For me they linked forever in my mind. I have beautiful strong memories of planting trees with my Father. In a section of our acre of land, he had peach trees, apple trees and various nut trees. I don't think they were ever very productive in terms of bearing fruit, because we always went to the orchards to buy bushels of fruit for canning and preserving. However, I think our squirrels were very well fed.

The truth is, Arbor Day is not the best time of year to plant young trees. But it is a great time to take a walk and enjoy the beauty of the trees. Here in Oregon, our flowering cherries are in full bloom and are a sight to behold.

Earth Day for me is a day to celebrate the bounty of the earth. Having grown up with gardening parents, I learned to appreciate the earth and nurture it. In the autumn my Father would rake and gather leaves from our yard and the neighbors. The leaves would be tilled into the earth to replenish the soil for the next years garden. Vegetable matter from the kitchen was also buried to compost. Early spring was the time to work the soil and prepare for the plants he had started from seed.

In his early years as a gardener, he used pesticides and chemical fertilizers. As the years passed, he learned to forgo the chemicals and became an avid organic gardener. For him gardening was a year round project. Even in the coldest January there were seed catalogs to study and plans to be made. Each year he would pick one new crop to try and grow.

One year he grew asparagus, another year he tried sweet potatoes. Though he has been gone for several years now, I know he would have loved to try his hand at growing Goji Berries.

If you are like me and feel at home with dirt under your fingernails, and mud on your knees, you should try growing your own Goji Berry Bush. I haven't tried to grow one yet, but it is definitely in my plans.

With dirty hands,

Tim