Nosy Neighbors - Felder's latest CL column

In this week's Clarion Ledger column, Felder recounts the story of his neighbor who received a scathing rebuke from a nearby somebody who would undoubtedly be better off minding their own ornery business! Read all about it HERE.

Strength Gardening???

Everybody knows that exercise is good for the body as well as the soul. Most of us, though, have some trouble translating that bit of knowledge into action. Well, if you can't seem to find that healthy activity you've been searching for, why not try gardening? A recent column in the Evansville Courier Press says, "The variety of moves required in gardening can tone your muscles; help you maintain balance and burn from 250 to 350 calories an hour, depending on your size and how strenuously you work." Did that pique your interest? Read the whole article HERE.

Felder's Nov. 7th Column

Felder's column this week reminds me of someone I knew growing up. She lived - still does, actually - next to my parents and has a beautiful, beautiful yard, all of which - front and back - is one big garden. She was kind, too, passing along plants to the neighbors and other friends. But she had one uncontrolable impulse: pulling weeds! I would watch every time she wandered into our yard to speak to somebody. Mid-sentence her eye would catch a weed, a little patch of dead grass, something she thought shouldn't be there. She always tried to resist, but it usually wasn't 10 minutes before she would calmly say, as she bent to pick or pull whatever had been stealing an ever-increasing measure of her attention: "Excuse me. I just can't leave that be." I think, somehow, she must live on Felder's street, too. Click here for his most recent Clarion Ledger column.

The Little Guy Stands Up

Here is a great story from the Chicago Tribune's Problem Solver about an independant garden center owner standing up to the big guys.

What is "gestalt," anyway?

That's the second-most often asked question I get when I'm out sharing the good word about The Gestalt Gardener. Most recently, it came in the form of an email from Nelva, who wrote:

"I am argueing with my husband.What does gestalt mean? Listen to your program all the time we both enjoy it very much.Thank you."

On this week's show Felder addressed Nelva's email directly with some description of his Gestalt philosophy, as well as some poignant remarks. Here's a copy of Felder's notes on the subject of 'Gestalt':

"Gestalt is a German word that means both 'pattern' and 'whole.' The word is used in English to refer to a completed cycle, something that is finished. I see the concept relating to gardening by how it:

• takes into account the whole garden (or gardener - body, mind, and spirit)


• uses an experiential approach to gardening


• assesses what is happening in the present (the here-and-now)
  
• emphasizes self-awareness


• encourages personal (garden) responsibility
  
• acknowledges the integrity, sensitivity, and creativity of the gardener
  
• recognizes that the gardener is central to the gardening process.
  
  
  

There is a lot of whimsy and humor in gardens, relief valves for the anxiety that comes from uptight people trying to do as we please. The Gestalt approach helps find common ground, and peace between the organized 'left brain' of horticulture science and the free-form 'right brain' of gardening for the love of it. It includes ways to get more gardeners 'into the fold' by relaxing - or even outright mocking - some of our cherished gardening rules, and allows a garden to be seen as a whole, instead of a lot of details."

Plant Swap Group on Yahoo!

Here's an interesting email from one of our Alabama listeners:

"Dear Felder -

I am one of your regulart listeners from Mobile. One day I heard you suggest to a lady that if she needed her over crowded perrienials cleaned out, to post a notice on the church bullitin board. Well, like they say, one idea often leads to another.
Recently I created a new group on Yahoo for people in the Mobile area who might need to thin out plants by offering them on a plant swap site - http://groups.yahoo.com/group/MobilePlantSwap/.
Needless to say, not too many people know about it (only 8 in the group so far) but I thought if you would mention it on your program, perhaps more people would want to join - or create similar swap groups in their own cities. I just think it's such a shame that we often throw away perfectly nice plants that others might be able to use.... and only because we don't know anyone to give them to.
Thank you for your interest.... and thank you so much for the good advise you offer each week. Enjoy your show.

Joyce (last name withheld)"