I think Rachel Carson is rolling over in her grave at the chemical library listed here.
I could barely stand reading through all the chemicals without sadness. It blows my mind how apathetic the average american consumer has been to date. And now that cancer rates are through the roof (likely directly and indirectly related to covid among other toxic things), people are paying attention.
Will we ever be able break free from this toxic industry entanglement? It’s ubiquitous and in the water we swim in literally.
Thanks for this.
I dont celebrate but sometimes string lights on my medical journals and books.
Yes I do think Rachel Carson is rolling over in her grave. There are so many more chemicals in use now than when she was alive.
Eventually the entanglement will end, but only because everything does, and who knows how long that will take, and if the end will be brought about by our own extinction.
My Christmas tree lives outside in a pot year around. It is a tamarack and was sent to me from Alaska a million years ago... well maybe not that long ago but more than a few decades ago. It is a bonsai of a sort. Though not originally intended to be. I wanted to put it in the ground, but thought I might be moving soon and would want to take it with me. Being the gift of an old boyfriend, it has always charmed me. He has now passed away and so it charms me all the more. It now stands 2 1/2 ft. tall and about as wide and is a true miniature. It seems rather happy, I bring it up onto the front porch and decorate it with fairy lights for the holiday and then set it back into the yard by it's fellow vegetation for the rest of the year.
That's a really lovely solution, and so nice that it has a personal connection to you. I love how plants can represent relationships with people. My mother was an avid gardener, both of veggies and flowers, and on walks around the yard she would mention that this so-and-so gave her these bulbs, or she took a cutting from that so-and-so.
I’m planning to grow a potted Christmas tree. I love tamaracks and already have two growing in the ground. Which zone are you in? I’m in Zone 6 (Eastern Canada), but I’m not sure if they can survive the winter in pots.
Hi Bree, I am in Washington state in the US - Pacific NW. Love that you are thinking of having a potted Christmas tree. Mine was started when it was very small like the size of a gallon of milk. I used to bring it in to an unheated porch where it still got a lot of light, on especially cold nights. But it has been outside now for many years. Though I do bring it up close to the side of the house that is sheltered from winter winds during that time of year. Last year we had some of our coldest temps in a long time (low teens in Fahrenheit) and it seemed to like that just fine! Go for smaller pots at first to start the miniaturization process. Good luck! And best of the holidays to you! :-)
Thanks, Sandy, for sharing your experience! I’ll check it out at the nursery and put it on the porch, which is enclosed with storm doors. Right now, I have a lemon cypress winterizing there. We get winter temps around -10°C (14°F) here. Happy holidays to you and your family!
Sounds like a perfect location! Wouldn't hurt to cover it with newspaper and a cardboard box on the really cold nights, for the first few years. The lemon cypress has me swooning! :-)
A brilliant essay Kollibri and OMG that list! I stopped using live Christmas trees years ago because I couldn't bear the murder involved. It was like having a victim's slowly dying body in the living room. I feel that way about all trees, Christmas-purposed or not. There's one street with severely pollarded trees in SW PDX that I avoid- it is just too painful.
Two streets come to mind. One is off Scholl's Ferry near the Whole Foods leading down to Tigard. The other is off Barbur Blvd near the Children's Museum Park. There may actually have been one example off of SW 45th near Gabriel Park. The winter storms damaged a lot of trees and the omnipresent Asplundh and PGE trucks brought them down in sections solely for public convenience, power line integrity, etc. I always hated seeing the process. I remember feeling this way since earliest childhood. A weeping willow was dying I guess next to our house in Houston and it was cut down. It's the first memory I have of crying. I must have been about six at the time.
Michael, I too have felt such connections to what is growing near me since my early childhood, whether it be flora or fauna. In todays world with so many young people committing suicide I wonder if some of them are also dealing with such losses that they may not even have taken in consciously but are none-the-less accumulating in a feeling of sadness and hopelessness. It may be important for us of a certain age to speak of our feelings in a way that is more than 'save the trees' but perhaps more specifically 'I love this tree!' Thinking back on what gave me comfort as a child, I knew both of my parents loved animals. My father was great with horses and was always gentle with them. Still, neither of my parents felt the loss of the beautiful old fir trees in our neighborhood as they were cut down, one by one for development. I did! I saw the loss that would not be replaced. And the loss for the birds who lived and roosted n those trees. They were such grand trees! I think it would have helped if I had known one or more older people who felt the loss the way I did that I could have shared the loss with.
I think Rachel Carson is rolling over in her grave at the chemical library listed here.
I could barely stand reading through all the chemicals without sadness. It blows my mind how apathetic the average american consumer has been to date. And now that cancer rates are through the roof (likely directly and indirectly related to covid among other toxic things), people are paying attention.
