Gardeners share their innermost thoughts and feelings on
gardening.
Ann Cole, 37, of Newtown, Pennsylvania, says she feels a deep
and spiritual connection to her deceased parents when she gardens, "because
that is something that they enjoyed as well."
How did you first begin gardening? How long
have you been gardening? What motivated you to begin
gardening?
I began gardening when we bought this house just 2 years ago, so
I've only been gardening for 2 years. But for over a dozen years now, I've
been planning on what to plant, how I would manage the garden, that sort
of thing.
My step-mother had quite a prolific garden when I was teenager,
and before that, when I lived with my sister in law, she was a real back
to nature person. I still remember picking wild berries to make jellies and
jams and eating sun-warmed tomatoes off the vine.
What has gardening taught you about yourself?
Have you discovered parts of yourself through gardening?
Gardening has to be one of the most relaxing and enjoying
activities.
There is nothing like the sensation of digging in the dirt and then
2 weeks later, see some tiny leaf poke through the dirt.
Every time, and I mean EVERY time, something I've planted comes
up, my neighbors laugh at my "something I planted has come up" dance I do.
I swear I get as giddy as a school girl with a crush.
I've discovered that I LOVE being outside, that bugs don't bother
me, that getting dirty and muddy don't bother me, and that I love teaching
my kids (ages 3 and 5 1/2) the wonderful aspects of gardening.
I also feel a deep and spiritual connection to my parents who are
both dead when I garden because that is something that they enjoyed as
well.
For some, gardening is therapy. Is it like
this for you? If so, how?
I've always said that gardening is my therapy. Its very
satisfying.
You get to see the results of your work in a short period of time.
You can think of other things and sort problems out in your head while you
garden. Pulling weeds is a very mindless activity, although you must mind
what you are pulling, and its very soothing.
Also, its like part of that whole getting back to nature, getting
back to your roots thing.
What do you grow? Where do you garden? How
many acres do you plant?
Lets see, my veggie garden in the backyard is not very big but I
have quite an assortment of vegetables right now. Seven tomato plants (3
different types), 4 zucchini plants (2 different types), carrots (2 types),
6 bean bushes (2 types), fennel, scallions and leeks, broccoli, lettuce and
spinach (they've already been picked, its getting too hot for them), and
cucumber, and bell and jalapeno pepper plants (7 of them total). I think
that's about it for my veggies.
For flowers, I have a wild flower garden started on the north side
of the house with tons of butterfly and bird attracting species. I have a
tulip border and other bulb gardens scattered around the outside of the house.
And I am in the beginning stages of a rock garden in the front yard. Probably
a mix of bulb and wildflowers there.
What is your favorite thing to grow? Why is
this your favorite?
Definitely tomatoes and zucchini. Well, lettuce, too. I just love
tomatoes though. You can do so much with them. And I love giving my friends
and neighbors my extra produce.
There is something so satisfying about picking a sun-warmed tomato
right off the vine and then giving it to a neighbor while its still warm.
I like that. It's nice.
What steps do you take to get your garden
ready every year? How do you plan out the garden? Get your soil
ready?
Well, last fall I did a cover crop of rye grass. Won't do that
again.
Too difficult to turn it in the spring. This year, I'm going to
try fall spinach, lettuce and broccoli, so I'll probably just cover the garden
soil with hay to prevent erosion.
In the spring, we mix in all of our compost pile (which is usually
pretty big), and the largest bag of peat moss (we have very clay soil), and
then we double dig. I've heard that rototilling is actually very detrimental
to the ecosystem of the soil, so we take the extra effort of double digging
with a shovel.
More work, but I tell you, my garden is doing GREAT this
year.
What advice do you have for those who want
to start gardening?
Plant what you love to eat the first year; then begin to experiment
with other veggies the second and thereafter. Always have a good friend who
loves to garden on speed dial.
Do you ever garden with others? If so, how
does it impact your relationships?
I have some new friends who love to garden and it gives us something
in common. My step mother, who no longer gardens, enjoys talking about my
efforts, and that has made us closer.
What are the joys of
gardening?
Other than the therapy, the joy, the satisfaction? Gee, I don't
know.
How about the wonderful feeling of accomplishment when you get your
entire garden planted and the little seedlings poke through reaching for
the sun. Now that's nice.
What mistakes have you made with your
garden?
I didn't take my cucumber beetles seriously last year. They destroyed
my pumpkins and my cucumber plants. Also, this year, I did rows instead of
plots. Next year I'm doing plots again. It works better for picking, maintenance
and weeding.
Is gardening a spiritual endeavor for you?
If so, how?
Definitely, I feel closer to mother nature and my parents through
gardening. It's can really fill the soul with satisfaction.
What books, television programs, videos, magazines
have helped you learn about gardening?
Oh yeah, for a beginner gardener, they must, AND I MEAN MUST, have
the Organic Gardening magazine. They have an almanac which helps with planning,
great articles on trouble shooting, and they have a wonderful and essential
sense of humor. Plus, they are devoted to saving the sensitive ecosystem
we live in through biological controls. NO CHEMICALS. You gotta love
it.
What challenges does your garden give
you?
Bugs. Before we left on vacation about 4 weeks ago, I was outside
everyevening, knocking slugs off my broccoli and snipping them in half with
scissors. You have to love your garden to do that, don't ya? I'd say that
was a challenge.
How do you handle insects and other animals
that might interfere with your garden?
See the slug story in earlier question. I do biological control.
Things like beneficial nematodes, lady bugs, parasitic wasps, frogs,
etc.
What have you discovered improves the quality
of your garden?
Compost and love.
Does your garden have a theme? A name? Is
it symbolic of something?
Theme? Dinner. Name? Mine. Symbolic? Woman's love for
nature?
How much time do you spend on your garden
each day, or week, or month?
I'd say in the beginning I spent an average of 2 to 4 hours a week
turning, weeding and initial plantings. Of course, you realize I spent all
winter drawing diagrams and filling out order forms for this garden. After
the initial plantings are done, I just weed and pick, weed and pick. Oh yeah,
and mulch. But not much. About 1 hour a week now. If that -- my garden is
really low maintenance.
What do you think about while you are
gardening?
Everything. But mostly, I think about what I will and will not do
or plant next year. |
