Planting the Seeds
On May 1st, my housemate Camilla and I planted 4 tomato plants which we acquired at a local organic nursery. This was my second-ever bona fide attempt at growing anything– the first attempt was last year, when my father gave me a tomato plant as a gift. It was an unusual gift, in that I am a fabulous dog-mom but am notoriously challenged when it comes to greenery, plants, and gardening. Somehow that intrepid tomato plant miraculously survived; although it eventually resembled a twisted knot of shriveled weeds, it nevertheless delivered a nice ‘crop’ of tomatoes late in the season. Naia developed a taste for fresh-off-the-vine tomatoes, and we were all pleasantly surprised and happy with the results.
Emboldened by last year’s success, I courageously expanded my tomato-growing repertoire. I planted four different varieties, promising to give them the attention and respect they deserved, with the hope that they’d grow to maturity with an abundance of green leaves and red, ripe tomatoes. That was the intention anyway…
It’s all in the soil, or so we thought…
Camilla & I gave the pants a strong start by gathering an assortment of pots & planters and buying the best soil we could find at OSH. We meticulously followed the organic nursery’s recommendation to include a special mixture of fish heads (don’t ask), eggs shells, aspirin, and coffee grinds to the soil, placing the delicious concoction just under the roots of the plants. We placed the pots & planter near to the house, to protect from wind & harsh conditions. The information on the nursery cheat sheet claimed that we’d have ripe tomatoes within 50 – 70 days.
We watered the plants daily, fertilized them weekly, and checked regularly (OK, maybe slightly obsessively) for growth & signs of fruit.
By early July there had been plenty of vertical growth and the plants looked green & healthy… but there were zero tomatoes. We were concerned, but didn’t quite know what to do. Towards the end of July, there were 2 tiny sprouts of tomatoes, on our healthiest, most vibrant plant. By now we were really concerned. We had lovely looking tomato plants, but no fruit!
In early August, we decided to move the plants to a different location– away from the house, and near to our ‘honeysuckle flower bushes’. There are hundreds of bees who frequent the flowers… and we hoped that our missing ingredient was the lack of pollination.
Nature Spirits to the Rescue
After several weeks in their new location, the plants had yet to produce any fruit. There were honey bees all ‘around’ the tomato plants visiting the honeysuckle bushes, but they seemed to have no interest in tomatoes.
I had been reading a book by Ted Andrews called ‘Intercession of Spirits’. The book describes Nature Spirits… and specifically details the Faerie Realm. I have an affinity for Nature Spirits in the water element (especially in the ocean), but I am not as familiar with the Earth-related spirits of the Faerie Realm. I’ve never ‘seen’ a fairy, though I sense they exist.
Ted Andrews mentions that the Law of Cause & Effect operates strongly in the Faerie Realm. He states that ‘the effects of our behaviors, words, and actions are much more immediate, happening more quickly and more strongly’ (than in our world).
With this in mind, I decided to elicit the help of the Fairies who govern the tomato plants in our garden. I stood in the midst of the planter & pots, closed my eyes, and did a meditation of appreciation for their efforts, followed by a request for their help. I humbly asked them to please do what was needed to pollinate the flowering tomato buds.
As I opened my eyes, a honey bee landed on one of the yellow tomato flowers, and began dipping its tail into the flower. The bee stayed in place for approximately one minute. The answer to my request was IMMEDIATE. I was so surprised, I started laughing… and I thanked the Faerie Realm for illustrating their presence and for their participation in a way that my eye could ‘see’. It was a beautiful, spontaneous miracle!
Success!
Since that day in mid-August, the tomato plants have received the ongoing attention of bumble bees, wasps, and tiny bee-creatures (not sure what kind?), but the honey bees stick strictly to the honeysuckle flowers. In other words, I haven’t seen a single honey bee visit the tomato plants since my meditation that day. To me, this indicates that the Fairies were delivering a deliberate message to my request… they sent a honey bee to show me how serious they were about helping!
And, thanks to the help of the fairies and the bees, I’m thrilled to report that the tomato plants and fruits are now flourishing! At last count, we had over 150 tomatoes in various stages of maturation. I want to thank the Nature Spirits for their ongoing love & support of our garden!
The moral of this story is: trust in Nature, appreciate the ‘every-day miracles’, and never hesitate to ask for help!