Peace Found on a Butterfly's Wings
Hello, everyone,
Welcome back to another week of growing, learning, and finding meaning in the garden. This week we're talking about getting warm-season plants in the ground before the heat arrives, and sitting with a thought about peace — something I think we could all use a little more of right now.
You'll notice over the coming weeks that the newsletter is going to be a bit shorter than usual. As I head into a busy summer season, I'm simplifying my weekend workload — but the heart of it stays the same.
And speaking of adding heart to it: do you like to write? If any of you are interested in contributing your voice to the newsletter, I'd love to have you. Shoot me an email or let me know in class — I've got the space!
This just in: the Monday evening livestream has a new name! The Garden Hangout (formerly the Garden Office Hour) is the same as always — just renamed to avoid any confusion. To be clear, it's not mandatory or an official part of class at Mt. SAC. It's something extra I put on as a chance to share what I'm working on and spend a little more time with all of you each week. Join me Monday evening here: Garden Hangout Livestream
For Students
Regenerative Gardening
We're heading into Week 12 this week, and our topic is one of my favorites: Integrated Pest Management, Part 1. IPM is the scientific, ecosystem-based approach to preventing and dealing with garden pests — and it connects beautifully to Principle #6 of the Eight Principles of Regenerative Gardening: "Consider nature as the model."
Come ready to engage. We'll be doing a group discussion where you'll take a picture of a pest you've found in your garden, share it with your small group, and together identify what everyone is dealing with. Your group will pick one pest to share with the whole class. It's a great excuse to actually go poke around your garden this week and see what's living there.
Fundamentals of Sustainability
This week we're covering Environmental Ethics and Ecojustice — one of the most important and thought-provoking topics in the course. We'll be examining the ethical responsibilities we hold toward the environment and toward the communities most affected by environmental decisions. That means looking honestly at how pollution, resource access, and sustainability efforts don't affect everyone equally.
Videos from This Week's Classes
Regenerative Gardening — Week 11
Fundamentals of Sustainability — Week 11
Community News
I'll be tabling at the LA County Fair on behalf of my nonprofit on Sunday, May 10th and Sunday, May 24th — you'll find me out in the farm area. If you're heading to the fair either of those days, please come by and say hello! I'd love to see some familiar faces out there.
In the Garden
Plant Now — Before the Heat Arrives
May is still a genuinely good planting month in Southern California, but it won't stay that way for long. Once the heat sets in — and it will — newly planted starts struggle to establish, soil moisture evaporates faster than roots can chase it, and what should be an exciting new addition to the garden becomes a battle for survival. The window is open right now. Use it.
If you've been meaning to get warm-season vegetables, herbs, or flowers in the ground, this is your nudge. Here's what can go in now:
Vegetables & Edibles
Tomatoes
Peppers
Squash and zucchini
Cucumbers
Beans (pole and bush)
Basil
Sweet potatoes
Corn
Melons (if you have the space)
Eggplant
Flowers
Zinnias
Sunflowers
Marigolds
Portulaca
Celosia
Alyssum
Cosmos
No in-ground space? Containers work beautifully for most of these. I'm actually in that exact situation right now — all my in-ground spots are full, but I've got a few extra tomato and pepper starts that still need a home. They're going into pots this week. No shame in it. Some of my best harvests have come out of containers.
Get something in the ground — or in a pot — before summer settles in and makes everything harder.
Thought of the Week
There is so much conflict in the world right now. So much noise, so much pain, so much bad news. I find myself thinking about peace often — not as a distant political ideal, but as something personal. Something we each carry, or choose not to.
I've been sitting with this idea: trying to create a peaceful world through war is like trying to refill a reservoir by draining it faster. The logic doesn't hold.
I don't envy world leaders. The decisions they face are genuinely complicated. But I also believe — deeply — that the responsibility for peace doesn't begin and end with governments and leaders. It starts with us. With the small, quiet choices we make every day about how we show up in the world.
This is where the butterfly effect comes in. The idea that the beating of a single butterfly's wings can, through an unimaginable chain of events, influence a storm on the other side of the world. Most of us will never see the full reach of our actions. We won't know which child learned from our example and grew up to lead with compassion. We won't know whose heart shifted because of a kind word, a patient response, a moment of grace we offered without thinking twice.
But that doesn't mean it isn't happening.
I believe the only true road to peace is paved with peaceful actions. With love, and with kindness — practiced not just in the big moments, but in the ordinary ones. In how we speak to each other. In how we respond when we're frustrated. In what we choose to put out into the world, even when no one is watching.
Peace found on a butterfly's wings. It's quieter than a storm. But it travels just as far.
Thanks for reading. See you next Sunday.
