Gilberties Herb Farm and Garden Center in Westport, CT, hosted us for an introductory talk.
The manager, Carrie Gilbertie and her sister Heather, told us about a wonderful tree that great-grandfather Gilbertie brought over from Italy as a little slip in a pot. This tree belonged to great-grandmother Gilbertie…it was ‘hers.’
Carrie explained that Great-grandma Gilbertie was very protective of the tree and its lemons. Sadly, she passed away about 5 years ago in her 90′s…but to this day, if anyone wants a lemon, here’s what they do:
They approach the tree with reverence and think about “Nona.” They ask the tree for permission to have a lemon. Then, they go away for about :20 minutes. When they come back, there is a lemon on the ground, under the tree waiting for them.
This, to me, shows the power of respect for trees and the value of asking them for permission.
Carrie said that the tree was showing signs of weakness, so I did my healing work with it. One of the interesting things that came up was that the tree wanted to be more of a showpiece. After all, it said it was 105 years old.
So, Carrie and Heather started immediately moving things away in the greenhouse so that the tree could be easily seen. And, they made plans to put the tree on the herb garden tour.
Sal Gilbertie, 3rd generation owner, told us the story about how expensive it was to refurbish the greenhouse that the Lemon Tree lives in…but that he HAD to do it because he loves this 105 year old wise tree and Nona, his grandmother, loved the tree.
After holistic energy-healing treatment, it felt like the tree was trying to stand taller. Well, of course. It had to now be the showpiece of the garden center.
