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- From the Legacy of Generosity
“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” ~ Audrey Hepburn
Over the 35 years of business, the one thing that has most touched us and put passion and purpose in our step are our healing gardens.
Our journey to create healing gardens did not come through design classes and lecture halls….. it came through a personal journey through pain that changed our lives forever. It all began when my Dad was diagnosed with cancer. To help him get through some long days I decided to put a small unassuming butterfly garden in so that when he did feel like going outside he would have something to help distract him a bit and maybe bring a bit of sunshine each day.
I really wasn’t sure this was going to really work. But the shovels began digging and the plants took root, butterflies appeared almost immediately. From the first day of this garden Dad was already commenting on the butterflies, birds and the “goofy squirrels “as he called them. It was clear a bit of hope happened each day in that small time in the garden.
This inspired me to think abut ways I could honor my Dad and the precious legacy of generosity that he engrained in our lives growing up. So we decided to start HOPEGROWS, planting butterfly gardens for those with cancer for free. At the start of this journey it was only by word of mouth, people hearing the story. It was primarily adults that needed help with caring for their yards and gardens during treatments. But God had other ideas on the horizon for this project….. He wanted us to help children with Cancer! A scary adventure I wasn’t sure I could emotionally handle. God thought we were ready and He began sending us kids and families.
For all these years we have kept these precious stories in our company journals to be shared only in house and to bring no glory to any man. However, these past 2 years in our world have caused us to see the great need to share these stories of hope to perhaps inspire a fire in others.
So here goes a very small sample of some of our favorite stories of our healing gardens and how they have changed us and cultivated community.
Loving the lady like Lady Bug Garden: This healing garden is one of favorites because it most reflects the healing power of community. We heard about our little Meg through a teacher friend. Meg, had been diagnosed with cancer, and life changed drastically in one day for this family. Her story so touched us that we decided to approach them abut installing a small front yard butterfly garden for her at not charge. They loved the idea and Meg was now excited to have something to look forward to that was hopeful. As we were installing the garden the butterflies showed up before plants had even been planted…. fluttering around the pots! Neighbors had heard of the project and stopped in to see the progress each day. This gave us an idea….. what if this was a way to connect people that could support this family. The idea of creating hand painted lady bugs for the garden came to us. We could have each family put a “fingerprint spot” on the ladybug, we would write the name of the family on the bugs head, and then on the underside we would have each family leave a verse or message. These were done without Meg or her family knowing. These lady bugs were then hidden in the garden, one or two pre week. She then could go find her ladybug each time she came home from treatments and read her messages from her new friends. This connected 22 lady bug families that are still close friends today!
Lady bug didnt stop there….. that same year we had donated a tree to the Vera Bradly Store in La Cantera to be raffled to raise money for the vera Bradley Breast Cancer Research Foundation. The raffle day came and the winner was a nurse….. and not just any nurse… but one that lived in Megs neighborhood! This same nurse had been also touched by cancer in her family. So her desire was to donate the tree she had won to the START center….. the same center started by the oncologist that had helped my dad. So that beautiful tree still grows there today in honor of her daddy and mine! (Read article here) When we told her of Megs garden in her neighborhood she immediately wanted to be a part of helping this family. Her being a nurse was an added bonus!
While Gardens for the kids with cancer continued to change our lives another kind of healing garden request came to my email one day. It was a precious mom that began her story of desperate need for healing and hope for her little family. At first read i thought that all the kids were cancer patients. But that was not the case, the pain was that of sexual assault, all 3 children. My heart was crushed. I set a time to meet the family. They had a small budget to try to get the garden and yard in a way that the kids might one day want to go back outside. We decided this was one case we had roll our sleeves up and make happen for this family. We designed a full back yard retreat with trees for privacy, butterfly gardens, and a textile garden table with soft succulents for the littlest one to touch and enjoy. This little table became the one part that most surprised us. It was a small garden table approximately 2×2.5. It had a variety of beautiful safe to touch succulents of all textures, some even with blooms. This little table became the one place that the oldest began to sketch her pictures of the succulents. These sketches were amazing and drew attention of her friends and family. They were helping her heal and talk about her pain. Her parents created her an art studio in the home when they had to be relocated.
