Journal #18

September 30, 2008

            The Harvest Moon is always the full moon nearest the autumnal equinox. Legend has it that this moon appears to look bigger and brighter than the other full moons during the year. Native Americans are responsible for naming the fall moon the Harvest Moon. They also call the Harvest Moon the Corn Moon, or the Barley Moon, or even the Fruit Moon because this is the time when these crops are ready to be harvested. For most gardeners, this moon is what we should call the “Plentiful Moon”. This is what we have toiled and worked for all season in our gardens.  We have an opportunity to reap our harvest from the garden.

            About two weeks ago, I began to harvest the vegetables from my patio garden. It was my hope to have many seeds to add to my “Seed Bank” for my heirloom seed business. I have been very fortunate this season to have Mother Nature on my side. The weather held up very well for me and my garden turned out to be wonderful. The earlier months of May and June the weather here in temporal zone 5/6, was rather cooler than normal and wetter too. I fussed over my plants carefully keeping an eye on them and the other eye fixed upon the weather forecast. But my plants came through like champs and I was pleased with the early outcome.

             About two weeks ago one of my farmers who was helping me to grow plants to build up my seed bank called me. He was very excited about the outcome of his garden. He asked me to come over and see the garden. He wanted me to see how the seeds I had given him for my African American heirloom collection had grown and flourished in his garden. This had been the very first time my farmer friend named Bill had ever grown heirloom plants.

I also gave Bill some other heirloom seeds to grow for himself to try out. Bill grew the famous Connecticut Field Pumpkin that dates back to 1774. It is considered the very first Halloween typed pumpkin. Connecticut Field is an old New England heirloom grown by the Native Americans. Bill said he had never grown pumpkins before. Next year Bill said he will devote a larger space for a pumpkin patch. Bill was also excited about the Black-eyed pea seeds that I had given him to grow. Black –eyed peas are native to African. Africans call them “Cow peas” The cow peas I gave Bill to grow are called Gray Speckled Palapye Cow peas. This variety is native to Botswana, Africa. Cow peas seem to grow better in the southern states, but the Gray Speckled Palapye Cow peas do well in the northern climates, as well. The seeds that Bill and I will share from the Cow peas will really add to my seed bank.

            The pride of my African American collection is the African American heirloom pepper called the Fish Pepper. It is the show piece of my heirloom collection. I am known as a “Chilehead.” In other words, I love to grow hot peppers especially the ones with an African history. I did well this year with my Fish pepper. I will have many seeds to add to my seed bank.

            It has been an outstanding year for me in my garden. I have a good reason to say:”Shine on Harvest Moon!”

*** See photos of the Connecticut Field Pumpkin and the Gray Speckled Palapye Cowpeas on my photos

Journal #17

September 18, 2008

            Two weeks ago my sister and I had the great fortune to be a part of the 50^Th Anniversary celebration of AARP . We attended the Life@50 National Convention in Washington, D.C..

            All of the six Dream Job Winners were in attendance including myself.

            It was wonderful to meet all of my fellow  winners in person. It was indeed a meeting of the minds of kindred spirits. We have gotten to know each other over the past nine months since we were chosen the winners through our calls, e-mails and bi-weekly journals each of us has written explaining the different encounters we all have had accomplishing our dream jobs. It was quite different meeting in person. We were at ease with each other. I felt that we already were close bosom  buddies and close friends who had known each other for a life time.

            We also had the opportunity to meet in person all of the AARP staff and management who had worked behind the scenes to help us realize our Dream Jobs.. Everyone made us feel special and so welcomed in Washington, D.C.

