Magical Raindrops

Today is our first true rainy day of the Spring season. Yes, it is dreary grey outside. But I am having no problems working from home and listening to the dirge of the raindrops pelting at the roof for hours now. The ground has thawed enough that it is absorbing the rain. And I know with the oncoming sunshine, it will only add to the greening that is about to arrive.

Here are a handful of miraculously timed photographs of drops of water hitting the surface.

Ronny Tertnes calls his artwork Liquid Sculptures. I think he is the third artist from Norway I have featured at some point. They seem to have a niche on where art collides with nature. Obstacle #1 is making sure you have a VERY quick shutter speed. His minimum is 1/500th of a second. #2 is experimenting with both lighting and background to make sure it is interesting enough to add an artistic quality, but still bright enough to capture the impact moment in high resolution. #3 is adding gels to the flash which can turn a clear water drop into a dynamic red or lavender. And trick #4 is that what you are actually seeing is not likely a pure raindrop. He mixes water with other liquids to give it density, color and weight. And I can't speak from experience, but I would guess it is also a mix of patience and luck to land just the right shots out of 100s that are taken.

Again, the wonder of raindrops if we could freeze them and watch them one at a time. Perhaps, they are just like snowflakes where none is like another?

Walk a Mile in My Showshoes

I will admit that I have been pretty adventurous in these last 2 winter months. Part is being stir crazy from COVID isolation. Part is again, my curiosity and wanting to see what is out there. That does not mean that it has always been comfortable and convenient. Our MN Winter has proved to be its predictable challenge with the usual frigid temps. There have been a few days that the car engine just refuses to turn over - and I wish I was able to do the same in bed.

In the spirit of our present Great Northern Festival, I wanted to celebrate something even more massive in terms of art meeting nature. I know our festival is showcasing ways that art and winter Mother Nature can intersect. But nothing on this large of a scale.

I introduce you to the work of Simon Beck. He uses large fields and mountains as his canvas. And snowshoes as his paintbrush. With these two simple tools, he makes a labyrinth of winter art that is magnificent and sadly, temporary as well. I find it not surprising that he is both an engineer and map cartographer by trade. This makes logical sense as you see the scope of his works.

His process begins with computer drawings that are created in basic contrasts of light and dark with texturing. Once on site after scouting his open location, he frames out a grid of straight lines using a compass to navigate. He states that finding the shape of his curves is purely by instinct, and that has gotten better over time. Important next, is step size and being well aware of distances between points. Lastly, it is creating density and depth by retracing steps in certain areas to make the tracks deeper and darker.

He is a one-man show. There is not some small crew that is working with him on these. He also speaks that he needs to be both an artist and an athlete to invest the hours of manpower needed to create each one step by step. Thanks to drone photos, it is the best way to fully appreciate the art; seeing them from ground level does not allow the viewer to really receive the full impact. Which makes it even more astounding that he is able to create these panoramas without perspective. Over the last decade, he has worked residencies around the globe to create over 200 art installations. We need to get him here for our Winter Carnival! Enjoy the beauty of Simon Beck and his winter wonderlands.

He has several time lapse videos if you search YouTube.

Collection of Simon Beck snow works

Simon Beck Snow Dragon: Siberia, Russia

Cactus Christmas Tree

I understand that Christmas trees are another high-price item in 2021. I have never really understood the supply & demand of harvesting beautiful trees, and how many people adorn our homes with them only to toss them into the alley a month later. It does not seem just, but I continue to do so myself almost every year. Selfishly, for the joy it brings me. And to me, an artificial tree does not bring the same value - as well as the storage in the basement the other 11 months of the year.

So there is no surprise to find that the trending succulents out there are now disguising themselves in miniature as a Christmas Tree. It makes logical sense. They are the most low-maintenance house plant possible. They are now found as wall decor, Autumn centerpieces planted in hollowed gourds. They barely ask for sunlight and a drop of water. Now we can find them sold as conical collages with an assortment of colors. Absolutely Adorable!

