower, Gloriosa Polyheaded Sunflower, Mexican Sunflower, and Pastel Dreams Zinnia.

When my daughter settled down, she quickly became a gardener. She had grown up living in a number of major cities, and her love for the soil and plants seemed, at first, to have come from nowhere. So I told her all about her plant-loving relatives in my family. But when she asked about gardening relations on her paternal side, I had to think back many years: her father and I had divorced when she was only six. Then I remembered, and wrote her this story. I started college after World War II, but then abandoned it to marry a young man who lived in a house only a few blocks from my parents' apartment. During our first months of marriage, my new husband, Stan, and I lived with his family. Stan's father was a nice man who longed for a quieter, lovelier life than Brooklyn offered. Theirs was a row house, familiar to most northeastern cities. No backyard, and out front, just a driveway and a small 4' x 4' yard bathed in automobile exhaust. On this little plot of ground he ardently tended and nurtured one white rose bush. The bush had only bloomed once, a few years back, but it was still alive, and he carefully pruned and fertilized it every year, confident that it would bloom again. Within a few months, Stan and I moved to Los Angeles. In short order, I discovered that I was pregnant. This was the first grandchild on both sides of the family, and everyone was thrilled that a new generation was beginning. Suddenly my main interest in life was keeping my stomach contents in my stomach. Months passed, and my time was filled with visits to prenatal clinics and learning how to cook. It was the beginning of spring, and I was entering my eighth month feeling frightened and lonely. Here I was in a strange city with no family, married to a man I now realized I hardly knew, and trying to deal with all these strange things happening to my body. Much more than physical discomfort had me depressed. One evening the phone rang. My husband's brother was flying into L.A. from New York on business and wanted to stay with us. We were happy and excited. I cleaned and cooked. Stan even bought a secondhand car (we were planning to get one, anyway, to get me to the hospital when the time came). We took a trial run to the airport to be sure we could find it. It was right where we thought it would be. That weekend, spring was full of bright glory and promise. We drove to the airport to pick up our special visitor. I rode in the back-it was easier to get my bulk in and out of the back seat-and chatted happily all the way. Stan parked the car, and, trying to keep up, I waddled behind him to the terminal. He settled me into a chair close to the entrance while he ran to the Arrivals area to meet his brother. He assured me they would gather the luggage, then come and get me. I enjoyed watching all the people and the hustle and bustle, but it didn't help my depression. Here were all these people with important things to do and interesting places to go. Me, I had become a dull homebody. The passing women were slender and smartly dressed. I was huge and dowdy, without enough money to afford a decent maternity outfit. They carried the latest books and sported businesslike briefcases. I was reading an old Family Circle. I no longer knew me. I had become exactly what I swore I would never become. I fought back tears, not wanting my brother-in-law to see me any uglier than I already was. In a few minutes, I saw both men making their way toward me, carrying more suitcases than I had taken for the move across country. I stood up as my brother-in-law broke into a grin, hurried over, and gave me a big hug and kiss. He held me at arm's length, patted my swollen belly, and commented on how happy everyone was about the baby. Then he told me to sit down-he had a special present from my father-in-law. He reached into his breast pocket, gently took out a tin-foil packet, and carefully placed it on my lap. As the two men watched, I opened the packet to reveal a fresh, white rose framed with deep green leaves. Drops of dew were still on the petals. The rose bush in Brooklyn had again bloomed with this one beautiful rose, and my father-in-law had sent it, with great love, to my baby. Green Prints Magazine, The Weeder's Digest, is published and edited by Pat Stone, and his family in Fairview, North Carolina Copyright © Green Prints. All Rights Reserved. Used With Permission by GreenPrints. Contents | Seeds of Change Homepage