Once things are planted, there is a definite routine that develops for avid gardeners (not those who plant 'em, forget 'em and look for 'em at harvest time, which tends to end in tragedy!). I am talking about those of us who integrate our garden passions into our daily lives throughout spring, summer and fall. It provides an extra excuse to leap out of bed each morning just to see what's happening....what got munched, what may be showing stress or disease - but mostly, whether seeds have emerged, fruit is setting, flowers are opening, picking time has arrived. It is one of the gifts of gardening....that aspect of mystery, discovery, progress - and occasional heartache - that greets each morning of the growing season.
Sometimes, finding motivation to deal with the rhythm of the season can be a challenge, as interspersed with the "good stuff" of observing, discovering, picking and eating is the relative humdrum activities of weeding, watering, record keeping and staking/tying - then later on, if desired, seed saving. For me, with so many plants in pots, watering is by far the most significant regular burden.
Anyway - here is a snapshot of a typical day for me during this time of the season. I tend to wake earlier when the garden is really actively growing...my garden is like a big laboratory or science project and I can't wait to see how my experiments are progressing. After turning off the deer-repelling water scarecrows, I take a ramble through both the driveway and big garden for a high level assessment....to plan out those things that need to be done. Sometimes I take my hand held recorder with me and speak some observations into it (which I later transcribe into an Excel spreadsheet format annual garden log). If it is going to be a really warm, dry day, I will often start (after the essential breakfast and cup of coffee, of course) with a thorough watering of everything. Following that, I will decide what is the highest priority to do next - typically tying the tomatoes to their supports (it is amazing how fast they grow, and this needs to be done weekly at least). While I tie, I also do whatever pruning needs to be done on each plant (removing unwanted suckers).
Once that is done, there could be any number of additional tasks - picking out a quadrant of the big garden to get the weeds under control, carry out some fertilizing, plant replacement/removal in the case of disease, changing the batteries in the water scarecrows, or harvesting.
Somehow the better part of a day can pass by just keeping a garden healthy and happy. The rewards are delicious things to eat and answers to all of the various questions I pose as I plan what to grow each year - the color of a particular mystery tomato, pepper or eggplant, the size or shape, yield or flavor. It is a hobby that's certainly not for everyone - especially when treated in such a high maintenance, intensive way that I prefer - but it certainly works for me!
Thanks for coming along on my gardening ride! May all of your journeys be as enjoyable and full of wonderful harvests!
Sometimes, finding motivation to deal with the rhythm of the season can be a challenge, as interspersed with the "good stuff" of observing, discovering, picking and eating is the relative humdrum activities of weeding, watering, record keeping and staking/tying - then later on, if desired, seed saving. For me, with so many plants in pots, watering is by far the most significant regular burden.
Anyway - here is a snapshot of a typical day for me during this time of the season. I tend to wake earlier when the garden is really actively growing...my garden is like a big laboratory or science project and I can't wait to see how my experiments are progressing. After turning off the deer-repelling water scarecrows, I take a ramble through both the driveway and big garden for a high level assessment....to plan out those things that need to be done. Sometimes I take my hand held recorder with me and speak some observations into it (which I later transcribe into an Excel spreadsheet format annual garden log). If it is going to be a really warm, dry day, I will often start (after the essential breakfast and cup of coffee, of course) with a thorough watering of everything. Following that, I will decide what is the highest priority to do next - typically tying the tomatoes to their supports (it is amazing how fast they grow, and this needs to be done weekly at least). While I tie, I also do whatever pruning needs to be done on each plant (removing unwanted suckers).
Once that is done, there could be any number of additional tasks - picking out a quadrant of the big garden to get the weeds under control, carry out some fertilizing, plant replacement/removal in the case of disease, changing the batteries in the water scarecrows, or harvesting.
Somehow the better part of a day can pass by just keeping a garden healthy and happy. The rewards are delicious things to eat and answers to all of the various questions I pose as I plan what to grow each year - the color of a particular mystery tomato, pepper or eggplant, the size or shape, yield or flavor. It is a hobby that's certainly not for everyone - especially when treated in such a high maintenance, intensive way that I prefer - but it certainly works for me!
Thanks for coming along on my gardening ride! May all of your journeys be as enjoyable and full of wonderful harvests!
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