Will we ever be able break free from this toxic industry entanglement? It’s ubiquitous and in the water we swim in literally.
Thanks for this.
I dont celebrate but sometimes string lights on my medical journals and books.
Yes I do think Rachel Carson is rolling over in her grave. There are so many more chemicals in use now than when she was alive.
Eventually the entanglement will end, but only because everything does, and who knows how long that will take, and if the end will be brought about by our own extinction.
Yes, all outcomes possible. Come what may. 🤷🏻♀️✨🌏
Indeed anything is possible. That thought is the thing that keeps me going some days!
Same. Same.
My Christmas tree lives outside in a pot year around. It is a tamarack and was sent to me from Alaska a million years ago... well maybe not that long ago but more than a few decades ago. It is a bonsai of a sort. Though not originally intended to be. I wanted to put it in the ground, but thought I might be moving soon and would want to take it with me. Being the gift of an old boyfriend, it has always charmed me. He has now passed away and so it charms me all the more. It now stands 2 1/2 ft. tall and about as wide and is a true miniature. It seems rather happy, I bring it up onto the front porch and decorate it with fairy lights for the holiday and then set it back into the yard by it's fellow vegetation for the rest of the year.
That's a really lovely solution, and so nice that it has a personal connection to you. I love how plants can represent relationships with people. My mother was an avid gardener, both of veggies and flowers, and on walks around the yard she would mention that this so-and-so gave her these bulbs, or she took a cutting from that so-and-so.
I’m planning to grow a potted Christmas tree. I love tamaracks and already have two growing in the ground. Which zone are you in? I’m in Zone 6 (Eastern Canada), but I’m not sure if they can survive the winter in pots.
Hi Bree, I am in Washington state in the US - Pacific NW. Love that you are thinking of having a potted Christmas tree. Mine was started when it was very small like the size of a gallon of milk. I used to bring it in to an unheated porch where it still got a lot of light, on especially cold nights. But it has been outside now for many years. Though I do bring it up close to the side of the house that is sheltered from winter winds during that time of year. Last year we had some of our coldest temps in a long time (low teens in Fahrenheit) and it seemed to like that just fine! Go for smaller pots at first to start the miniaturization process. Good luck! And best of the holidays to you! :-)
Thanks, Sandy, for sharing your experience! I’ll check it out at the nursery and put it on the porch, which is enclosed with storm doors. Right now, I have a lemon cypress winterizing there. We get winter temps around -10°C (14°F) here. Happy holidays to you and your family!
Sounds like a perfect location! Wouldn't hurt to cover it with newspaper and a cardboard box on the really cold nights, for the first few years. The lemon cypress has me swooning! :-)
Thanks Sandy. Cardboard box is a great idea!!
A brilliant essay Kollibri and OMG that list! I stopped using live Christmas trees years ago because I couldn't bear the murder involved. It was like having a victim's slowly dying body in the living room. I feel that way about all trees, Christmas-purposed or not. There's one street with severely pollarded trees in SW PDX that I avoid- it is just too painful.
Yep it's quite a list! Sickening for me too.
I used to live in PDX and remember some severely pollarded trees here and there. Do you remember which street in SW?
Two streets come to mind. One is off Scholl's Ferry near the Whole Foods leading down to Tigard. The other is off Barbur Blvd near the Children's Museum Park. There may actually have been one example off of SW 45th near Gabriel Park. The winter storms damaged a lot of trees and the omnipresent Asplundh and PGE trucks brought them down in sections solely for public convenience, power line integrity, etc. I always hated seeing the process. I remember feeling this way since earliest childhood. A weeping willow was dying I guess next to our house in Houston and it was cut down. It's the first memory I have of crying. I must have been about six at the time.
Michael, I too have felt such connections to what is growing near me since my early childhood, whether it be flora or fauna. In todays world with so many young people committing suicide I wonder if some of them are also dealing with such losses that they may not even have taken in consciously but are none-the-less accumulating in a feeling of sadness and hopelessness. It may be important for us of a certain age to speak of our feelings in a way that is more than 'save the trees' but perhaps more specifically 'I love this tree!' Thinking back on what gave me comfort as a child, I knew both of my parents loved animals. My father was great with horses and was always gentle with them. Still, neither of my parents felt the loss of the beautiful old fir trees in our neighborhood as they were cut down, one by one for development. I did! I saw the loss that would not be replaced. And the loss for the birds who lived and roosted n those trees. They were such grand trees! I think it would have helped if I had known one or more older people who felt the loss the way I did that I could have shared the loss with.
Thank you for this brilliant, important article! Sharing....
You're welcome! Glad you appreciated it and thanks for sharing!
While not ideal, we're using a plastic tree. If taken care of, it can last a lifetime.
The one at my parents' place is in use for more than 15 years, and it still looks great.