Gardening Is Investing In The Future
I look at gardening as investing in the future. We plant and look forward to what will germinate and grow.
Yesterday I managed to get the rest of the flowers, plants, and herbs planted. All I have left to do is wait for a couple of seed packets and then sow those.
I’m going to attempt to grow morning glories up that light pole.
Also, since my hydrangea looks a little peaked, I might plant some there too.
I know that hydrangeas don’t do all that great the first year. It is a perennial. Perennials are investing in the future because it takes time for them to be established.
They come from the greenhouses with lots of buds and blooms. But once out in the world and away from the greenhouse, they don’t. The second and third years are usually much better.
I am kind of sick that I had to leave both a dormant white and a dark purple hydrangea at the old apartment. But then I kick myself and say: “Don’t look backward.”
The photos I’m showing you today are ones I took this morning.
What I Planted As I Invest In My Future:
I’ve planted a little bit of everything. Pentas and a pink cone flower. Rosemary and thyme. Heliotrope and lavender. I could go on and on.
When I’m able to move, I move, and I don’t stop moving till I just about have to.
I’ve missed gardening so much this past year. But now I’m right back at it. Walking and dragging soil out to the light pole is building stamina.
I hurt at night, and I alternate ice with heat on my ankle, but then I’m okay. Today I will rest.
I so enjoy sitting on my patio and looking out at all that I’ve planted.
As Greg acknowledged: This is my source of happiness come spring. It’s where I feel most alive.
Oh, and then photographing what I plant. That is my second favorite thing.
My Ivy:
Now I’m not putting Ivy in that category. She is my baby. When I’m outside she likes to lay at the patio door and watch me.
I don’t think she feels well this morning. Her tummy seems to be a little agitated. She is laying behind my chair right now.
My Granny:
My granny loved gardening.
And there I was watching and learning. Those plants and flowers she planted didn’t seem all that interesting to me at the time.
But something, some little vault of knowledge, must have been growing inside me for my future gardening endeavors.
My Love Of Gardening:
Something must have fostered my love of digging in the dirt and watching things grow.
As I got older, I saw perhaps what she saw when I looked at a plant or flower. I saw beauty and hope for the future.
You plant it and you give it love. And you hope it will grow and thrive. Because gardening is investing in our future.
Then you stand back and say: “Grow, little plant. I will nurture you.”
“When you plant something, you invest in a beautiful future amidst a stressful, chaotic and, at times, downright appalling world.”
– Monty Don
Seems the weather here is very odd this year…all the other years we lived in this region, it was NEVER anything but super hot in May…today was almost cold…a nice bracing breeze…felt like the first day of spring. Maybe such is happening elsewhere in the USA too…and that can certainly make gardening some different!
Early this week I went shopping and got my flowers into pots the same day. Then the next day, shopping again, for 3 tomato plants, 2 slicers, and one cherry tomato, which I planted in three different large pots.
Today, we went once more, to buy a lavender plant, which I forgot to get, and I planted it in the ground. Now I am finished, and just like you, I have hope everything grows. My three hydrangeas in the flower bed are getting tiny little buds. I haven’t been too lucky with them, but had a couple flowers last year, which was the third year I planted them. So again. I have hope!!!
Enjoy your new garden, your pictures are lovely.
Good evening Brenda,
It’s so nice to see you happy and gardening again. I have never been a gardener, until this year. I am slowly but surely researching plants, seeds, etc and over the years will refine and create a garden that works in our area.
Have a wonderful weekend!
How wonderful that you’re able to plant once again and enjoy the process and the fruits of your labor. My maternal grandmother had the most beautiful rose garden I’ve ever seen and she also grew big, juicy yellow tomatoes that were my favorite: sun-kissed and almost sweet. My mom still loves planting flowers, too. Guess I got my gardening bug from them.
I’ve read that gardening is one activity that leads to a long, healthy life.
Oh no my comment seems to have disappeared!!! Insert sad face!
Sorry!
No big deal, Brenda. Stuff happens.
