New Year, New Growth!!
HMM Newsletter
Volume 4 – January 2023
Happy New Year! Winter solstice has passed, and with each new day the sun moves higher in the sky. In only a couple of months, spring will bring bright green buds, and more flowers ready for pollinating. This will be the beginning of the Fifth Year (or third, if you’re judging by effort levels) of our food-growing journey. I can’t wait to see what it brings.
What’s New?
Pigeon Peas
After months of anticipation, we were able to harvest a significant first batch of pigeon peas! These peas came from only two plants, each of which has plenty more pods still forming. Although this particular harvest might be only enough to incorporate into a single dish, it is a hopeful sign of what’s to come.
Local Happenings
Eau Gallery
The showing of pieces in the Great Art in Small Packages exhibition at Eau Gallery, located in the historical Eau Gallie Arts District in Melbourne, Florida, has been extended to the end of January. So feel free to stop by anytime this month to check out my art, as well as the work of many great local artists!
Where
Eau Gallery
1429 Highland Ave. Melbourne FL
Garden Magic
Parakeets in Paradise
Brevard county has a flock of blue-crowned parakeets (Thectocercus acuticaudatus). These birds are not native to Florida, rather, they escaped from captivity and have established populations in the state. Nearly every evening, they soar right over our house, rarely pausing for a rest. When they do, they linger for less time than it takes me to get my camera… except on this particular day! I couldn’t believe my luck when I noticed several of the birds had alighted on a Norfolk pine in the neighborhood. Like ornaments decorating a Christmas tree, it was as festive a photo as I could have taken this past December.
Final Thoughts
Check out my Newsfeed, a new addition to my website! I’ll be posting more day-to-day updates there, as I have transitioned away from the use of social media. Also, check out Looking Back at 2022, which has a super cool pie chart of everything we harvested last year.
From the weights of food harvests, to the dollar amounts donated to environmental organizations, there is a lot to be proud of!
-HM
