Hi there,

There is joy, peace, and healing in the garden. Nurturing plants at our home is a way that I can restore my soul, as well as find clarity and inspiration. As I dig and plant, my mind processes the emotions of the day. Grief? Just keep digging. Hurt? Just keep digging. Confusion? Just keep digging. Life isn’t always easy. We all inevitably have seasons of pain. The world is evil and unfair. It makes me think of the song from Frozen 2, “The Next Right Thing.” I think we all have points in our life here and there, when the darkness is so great that all we can do is the next right thing. But there is hope. I keep digging. Then, when I stand up and zoom out, I can see it. The overall view of the garden. And maybe a little better perspective on what was weighing me down. 

I hope that you find that in your garden too. When I’m not digging this summer, I plan to sit a lot on my porch with my cup of coffee, and enjoy the little bit of beauty I created. For that I am grateful!

Another place that I love to go for the same rejuvenation is the Montour Trail. From what I am hearing, just like gardening, hiking and biking on the trails has been a recent favorite activity of many. Each year we donate some plants to the Cecil Friend of the trail group for the planters at the Cecil-Hendersonville Road access point as well as at Tandem Connection. They do a wonderful job, but could use some help. Do any of you green thumbs out there have some extra time to help them out? If so, contact Mary Ellen McKenna by email here or call her at 412-445-0185. Thank you to Cecil Friends for all you do!



Here’s what’s happening–

• more tropicals and houseplants have arrived, including maidenhair and other ferns, passion vine trellis 10″, assorted cacti 4″, Hollywood hibiscus in 6″ and 10″, pitcher plant hanging baskets and red cordyline 10″.
• fresh arrivals Thursday morning include Abelia “Kaleidoscope’, Barberry ‘Sunjoy Mini Maroon’, Butterfly Bush ‘Summer Skies’, Boxwood ‘Chicagoland’ and ‘Little Missy’, Clethra ‘Ruby Spice’, six varieties of Roses, 3 varieties of Weigela, 3 varieties of Clematis, and 5 varieties of Hosta.
• summer is just getting started, but our fall chrysanthemum cuttings arrived this week. They get planted now and will be tended to all summer so that they will be ready for your fall enjoyment.
• our greenhouse production manager is also getting ready to plant another crop of fresh perennials. Stay tuned for details on what to look forward to! 
• Russ will have bottles of wine available for sale at the greenhouse this Saturday, June 6 from 10am-12pm, including Kiwi Pear, Blueberry, Peach, and more.
• thanks to all of you, we delivered 261 non-perishable food items to the Bridgeville Community Food Bank, along with a check from us for $500. Last month they served 125 families that included 56 children, 100 adults and 95 elderly. Thank you for partnering with us to make a difference!
• remember pen pals? Next week I’ll share with you a garden that was inspired by someone’s pen pal. Stay tuned…

Melanie