One of my favorite research gigs was working at Arnosky Flower Farm between Dripping Springs and Blanco, Texas. The lovely Pamela Arnosky (pictured below) was the epitome of graciousness and let this total neophyte work in the greenhouses and fields of gorgeous flowers as part of my research for TEXAS REBEL and other Sweetgrass Springs stories featuring Veronica Patton Butler.
I’ve gardened, of course, but that’s not high-stakes the way this felt; it’s someone’s livelihood! I am in sheer awe of the volume of work required—hard, back-breaking work—and the leap of faith that is every farmer’s fate.
Pamela was kind enough to let me take some flowers home, and I filled my house with bouquets of ranunculus, hyacinths, and tulips, and my second stint there in the fall, celosia and marigolds galore.
A lot of hard work, but oh my…such beauty is produced!
Do you like to garden?
I have a small plot of land that my house and garage take up more than half of the space…and I plant settings of annual and perannual every spring…also add bulbs….we have squirel’s so I see the bulbs more than once….love flowers…at my age no garden for fresh vegtables but am pot gardening and love to be able to pick a couple of tiny tomatoes on my way to the garage…the pots are much easier than the garden to maintain..have a rosebush at the back door that was planted before we bought the house in l963…still blooms but not as beautiful as they were years ago…everything is getting old, including me at 78