Park Seed Garden Journal

Tink here. Let's go to the movies!

Recently watched the beautiful stop-motion movie Coraline, based on Neil Gaiman's novel of the same name and directed by Henry Selick.

First off, I love the idea that Coraline's parents were too busy writing a gardening catalog to have time for gardening! Well that just sounds all sorts of familiar, plus I genuinely enjoyed the fun little touches from the "I ♥ Mulch" poster in the garden shop to the fact that her mother doesn't like dirt.

The movie's tagline is "Be careful what you wish for." It's the story of a little girl's adventure into a world that's similar her own, albeit a far more beautiful (and dangerous) version.

I reveled at the level of detail taken by stop-motion filmmakers with 12" puppets and miniature wardrobes and props, animating one painstaking frame at a time.

The Fantastic Garden is a breathtaking scene, in which plants and critters (and even plant-critters) come to life to welcome Coraline in the night. Pink rhododendrons burst into bloom before her eyes, bleeding hearts pulse and glow, snap dragons reach out and tickle, and blue, spoon-petaled osteospermum light up in waves across a garden that is shaped like her face.

To animate the garden coming to life, complicated sets were built where wires could be pushed up from underneath the flowerbeds to make the miniature-scale plants grow and bloom. Fiber optics were incorporated, so as the night garden awakens it literally glows with light.

Moss and creepers grow across the path, but this segment was actually filmed backwards. A complete piece of "creeper" was laid out on the stones, then they cut it back, bit by bit, and curled up the edges.  In forward motion it appears to unfurl and grow while Coraline runs up the path.

Dozens of sets, a hundred people, and countless hours were taken on just the garden sequences alone, and it certainly made me appreciate just going out to the garden and planting a seed.  I'm quite certain I don't have the patience for stop-motion animation but I will try to have more patience with myself and my garden.

(I am getting some crazy ideas about stop-motion photos of plants growing… Stay tuned?)

P.S. The cherry blossoms in the trees are actually made of popcorn.

Along with several other reputable companies, Park Seed has been the victim of a check fraud scheme that put our company name on fake checks sent out across the country. The offer varies: letters refer to secret shopper programs, stimulus funds, home improvement grants, or lottery winnings. Regardless of the story, though, the common thread is that Park Seed Company was not involved with your receiving these fraudulent materials.

Please rest assured this has nothing to do with the integrity of our system and website security. These checks are being sent to random consumers, some of whom happen to be our valued customers. If you are a customer of Park Seed, know that your personal information has not been disclosed. Our company’s name has simply been used on a check without our knowledge or authorization, and we want to help protect you.

If you have received an unsolicited sizable check from a third-party payable from Park Seed:

Do not attempt to cash this check. We ask first that you report this activity to your local law enforcement. We are currently working with Federal investigators to find the criminals who are defrauding businesses and the American public. We also ask that you mail the check, letter and envelope to us at the address below so we can give them to the authorities for use in their investigation. Your help and cooperation are very much appreciated.

Attn: Check Scam

Park Seed Company

1 Parkton Avenue

Greenwood, SC 29647


Be suspicious of:

• Checks or awards for which you did not apply–legitimate organizations can provide documentation showing how you entered the competition
• Award notifications via phone, email, or regular mail–legitimate notifications arrive via certified mail
• Any prize or grant award that requires you to pay fees or taxes before you get your cash; legitimate prizes and grants don't come with strings attached, and taxes are always paid directly by the winner to the government
• Offers that seem too good to be true–they usually are!

A couple of good sites:

• Consumer Fraud Reporting: http://www.consumerfraudreporting.org/checkcashingscams.php
• Federal Trade Commission: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre40.shtm
• National Consumer's League: http://www.fraud.org/tips/internet/fakecheck.htm

We've mentioned them before: the
gardens
grown during WWI and WWII intended to loosen the demand on the public
food supply. They have recently become popular again – with the
economic slump budgets are tightening all over the country. People are
realizing that growing your own food is a great way to save a
noticeable amount of money every month.

I found this video (below) created by the US Department of Agriculture
promoting the idea of Victory Gardens in the 40s. Even though this is
an old idea,
there are many modern benefits to growing your own food.

• Saving money is probably as popular now as it ever was.
• Growing
  your own food is inherently good for the environment: less packaging,
  lower impact on ecosystems, and, if you are an organic gardener, your
  practices will be much cleaner than many commercial farms.
• It's safer – you will never have to worry about food recalls
  or guess at how your food is being treated before it gets to your table.