I Started a Garden
I am from the South, and my entire life I have been surrounded by people with beautiful gardens. Some have flowers, some herbs and vegetables, but they are stunning nonetheless.
The women in my life were no exception to this, and my aunt still has one of the most beautifully manicured and landscaped yards of anyone I know. My granny takes immense pride in her small flower garden, and her roses have lived longer than I have, and moved just about as many times. My mother had a wonderful vegetable garden when we were younger, and I can still remember her bringing in tomatoes from outside to eat for dinner that night. These women can garden, and I spent almost 30 years believing I could not.
I never enjoyed helping my mom outside, and never really understood the pleasure in sweating to death while simultaneously being covered in dirt. I was 24 before I even purchased my first living plant, and I forgot it at home when I moved to Cookeville, so it died.
Since that time I have purchased various succulents, and I have even attempted to grow herbs more than once. Unfortunately, I have absolutely NEVER been successful. Each succulent has died, and if the herbs started from seeds they never sprouted, and the plants died before offering anything of use.
I killed everything. Period.
So, someone please tell me why I thought that I could start a garden? Like, a real garden with flowers, veggies, and herbs? Literally, I have no idea why Home Depot didn’t stop me at the entrance to the garden department and ask me to leave. I am an insult to my southern heritage. My mom’s family were farmers for heaven’s sake!
The point is, I went out, purchased over $100 worth of starter plants, soil, bulbs, and containers because I wanted to start a garden.
The main reason for this being I was tired of paying for food I knew I could grow myself, and I was more frustrated with the ever increasing prices of those items.
The second reason was I wanted to challenge myself. I strongly believe in a growth mindset (read about that here) and I just couldn’t let myself stick with the idea that “I cannot grow things”. The 3 wing of my Ennegram also refuses to allow that type of nonsense.
So, want to know what happened?
These beautiful living things are thriving.
I’ve learned to enjoy the satisfaction that comes from spending two or three hours in the yard, cleaning out flower beds, tilling the soil, watering.
I even started a little windowsill garden based off of some videos I saw online. Did you know you can regrow green onions in a cup of water? It’s also a great way to get Romain lettuce going too! I’m working on celery, but I don’t know about that one. I love watching these little babies grow right before my eyes, and Lee loves to make fun of my little experiment too!
Now, I don’t know how successful I will be overall, but I do know that I am working very hard to make sure at least one tomato plant survives, and that I have plenty of jalepeños and cilantro for our frequent Latin inspired meals.
I’m hoping the rest of this growing season goes well, and maybe next year I can expand my garden a little more. I would love some cucumbers and onions, and I think it would be fun to experiment with pickling. I know my Meemee would be so proud to watch me struggle to can and pickle up in heaven.
I may not be on the cover of Gardening Today anytime soon, but I am so glad I didn’t let my negative self-talk and past experiences keep me from this. Maybe at 24 I couldn’t keep a plant alive, but I’m not 24 anymore. I’m almost 30, and I will be damned if I let a basil plant get the best of me.
Seriously, look at how this stuff has grown!
If you are thinking about starting a garden it’s not too late. There are so many great resources on the internet, especially Youtube, and even Instagram gave me the idea for my mini windowsill garden. Maybe don’t start with $100 worth of plants, but head on over to your local garden center (bonus points if it’s truly a small local business) and ask for help. The small businesses especially will be so happy to see you right now, and I know that they will be more than excited to get you started. Herbs are pretty easy, and you can grow more than one type in a small planter. For about $25 you can start with a few things you use the most, or struggle to find at your local grocery store. If you don’t love it that’s fine, but if you do, then get ready to spend your weekends covered in dirt!
Post a comment if you have your own garden, or if you’re thinking about starting one!
Love,
Lilly
