It's February in Maine and perhaps not the best time to begin a gardening blog but I am compelled to put some notes down about my plans for the Spring.

First, let me explain that I am only amateur gardener who has gathered information by reading books, asking experienced family and friends, and, most importantly, through trial and error.  I live in a modest urban area of Portland, Maine, on an itty bitty piece of land (affectionately known as a "city lot").  I've gardened a bit before in my first two houses, but with this one I've been inspired by one major influence, GRUBS.  Yes, those wonderful little white beasts with one "eye" managed to consume every blade root across the entire area that used to be our front lawn.  Because we had kids and a dog who spent so much time in the yard we opted out of using the biochemical warfare that would certainly have eliminated our grub problem (which is what our neighbors have done and, I think, explains why they all came to live here) but I am wholly against polluting the planet and possibly the health of living things that make it home.  So what to do with all the dirt and crabgrass left behind by the little marauders?  Plant perennials, shrubs, ground covers, and a little mulch and hope that the neighbors don't think we have lost our minds.

Second, let me address why I wanted to start a blog and how I came up with the name.  I was never interested in gardening as a kid.  My dad spent many weekend hours laboring over his beloved plants and shrubs and though I helped from rare time to rare time with the watering and other chores I never felt compelled to begin my own garden or sustain a small village with vegetables and fruits that I nurtured from seed to table. But once my husband and I purchased our first home and began the daunting task of trimming shrubs and trees that had long since been neglected, it made me realize that though we could never afford a large, fancy house, with rose trellises and picket fences, we could manage to have the most interesting and colorful yard in the neighborhood simply by doing a little work.

And when I say it takes a little work, I do mean it.  We do not spend every weekend hour outside slaving away.  We do not spend our extra money on fancy shrubs and fickle exotic plants.  And I am not what you would ever describe as a "lovely lady gardener" complete with straw hat and cotton gloves (this girl likes to get her hands dirty, and her t-shirt, jeans, face, whatever!).  So I balk when I hear people say gardening is either too much work or too expensive.  It doesn't have to be either and I hope this blog can prove it.

As for the name, I guess it's o.k, if I had titled it "Wit and Wisdom from a Maine Gardener" the bar would be set too high and your expectations of being entertained quickly dashed (although do I hope to be a tiny bit clever at times).  I also considered "A Maine Gardener's Perspective" but that seems very dry and uneventful.  So, by choosing "Flowers, Hearts, and Bones" I hoped to convey the following ideas:

I prefer flowers to vegetables (with the exception of cucumbers and cherry tomatoes).  Vegetables are lovely but a lot more work than perennials and they do not always come through, sometimes it's just cheaper to buy them from a local farmer (with the poor soil in my yard it is almost always the case, but I will address soil amendment later).

The word "Hearts" is because there has to be some love in order for a garden to work.  A bright green perfect lawn may be the symbol of an American ideal, but it is sterile and loveless.  A yard filled with living plants that evolve, change, and reflect the seasons is, in my opinion, more realistic, interesting, and, dare I say? FUN.

And for "Bones", I had two separate thoughts.  "Bones" is a word used to describe the underlying structure of a garden, a basis upon which everything else is developed as a cohesive plan.  We also have had several pets who have passed away while we have lived in this house.  We have used special plantings (like our Sterling Linden, and White Coast Cedar) to memorialize a lost pet and use as a final resting place for cremains, and, in the case of our smaller loved pets (pet rats to be precise) we have planted their regular remains in the now established "Memorial Garden".  So our yard has bones in two interpretations.

With this in mind, please be kind as you read this blog and I sincerely hope you will come away with something useful.