• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Carol J. Michel

Award winner author of gardening humor books

  • About
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • Books
    • Shop
    • Gardening Humor
    • Children’s Books
    • New – The Halloween Hare
  • Social
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
  • The Gardenangelists Podcast
  • Gardening Humor
  • Children’s
  • All Books

May Dreams Gardens

Chapter XVII – Funding the Garden

April 1, 2012 By Carol Michel 14 Comments

I recently purchased a copy of Garden Works by William Good F.R.H.S. (Blackie and Son Limited, 1913) after Dee of Red Dirt Ramblings taunted me with a picture of the cover.

I had no idea what it was about, but that didn’t stop me from finding a reasonably priced copy and ordering it up because it had an interesting cover.

As soon as it arrived, I did what I usually do with old gardening books.  I went through it looking for old newspaper clippings and little scraps of paper with hand-written notes.

Sometimes I get lucky and I find a few such treasures, other times I must be content with what’s on the printed pages.

After I look for loose papers, I go through the table of contents. 

I find that many general gardening books usually start out with a chapter on soil, and this one did just that.

“The soil is the all-important matter in gardening, therefore it is necessary to have some knowledge of the nature of soils, and the conditions necessary for the successful cultivation of plants, before proceeding with other subjects.” 

Soil first, then the plants and other subjects.  That’s a good thing to remember.

What I found unusual in this book was a chapter on “Funding the Garden”.  Curious, I turned to that chapter, Chapter XVII, and read the first paragraph.

Few gardens are created exclusively from the soil, plants, rocks, and other features of the property, therefore it is necessary to determine how to fund the garden and what amount of money should be allotted to it, though a well-thought out and well-managed garden can be made with limited funds and equal or surpass that of a poorly planned and poorly manged garden made with an abundance of funds.

But I digress…

Turning to the next page, my eyes nearly popped out and my heart began to beat twice as fast when I picked up the loose bit of paper that seemed to have been left there for as long as the book was around.

It was a stock certificate, dated April 1, 1912.  I recognized the company name and wondered if it had any value. 

I’ll make this short.  That stock certificate did have value, more than I ever thought it would.  When I cash it in, I’ll have “an abundance of funds” to use on my garden for quite some time, and left over funds to keep buying and rescuing old garden books.  I don’t know the exact amount, but I know it will be quite a lot.

I am working with the company, a lawyer, and a broker to determine the stock’s value which will be based on 100 years of dividend payments, stock splits, and interest.   There’s no doubt, by the way, that it is mine to cash in because it says “To the bearer of…”.

I feel like I’ve won my own private Mega Millions lottery.  I feel like I’m set now. I feel like this spring is going to be a great spring, greater than any other. And I’ve had some great springs. There was the year I discovered a new plant species and the spring I found out that the boulder in my garden glows from outer space.

I’ll never forget the spring I found the underground caverns filled with Indian artifacts. And wasn’t I a klutz when I knocked over that plant stand and found a time capsule of old family papers inside?

Two springs ago I was growing a super-fast growing tomato. That sure was fun and with this early spring, I thought I might repeat that.  Then last year, the old woman at the door made her first appearance, and I learned a valuable gardening secret.

Forget all that. It’s in the past. This year, the year of the stock certificate, is going to be the best gardening year yet, starting today, April 1, 2012.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: books

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Jane O' says

    April 1, 2012 at 12:46 pm

    Congratulations! I'm about as excited as you are. Well, not really! But it sure was to read abo

    Reply
  2. Jane O' says

    April 1, 2012 at 12:47 pm

    Oops, I meant "fun to read about." Darned keyboard.

    Reply
  3. Rock rose says

    April 1, 2012 at 12:52 pm

    HA! But it did make me think about the $400 I found in the year book my son had made at school in Grade 1. Yes, it's true, and I was happy to find it. I had put it there and forgotten where I had put it. Lost for years until I flicked the pages and out it fell. I immediately left for the nursery. Enjoyed your story, Carol.

    Reply
  4. Cindy, MCOK says

    April 1, 2012 at 1:59 pm

    You should also have enough funds to take a group of garden bloggers on that long-planned trip to Great Britain! I'm packing my suitcase now …

    Reply
  5. Gail says

    April 1, 2012 at 2:03 pm

    How exciting and I am packing my bags, too, for that trip to the UK! xogail

    Reply
  6. Mr. McGregor's Daughter says

    April 1, 2012 at 2:38 pm

    I'm not ready to pack my bags just yet — what effect did the 1929 Crash have on that stock? (Help, I'm acting all historian again!)

    Reply
  7. Dee/reddirtramblings says

    April 1, 2012 at 2:57 pm

    You are so full of composted manure. I so know what you're up to.~~Dee

    Reply
  8. growingagardenindavis says

    April 1, 2012 at 4:09 pm

    Oh dear Dee, do you suppose we should unpack?

    Reply
  9. ~~Melissa says

    April 1, 2012 at 4:15 pm

    Wow! You hit the jackpot and Oprah picked me to have a gardening show on her new network! Congrats to both of us.

    Reply
  10. sandy lawrence says

    April 1, 2012 at 7:12 pm

    There's no fool like an April fool!;-)

    Reply
  11. Indie says

    April 2, 2012 at 3:00 am

    Haha, totally had me for a minute there…!

    Reply
  12. Gwen says

    April 2, 2012 at 5:51 am

    You had me until the end… nice job!

    Reply
  13. Rose says

    April 6, 2012 at 1:46 pm

    Can't wait to see what you do with these new-found garden funds! I'm a little late arriving here, but it wouldn't be April without reading your April Fools' Day post, Carol:)

    Reply
  14. Rose says

    April 6, 2012 at 1:47 pm

    Whoa, I missed the other comments–I'm in for that trip to the UK, too! When do we leave??

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Categories

  • Blog (3,053)
  • Internal (2)

Blog Tags

annuals Blogging books bulbs dr. hortfreud embrace fairies fall family flowers fruits garden bloggers bloom day garden bloggers book club garden design gardeners gardening gardening geek gardens hoes holidays hortense hoelove houseplants humor indoor gardening insects lawn letters to gardening friends perennials rabbits reviews Secrets seeds shrubs spring tools trees vegetable garden vegetable gardening vegetables weather weeding weeds when a gardener wildflower wednesday winter

The Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Footer

Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Connect

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • maydreams icon

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Books
  • May Dreams Gardens
  • Podcast

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Newsletter Archive

Copyright © 2023 · CarolJMichel.com · Sitemap · Privacy Policy

Book purchase links are affiliate links and Carol earns a small commission if you make a purchase.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT