The First Planting [Solo Job Thread]

[Asha]

Time stamp: Spring 80, 512


The first fingers of dawn were stretching through the longhouse entrance when Asha was roused awake with a rough shake. Opening bleary eyes, she was confronted with the stern face of Mogg. The head gardener roused her most mornings far earlier then she would naturally wake and she had long ago ceased to be startled by the early morning wake-ups. Mogg retreated a few steps as Asha silently rose and stretched her arms before standing. Others were still sleeping soundly in the nearby bunks and the two respectfully kept their silence until they were a few strides away from the longhouse and its dozing occupants.

“Winter finally broke its hold. I think it is warm enough to try and put some plants in the ground without too much fear of the roots freezing.” Mogg stated as they walked. He never started the day with a good morning or any of the other customary small talk he always got right to the point. It was an attribute Asha had grown to respect. As he mentioned the finally changing weather Asha noticed the lack of chill in the air. Winter had kept a strong hold in Taldera late into the spring season and even the hardy native plants had been stunted in their growth. Not to mention the delicate non-native annual plants brought in for eating and medicinal purposes; every one of the delicate plants had frozen and died in the ground. As Asha walked she listened to nature wake up and exult in spring’s belated birth, all creatures seemed to have decided that today was the day it happened. Asha smiled as the songbirds trumpeted gloriously in the trees and the rustle in the woods as spring mothers brought their babes out to witness their first taste of tangy spring air. It had been a long torturous battle between winter and spring, but spring had finally overcome and the cycle of rebirth had begun again.

“What are we starting with?” Asha inquired.

“Well I’ve got all those little pots of plants that were shipped in from Zeltiva herbalists that I think we should get to first. I want you to dig up the sod around the Injury Ward and mix in some compost with the soil. Then we can plant the herbs around there. The Injury Ward is always first priority.” Mogg answered and Asha nodded in agreement. Two weeks prior a kind but unthinking group of herbalists from Zeltiva had donated a small cache of potted herbs to the Spires. The kindness had been duly noted, but Mogg and Asha had worked tirelessly to keep the delicate plants alive in the chill. They had lost a few but most of the stock had managed to survive. Mogg turned his head towards Asha before adding, “And we will have to make a small rock border around the plants as well. None of them are native to our region and I don’t want them growing out of control and getting introduced into our environment. Not that they would last very long, but it’s still just not a good idea. You will have to keep a close eye on them every morning for any signs of spreading beyond the rock border.”

[Asha]

Asha nodded as they came to a stop beside the Injury Ward. The well-worn shovel Asha had come to know so well was already leaning against the side of the Ward. Asha listened patiently as Mogg outlined exactly where she ought to dig and create the herb bed. With a mumbled excuse of other tasks to attend to, Mogg left Asha to finish her work alone. Asha had come to enjoy her daily labors of solitude. It was a peaceful and gratifying experience.

Asha picked up her shovel and dug it into the earth. It crunched through thick webs of grass roots that made levering the shovel up more than a little difficult. The grass around the Injury Ward was thick and long, digging it up to expose the rich black dirt beneath was not going to be an easy task Asha quickly realized. The grass in this area had not been disturbed in ages. Most plants in the Spires had not; it was against the Jamoura natures and laws to disturb them. But with no easily accessible garden beds choices had to be made and residents had to be cared for. Asha dug her shovel into the ground again and again with heavy sighs of exertion. After she had flipped over a few large clods of grass she gathered them up into a small pile. They would be eventually added to Mogg’s wealth of compost to feed other plants, nothing would go to waste. That was the Jamoura way after all.

Two bells passed as Asha diligently turned up the grass with her shovel. A long and narrow patch of brownness stood out against the edge of the Injury Ward, the dirt was moist and rich beneath. As Asha stepped back to survey her work she leaned heavily on the shovel, her breathing slightly ragged from the laborious work. The mound of dirt and grass clods at her feet had grown into a sizeable pile. Mogg would be pleased with the new compost ingredients. Asha took a few chimes to let her breathing return to normal before seeing to her next task of bringing compost over to mix with the newly expose dirt. With her shovel swung over her right shoulder, the Jamoura woman began the walk to the compost bins. They were only a small distance from the camp, near enough for safety but far enough to keep the smell of rotting plant matter away from the more prickly camp members.

Several bins made of interlocking branches fallen from storms held the compost Mogg was so proud of. The mixtures had progressed well since Asha had first put them together at Mogg’s instructions. Asha dragged the barrel to the first bin and set aside the rocks and woven grass mat that was its lid. The smell that rose up used to bother her, but now Asha enjoyed the rich and lively smell of decay. It was a good sort of decay, the sort of decay that renewed life instead of the stench of rot. Asha used her shovel to fill the barrel half full before replacing the woven mat and rock to keep the warm compost insulated so it would continue to break down plant matter. The weeks that had passed since Asha created the compost had done much to turn a bunch of plants and organic rubbish into moist, black richness. There were still a few bits that had not fully degraded; a piece of eggshell here, a bit of grass over there, but it had progressed well overall and both Mogg and his pupil were proud of their work.

[Asha]

Asha stuck her shovel deep into the barrel so it would not fall out before grasping the round wooden object firmly in her arms. With a small grunt she lifted it and carried it quickly back to the new Injury Ward plant bed. With her shovel, Asha spread the compost evenly across the top of the exposed brown dirt, pleased as the brown strip slowly became a moist black expanse. As soon as she finished emptying the barrel she tossed the clods of grass into it to be brought back to the composting area later. Asha dropped to her knees and dug her hands into the compost and dirt, watching as her thick, black fingers disappeared into the black mixture. She kneaded the ground roughly, working to mix the compost and the top layer of soil together. Another bell passed as she worked, soil and compost making its way deep under her nails and into the fur on top of her hands. She didn’t mind being dirty, it felt natural and pleasant to have the earth crusted onto her limbs.

Standing and clapping the dirt from her massive hands she smiled at the loose top soil mixture she had created. Now it was perfect and ready for planting. Asha headed towards the longhouse Mogg stayed in and kept the potted herbs. She strayed briefly from her journey to thirstily suck at a bucket of fresh rain water. It rained often enough in the Spires that there was little fear of the water being stagnant. Asha gathered up an armful of the little clay pots, a dozen or so fitting easily in her long grasp. As she returned to the garden bed Asha hummed a few notes she heard the local finches singing, the natural songs being more beautiful and brilliant to her then any man-made tune. She gently set the pots down on the ground near the garden bed and plopped down beside them. Asha dug a small hole in the loose top soil with her hand before working carefully to extract the first small plant and root system out of a pot. Gently, she loosened the root system with the tips of her fingers before placing the plant in the hole and smoothing dirt around it until it was fully covered. Asha planted each plant in a similar manner. She recognized some of the plants from her mother’s instructions: lemon balm, arnica, and bloodwort. But many of the plants were from distant regions she was unfamiliar with, and the plants were equally as unfamiliar to her.

Asha worked for half a bell planting the little herbs and then retrieved the last dozen to plant those for another bell. The finished product seemed sparse, the plants were distanced far apart as Mogg had instructed. But he had also explained that the plants would spread some and fill out, soon enough the herb bed would be overflowing. The rock border was the last thing Asha had to concern herself with before calling the project complete. A hundred feet into the woods behind the Mess Hall was a pile of rocks from when the longhouses had been built and the ground had been picked clean of rocks so it was smooth enough for comfort and sleep. Asha picked carefully through the pile for smooth rocks roughly the size of her fist, adequate for making borders in her opinion. Carrying each armful back she carefully laid the rocks down on the edge of the loose top soil, pressing them down gently so they wouldn’t be kicked away. By the time Asha completed her task, the sun was high in the sky and Mogg returned to check to her progress.

“It doesn’t look half bad. Well, good job I suppose. Take the dug up grass back to the compost bins and take a little lunch break for yourself. This evening we will begin plantings for the Mess Hall. Kashal has been after me for days to get some herbs planted so she can season her dishes. We don’t want to keep her waiting.” Mogg said and patted Asha lightly on the shoulder to signal his approval. Asha grinned and nodded. Mogg was sparse with compliments so when he gave them she knew she deserved them. She was getting tired from her days work, but some lunch would return her flagging energy she knew. Mogg trundled off as Asha grabbed the barrel of grass clods and began the trek back to the compost bins.

[Creeper]

Skills Observation: 1 Interrogation: 1 Gardening: 3 Bodybuilding: 1 Singing: 1 Botany: 1   Lores Gardening: Using Rocks to Prevent Excess Growth Finch Songs (Spires)   Other None I like your gardening threads, though I would like to see more attention to details of the plants themselves, describing them, learning them, etc. Well done