divaqs's Blog
divaqs's posts about: flowers
Jun 18, 2007 | 10:07 AM PST
Tags: masculine , feminine , flowers , gardening
To many guys, flowers represent all that is feminine. For a guy to admit flowers as being anything more than a tool of courtship or romance is to invite the “ewww” factor, driven by fears of being labeled gay by themselves or by others. There are even derogatory statements that invoke this engendering of flowers being effeminate, such as “He is such a pansy.” To get almost any guy to openly admit that he likes flowers, without any squeamishness, would be quite a feat.
Don’t get me wrong, I live in the very liberal city of Seattle, which means I work and associate with guys who are openly or privately gay. I consider them to be good friends and co-workers. I respect them and do not pass judgment on them for their orientation. At the same time, I am most definitely not gay. It is something I have never questioned about myself.
I am an edible landscaper, and as such I’ve come to accept that a good landscape design includes flowers. Without being gay and feeling able to break gender stereotypes, how did I get over the “eww” factor and grow flowers for me, rather than for a wife or girlfriend? It is really quite simple, first off I am secure in my gender and orientation, and secondly, I make it all about food. I make the topic of flowers safe to discuss, including the beauty, the wonderful fragrances, and the joy they impart, since I also include the more masculine utilitarian concepts, such as edibility, taste, medicinal herbal use, and adventures in the kitchen.
In other words, to me edible landscaping becomes a melding of both the feminine and masculine components of gardening, becoming gender neutral. It is safe for me to have a flower garden, since it is much more than flowers, it is an extension of my herb garden and vegetable garden, all intermingled.
If you struggle with your husband or boyfriend never showing interest in your flower gardening, try including some of the utilitarian concepts in your sharing about them and see if that sparks something. You might be pleasantly surprised.
Apr 16, 2007 | 8:55 AM PST
Tags: fruit , plums , pear , flowers , apple
I just love spring. I really know it is spring when my fruit trees become covered in showy displays of blossoms. In my yard I have a spring time succession of blossoms that cover my fruit trees. First with the plums, then pears, then cherry trees, and apple trees.
My plum trees are often so covered in blossoms that they are really a sight to see.
Here is one of my cherry trees in bloom that I took a picture of yesterday.
My apple trees are not as showy, but they too are lovely
If you look carefully, you will probably notice that my fruit trees don't look that pruned. The reason being that I usually prune my fruit trees in the summer's dry season, which tends to have more of a dwarfing affect on the trees.
I am looking forward to seeing the spring time blossoms of my pear trees, asian pear trees, asian persimmon tree, and peach trees, but sadly they are still too young to put on much of a show.
For me, I see so much more beauty in a real fruit bearing tree then an ornamental tree, since I see real beauty not only in the spring time flowers but also in the wonderful color of the fruit in the fall. Maybe it is a guy thing, but I also see a whole lot more value in something that has a productive use, such as bearing fruit, then something that is all show.
I know that many people are worried about extra maintenance of fruit trees, in particular having to spray them for fungus, viruses, or bugs. My solution has been to focus on disease resistent varieties, so spraying isn't needed.