            During this special week, we had the opportunity to share our own personal stories about our Dream Jobs with a live audience of our peers at the convention. We presented an hour University session entitled:” Chasing Your Dream Job: Inspiration and Perspiration “The session was overwhelmingly positive for all whom attended the session and for us who told our stories.  It was certainly encouraging, frank and uplifting. So many people came up to us after the session had concluded and congratulated each of  us. We were bombarded by well wishers. Persons who were perfect strangers, felt they knew us. They could identify with our personal struggles and triumphs. Our stories were told through our listeners over and over again. People gave us pats on the back. We were given helpful hints, suggestions and ideas as to how we could achieve our  Dream Jobs. It was just a memorable event for me .. Even now I am still basking in the after glow of the convention.

            Bravo to and hats off to all of my other five Dream Job Winner friends. And many thank to everyone at AARP who made this event an unforgettable experience.                 

Journal #16

August 28, 2008

            I am certainly looking forward to attending the Life@50 AARP Convention next week in Washington, D.C. This year marks the golden anniversary of AARP.

All of the six winners of the AARP “My Dream Job” contest will be in attendance at this auspicious occasion including myself. We each will be giving an audience of interested 50 plus persons a bird’s eye view of how much we have accomplished to fulfill our particular dream job endeavors. We have only been at this since January of this year when we were announced as the winners. If you have been following all of our personal journals “blogs”, you can see how diverse each one of our dream jobs are and the progress, or lack there of we all have made, or not made.

            For me personally, it has been a roller coaster ride, sometimes I think I am going full steam ahead. Other times, I feel that I have completely grinded to a complete stop. I have certainly tried my best to put myself in a position when I made much more progress then I did in a stand still mode. My dream involves the cooperation of Mother Nature in order for me to succeed at all. Without her help, I am sunk .My entire dream is the preservation of live goods, in particular rare species and varieties of nearly extinct plants These heirloom varieties must be carefully handled as not to put them into further danger. I am called upon to muster all of my training as a horticulturist to work with these fragile plants that I grow from seed.

            In September after I return from the convention, I will be able to tell what kind of harvest I will have to pass on to my interested heirloom seed clients. Thus far, Mother Nature has been kind to me this season and I expect to be able to get a decent share of seeds to sell.

             I am so looking forward to meeting all of my fellow winners at the convention. I think it will be a lovely meeting of kindred spirits.  I hope to be able to relate the importance to others of what I am trying to do by saving and preserving my edible antiques. So here I am: “Ready, Set, Grow”

See you all next week!

Journal #15

August 6, 2008

            I have been doing a great deal of research about heirloom seed companies over the last six months. I have chosen several prominent heirloom seed companies as what I would consider to be model seed companies for my proposed African American Heirloom seed company. Among my most favorite is the D Landreth Seed Company of New Freedom, Pennsylvania.

            D. Landreth is America’s oldest seed company. It was begun in 1784 by David Landreth. The Landreth family was from England. They first came to Canada in 1780, then moved four years later to Philadelphia, Pennsylvania where they started there seed company .The D. Landreth Seed Company is the fifth oldest corporation in America. The company can boast of having served every American president from George Washington to Franklin D. Roosevelt. Among their other prominent customers was Joseph Bonaparte, Napoleon Bonaparte’s brother. Commodore Perry took Landreth seeds with him in 1852 on his expedition to Japan. Commodore Perry returned to America from Japan with the first shrubs and plants ever imported into this country.

            I have been fortunate enough to have received a D. Landreth Seed Company catalog for many years. It is a catalog that I read over and over again. I love to see the colorful photographs and the great descriptions of each seed. I truly have gained much knowledge from studying this wonderful work of art that is a treasure for any serious minded heirloom grower. The catalog not only has lots of old time vegetables, but heirloom herbs, ornamental vines, wildflowers, as well as old fashioned flowers. The beloved Zinnia was introduced into this country in 1798 by the D. Landreth Seed company from Mexico.

            As I continue to develop my seed catalog and website, I continue to visit the D. Landreth website for inspiration and professional support .My seed company will be unique in that it is focused upon  the African American history of heirloom gardening. It is my sincere hope to share this history with any interested gardener. African American gardening history is seldom mentioned in any gardening books in reference the history of gardening in America. When I began researching the history of African American heirlooms, it was an extremely hard task fact finding specifics about African heirlooms. I have now been researching African American heirloom history for about seven years. I think that I have been merely scratching the surface in my quest. I am always shocked and amazed to read something I never knew about vegetables, fruits and herbs that I have known about all of my life. When I convey this information to other people they too are amazed at what I tell them. I hope to open new avenues for many gardeners about the fascinating history of African American gardening. I hope to share all of this information on my website and in future books that I plan to write, as well.

Journal #14

July 23, 2008

            There are many historical seeds sown in the history of African American gardening that many gardeners do not know.

            Over the past seven years, I have made a journey of discovery that underlines the importance of letting the general public know the contributions that African Americans have contributed over the centuries to gardening. I can think of no better way of maintaining a piece of my own vital African American history than preserving heirloom seeds for future generations to have for their gardens.

            Many of the AARP members will be attending the Life @ 50 Convention scheduled in Washington, D.C. from September 4^Th-6^Th 2008. There are so many historical places to visit in and around the Washington, D.C. area including Monticello. Many of us who are avid gardeners, know of Thomas Jefferson’s great passion for gardening at Monticello. But most people do not know that Thomas Jefferson’s Head Gardener, Wormley Hughes, was an African American slave.

            Wormley Hughes’ great gardening skills played an important role in the success of the gardens at Monticello. He is mentioned frequently in Jefferson’s gardening journals that he kept for many years. Wormley Hughes prepared and planted the gardens at Monticello. He sowed vegetable seeds, planted bulbs and trees for Jefferson’s 1,000 Foot Kitchen Garden. Wormley fussed over Thomas Jefferson’s “Pet” trees such as his favorite Spitzenburg Apple trees. Jefferson used his garden as his laboratory. He loved to collect many species of vegetables, fruits and flowers. He had at one time over 300 varieties of plants in his gardens at Monticello. Many of these plants are still preserved and grown today as heirlooms at Monticello.

            If you tour Monticello, you may see remnants of the slave cabins and root cellars where the Monticello slaves kept their precious crops that they had for themselves. Slave gardens were not unique to just Thomas Jefferson. Many slave owners allowed their slaves to grow their own fruits and vegetables. Some even sold their crops to other people for profit. There is a record of both Thomas Jefferson and George Washington purchasing produce from their slaves and obtaining seed stock from the slaves, as well.

            Wormley Hughes’ last gardening project for his slave master, Thomas Jefferson, was to dig his grave. Well done thou good and faithful servant!

            While visiting our nation’s capitol, take time to look at all of the hidden historical treasures including the beautiful gardens of Monticello. It is a history everyone who gardens should take in as a special garden tour.

Journal #13

July 9, 2008

            It is not easy climbing from a molehill to the top of a mountain, but I am willing to try.

            In January of this year when I first was told that I was one of the six winners of the My Dream Job contest from AARP, I was excited and shocked. Everything was coming up roses, so to speak. Everything was promising, the sky was the limit. I started out on a small molehill. I saw Mt Everest standing lofty and almost insurmountable to climb, but I thought nothing could stop me now. I have drive. I have ambition. I have motivation and I have a pretty good business head as well. Sometimes I feel that I can move mountains with all of the positive things that are happening to me. On the other hand, sometimes, I feel that I have not made much progress, or that the progress is slow in coming .I seem to be stuck trying to figure out what will be my next move onward and upward toward the summit of accomplishing my dream job. My goal is to own and operate an heirloom seed business featuring African American heirloom seeds.

            Thus far with the help of many people, I am making a big dent in all of the obstacles before me. I have found that people are more willing to help me than they are not willing to help me. When I convey my plans to interested parties about my business, most people that I talk to are pleasantly surprised and very encouraging toward my enterprise. The journey is arduous and painstaking. I spend a great deal of my free time working on establishing business contacts, networking, attending business classes and so on. I feel that I am just spinning my wheels sometimes. Other times I feel that I have made the right decisions to move even further ahead toward accomplishing my goals. I run the gambit of emotions both positive and negative when it comes to climbing the summit to success.

