Backyard Gardening: Discovering the Joy in Cultivating Your Green Haven
From Budding Novices to Seasoned Green Thumbs: Nurturing the Garden of Your Dreams
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Your Garden can be a Retreat from the Daily Cares of Life
I love to garden.
My backyard is my retreat from the daily stresses and cares of life.
I have 4 raised garden beds and lots of strawberry plants and asparagus to keep me company throughout the seasons!
Did you know that asparagus plants can live for 40 years?
**Preparing the Ground: Soil, Sun, and Serendipity**
The most important part of having a successful garden is the soil.
I try to ensure that all the necessary vitamins and minerals are a part of preparing the soil for my seeds — seedlings — or small plants!
I use coffee grounds that have been brewed for my compost pile.
Starbucks typically throws out the coffee grounds — but if you ask politely- they likely will let you have the grounds that otherwise would go into the dump.
A free way to get nitrogen introduced to your soil and plants!
I mix the grounds with bits of egg cartons to ensure too much nitrogen doesn’t get “clumped up” in the form of solid masses of coffee grounds that don’t get mixed in with the leaves and grass in my compost!
Ensure that you plant in locations that have plenty of sunshine - at least 6–8 hours is optimum.
**Choosing Your Garden Mates: A Symphony of Greens**
I typically grow the strawberries and the asparagus together.
Also, tomatoes and basil are good neighbors!
My favorites are all the varieties of veggies — from the lettuces and kale to the small-leafed micro veggies that make for awesome salads!
**Watering Wisdom: Nourishment for Growth**
As for watering — I have some soaker hoses I bought on Amazon — along with the trusty hose and hand watering spray nozzle!
My biggest challenge is to NOT over water!
The strawberry leaves turn a dark reddish-brown if they have been overwatered.
Always a work in progress to know when too much is too much!
**Taming Weeds and Pests: Keeping the Garden Peaceful**
I have found two ways to deal with the weed issue.
Firstly, I keep a vigilant eye out for the dandelions and such that are unwelcome guests.
As for where they go — after I pull them out of the ground — well that is a story in itself!
Specifically — I put all the weeds into a rain barrel — and let them ferment — in the water of course — for 2 weeks or so before I strain the water and use the liquid for a natural fertilizer.
I have even let this mixture of weeds and water ferment over the winter- with good results in the spring- when the seeds and seedlings are planted.
It seems to help the plants grow healthier and quicker in the spring.
**A Lesson in Patience and Hope: The Garden’s Wisdom**
Beyond the garden’s yields of veggies and other plants — the garden offers invaluable life lessons.
Specifically — I find that patience — hope — and the cyclical nature of life are things I associate with my garden throughout the seasons!
For example — when I plant seeds, I patiently await their popping up above the ground to awaken in the spring to the joy of their birth and youth!
I am always hoping- of course- for a bounteous harvest through the growing season!
And of course — at the end of the seasons of growth and harvest — I marvel at the gardens being a metaphor for the ebb and flow of life — an awesome testament to the beauty of regeneration!
**Conclusion — and the Takeaway**
So, in concluding our gardening journey together — you can now see that gardening is not just so much dirt and plants — but it is so much more.
It is about a profound connection that you have with the earth — and finding joy in life’s simplest pleasures.
Indeed — you will readily see that the gardening journey is about a lesson in patience, hope, and the sheer delight of witnessing a tiny seed sprout into a vibrant life-giving force!
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