Applegater
Hurrah,
Bravo and
Bully for
Buncom!
That was the reaction of one
of the members of the Buncom
Historical Society upon hearing
that we’re back in action and have a
just-as-good-as-ever Buncom Day
planned for Saturday, May 28.
We also are gearing up a newsletter
and new articles for the website,
www.buncom.org. Be patient with
us, but check it out.
Buncom is the last stand-
ing ghost town in Southern Or-
egon, a real treasure located six
miles southeast of Ruch, where
Sterling Creek Road meets Little
Applegate. There are just three
buildings left, but a whole lot of
spirit that comes alive on Buncom
Day. You’ll find a bunch more
about Buncom and Buncom Day
at www.buncom.org.
If you were a member of
the Buncom Historical Society,
we hope you will continue to
participate. If you would like to
be a member, we hope you’ll join
us. There are no membership fees
(at least for 2011). However, in
order to bring Buncom into the
21st century, we would like to
communicate with you via the
new-fangled (for Buncom) thing
called email. Just send a message
to info@buncom.org and ask that
your email address be added to our
growing list. If you have already
heard from us by email, we’ll con-
tinue to use the email address we
have unless you tell us otherwise.
If we didn’t have an email
address for one of our members,
we sent a postcard to the last ad-
dress we had on file. Many have
been returned without forwarding
addresses. Several emails were also
returned as being undeliverable.
If you were a member and haven’t
yet heard from us, please let us hear
from you.
If you don’t have email,
call one of us—or send a note to
Buncom Historical Society,
3232 Little Applegate,
Jacksonville, OR 97530
and we’ll figure something out.
We’re eager to hear from
you and to see you on May 28th.
Your Buncom Board:
Connie Fowler -541-899-7805
Carolyn Roberts
Steve & Priscilla Weaver
Lyn Hennion-541-899-7656
Frank & Sue Maesen
Spring 2011 5
DIRTY FINGERNAILS AND ALL
Letting go of perfect
By sioux roGErs
What is perfect? Well, certainly not
my fingernails, toenails or my dry worn
out hair-do. So go figure, why am I so
neurotic about having a perfect garden?
Oh, I know… it’s my husband’s fault!
Now that this is clear and out of the way,
what really is a neurotic garden or rather
a psychotic gardener? Do you think never
ever have a bare piece of earth showing is
a bit over the edge? Maybe hourly dead-
heading each and every single spent flower
head on a hot thirsty sunny day is crazy?
Or maybe it is my garden partner-in-
crime, i.e. hubby, being unable to walk
from here to there without kneeling down
and picking invisible weeds! I seem un-
able to accept compliments when anyone
is referring to the uninhibited rambling
beauty of our garden. A disclaimer such
as, “Yabit” (a shortened version of “yes
but”) is always my first response.
I think it is time for me to re-
evaluate my interpretation of “perfect.”
My garden will never be perfect as she is
a highly contagious reflection of myself.
Dandelions grow profusely, but this is
good, as you may remember—dandelions
are good to eat. Dandelions bring up
minerals from deep down in the garden
soil, like an elevator shipping cargo from
a secret cave up to the surface. Weeds
happen! Weeds are great reasons for my
husband to stretch and bend over. Weeds
are generally just a value judgment. “A
weed is a plant that has mastered every
survival skill except for learning how to
grow in rows.” (Doug Larson). Weeds are
good too A long time ago, our old, old,
old farmer friends ate purslane, dandelion,
lambs quarters, miner’s lettuce, yellow
dock, chickweed, land cress and sorrel.
Settle down now, as I know many of us still
do forage for edible weeds. I am actually
planting a European variety of dandelions
this year. Hubby is politely not giving his
opinion or advice for once.
Do you realize, speaking of weeds,
that some weeds planted around the pe-
riphery of a garden function as “trap crops”
for evil insects? For instance, if you have
leaf miners destroying your spinach, plant
lamb’s quarters nearby. On the other hand,
in order to invite some beneficial insects
into your garden, allow the Queen Anne’s
lace, evening primrose, wild mustard,
dandelion, and goldenrods to grow.
Another thing about weeds is they
actually give you an idea of the condi-
tion of your soil. Without getting too
fancy, here is a short list, without Latin
names. These plants like wet soil: Cattail,
horsetail, joe-pye weed, silvery cinquefoil,
mosses, tall buttercup, creeping buttercup,
May apple, sheep sorrel, thyme-leafed
speedwell, Canadian goldenrod, lance-
leaved goldenrod, meadow pink, jewel-
Weeds are great reasons for my
husband to stretch and bend over.
Weeds are generally just a value
judgment. “A weed is a plant that
has mastered every survival skill
except for learning how to grow in
rows.” (Doug Larson).
weed, coltsfoot, marsh mallow and sweet
flag. If you see any of these growing and
don’t want them, dry out your soil. Other
weeds, not to be mentioned at this time,
are indicators of acid, alkaline, sandy, dry,
or heavy low humus soil.
As Christopher Lloyd observed in
The Well-Tempered Garden (1973), “Many
gardeners will agree that hand-weeding is
not the terrible drudgery that it is often
made out to be. Some people find in it
a kind of soothing monotony. It leaves
their minds free to develop the plot for
their next novel or to perfect the brilliant
repartee with which they should have
encountered a relative’s latest example of
unreasonableness.”
Now back to “neurotic.” It is very
difficult to step back from this sulky and
time-wasting attitude. Best I can say or do
Sioux Rogers—And the beet goes on.
now is to appreciate the fact that I have a
very sore back and this might be the garden
gods telling me to let the garden fairies do
their own magic. Here are a few simple
new “rules.” Remove the plants, whatever
they may be, that are a hassle and too
demanding of your time. Plant only what
you love to look at or love to eat. Cement
walkways may just be the option you have
been looking for. (OMG, I can’t believe I
said that…but just maybe. On second
thought, I can just let the hubby be neu-
rotic and continue plucking his invisible
weeds. For me, I am going down the easy
path, that is container planting so I need
not worry about gophers; Then excessively
plant some vegetables so I won’t realize
I had a scanty crop. And repeat, “I will
not plant fussy small annuals.” The area
I hate to mow will become a patio, made
of broken cement. It will be wonderful!
So how does this tie together as
even a small worthwhile read? This is
mostly a philosophical moment. I have
so often reflected on the garden as being
intertwined in my life, my values, and my
standards. Being so tough on myself or
my garden or on anyone for that matter,
is wasted heartbeats. Both life and my
garden have the good, the bad and the
beautiful. Each is OK. And that is not
perfect, but okay. Let it go and just enjoy
the butterflies, the weeds and the bounty
of a messy garden. All is good.
Sioux Rogers • 541-846-7736
mumearth@dishmail.net