            Patience is indeed a virtue that I must continue to seek out and aspire to have, if I will reach the summit. All good things come to those who wait. Rome was not build in a day. I think about all of these pearls of wisdom and sincerely try to apply these things in reference to my goals.

            I read all of the journals of my fellow Dream Job Winners. I am filled with optimism as I see the other five winners climbing their way up their own mountain to reach their mountain top of success. Nothing worth having was ever gotten without working for it. I look forward to meeting all of my fellow Dream Job Winners and their families, the AARP staff and RetirementJobs.com staff and the entire multitude of well wishers who will be attending the Life @50 Convention in Washington, D.C. in September. It is an event that I certainly look forward to attending and participating in as a speaker and as a guest.  The molehill is disappearing. In its place is the paragon of achievement and a fulfillment of My Dream Job.

Journal #12

June 27, 2008

            Thursday, July 3, 2008   will be a star day for us on our calendar in Twinsburg, Ohio. The stage is set for the opening of the Twinsburg Farmers’ Market for 2008. This will be the fourth year for the market. Many of the Twinsburg, Ohio local farmers, gardeners and artisans will showcase their produce and goods each Thursday from July through late September. The Farmers’ Market is of great importance to all of the area residents wishing to shop for fresh produce right in their own backyard. The vendors set up their wares right downtown on the square. Traffic on the square is diverted from the town square at 3:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. each Thursday to accommodate the market’s vendors and many shoppers. The atmosphere is as colorful as all of the multitudes of fresh items being pinched, prodded and scrutinized by savvy shoppers as they make their way from one end of the closed off street to the other end .The smell of freshly picked sweet corn, fruits such as melons and apples are all a part of aromas that urge you on throughout the open market to choose just the right produce for your family’s meal. There are homemade breads, honey and jellies from Mom’s own kitchen and there are stories told of how the family recipe has a special secret ingredient that makes that bread or honey extra special. It is also a trip down memory lane of how your parents took you as a child to an open market to shop in the good old days.

            Many of Ohio’s local communities now have these wonderful Farmers ’Markets for the local residents to shop for their fresh produce. The advantages to these markets are really fresh produce that is picked and brought to market quickly. Some of the produce varieties are heirloom. Local produce grown in your area’s temporal zone almost always grows to perfection .Having produce shipped in from across the country and even from other countries is not cost effective and the cost is always passed to the consumer.

            Ohio is a big agriculture state. We are fortunate to be able to get the cream of the crop, so to speak. Our little city of Twinsburg can boast of our big interest in gardening. We have many farms in and around Twinsburg. We have a large community garden with lots of plots for local gardeners to grow their own vegetables. It is the best of both worlds city and farm together side by side.

            I have enjoyed coming down to our Farmers’ Market over the past three years. I so look forward to visiting the market again this year. I think of the Farmers’ Market as one of my networks of gardeners. I talk to the famers and gardeners and get ideas and try to grasp new concepts about gardening. I have even given some of the farmers some of my heirloom seeds to grow at their farms. I am always tickled pink when I see the produce at a vendor’s stand at the market that came from seeds that I gave them to grow. Of course, all of my seeds are heirloom varieties. Most shoppers who have never seen a certain variety of tomato, or pepper are totally amazed and willing to try out the”new” vegetable.

             This year I would like to present a program about Ohio heirloom gardening at our Farmers’ Market .Ohio’s agriculture history is amazing.

            Check our Farmers’ Market out at: www.twinsburgfarmersmarket.com See what we have to offer!

