Red Dirt Ramblings®

Firmly rooted in the Oklahoma soil

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Garden Coaching
  • Travel
  • Contact
  • My Gardens
    • The Back Garden
    • The Potager
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Red Dirt Ramblings®

Firmly rooted in the Oklahoma soil

  • Home
  • About Me
  • Garden Coaching
  • Travel
  • Contact
  • My Gardens
    • The Back Garden
    • The Potager

Rose scented memory

31 July, 2010 By Dee Nash

by Dee Nash
31 July, 2010Filed under:
  • Flowers
  • Roses

Cypress vine is another flower which twists and twines pulling my heartstrings. I think my grandmother would have liked the delicate foliage of this plant.

Looking down, I see my white baby shoes stepping on black soil and green grass. A yellow sulphur butterfly floats above my head, and bumblebees buzz nearby. My grandmother is on her knees in the garden digging with a shovel. I try to run on stubby little feet, but fall to to my knees in the cool, soft earth. I begin to cry, and strong hands set straight again. A soft kiss lands on the top of my head, and sure fingers wipe baby tears from my eyes. Then, her index finger touches the end of my nose. I look up into beautiful brown eyes crinkled at the sides by the sun.

“Come here, I want to show you something,” she says. She takes my hand and walks me over to where an earthworm wriggles in soil she’s turned over. A trowel is nearby, and I want to dig in the dirt too, and she lets me although it’s where she was going to place a transplant.

R. 'Sophy's Rose', a cherry red rose like the one which grew at my grand's house.

I’m fascinated by the wriggly worm, but then I smell something sweet, and I wander over to a large elm tree where a red rose clambers up the side and spills down into the branches.

She calls my name, and I turn. She stands in an old, but ironed dress with apron, hands on hips, smiling at me. When I run into her hug, she smells of flowers, starch, soap and all the sweet things grandmothers are made of.

This is my first garden memory, and even though I was only two years old, I remember it as if it were yesterday. I can still see the small white house with a green roof, roses climbing the black iron porch railings, and the porch swing which I painted the summer after my senior year of high school.

I see the back sleeping porch, where my grandmother ripened her tomatoes and sat her pies to cool. I hear Grandma Nita coming out, the screen door slamming behind her while she wipes her floured hands on her apron and then runs them through her curly black hair hanging in sweaty ringlets around her face.

Behind her sits the chicken house, the three apple trees (red delicious), the vegetable garden and the compost pile. In the center of the compost grows that  huge red rose into the elm tree. Later, after my grandfather died, I discovered the rose is all which remains of her flower garden. The flower garden and the vegetable patch sat side by side for many years, but one spring she walked outside to find Grandpa Art tilling up the flower bed and turning it back to earth. When asked why, he said flowers were unnecessary, and she had plenty to do with the vegetables. You see, in his world vegetables were a worthy exercise, flowers didn’t make food and were expendable.

'Grandpa Ott's' is an old variety she would have loved.

She cried, but she didn’t challenge him. I remember he was pretty mean, and he raised an angry son who later became my father.

The flower garden was long gone by the time I toddled after her in my white shoes, but it remained in my cellular memory.

Today, friends stopped by to visit, and a new friend asked how I was able to keep so many gardens by myself, and how they came to be. With her questions, this memory re-surfaced.

My gardens are large, floriferous and bounteous. The plants are held in a formal structure, but I let them spill over into the pathways. By July, the entire garden is a mass of overgrown plants and more flowers than anything else. Flowers even spill into the vegetable garden, some because I plant them there. Others, like many of the herbs, I let go to seed. The flowers feed the butterflies and other small pollinators with their nectar.

I think I plant the flower garden as I do for her, perhaps, to make up for the flower garden she lost.

Vegetables are food for the body, but flowers sustain the soul. I know they nourish me.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

Related

Post navigation

Previous Post Botanical Interests wants to give you some soap
Next Post Dear Friends and Gardeners, August 1, 2010

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. carolyn says

    4 August, 2010 at 10:18 pm

    What a touching story, Dee. Unfortunately I don’t have memories of my grandparents and I lost my mother when I was four. You have a fantastic memory because try as I might I have none of my own mother.

    I had an angry father so I know whereof you speak. My mother was a great gardener that managed to grow all the vegetables needed to feed her family, plus tend to the heavy demands of being a farmer’s wife . I was fortunate to visit the garden she left behind and her roses , and fruit trees, were still blooming many years after she passed.

    Such a life, despite its hardship, makes us stronger and more determined to be happy. Thanks for sharing your personal story.