From the single web store I found them on; they are not entirely cheap. At around  $60 for 16", it makes one grateful for a $75 Blue Spruce that is at least five-fold that size. No offense, but I can guess a few of you with DIY Gardening skills could come up with some sort of foam stock base and pick up your own personal favorites at a garden store (if you can find one still open) - and create your own. Mind you, that by the time you invest in a good 16-20 small cacti, craft ribbons and maybe a few pinecones - that $60 price tag does not seem so outrageous.

It would get lost in your living room setting with a blazing fireplace. But for an urban apartment that is minimal in nature - it could be just the right fit. O Tannebaum!

If you are an impulse buyer; here is the link. Christmas Cacti Tree

 

Indian Corn

Indian Corn - if we can still call it that without being too offensive, has always held my attention as we enter this season of Thanks and Bountiful Harvest. As children we would create our finger-paint hand turkeys and draw cornucopias filled with field crops. I don't know if younger generations have any clue as to what a cornucopia would be?

But the bright colored Indian Corn was always a staple for a door entry or adding to a centerpiece on the table. Certainly because of its beauty, but also because it was one of the last crops remaining in fields.

I decided to do some agricultural research and found that corn goes back some 10,000 years and came from a mutation of field grasses in Mexico. What we normally eat is called Sweet Corn because of the thin shell on kernels and the build up of sugars and starches. Field Corn is a variety called Dent Corn because the kernels get an indentation as they ripen and harden. The colored Indian Corn is a 3rd type called Flint Corn. This is due to the the shell being much harder than the other two which makes it the last to be harvested; thus named after a hard flint stone. It is edible, even if very hard on the teeth getting through that shell. It is more often used in polenta and hominy grits. And of course the blue corn chips that are so popular.

Genetic breeding over a century have morphed them into the rainbow of shades we now celebrate. They started with whites and umber reds, but have now resulted in a spectrum of shades. A personal favorite is one called Glass Gem Cherokee - that looks exactly like shards of sea glass in bright jewel tones. It came from a grower named Carl Barnes, an Oklahoma farmer who was trying to reconnect with his Native American roots. It is almost a Jack in the Beanstalk tale of him meeting up with other gardeners in his area and passing off seeds. One exchange was with a fellow farmer Greg Schoen from New Mexico. Over a course of some 20 years, the two kept planting individual seeds from selected ears in the brightest of colors until Barnes came up with his patented Glass Gem strain. It is now available for seed purchase since 2016 and can be bought in a variety pack or specific color tones. I find it lovely.

Grandaddy of All Apple Trees

 

Just as Spring is the birth of nature's cycle, we think of Fall as the elderly years of our seasons. Usually, the time when things die back and return to the earth. Since we just made a fall Apple Pilgrimage to Pleasant Valley Orchards for both apple and pumpkins, now seemed the appropriate time to share this tale of passing.

Once Upon a Time in Vancouver, Washington, an apple tree was planted in 1826..... It has become known as the Old Apple Tree for over a century now. Folk tales have the original seeds coming from Royal Navy Lieutenant Aemilius Simpson. He was handed the seeds at a dinner back in Britain before coming over to a fur trading post for the Hudson Bay Co. They were brought over to the Pacific Northwest and planted in an early orchard at Fort Vancouver as part of the food crop for the soldiers. The Old Apple Tree is on grounds about a 1/2 mile from the original Fort where most of the living quarters were, so it is a slight bit fuzzy as to how it got to the spot itself. But the tree was from that original handful of seeds in Simpson's pocket that sailed across the wide waters of the Atlantic and migrated the US Territory.

The apples from the Tree were called English Greenlings which was a generic term for any that came over from the Old Country. They were bright green and not the usual red, very tart and were great for baking because of their crispness and durability to winter over. It has been diagnosed to be genetically unique and apart from all other varieties of apples across the globe due to the soil conditions and years of cross pollination.

Over decades, railways and highways were built around it. Storms may have damaged a limb, but were lucky enough not to take a harsh toll on it. As it aged and grew to acclaim, school field trips would visit it and important dignitaries and Presidents even visited it. In 1984 a Public Park was designed around the tree and a Festival was held each season in Oct to celebrate its harvest.

But in 2015, gardeners for the park noted cracks in its outer bark and it started to die back. This led to a later crack in its hollow trunk and infection set in. They knew the tree was fated, but had hoped the dying process would take longer. In June of this year, it also fell victim to the pandemic and was officially felled.