Journal #11

June 11, 2008

            The time has come for me to truly do what I do best and that is growing my heirloom garden. The 2008 garden will be a series of 3 gardens. I am fortunate to have two growers who have agreed to help me establish my seed bank for my business. In addition, I will be the third grower. Most of the three gardens will be dedicated to growing African American heirloom plants. It is my hope that the season will have good weather until we harvest the plants to get the seeds for the bank. I am indeed holding my breath that all will be successful.

             In my personal garden, I will be growing old favorites in addition to my heirloom varieties. Ever since I was a youngster, my family has always grown Sweet Banana peppers. I carry on that tradition, although Sweet Banana is not classified as an heirloom, it still is a favorite of “Chileheads” (people who like to grow peppers) I also have other favorite sweet peppers that I have grown such as Cubanelle, Sweet Pimento and Gypsy.

            The only hot pepper that I am growing this year is the famous African American hot pepper called the Fish pepper. This heirloom pepper will be in my seed bank to sell. The Fish pepper dates back to the 1870’s. It was used extensively in many crab houses along the Chesapeake Bay, Washington D.C., and Baltimore, Maryland areas.

             I am also growing five heirloom tomatoes. Each of these has been chosen with a great deal of care and thought before I started them from seed. Some of my choices were influenced by my family and others were old sentimental favorites, or tomatoes I thought to be different and unique. I usually try new varieties each year in my garden. This year I have chosen these wonderful tomatoes:

(1) Lillian Tomato – A Tennessee heirloom from Lillian Bruce. Lillian is counted among top 100 of heirloom tomatoes. It is the only yellow beefsteak type heirloom tomato. Fruits are 8 oz – 1lb with a citrus flavor. My sister talked me into growing Lillian. I grew this tomato several years ago and my sister just fell in love with the taste. The seeds are very costly and there are only a very few of them to work with, but Lillian is a lovely specimen Lillian is a late harvest tomato. You must wait about 90 days on her until harvest..

(2) Yellow Perfection – an old heirloom from England. Yellow Perfection is bright yellow with 4 -6 oz fruits. This tomato has good yields with a potato type leaf.

 75 days until harvest. Great low acid type tomato.

(3)Pink Oxheart Tomato – also known as “Giant Bullsheart” is a Hungarian heirloom dating back to 1920. The fruits are large and they do look just like a big pink heart. Oxheart is ready in 80-90 days. It has an old fashioned flavor and is still an old favorite of many growers of heirloom tomatoes.

(4) Thai Pink Egg Tomato - a small egg shaped pink colored tomato that is a real producer. It is from the land of Thailand. It produces lots and lots of tomatoes during the growing season. My 85 year old father who loves every sort of tomato called Thai Pink Egg “a pretty little tomato with a great taste” Thai Pink Egg is ready to harvest in 70 days.

(5) Brandywine Tomato - Brandywine is considered “the” heirloom of heirloom tomatoes. Brandywine dates back to 1889. It was introduced by the Johnson & Stokes Seed Co. of Ohio. Brandywine is simple perfection in a tomato. It comes in several colors, but the most famous of the Brandywines is the red variety. This old Amish tomato is a real favorite of many heirloom growers. Brandywine is ready to harvest in about 85 days.

            In the coming weeks, I plan to create a photo album of my past few years’ heirloom gardens. I plan to place this on the AARP website for everyone to view. As in the past, the excitement is mounting as the gardens develop and hopefully flourish toward harvest time. Keep your fingers crossed that I will be able to take many of my seeds to the bank.

Journal #10

May 27, 2008

            I have been on the internet since 1996. In those days, the internet was a mere baby. There wasn’t much to look at on the internet. The graphics were mediocre at best and the subject matter was mundane to say the least. I remember going online and seeing things like the atomic clock on the internet and marveling at cyberspace. Our computers were slower and less sophisticated in those days, too. I started out on Windows 3.1 with a 1440 speed modem on my computer. I barely had enough memory to get on the internet and when I did turn on my computer, it was so slow that I had time to make a sandwich before it got online. Now everything is warp speed.