  2. Helen at Toronto Gardens says

    3 August, 2010 at 7:36 am

    Dee, Such a beautifully written and wise story. Our gran was a huge influence on our gardening urges, though she was a bit of a character — not nearly so loving as yours. There’s a patch of rugosa roses in a park the next street over, and whenever I walk past (it’s a ritual) if there’s a flower in bloom I stop to sniff the scent, instantly transported to our grandmother’s garden. Soul nourishing, indeed.

  3. Pam/Digging says

    2 August, 2010 at 7:11 pm

    I’ve commented twice on this post, Dee, but it’s not going through. I just wanted to tell you how much I enjoyed it, and how much it reminded me of my own OK grandma, who grew red roses and vegetables and moss rose, kept chickens, wore faded dresses, and doted on her grandchildren.

  4. Cindy, MCOK says

    2 August, 2010 at 6:38 pm

    Dee, your grandma Nita is clearly a guiding spirit in your garden. She passed along a valuable legacy and you have grown it into something very special.

  5. Annie in Austin says

    2 August, 2010 at 10:44 am

    Oh, Dee- you’ve gone beyond blogging to literature with this story.

    My grandmother was left a widow with 5 kids at the beginning of the great depression – she had two wide borders running down the sides of her tiny city lot. There was no angry husband, but times were hard so maybe she had to replace the flowers with vegetables, too.

    I have a few memories of her garden in the mid-1950’s…at that time border was full of flowers and the other border was full of vegetables.

    Annie at the Transplantable Rose

  6. Barbara says

    1 August, 2010 at 9:30 pm

    I agree with Carol- this is a beautiful post. And confirmation that you are the one I need to be talking to about writing. 🙂 Thanks so much for sharing this memory- I loved gardening with my grandmomma also. And thank-you for the time talking about writing today!

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:44 pm

      Barbara, I’m thrilled to talk about writing anytime. Good luck with your work.~~Dee

  7. Mr. McGregor's Daughter says

    1 August, 2010 at 9:25 pm

    Wonderful story. Very touching, and it’s so true, flowers do nourish the soul.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:44 pm

      Thank you dear. I don’t think I could live without flowers.

  8. Carol says

    1 August, 2010 at 9:10 pm

    That’s just about the sweetest post you’ve ever written.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:44 pm

      Thank you Carol. I loved her very much.~~Dee

  9. Gail says

    1 August, 2010 at 9:02 pm

    Dear Dee, My dear what a moving post and such a powerful memory. I am glad she was there in your life to help make you the incredible woman and gardener you are today~xxxgail

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:45 pm

      It was a very healing memory Gail. Powerful. I thought of you and some of our conversations when I wrote it.~~Dee

  10. Helen says

    1 August, 2010 at 2:27 pm

    Thanks for sharing this memory. Its interesting to think about where we inherite our horticultural aspirations from. How sad for your grandmother to have her flower garden taken away, I bet if she had been of our generation she wouldnt have stood for it!! Makes you appreciate how lucky we are

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:48 pm

      Helen, I think she was sad, but also very philosophical about it. She said the vegetables were the most important, and probably for their generation, they were. They lived through the Great Depression. I’m glad women have more choices now than they once had, and no, I don’t think I would have stood for it.~~Dee

  11. Lisa at Greenbow says

    1 August, 2010 at 2:13 pm

    What a wonderful Grandmother memory. She planted many viable seeds. I know she is proud of you and your garden.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:49 pm

      Hi Lisa, I have loads of memories about her because I loved her so much. I think about her all the time when I’m weeding.~~Dee

  12. Brenda Kula says

    1 August, 2010 at 1:38 pm

    Beautiful, beautiful words, Dee! I am amazed you have such memories. I can’t get back that far in mine.
    Brenda

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:49 pm

      Thank you Brenda. It’s the only early memory I have.~~Dee

  13. Dana George says

    1 August, 2010 at 8:43 am

    Hey, I’m anonymous. I replied through twitter for some reason my name didn’t show! But I loved the article and I love you!! 🙂 Very touching. Very heart felt.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:50 pm

      Dana, I figured you were Anon. It sounded like you dear. So glad you and Nancy came to visit on Saturday. It was fun.~~Dee

  14. Ginny says

    1 August, 2010 at 8:13 am

    I hope that my grandchildren grow up to have at least one memory of me as lovely as this one you have of your grandmother. I have taken them out in the garden with me to see caterpillars, butterflies, and earthworms and one of my grandsons (age 3) loves them as much as I do.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:51 pm

      Ginny, I think all of your grandchildren will carry memories of you in the garden. One suggestion is to have them smell beautiful things because our olfactory sense is our longest. I still remember how good that rose smelled.~~Dee

  15. Carolflowerhill says

    1 August, 2010 at 6:56 am

    This is a lovely and touching post Dee. It is wonderful you can recall such young memories. Your images of your grandmother remind me of mine. Thank you!

