Genre
Garden & Country
15 stories, newest first
About this shelf
Country stories follow women who work with land and living things: orchards, market gardens, family farms, a few acres they refuse to sell. They know who planted what and when, so they notice when a boundary has moved or a field has changed hands on paper. The disputes are the kind rural life is full of, over deeds, water rights and family land. Nobody forgets a boundary.
My Son Said Dad Wanted Our Farm Turned Wild. At His Groundbreaking, I Asked Him to Show Everyone Where.
My Son Said We Had to Sell Our Farm to Cover His Father's Debts. At the Gate, I Showed Him the Debtor's Mark.
My Husband Said He Was Too Sick to Keep Our Farm. At the Lawyer's Office, I Showed Everyone the $8,000 Machine He Just Bought.
My new boyfriend's son said I was losing my touch with my bees. The proof he was the liar was in a single drop of honey.
"Dad's not safe on his own anymore," my son told me. I asked our old foreman to join us at the lawyer's office.
My Son Told the Whole Neighborhood I Was Losing My Mind. He Forgot I Knew How My Own Garden Was Watered.
"It's Just a Ditch, Martha," My Neighbor Said. He Forgot My Husband Photographed Every Fence Post for 40 Years.
My Husband Claimed Our Farm Was Failing to Hide His Secret Payments. At the Harvest Dinner, I Handed Him the Loan Default Notice.
My Rival Tried to Take Our Community Garden by Poisoning the Soil. He Didn't Know I'd Been Testing the Compost for 20 Years.
My Brother Tried to Sell Our Ranch's Prime Riverfront to a Cash Buyer. He Forgot What Our Father Filed With the Land Trust.
"It's a hobby, not a business," my husband said about my apiary. He didn't know I'd already spoken to his brother in Boston.
My Husband Said the Deed Was for 'Estate Planning'. At Our 45th Anniversary Party, I Asked Him About the Solar Company.