Plant Diaries (Day 33) 25 July 2013

Big things have since happened, sectors have been breached, people have switched sides, there are spies everywhere, who can you trust.  As more land is claimed and space becomes a commodity, the laws that govern the pot-society have broken down, and chaos reigns supreme.  CNN is calling it the Arab Spring in winter and the Arabs are calling it the CNN in the summertime. 








Parsley has become the new superpower, commanding the greatest territory and yielding the most influence.  It's really 'what parsley says goes' at the moment.  Parsley giveth the sun and so too doth Parsley taketh away.  With its towering stalks, higher than all those around it, it is he alone who manipulates which of the other members will receive sun and who will lie in shade.  Sun to the herbs and vegetables of the pot is like Mariah Carey to the pop world - vital.  So he who controls the sun controls Mariah Carey.

As always the accompaniment to ever-increasing power, is that ugly little cousin with the hairy lip - paranoia.  Parsley has become wary of the others and knows that it must have ears close to the ground and has thus 'planted' (lol) itself in strategic places among the other sectors, Parsley can now be found mingling among the marjoram, gossiping with the spinach and talking turkey with the peppers.  They have infiltrated every part of society and are now threatening to speard their ideals and beliefs on all those they come into contact with.  Is it too late to stop?  If the Parsley is left to its own devices,  soon all the inhabitants will be some half-cast breed. Pinach, Parjoram, and Peppersley.

The Parsley forest too holds much mystery and rumours are spreading that dissident herbs are being hidden in its thicket.

I must admittedly take some of the blame.  What Sipho (the wise) forgot to mention, and what I have now learnt, only through the error of my ways, is a fundamental principle of planting.  Where one lays ones seeds, so will be the place where those seed shall grow.  This has far-reaching implications for the strict demarcated society which plants require to meet their full potential.  I.e. if, during at the end of planting, you nonchalantly sprinkle the remaining seeds from your hand (all over the pot), it will in all likelihood mean that you have that plant growing all over the pot.  While, not proven, this is my theory, and lies subject to the obvious alternative, where Parsley has advanced to such a stage that they have colluded, formed groups, read/seen historical films about Vietnam, dug tunnels under the soil and sprung up in carefully picked places, ready to wreck havoc on the peaceful citizens.

For now however, there is an albeit uneasy truce which has settled.  The tension is thick in the air, but as we must all do in such uncertain times, everyone continues living their lives, growing, being green and finding nutrients from the soil.

Marjoram did not continue with the early pace-setting and has since mellowed in its growth, both in length and girth.  Looking rather patchy in places, I planted all of the remaining seeds, which too have now started to grow.  Hopefully marjoram will have a far healthier and thicker bush in future entries.

Spinach remains steady and is now up to 4 stalks (which is weird, as I only planted two seeds).  The leaves are growing nicely and its is refreshing to see a different, ruby-red hue around all the greenery. 

Piquante pepper has always been the black sheep of the family and continues to question the conservative ideals of the society in which it finds itself.  After initially refusing to grow at all, it has now taken up cross-dressing, trying to impersonate Parsley.  While I know at least two of the plants are peppers, I cannot tell which one they are.  Hopefully it is just a phase that it will 'grow' (second lol) out of.

While the balance appears in tact for now, there is an uncertain feeling among those surveyed.  6/10 herbs feel unsafe in their own sector and 8/13 feel that  black is the new beige.  What does it all mean?  What are they trying to say?  Really, the new beige?