From Seed to Mighty Tree: The Joy and Beauty of Growing Mahogany Trees

The West Indian Sweet Mahogany also known as Swietenia Mahagoni is a tree species that is known for its use in furniture and health benefits. It produces brown fruit and seeds and has small green flowers. The tree can grow up to 34 meters and has a thick trunk. It is an endangered species.

In the video, I will be showing you two West Indian sweet mahogany trees growing in the garden. The first one has been growing for about a year or two and was mistaken for a five-fingered fruit tree. The second one is growing among Mexican sunflowers and was likely a gift from birds dropping seeds.

I am fortunate to have three West Indian sweet mahogany trees growing in the garden.  They are an endangered species, and I hope to keep them at a particular height to avoid crowding out other plants in the area.

Overall, the West Indian sweet mahogany is a unique and valuable tree species that offers many benefits to health as well as the environment. As gardeners, we can appreciate and nurture these trees, ensuring their survival for generations to come.  Check out the video above to be taken on the tour of the garden.

April Art Resource Hub

Check out the Artist Resource Hub for this month.

Every month in the Art Resource Hub you have access to Free Digital Downloads, Offers and Resources that are available for you to use in your creative projects.

I give away a free digital downloads for your art journals and creative projects.

Check out this months offering:

You get a sheet of A4 background paper and 4 tags for you to use in your creative projects.  You can add your own designs to them, add color, whatever inspires you.  I would love to see what you do with the papers, remember to tag me on Instagram @realityarts

 

A Garden of Imagination: Taking a Tour of the Creative March Garden

Check out my latest gardening video, I am excited to take you on a tour of the garden. Here are some highlights:

I currently have growing five papayas trees, one male and four female, but I am having some issues with slugs, snails, and even a monkey is taking bites out of the fruit  The male Papaya has a beautiful scent, and yellow flowers.

You will get to see some other plants in the garden, including, guinep, cassava, and five-fingered fruit. I am doing my best to keep them all healthy despite the challenges of the drier season and pests.  

The Suriname Cherry is in full bloom and looks gorgeous - I expect to see some fruit either later during the year or next year, and the mango tree has been flowering - so we should see some fruit in September, 

Despite the challenges and being on a budget there are so many lovely areas of the garden that helps you appreciate the work you put in.  

Join me in the video and stroll with me around the garden.

Crocheting Real Leaves for Eco-Friendly Crafts - Material Mondays

Come and join me in Material Mondays. Working with different materials can be a great way to experiment and try new skills. I never would have thought of combining the following elements - dried leaves and crochet. 

I worked on a couple of leaves to create different designs, I think one of my favorite one was the leaf with the center piece cut out.  It was the most tricky one to work on because of the size, but with perseverance and handling it really delicately I was able to do it.

I share with you in this video how you can add crochet to your dried leaves that you may have in your craft supplies. They look really pretty and along with slow stitching is a therapeutic activity that brings about calmness. Once complete I will be placing them in a frame to help preserve them.  I hope you enjoy, check out the previous Material Mondays video where I show you how I slow stitch on the leaves.

Let me know if it is something that you try, I would love to see what you do.