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Yoga for Gardeners Workshop — Call for Questions

ByElizabeth

Next Saturday, March 14th, 2:30-5pm, is the Yoga for Gardeners Workshop at Willow Street Yoga Center’s Takoma Park Studio.  A portion of the proceeds will go to the benefit of the Youth Garden at the National Arboretum.  It will be a most enjoyable way to prepare for the gardening season, especially after having been inspired by this weekend’s incredibly spring-like weather.   Advance registration is appreciated, though not required, and all levels of yogins and gardeners welcome.

You can come just open to what will be offered — I’ve got lots to share — but if you have specific questions about how to use yoga alignment while gardening, how to address various challenges of embodiment in the garden, or even yoga philosophy or other gardening/yoga topics, please feel free to send them to me as a comment to this entry or by separate email.  I may not be able to get to every question right away, but I will try to address common questions in the workshop and here on the blog and am also always available after class to discuss individual questions.

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    State of the Garden (and Samtulana)

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    The grapes are not nearly as bountiful as last year.  The first 90F week was too early and sudden, which blasted dozens of newly formed grapes.  And then it was too wet and cool.  The few figs dried before ripening.  But it was a great spring for kale and chard, and the cherry tomatoes are pretty happy.  That the weather makes some things happier and some less happy is a tangible reminder why mono-cultures are so risky a venture.  One of the greatest gifts I get from the “failures” in my edible garden is gratitude.  I am reminded of how fortunate I am that the only repercussions of something not growing or producing well is that I have to buy more produce at the farm market or the grocery store.

    The rains and now the heat are  wondrous lovely for the mosquitoes.  Here’s me dressing for a morning’s work in the garden. You might laugh, but I only got two bites in over three hours in the garden, which included watering.  It likely would have been at least a dozen in loose trousers or shorts and a t-shirt.  This is also the outfit of choice when hiking in the woods filled with deer and mice and lyme-disease bearing ticks.

    garden 1a

    garden 1b

     

     

     

     

    I picked the marigolds yesterday to put on the altar.  The puja card of the day was “balance” or “samtulana.”  It was a perfect concept to meditate on for the day because little brings me back into balance better than spending a few hours gardening, and I’ve been feeling off-kilter.

    garden 1c

     

     

     

     

     

     

    Uma, of course, was there to lend moral support.

    garden 1d

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

    The “before” picture gives some idea of how simultaneously overgrown from the rains and heat-blasted from the past week everything was.

    garden 1e

     

     

     

    The “after” picture doesn’t reflect as much as I would like how much of a difference three and a half hours of weeding, deadheading, clipping, rearranging, harvesting, feeding, and watering made.  When I got hungry, I just picked sun-warmed, just ripened grapes and then got back to work.  Lunch, of course, emphasized contributions from the garden.

2 Comments

  1. Questions for the workshop:
    How does one safely carry a 40 lb bag of mulch or compost?

    I feel I am constantly waging a war against the weeds, summer drought, and rabbits. For example, I have planted black eyed susans for the past five years which a rabbit with an insatiable appetite has seemed to completely devoured everytime. I have a compelling urge to shoot the rabbit and make hassenpfeffer out of him. Do I need a mindset change to deal with these frustrations. Do I need to meditate on lovingkindness?

    Is there anything that I can chant while I am gardening? (I don’t care what the neighbors might think.)

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