She is such a brave one! She even went on a trip to Africa on a mission trip to an orphan home and taught the kids…. you guessed it how to sketch succulents. Her words to me one day over the phone were….. “I want to make a difference in the world like you are doing. I realize I am young but that is what I want to do with my life now. Use my pain to help others heal.” She is in a career path to do just that! This was the very best 7K we have ever spent in our company, giving this garden with lighting so changed us and blessed us beyond words! We now have life-long friends in this sweet family.
There are so many more of these stories that have shaped us over the years. We have decided to share these along the way this year to inspire others to reach out in their community and make a difference. It is very easy as a business to become focused on growth and day to day operations that we miss what matters most and the little opportunities that come our way. We have to be sensitive to the ones at arms length around us, that is where the need often lives. We can either live to work or work to live. I prefer to work to live. This is what puts passion in the prayers and pleasure in the work of your hands. It requires us to often stop in our tracks and hear what is right in front of us in the middle of a busy day.
I recall one day that I had a time sensitive day and needed a vase for an outdoor seating area staging. I ran quickly into TJMAX (my favorite vice) when I came back to my Hope Bug there was a sweet lady standing in front of my bug, holding a bouquet of beautiful pink roses. She was crying. She told me she saw the bug and how it had touched her so much as a cancer patient that she had to give me these roses as a thank you! I listened to her story of her journey through breast cancer and saw how her scars had become a badge of honor to bring hope to others in a way only one who had walked that valley could do. It was the best 20 minute conversation that day in the parking lot!
The Hope Bug Healing gardens, you see, are planted in valleys, deserts, mountaintops and jungles. They can be 2×3 or or a full backyard retreat. They are the spaces in our lives where we need a bit of hope to bloom in the form of a nature retreat of birds, butterflies and sunshine and fresh air that gives us that ability to refocus life and all that matters. These garden designs are created by careful listening to the need. Perhaps it is just a bench surrounded by lush butterfly attracting plants, or a bistro for morning coffee and sunset tea set in a quiet garden. Fragrance, texture, color, movement and sound all come together to create the healing garden symphony. They are spaces that connect the brain, relax the spirit and refresh the senses. All these elements incorporated in a well designed space create gardens that will bring years of refreshing and hope in all the seasons of life.
This year more than ever the desire for these gardens is strong. We will continue to share our principles for creating these lush spaces as we journey through whatever valley, desert or mountain top ahead. This we know, there are always springs in every valley! There is always hope.
Lets plant a little and bring hope for tomorrow !
- Curbside Buffet
One of the many benefits of being a landscaper is that we are often accompanied by some of nature’s hardest workers. As we go about our business butterflies, birds, and bees fly swiftly through the air to snack on the nectar hidden within each brightly colored flower within the landscape. Without a second thought, these critters are performing one of nature’s greatest tasks, the task of pollination.
Pollination occurs when a plant’s “male” reproductive cells, called pollen, travels down the narrow stigma to fertilize the “female” egg. This allows the flower to produce the seeds necessary for new plants. Pollination can occur through wind and water, however, there are 250,000 plants that need the specific help of pollinators. Without their aid many plants simply can not reproduce. Among the best pollinators are butterflies, birds, small mammals, and of course honey bees.
It is no secret that in recent years many pollinators have been on the decline. This effects not only the ecosystem that they live in, but it has a tremendous effect on us as well. Much of our food comes from these precious pollinators. In fact many researchers believe that approximately 1 out of every 3 bites of food exists because of them. Honey bees alone are responsible for the fertilization of over $100 million of crops in the United States each year. The source of their decline: urbanization, the use of harmful pesticides, pollution among various man made factors. The future seems bleak for these hard workers. So what can we do to help? The answer may be found in your backyard.
Pollinator gardens are gardens specifically designed with pollinators in mind. Carefully selected Texas native plants are handpicked to provide an optimal food source and habitat for these flying fellows year round. So how do you create one?
How to Create Your Pollinator Garden
Step 1. Choose a location
Many insects enjoy being in full sun. Creating your garden in an open area with lots of sunlight is ideal for butterflies and bees.
Step 2. Prep the ground
This is among the hardest steps. Knowing your soil type is extremely important. You can find out what type of soil you have at websoilsurvey.nrcs.usda.gov. If you have poor soil, it may be necessary to apply fresh organic rich soil that can be found at your local landscaping store. It is also best that an irrigation system is installed.
Step 3. Choose the plants
We always recommend using Texas native plants. Fortunately, there are a wide variety of colorful flowering plants to choose from. When choosing your flowers, include a range in types, shapes and sizes. Careful planning and you will have a succession of flowers throughout the growing season, which provides continued sustenance to the pollinators.
