Mugshot of a Ginkgo Murderer
As cultivator of the Tree Grower’s Diary, it made perfect sense for me to attempt to grow trees from seed. If successful, I could truly call myself a tree grower. A reader, Bruce, sent me seeds — lots of ginkgoes and Kentucky coffeetree seeds. I had to learn how to prep them for planting. I had to care for them, protect them from squirrels and stray flying baseballs. Little did I know I also needed to protect them from my husband, a k a BABY TREE MURDERER. (See mugshot above.)
I went out today to see if the ginkgoes had started sprouting buds yet.
I kicked the leaves. I looked behind the dwarf Alberta spruce. I looked behind the patio table and under the arborvitae. I looked behind the shed. I looked in the garage and over by the gate where the yard junk ends up. They’re gone. Nowhere. Not even a pile of dirt left. Their home outside the back door is empty, flowerpots and all.
I called my husband. “Do you know what happened to the baby trees? The pots are gone.”
“What baby trees?”
“The ones in the flowerpots by the backdoor.”
“Oh, I um, — I threw those away.”
I remained calm and quiet. “You threw them away?”
“I thought they were trash.” He spoke quietly, remorse in his voice.
“Those were my baby ginkgoes, the ones I’ve been writing about for a year now.”
“I’m really sorry.”
“You thought they were trash? How could you think that?”
“I, um, I…”
“Don’t you ever read the blog?”
Complete silence.
Caught.
Me a tree grower?
What a joke.
I will not cry. I will not cry. I will not cry.
Click here to read the followup story.
Diamonds. Diamonds usually make ME feel better. So sorry for your loss. Thanks for stopping by MY blog ;o)
Comment by Lucky Red Hen — April 14, 2007 @ 11:17 pm
Oh Julie, I am SO sorry to hear of your loss - maybe a trip to the closest forest, tie him to a BIG tree, cover him with honey ( I`ll send you some ) and let the ants tickle him for a day - that will teach him to throw out those baby trees ..
Comment by Marcia — April 15, 2007 @ 4:14 am
Though the ideas before me for your husband’s retribution sound fun, the fantasy is always better than the reality.
I think a combination of garden work from him given with a cheerful attitude, and a forgiving attitude from you given your innate generosity and love for him is the best combination. He needs to read your fantastic blog too. In this way, he can see your passion for your works.
I believe with all issues of this type, the punishment should always fit the crime. By the way, these were living things, and crying is appropriate.
Also, a little funeral would be good or have him help you plant a tree. In future, he and thee should have an agreement on pots in the garden - if filled with dirt, he cannot toss it out.
Sent with a wish for peace and love in your household,
Kimberley C
Durham, NC
PS He needs to know how great your photography is too! It inspires me so much.
Comment by Kimberley — April 15, 2007 @ 7:44 am
Oh Julie! My husband has done that too! Not necissarily with a potted baby tree, but with my perrinials. He has “weeded” a lot of mums, and a bleeding heart, and some others. I will suddenly notice a gap in the landscaping and ask what happened to my plant (usually in the spring), and he always comes back with “I thought it was a weed.” Now I have given up and I let him take over. He can have or not have what ever weeds he wants!
Comment by Kari — April 15, 2007 @ 6:15 pm
[…] cabin. Suddenly, a light bulb flashed in Mike’s head. This revelation rather made up for the gingko incident. “SWIMMING POOL STORES!” Mike said, and he was off to get our water pump. Voila! No […]
Pingback by Julie Walton Shaver Photography Blog » Today’s Basement Special: Lego Soup — April 17, 2007 @ 8:59 am
[…] so delicate and beautiful. And I’m happy she made it through the winter, and so far survived the predator that got my gingkoes. The beech sits in a little pot underneath the kitchen window. I’ve been blogging about her […]
Pingback by City of Nouns: Julie Walton Shaver Photography Blog » Beauty and the Weed — May 11, 2007 @ 9:45 am
You have inspired me to grow some Kentucky Coffee trees from seed this fall. I have a KY Coffee tree in my front yard, about 14 feet tall. It’s beautiful. Mature trees have a great canopy. This tree never needs water and it’s compound leaves are unique.
Enjoyed reading about your exploits.
Mark
Comment by Mark Giuseffi — October 16, 2007 @ 9:21 pm
Thanks for you Gingko story. While looking for colored Fall leaves around town - Somerset PA - I saw that the Gingko trees by the church west of the Post Office were dropping little pale orange cherries. I brought a few home and just this morning looked for information on growing them. Some said the seed pulp irritates skin, so I’ll remove seeds carefully and read your planting notes. Thanks again Julie
Comment by Bill — November 9, 2007 @ 8:30 am
Things like this happen sometimes:( But it is very sad that your husband did not really know what yu were up to for a year.
Anyway,I got some ginkgo seeds from the botanical garden and I am preparing to grow them and your blog was very hepful to me! I will post about the seeds and trees in my blog as well and probably will add a link to your blog as well.
Have a nice day
Veronika
Comment by Veronika — February 27, 2008 @ 9:06 am
those were pretty easy trees to grow, and you did make it past the hardest growing hurdle - unless you were going to bonzai - now theres a test for a tree grower/expert, so forgiveness for your husband should be easy. I’m assuming there was no stratification required. thanks for the bleach soaking info, i will be planting both gingkos, and kct this coming spring as well as a long list of others that i have collected, or purchased. do you have any info for angelica tree growing? any website advice for strat, scar would be appreciated.
Comment by tony — September 29, 2008 @ 11:22 am