Agriculture

When Elena was a child she helped her mother with a cottage garden containing not only flowers but also healthful herbs and vegetables. There was never a feeling of lack during those early years because Elena's mother spent most of her time in the garden, day after day, nurturing her plants, showing Elena what they were and telling how to use them. There was always enough. Whatever they couldn't grow, Elena's father got during his weekly trips to Santa Cruz.

Later when she was living in the commune she worked in the fields. They grew three acres each of squash and strawberries. The squash were of several varieties including pumpkins, but the strawberries were all the same. Women of the commune did most of the cultivation and men took care of farm animals and took crops to Santa Cruz to trade for other foods and supplies.

In San Francisco Elena is mainly a consumer rather than producer. Her job is service (waiting tables, cooking, cleaning) at the hotel. She has to beg Marisol for permission to plant a small herb garden behind the hotel. Marisol doesn't think much of that and openly smirks whenever Elena takes a walk and comes home with a handful of wild flowers.