            I never thought that one day I would have a website business. Cyberspace businesses reach many thousands of people online at once. As I explained in one of my earlier journals website merchandise is quickly replacing traditional catalog sales in many businesses including gardening typed businesses. In 2008, internet sales are poised to overtake catalog sales in gardening products for the very first time.

            I am preparing to throw my hat in the ring and launch a new heirloom seed business online .At this point, I am pondering how I will gain the necessary skills to design a website that will adequately suit my business’s needs .I plan to take a 4 hour class at my local library on creating a website. I am also in touch with several “ I.T” specialists (information technology specialists) about website ideas, technical help, etc. I also have a friend who is a fabulous graphic artist who is currently designing her own website and launching her own business .I know that Roman was not built in a day. I do not expect this all to just come together right away, but I am chipping away at this critical phase of my future heirloom seed business a little at a time.

            I have some ideas about what I want to sell on my website. I do not know just yet how I can present my product in a unique way on a website.

            I am fortunate to have many gifted professionals helping with website ideas in addition to my I.T. friends and graphic artist friends. My sister who if a former college professor with 2 undergraduate degrees in art, a Master’s degree and a Doctorate degree has been without a doubt my greatest help .She writes grants, does research projects and knows a great deal more than I do about business projects. I have been able to gain momentum from my sister’s advice to me. And it helps that my sister is a great artist in her own right. I am sure she will assist me with constructing a great website.

            I am looking forward to exploring cyberspace and cyber business. It is the wave of the future and I want to be a part of the future.

Journal #9

April 14, 2008       

            In is always nice for someone to report something positive about you. Of late, I have had a great deal of interest in my AARP Dream Job projects. I have been very fortunate to have the news print media interested in my progress in obtaining my heirloom seed company.

            Positive feedback in the form of e-mails, newspaper articles, magazine articles, cards and letters wishing me well in my efforts is very encouraging to say the least. I have also had positive feedback from customers who see me at the store where I am a garden professional. I have even had strangers say that they have read about me, or seen something about me on the internet, or in the news media and they have wished me well.

It all has had a profound effect upon me.

            A wonderful reporter from the Akron Beacon Jounal has interviewed me proclaiming:” Area gardener wins dream job.” This article appeared in the business section of the Beacon Journal on Saturday, March 15, 2008.

            In the May 1, 2008 edition of our city’s weekly newspaper, the Twinsburg Bulletin, the reporter stated:” Flowers will still grow” The article praised me for pursuing my dream job after age 50 years plus. The article also stated how I would utilize the help of local people in our community to help me fulfill my dream job. Twinsburg’s other weekly newspaper, the Twinsburg Sun, plans to conduct an interview this week for their paper.

            On Monday May 12, 2008, the Ohio state branch of the AARP graciously agreed to do an article about me in the upcoming June issue of the AARP Ohio newsletter. A very nice photographer traveled up from the state capitol of Columbus, Ohio to photograph me and several of my growers for the news magazine.

            In mid February, a reporter from a new national magazine called “Nature’s Garden” conducted an interview with me. Nature’s Garden magazine is a Better Homes and Garden magazine. The reporter was interested in my African American collection of heirloom seeds and plants. The featured article will appear sometime next year. The magazine wants photos of my garden and plants for the article. These photos will be taken close to harvest time when the readers can see all of my plants growing in the garden.

            On April 21, 2008, I received a lovely note from the AARP Ohio State Director congratulating me for my accomplishment as a Dream Job winner .I was told the AARP

Ohio branch is very proud of me and everyone at the state office is watching with excitement to see my dream fulfilled.

            On April 29, 2008, I received another note from the AARP Ohio State office thanking me for my volunteer service to my community. It is always nice to be recognized for your volunteer service.

            I consider myself extremely blessed that people are out there cheering me on to success. It means a great deal to me to have others applaud my efforts and encourage me to reach out and fulfill my dream job.