Yes, gardening sure is about hope and optimism:-) In the South it helps to fertilize hydrangeas in spring and again in early summer with a high phosphate fertilizer. Miracle Gro Bloom Booster Flower Food for ex is 15-30-15. There are also more intense phosphate applications such as super phosphate 0-18-0 or triple phosphate 0-45-0 out there too, but your hydrangea may just need a small boost of phosphate so it may be best to start with a lighter version such as the Miracle Gro. When I lived in NJ everything grew so beautifully in the spring (speaking mostly about perennials etc) after the dark loamy soil had been frozen for six months; however in South GA the ground doesn’t freeze and our soil is mostly clay. Very different gardening from zone to zone. So glad you are gardening again – I see how happy it is making you! I hope Miss Ivy feels better soon:-)
I think my clematis is dying. I’m pretty sure the landscaper bought it at Lowes. This is why I only buy plants from a nursery.
Could it just be having a difficult transition? I have never grown Clematis but a quick Google search indicated that it might need nitrogen – coffee grounds work too. Also, mulch around it but keep the mulch 2-3″ away from the crown where the leaves emerge. Also, leave the first set of leaves under the soil. Needs at least 6 hours of sun/day. It takes a while to root and get going it seems.
Personally I have had both good and bad experiences with nurseries and big box stores alike. Most buy from all the same local farms or large ones like Monrovia, Proven Winners, Southern Living etc. Unless it has changed, Lowes has a money back plant guarantee and will accept any plant back dead or alive for pretty much any reason – you probably need a receipt and maybe the original container but it might be worth a call if in fact it doesn’t make it:-(
https://www.gardeners.com/how-to/grow-clematis
Glad to hear you are feeling well enough to do your life’s passion!
I’m resting with ice right now.
My fondness memories of grandma include her love of gardening. The earliest and best sign of spring was her huge lilac bush. We cut branches to bring home and fill our house with that incredible fragrance. And then there were climbing roses over her gate and lily of the valley clustered at the foundation of her home. Fruit trees, too, and a thriving patch of berries and rhubarb and tomatoes. Thanks for triggering these sweet memories of that dear, wonderful lady for me…right during Memorial Day weekend!
I hope Ivy feels better.
Oh, I’ve never had lilacs! Wish I did. I recall sliced tomatoes at pretty much every meal during the summertime.
Morning glories are so easy to grow. I planted mine from seed years ago and they come back every year. Sometimes in places that are unique! The South Dakota wind carries the seeds to strange places. The Oklahoma wind will probably do the same! I lived in Oklahoma years ago and remember the wind. My morning glories are a purple/blue color. They are beautiful. I put up a trellis and they climb up and are open every morning. Then they close when the sun gets hot. You will enjoy them.
Hope Ivy feels better. My 14 year old Molly has thyroid issues. Otherwise, she still plays with her toy mice.
The morning glories grew up all over the place at the other apartment. I’m going to plant this probably later today.
Good for you to pace yourself. I do that everyday now that I know my limitations. I was just remembering today how you use to cook a sweet potato or potatoes to eat .
I had a baked potato last night. Just stopped at Braum’s after I got gas and got three more big potatoes to bake. With sour cream of course and snipped chives from my patio garden.
Yummy. I sprinkle cheese on mine with the sour cream. I still need to buy some dill as I like that too.
I love what you’ve done with your garden, and I love your idea of having the morning glories climb up the pole. That’s pretty brilliant! I hope sweet Miss Ivy feels better.
She seems to be feeling much better. Her purring sounds like a motor. It’s pretty loud now.
That quote from Monty Don is spot on! I didn’t realize it until I moved into my first apartment after I graduated from high school, but I had examples of gardeners all around me as I grew up: my mom, my grandmas, several of my 10 aunties. It rubbed off, LOL! Now the weather has turned warmer again and I can stand to be outside without having an allergy attack – the past 2 days didn’t get much above 50 and strong winds loaded the air with tons of pollen, yuck! I was outside only as long as it took to hand water certain plants and run the sprinkler in the back yard to give everything else a good drink. I have plants I bought a week ago that are still waiting to be planted, today I can be outside without Niagra Falls out of my nose!
Gardeners tend to be good and generous people.