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:52 pm

      Thank you so much Carol. This is the only young memory I really have. The rest start at about four years old, and they are few. I’m glad you had a wonderful grandmother too.~~Dee

  16. Dana M. says

    31 July, 2010 at 10:35 pm

    Dee, you are one of the best and most interesting people I have ever had the pleasure of knowing. Thank you so much for sharing your life with us!

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:53 pm

      Dana, darling, you are too kind.~~Dee

  17. Debbie @ A Casual Affair says

    31 July, 2010 at 9:49 pm

    Dee, what a beautiful memory. Flowers are beautiful and beauty does indeed sustain the soul.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:53 pm

      Thank you so much Debbie. We need all the beauty we can get.~~Dee

  18. Monica the Garden Faerie says

    31 July, 2010 at 9:09 pm

    I wish I known known my grandmothers. I do know from angry fathers.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:54 pm

      Monica, I’m sorry about the angry fathers. There seem to be a lot of those running around. I wonder why. I wish you’d known your grandmothers too. Perhaps in heaven.~~Dee

  19. Kathy from Cold Climate Gardening says

    31 July, 2010 at 8:56 pm

    Oh, that was bittersweet. My grandma was a big influence on my gardening interest, too.

    • Dee Nash says

      1 August, 2010 at 9:55 pm

      Kathy, we all had someone who loved us enough to introduce us to gardening. It was bittersweet.~~Dee

Primary Sidebar

About Dee

Hi, I’m Dee, a professional garden writer and speaker born and raised in Oklahoma. Here you’ll find all my best dirt on gardening and travel. Welcome!

Read More

Share this:

  • Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
  • More
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window)

Subscribe Here To RDR Updates.


* indicates required
Email News
Email Format

Garden Coaching

Garden Coaching

Grow a beautiful and manageable garden with personalized pointers from Dee!

Learn More

Give my podcast a listen!

Our podcast logo! The Gardenangelists.

Search me baby!

Travel

It's time to get the leaves off of the pansies.

It’s time to plan for next year’s garden

9 November, 2022 By Dee Nash

Yes, I know we're all exhausted from the summer from hell in Oklahoma and Texas--or is that just me? But it's time to start planning for next year's dream garden. Trust me, it's time, and who knows? Maybe next Read More

Fun days at the daylily national convention

16 July, 2022 By Dee Nash

For July's Garden Bloggers' Bloom Day, I want to share my visit to the daylily national convention. A region of the American Daylily Society puts on the AHS National Convention each year. Region 15 put on this Read More

Road trip to Yellowstone National Park

28 October, 2019 By Dee Nash

Bill and I traveled all summer. I'm not gonna lie. It was tons of fun, but after getting back from our road trip to Yellowstone National Park last month, I am tired and will be staying home for a while. I Read More

GOW Footer Widget Header

Ask me a question!

Please feel free to ask me a question here or at my email addy: dee@deenash.com.
I’ll try to answer every question and get back to you as quickly as possible.

Contact Us

Footer

Blogs I Dig

  • Clay and Limestone–TN
  • Cold Climate Gardening–NY
  • Dirt Therapy–PNW
  • Each Little World
  • Faire Garden–TN
  • Greenbow–IN
  • Growing With Plants
  • Joanne's Cottage Garden
  • May Dreams Gardens–IN
  • Redeem Your Ground
  • Rock Rose–TX
  • Toronto Gardens–Canada

Red Dirt Sisters

  • Curtiss Ann Matlock
  • The Not Always Lazy W

Follow Us!

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Let’s bring back the Monarchs

Let’s bring back the Monarchs
For more info about speaking and other work, visit my other website!

Dear Friend and Gardener

Join our virtual garden club and share all summer

Join our virtual #garden club and share all #summer

Disclosure Notice

Red Dirt Ramblings participates in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by linking to Amazon.com and its affiliates.

Occasionally, I also accept some garden items for review. If I review one of these items, I will let you know in the post. Thank you.

© Copyright 2023 Reddirtramblings.com · All Rights Reserved · Privacy Policy · Sitemap

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT
 

Loading Comments...