By Victoria Torley

 

There was a little plant, no more than five long leaves and as many roots, that needed to sit in a little hole in a piece of wood. Armando, my right-hand man, can’t-do-without-him, gardener/everything else, had just cut the wood exactly as I needed it. All that was left to do was make a hole in the already soft heartwood.


The drill was out to cut holes in the wood for wire, so I started drilling one hole, then another, and another, all at different angles and all to meet up finally to make a hole in the wood so I could stuff in some moss.


“What, exactly,” said a voice, “are you doing?”


Metric Man, the non-gardener in the family, was peering down at my numerous drill holes with a puzzled look.


“Making a nice little hole for plant roots.”


“You know there is a tool for that, right?”


I pulled some now loosened wood from the growing hole.


“To make holes? I thought drills made holes.”


He seemed amused. “There’s a tool that attaches to the drill to make larger holes.”


“Ahhh. Well, this hole is just the right size already.” I could almost hear him shake his head as he went back inside the house.

Okay, okay, so I didn’t know there was a tool to make holes. Even if there is, wouldn’t I still need to get the wood out? I mean, unless the tool was drill-shaped, wouldn’t the wood still be there? Did the different tool just cut a round hole or did it also pull out a plug of wood? So, I asked.

“It makes a round hole through boards.”

“Right.”

I went back outside to my work. What good is that kind of tool going to do me if I want a hollow spot in a solid piece of wood? Still, it’s nice to know that there is a tool for that if the need arises.

Most women are not creatures of tools. Women who garden know a variety of tools – different rakes, different shovels, all kinds of hand tools, we even know a hoe from a Dutch hoe, and many of us can use chain saws, but the people who know woodworking tools are, for some reason, usually woodworkers.

I could, I suppose, learn woodworking, and it is probably a useful skill, but that would take a lot of time from gardening and tends to be done inside. I think I will stick to gardening.

Although... maybe a bigger drill bit would speed things up.

Plant of the week. The fuchsia is a fantastic plant for color on the deck or patio; however, it is not fond of those things we have plenty of high heat, high humidity, and drought. This means you really need to keep it in a pot and make sure that it has the conditions it needs for growth. Fertilize your fuchsia monthly and pinch it back for shape and reblooming. Place it for morning sun and afternoon shade.

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Find more interesting stories about gardening in Costa Rica on the AM Costa Rica Garden Magazine. Questions on this article, Ms. Torley, gardener columnist, can be reached by emailing victoriatorley1@gmail.com
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