Want expert advice?
This is the wrong post for you!
But...if you'd like to come along for a ride with my sister and I on the start of our gardening journeys in two different countries, then...Buckle up baby! This might be a bumpy ride, but you might
enjoy it.
My sister just wrote a great post "7 Lessons You'll Learn as a Beginning Gardener" that you can read here!
Her questions that I am responding to in this post:
"What about you?
Are you a new gardener, too? What lessons have you learned so far?
Or are you an experienced gardener with many lessons learned that you are willing to share?
Please leave your comments below or respond with your own blog post response (just make sure you provide a link in my comments, so I can read it)."
A Summary of My Experiences
Oh, I most definitely fit into that first category! Not an expert whatsoever. In fact, if you had told me a few years ago that I would be writing a blog post on gardening, I would think you were crazy.
But here I am...
Quite honestly, for years I thought that some people were gifted with a "green thumb" while I was cursed with the hands of death! I even tried those "impossible to kill" plants...Nope...The serial plant killer strikes again!! Unless it's fake, it can in fact die. Sorry! It was an accident. I promise.
I've always loved gardens and being outdoors. As a kid-during the times we lived in the country or had any green space- I was often running around barefoot foraging for blackberries, honeysuckles, and "sour flowers" and searching through the woods or brush for a clearing to declare a "clubhouse" or "fort". (Usually, I was in the company of a pack of dogs and siblings.) Sometimes we had a few plants or a garden, and I had helped on the farms of my friends' families. My childhood wasn't all roses, but I did have some fun.
The older I got, the more I had to stay indoors. There was more homework to complete, chores to be done, work to go to, etc., etc.
That childhood connection to nature was probably what sparked my interest in gardening after I had "Little Man". Having my son also meant a huge transition for me, from working full time-often multiple jobs- to staying home to care for him.
Our gardening journey started off with little experiments while my son was still a baby. A bean sprout and an avocado growing in the window that we checked on each day. A pot of mint. A little aloe vera...We were living next door to my husband's grandmother on their beautiful family farm. Now, "Nana" and "Papaw" are truly the experts you would want to talk to! (Note to self: The next time we visit, I should make some recordings of our gardening conversations.) They were a great source of inspiration and knowledge in this.
An old photo of an aloe vera plant and flowers Nana had given to me when we lived next door. So sad I couldn't take it with us!
Well, then my husband's job moved us to a desert plateau in the middle-of-nowhere and far from that family farm with it's lush green hills. You could look out for miles at nothing but sand, sagebrush, and the sky. The winds were strong. The climate had extremes. Still, my son and I were determined to plant something. We didn't grow much in the short time that we were there. Little Man did grow some strawberries and happily gobbled them up as soon I decided one was red enough.
In this photo you can see the mountains which were pretty far away simply because there wasn't much in between.
Then, we moved again. This time it was overseas to a country known for its rain and gardens. I have really fallen in love with it here! We live in a city neighborhood, but most people around us are growing little gardens-some even full vegetable gardens. There are green spaces everywhere. There's a farmer's market within walking distance twice a week. Everywhere I go there is inspiration to grow my own garden and expert gardeners to offer great advice. Our home's garden has a small lawn edged with various plants that were started before we arrived. Among those plants, there is: a lot of mint, a large bush of rosemary, chives, bamboo, flowers, and shrubs. My son and I are growing: lemon balm, sage, 3 types of lavender, strawberries, tomatoes, courgettes/zucchini, bell peppers, spaghetti squash, lettuce, a succulent, and some flowers. So far, it's going really well! The biggest challenges we've had so far: keeping up with the weeds, pests, and attempts to fix the lawn.
Little Man's Favorite Plant: Strawberries!
Lettuce and spaghetti squash. Something went wrong w/ the squash plant as you can see by the leaf, but it's better now.
Sage: Add a bundle to your campfire. Helps keep mosquitoes away!
The lavender plant the bees seem to love the most. Little Man and I love watching them work.
I don't know what's going wrong with this one in the past week or so. It's suddenly looking sick and has this white foam stuff on it. I've also noticed some sort of beetles all over it...Yeah, I know...Great description. Maybe I should ask my neighbor. She's an amazing gardener! (And now you see some of my lawn issues as well. We're trying lots of different things.)
A beautiful flowering bush is in my garden too! The purple pops of color really liven up that corner.
My 7 Gardening Tips:
Tip # 1: Seek out experienced gardeners, especially those from older generations. If you have a relative or neighbor who is a good gardener, learn as much as you possibly can from them! Ask if you can work alongside them. Record some of their tips. Or ask if they can help save some of your dying plants.
Tip # 2: Visit a beautiful garden or plant nursery or take a class to find inspiration! It helps you visualize what you're working towards.
Tip #3: If you have a child, involve him/her! Get them excited about it, and they likely will not let you forget to tend to your gardening. If he/she is still a baby, bring them outside with you at least some of the time to be next to you while you work. If they're a toddler, I recommend getting them a plant-like a strawberry plant at first that is already growing well that they can help take care of and eat the fruit when it's ready. As they get older, gradually let them do more, and buy them their own supplies that really work. Little Man has his own gardening gloves and tools and loves to water or help with whatever I'm doing. Time in nature-away from screens!-is an actual need for humans, especially children!
(Book recommendation: Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv)
(Book recommendation: Last Child in the Woods by Richard Louv)
(Found this image on Google Images to show you what it looks like. Not my photo!)
Tip #4: Read up, but don't get overwhelmed! (Kids' books with lots of pictures might work well for newbies.) Gardening requires getting a little dirt on yourself and to learn by doing. Like my sister said, just jump in and do it!
Tip #5: Try to really be "in the moment" and "harvest virtues" from your garden. (Stick with me a second!) It can be a way to relieve your stress and give you a dose of "happy chemicals" and vitamins. Breathe in the cleaner air your plants are producing. Soak in the sunshine and vitamin D it provides. Focus. Pray. Sing. Hack at the earth instead of that person that is driving you crazy...Wait, what?...Really though, it can be a great daily practice in patience, perseverance, forgiveness, self-discipline,...the list goes on...for you and your family.
Tip #6: It doesn't have to be expensive! You can propagate plants from cuttings (search Google or Pinterest). Get gardening supplies from charity shops, yard sales, newspaper ads, or used goods websites (like Facebook yard sale pages or Craigslist) for little to no money.
Tip #7: Don't give up! Sadly, I'll probably (accidently!) kill more plants along my journey, but I'm also learning a lot more even through that and getting better too. Keep digging. Keep watering. Keep on weeding. Watch your plants grow and bloom!
Q & A Time
Answer the questions my sister posted.
Share your own tips or response blog post. (Make sure to drop a link in the comments if you do!)
Leave a comment. Share with your friends and family.
~LadyH
A Baha'i Prayer for Children:
"O God! Educate these children. These children are the plants of Thine orchard, the flowers of Thy meadow, the roses of Thy garden. Let Thy rain fall upon them; let the Sun of Reality shine upon them with Thy love. Let Thy breeze refresh them in order that they may be trained, grow and develop, and appear in the utmost beauty. Thou art the Giver. Thou art the Compassionate." -‘Abdu’l-Bahá
