Seedlings

With all the hot weather we've been having, I've begun to despair that I'll never do any kind of gardening outside of my own little plot. After all, I'm spending enough time just collecting and distributing graywater for my home plants, let alone irrigating in secret.

But now I'm back to my illicit pursuits.

It all started in May, when I found two adorable baby elms growing on the sidewalk of a house in Ladd's Addition. The house was between owners, and enough dirt had built up along the risers of the steps in the sidewalk for the plants to take root. I knew their days were numbered, so I tugged them out and stuffed them in a plastic bag.

We had rescued a few baby maples in spring (most of whom perished during our vacation), and a holly, a spruce and a cherry. John has high hopes of turning these specimens into bonsais. But after rescuing the elm trees, we realized that with a little patience and a little cleverness, we could be starting the trees we'll need when we finally get our place. Why spend $40 on an English Walnut when you have a perfectly good one sprouting up under the azalea? Thanks, squirrels!

I went on a walk tonight and realized that if I had a trowel (because, trust me, I was trying to dig with my hands, but without great success), I could have brought home an Asian pear, an Italian prune and a plum tree. That's not counting the endless crop of walnuts (black and English), maples and cherries.

So my big goal now is to rescue unloved, unwanted seedlings that are just going to get mowed or weeded, and find them new homes. It's going to be fun!