Well, it starts as a garden every time, but it usually ends in some sort of massacre! I apparently cannot be trusted with plants. I WANT to garden. I WANT to grow food. I WANT my plants to live. I baby them. I weed, feed, stake, prune and even talk to my plants. Does it do me any good? NO!
Somewhere between planting a seed and harvest something goes wrong. Terribly wrong as a matter of fact. And, it’s not that I’m just not good at certain types of plants. HA! If only that were the case I could put it aside and trial over and over until I got somewhere. No, this is a serious case of black thumb. Tthose green beans I was so thrilled to have? One colander full and that is it. The beans that started have not grown in the last 7-10 days. The leaves are shriveling, there are no more flowers, no signs that the lives of these plants are anything more than barely surviving. Yet, 2 weeks ago they were lush and flowering and bringing hope one green bean at a time. Even my okra is failing. Sure I harvest here and there but for the most part I get a few of this and a few of that. As soon as there is enough to say that I have successfully ‘grown’ a plant – POOF it dies. OYE.
Huh. If that isn’t bad enough do you have any idea how many seeds are planted that never even make it to seedling stage? L
And so I have this infatuation with my gardening space. I love it. I love that I do get *some* food from it. I love that I am able to get out there each day and feel like I ‘m doing something good. That is until a sudden wave of whatever the choice bug or disease is for the day - hits and wipes out half of my bean crop. For that matter that I grow vines that are 50feet in length and get not a single flower to successfully turn from flower to fruit. What could have turned to fruit is invaded by something or the plant mysteriously dies just before the fruit can reach maturity.
See this love I have, it’s really and truly a love/hate relationship. I plot and plan. Scouring seed catalogs by night and designing diagrams by day all in an effort to get my garden the way I want it. Productive! Does it need to be perfect? No. Not really but it would be nice to be proud of it, instead of proud of what it could be, should be, and if given the chance to fulfill my dreams - WILL be by golly! It’s too bad that plants don’t grow by will alone. If they did I would be rich in soil and food. Heck, I can’t even get my compost to- well, compost.
So today this post is dedicated to the dreamers. Those that WANT to garden and just can’t seem to get it right. You are not alone my friends, not even close. Every gardener has goofs, and you can’t learn until you do, right? RIGHT!
Ah, so it is on to replanting time, and remembering that it is too late to restart plants this fall that are warm weather friends. Time to baby along what can be kept alive and hope for one last little burst of energy to give me that love back. Time for planning the newest improvements, for timing those improvements so that I can still utilize the space for the winter and yet accomplish things that will make my spring crops better.
Wish me luck. I’m dreaming in Technicolor. And patience? Well that is not a lesson well learned by me. The weather is changing little by little and each weekend that passes will be filled with projects to see me through the spring. Thank goodness all the plants don’t die at once. There is always something to do, something to plant, and something to tend to. That keeps me going. As my luck wanes with one plant there is another to take its place. It’s keeps me going, and keeps me planning and plotting.
Til next time!
Barbie~
Do not, do not, do not worry. If this was my first year gardening I would have never had a second. It was bad all around. People always post the good on their sites, but there's plenty of bad that goes along with it, trust me.
ReplyDeleteKeep on trying. I still can't grow carrots and it seems I may be successful at peas for the first time ever this year....D($&. I just blew it, didn't I. ;)
Don't give up, Barbie! You can still plant lots of things - lettuce, cabbage, carrots, bok choi...
ReplyDeleteI'll tell you that all my beans are puny, dying back, giving me nothing... except for one new variety I tried this year - a yard-long Asian type. I'm so happy I found it! It's disease resistant, and the bugs don't seem to bother it. So, that will be what I plant in the fall from now on. My cucumbers are doing pretty much nothing. It's my second year trying to plant them in the fall, and I'm giving up on them. The diseases and bugs just overwhelm certain types of plants this time of year.
"Gardening When It Counts" was a really good book to read, I learned a lot from it and have been more successful since.
Hang in there!
-Mary
Ribbit is correct, it was a lousy year for gardening. I've gardened for over fifty years, and I had more failures this year than I've ever had before. Chin up. If it can't get any worse, it has to get better!
ReplyDeleteI was so glad to read this post from you, because I've felt this way so many times this year, as I ventured out into vegetable gardening for the first time. Just like you I really *WANT* my garden to be successful and productive and I feel like I put in a lot of effort to make it work, but the results didn't always correspond to the level of my effort. Luckily, we all have this garden blogger support network with wonderful experienced gardeners like Annie, Ribbit and Mary, and I definitely feel encouraged to continue my endeavors and see what the next year brings.
ReplyDeleteAmen Sista! T2G - You said it right. I <3 this network of garden blogs. I always feel like I'm learning and growing and the support is wonderful. I truly enjoy gardening and I love eating my bounty even more! Stick with it and we will grow together.
ReplyDeleteGranny - It always does, doesn't it? Just when I;m down about my failures something will go right and I get all excited again. :-)
Mary- most of the winter veggies I don't enjoy much. Good thing hubby does 'cause I still need the beds to be green and something to take care of. Besides the house and kids and pets and....
Oop! Hit submit too soon - Ribbit howz ur peas? We need an update!
ReplyDelete