Step 4. Plant
The proper placement of your plants will not only get your plants off to a great start, but it will also give it the best chance at staying healthy. Overcrowding will cause the plants to compete for sunlight, while too much space will provide a location for unwanted weeds to sprout up. Grouping certain flowers of the same kind in large drifts is recommended.
Step 5. Mulch
Adding mulch to your garden provides nutrients, cushions large temperature fluctuations, and helps with water retention. Don’t skip this step. Although it’s another additional cost, it could save you from losing plants and having to replace them.
Step 6. Maintain
Watering, pruning, and weeding are all necessary to maintain. Try not to use harmful chemicals that can do exactly the opposite of what these gardens are designed to do.
Having pollinators in your garden is an excellent sign of a healthy ecosystem and although it may take getting your hands dirty, the fruit of your labor will be well worth it. Here at LaField we are passionate about our pollinators. If you would like us to help create your curbside buffet, call us today!
- Through Drought and Storm
It was in the home of the towering pine trees of east Texas that I stumbled upon one of life’s greatest lessons.
While taking a stroll on a cool cloudy day, I noticed a colossal oak with long drooping branches up in the distance. More wide than tall, this beautiful specimen appeared as if it was reaching out to grasp anything that drew near to it. It was without question, one of the most beautiful oaks I had ever seen. Dipping my head beneath the broad lower branches, I gazed above to view the remaining trunk. Scattered across the limbs of the tree were withered plants clinging tight to the bark of the ancient monument. The encrusted plants appeared as if they hadn’t taken a drink of water in days. While the rest of the tree was lush with the cross shaped foliage characteristic of all post oak trees, the groups of curled plants found on the bark appeared anything but luscious. Any passerby would assume these were just the remains of something once beautiful, but it’s beauty no longer remained. I thought no different. I had given up on them. It was later that I found out the name of these miraculous plants. Resurrection fern.
Resurrection fern is a mystical plant. Able to lose over 90% of its water content during droughts, the fern shrivels to a fraction of its size. It has the appearance of lifelessness. But don’t let its appearance fool you. There is still a future for this humble plant for it knows something other species forget, rain is coming. Hold on.
A few weeks had passed since I had visited my old giant friend, so I decided to pay the oak another visit. Having learned a little about the fern and knowing that rain had visited the day before, I expected to see a little more life amidst the branches. I was astonished at how much it had changed. The vibrant green color indicative of life was not only found on oak’s leaves, but all throughout the branches themselves. Life among life. The ferns had held on. They had persevered. They hadn’t given up on hope and their beauty had returned. Is this not also the lesson of the palm tree?
Nearly two hundred miles south of this outstretched oak tree, lies another “tree” on the coast of Texas. A fifty-foot palm sits among the sand near the shore. It stares at the crashing blue sea, knowing turbulent winds and roaring waves will try to strip it one day from its home among the coast. The palm has seen is fair share of poor weather before, and it will certainly see it again, but it is ready. Its malleable cells and flexible trunk allow the palm tree to bend beneath the weight of hurricane force winds and not break. The ‘rain came down, the streams rose, and the winds beat against” it, but still the palm tree stands.
The palm has the same confident expectation as the fern. It endures knowing a better day is coming. Sunshine is just around the corner, so it holds on. I wonder if we could all learn the lesson of the fern and the palm.
Trials will come, but though drought and storm be with us now, a better day is just ahead. Hold on to hope.
-The Hopeful Oak
“For I consider that the sufferings of the present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us.”
*Featured Image: Live Oak with Resurrection Fern by James DeMers. (no changes made) https://pixabay.com/fr/photos/virginie-ch%C3%AAne-ch%C3%AAne-du-sud-ch%C3%AAne-440351/ Dried Resurrection Fern image from Wikimedia Commons, Creator: Unknown (no changes made) https://images.app.goo.gl/GdtbiNzex2afLzsz7
Green Resurrection Fern image from Wikimedia Commons, Creator unknown (no changes made) https://images.app.goo.gl/id8rHfqC6de4iSts7 - The Grass is Greener
“The grass is greener on the other side.” We’ve all heard the old saying before. As I sat looking out my second story window at the neighboring back yards I realized, unfortunately, it was true.
