I am a gardener and veteran garden guide at Monticello. I was inspired by my grandfather Harry, who was a first generation Italian American. My grandfather always maintained a wonderful garden. I have fond memories as a young boy climbing high up in his apple tree and dropping apples to him below. I remember the […]
On May 16, 2014 I interviewed Simon. He has a garden and is growing tomatoes. “Gardening is a very great way to relieve stress and enjoy my own time,” Simon said as he watered his garden. He told me about his childhood and how his father was the one that taught him how to garden. […]
Some of my earliest memories involve strawberries and corn. While I know that the garden of my youth had more than that, those plants stand out vividly. I remember the tall stalks of corn in two straight rows along one end of a rectangular garden. Somewhere around the edges I also remember picking strawberries. I […]
As long as I can remember, my mother, Shirley, has planted the same vegetable garden plot and separate flower beds in the backyard of the house she and my father, Bill, have lived in since 1969 in Mason City, Iowa. Planting, growing, and harvesting vegetables and flowers comes naturally to Shirley as she grew up on a farm […]
A neighbor who migrated from Sicily carried over the family tomato strain to make the best gravy. (Tomato sauce) He shared some with my father who was a child of immigrants from Russia and Ireland. My dad planted the seeds and grew a robust, sweet tomato crop. From this he and I made sauce for […]