But all hope is not lost. Just as Spring brings new life. Caretakers took care to tend to suckers coming out of the ground at the base of the tree. This happens for any tree that s trying to send up shoots of new life. They will ensure that one of these suckers will continue to grow and become the new edition the Old Apple Tree. They have also taken some of these saplings back to the original Fort and in generations ahead, there will be a small orchard of descendants.

Think of this story the next time you bite into a Granny Smith apple and wonder about the incredible genetics of crops and the centuries it took to get them here today.

 

 

Frankenstein Pumpkins

I realize we are at the change of seasons, and I am certainly not trying to push things along too quickly. But this feature involves some grow time so I am putting it out there in case any of you are interested. It gives enough lead time to yields results.

I love Halloween Jack o' Lanterns and the annual task of carving at least one up. Sometimes it is a simple traditional with holes for eyes and a jagged smirk. But lately I have been upping the artistic ante and spending a good couple of hours with razor cutters and a good digital pattern. With patience and a good candle it is amazing how they look at night.

When working at the garden center, I was also drawn to the incredible variety of heirloom pumpkins that come out in unique shapes and colors. Cinderella, Jarrahdale, Seminole.. so many to choose from in blues to bright reds. Box stores will carry at least a few, but high end garden centers will have much to offer - usually sold by the pound. So they can get expensive.

But this is a new option for me. Jim Seamons, a farmer in Utah gets creative and has created a poly plastic mold that is bolted to a young pumpkin and allows it to grow into an uncanny face of Frankenstein. His tutorial video attached at the bottom of this post, makes it look quite easy with some good tips to allow both air and sun to get to the infant fruit while growing. I would think it also keeps away pesky rodents from eating the gourd just as it is getting ready to harvest. According to his video, it takes merely 5-7 days to fill out which seems short to me. But maybe it is also hard to grasp the size from the video and they must be small if nothing else. That is likely why they stay green, although some pics show them as the bright orange we think of as a pumpkin. I am sure it depends on variety grown.

They are a bit elusive to track down on line without a single designated seller. The price is steep, but I am sure they are quality enough to last from year to year. I am not growing any pumpkin crop myself, but would love to see how they play out if any of my tag list are growing them and adventurous enough to try them. I think they are innovative gardening.

Frankenstein Pumpkin Mold - slingfisher 

How To Grown Pumpkins with Frankenstein mold

Hannah Bullen Seed Art

The end of summer always brings on the Minnesota State Fair. It is not on my priority list this season. Rather than a celebration, it just seems kinda like wrong place/ wrong time. And also a bit of Been There/ Done That for me. At least where I am at right now.

But one of my favorite aspects of the Fair is the Agriculture Building. That big rotunda houses the things I most enjoy. From the Apple wing with fresh cold cider and popsicles. From the Honey wing where you can watch colonies of pollinators do their thing while eating honey ice cream. And certainly the Dahlias which are always being showcased as the end-of-summer stunners.

But one thing I am both curious and perplexed about is the Seed Art contests which always draw an endless line of spectators. I appreciate the time and detail spent on them. The subject matter leans very kitsch from the 50s with portraits of rock stars and vintage products. But I am usually hesitant to call them "art." What do they do with them even after they win a blue ribbon prize? I can't see them as living room artwork or a conversation piece on your coffee table????

I think the imaginative work by Hanah Bullen Ryner captures the intent of seed art much stronger. I am drawn to her profile quote on her Instagram page. "In love with the natural world and gently trying to find my place in it." She also calls herself an Ephemeral Artist and I had to sit with that a minute to grasp it. She uses a palette of grey clay or rock for her background, then creates whimsical collages of birds and fairies from whatever nature provides her. Bird feathers, berries, flower petals, sticks.... They are colorful and for some reason, very tactile. I am guessing because of the dimensional elements of the materials used.

She sells them as photographs on her Etsy page. But I am guessing they only capture a bit of the essence vs. seeing them live. I think they are beautiful and worth more than a blue ribbon from the MN State Fair. Enjoy them and support her work if you are inspired.

 Hannah Bullen Ryner - Artwork