LITTLE GARDEN MEMORIES – Part 2

Some delights of having a garden are watching butterflies that fly from one flower to another, the sight of dragonflies and damselflies pumping up their wings, listening to the chirping birds, smelling the sweet, gentle fragrance of sampaguita flowers (jasmine), the flashing croaking of frogs in the small pond, the elegance of the orchid trees in full bloom, the buzzing sounds of the bumble bees foraging and pollinating flowers, and sitting on the soft, thick grass under the shady trees. What a wonderful feeling.

We had a garden because it was a good supplement. Among the vegetables we grew were the standards, such as string beans, sweet potatoes, okra, eggplant green onions, kangkong (swamp-cabbage or water cress) growing in the small pond, camote vines. We planted tomatoes, too. The trees in the garden were mangga (mango), avocado, sampalok (tamarind), kaimito (star apple), bayabas (guava), kamyas (averrhoa bilimbi), tsiko (chico), tsesa (canistel), saging (banana), orchid, duhat (Java plum/blackberry), kalamansi (citrus fruit), atis (sugar apple or custard apple), langka (jackfruit), mabolo (velvet apple), and papaya.

It was a small lot, but very fertile. We never used any spray or chemical fertilizer. To ward off insects, we collected and piled up dried leaves and burned them, the cloud of smoke billowed around and floated up in the air. We did it in the morning and late in the afternoon. Weeding was tiresome; sometimes, we let weeds grew because they looked interesting.

After the sun had gone down we enjoyed strolling through the yard peering at the plants and occasionally pinching off a leaf and sniffing it. It was truly enchanting.

My parents had a lot of love and patience for gardening.

Sampaguita

The sampaguita Jasmine (Arabian Jasmine) was adopted as the national flower of the Philippines since 1934. The sampaguita bears a white, star-shaped flower, which blooms for the full year. The flower opens at night and lasts for about one day, producing a unique sweet scent. For the Filipino people, the flower is the symbol of purity, simplicity, humility and strength. Its blossom is celebrated in Philippine legends, stories and songs. It is believed that the flower was brought from the Himalayan areas to the Philippines in the 17th century.

LITTLE GARDEN MEMORIES - Part 1

GREEN MANGOES

This is for you, Leonie --

My earliest recollection in plants was of being very little and going for a walk in my parent’s garden. They inspired in me the love for nature and has taught me all there was to learn about flowering plants and fruit-bearing trees, roots and shoots, weeds, and how to maintain a green garden. We had all things for his garden; hoe, rake, pike, shovel, wheelbarrow, hand tools, and other garden implements. Watching my parents tending the garden was very inspiring.

It was a 500-sq.m. lot along the railroad tracks very much in the heart of Tondo, Manila. Crops would grow in any space and small footpaths led everywhere. It was a perfect little world for my cousins, friends, and me. We got to spend much of our free time playing; climbing the trees, harvesting tree ripened fruits, harvesting vegetables, picking sampaguita (jasminum sambac), lying on the thickly-growing grass under the warmth of the morning sun while listening to the low howl of the rolling wind, sleeping under the guava trees, catching butterflies, dragonflies, black and golden beetles. I remember being very proud of our garden especially the different mango trees planted all around.

While other kids played ball, jumping rope, luksong tinik (jump over thorns), patintero (three nights), taguan (hide and seek), viola (straddle jump), tumbang preso (prisoner), piko (hopping), takip-silim (blind man), sipa (kick) etc., after school or on weekends, we would rather spend hours watering the plants and trees, raking dried leaves, and weeding. It was truly a refuge for us.

Gardening will always be a part of my life!

To be continued