I had spent the past two months away from our home in San Antonio, visiting the Piney Woods and country roads of East Texas. My family and I took shelter here as the first news of Coronavirus began sweeping through the country. Although fear was present around us, joy and peace filled our borrowed home. It was laughter that rang in our ears as we spent our days beneath the sun. We walked hours around picketed fences, chased the elusive grasshoppers among the fields of Indian paint brushes, and explored the depths of the old towering adjacent forests. The fast pace that I was so accustomed to, was slowing down and I was reminded once again of what was important. I now cherish these moments as I look back upon them.
Change, however, is inevitable and it was eventually time to head back to our home in the suburbs of Central Texas. It was here, having returned to the hustle and bustle, that I looked out our second story window towards our backyard. I was astonished at what I saw. The yard once carpeted with a monoculture of lush green Bermuda grass, was now speckled with unwelcome weeds. Areas once full of the grass were now barren. Had I forgotten something? I thought about how I had spent the last two months. The same sun that had brought love and laughter to my family as we played outside, had also brought a drought to my yard and I had been so careless as to leave it unwatered while away. The grass of course looked just fine next door.
Embarrassed, as I was and being a landscaper by trade, I went to work. I knew just what to do. I spent the following days removing the unwanted visitors from my grass and brought back the cool crisp taste of water to my plants. I watched over the next few weeks as the stolons and rhizomes filled in the patches of brown soil that were once visible from the window. The grass returned to its glorious state. As I stood gazing at the yard from my porch, the smell of organic fertilizer present, I thought about my time hours East of where I stood, and I missed it. “The grass is greener on the other side”, I thought. The fast pace had returned. Sweat and heat pressed down upon me as I stood still thinking about the sweet memories. I sighed, and then… cries of laughter as my oldest daughter pushed passed me running barefoot onto the grass towards the swing set in our backyard. My youngest daughter soon followed after her crying “Wait for me!” “Push me dad,” I heard from our swing set. Joyful noise was present again as we played on the turf. And once again, time stood still. We darted back and forth and hid behind the massive pecan tree as we played tag, made gritty pies from the sand in our sandbox, and danced around sprinklers. It was heaven on earth.
Hours have been spent outside since our return home to the suburban neighborhood yard. And while I still often think about the joy filled time spent on our extended vacation, I am grateful for what it taught me. “The grass is greener, where you water it.” Treasured memories can be formed wherever you are. It just takes slowing down, looking around you, and watering what matters most.
The grass is greener, where you water it.
-The Hopeful Oak
- Front Porch Sitting: Creating Spaces that Make Memories
For decades, the front porch has served as a place where families have sat and relaxed after a meal while listening to the strumming of a guitar and the voices of playing children. It is a place where stars were counted in the sky, dates were kissed good night while dad flickered the lights saying, “time’s up,” and many great conversations were had. Grandads have shared stories on front porches, fish were counted, and tea was sipped.
Sometimes I think about how many people must long for those front porch moments again- those moments when time stood still for a bit, and laughter passed through the walls. But then I think about how it doesn’t take much to recreate those front porch days and how easy it is to refresh your porch by adding a few rockers, some potted plants, and even a small lamp and table to add a warm glow at night. Coat that old front door with a fresh coat of paint, and add a simple metal door knocker and an inviting doormat, and that “old” front porch can begin to bring endless smiles to residents and visitors alike.
Speaking of doormats, there are so many great doormat sayings these days! While traditional sayings like “stay awhile,” “come as you are,” and “as for me and my house, we will serve the Lord“ scroll across many doormats, funny ones like “no coffee no knockie” and “warning this house is protected by dust balls” have begun to adorn the front stoops of homes.
While there was a time when front porches began to disappear due to housing trends, architects are beginning to hear the heart cries for front porches again. As landscapers and lighting experts, we hear those requests, too. A common request we receive is, “how can we make a sitting area like a front porch when we don’t have one on our house?!” While you can certainly add a structural addition to your home, for many, that option is too costly. However, for those that don’t have a front porch, there are some wonderful budget-worthy solutions. Consider a flagstone sitting area with Adirondack chairs, a porch swing in a tree, a free-standing swing under the trees, or a small bench tucked in the garden areas. Surround this alternative front porch space with colorful plants that attract butterflies and birds, and it becomes a perfect spot for a short break in your day. If this new porch space is being designed as an evening spot, professional landscape lighting such as moon lighting can create a magical ambiance for evening visiting and relaxing. No matter how you design or revamp your front porch space, it doesn’t take much to create a small gathering area that can create great memories for years to come!
