I have tried to garden before, but was never very
successful. I tend to be impulsive and
struggle with time spent watering. However,
this winter I finally found success! (maybe because I wasn’t working 80 hours a
week…hmmm) I loved watching things
grow!!! My winter garden was pretty easy
to take care of. I felt more confident
in my gardening and wanted to branch out.
I asked help from a more experienced gardener and went for it. I found some success and some failure. These successes and failures made me think
deeper about how the gardening system works eg. Seed, soil, water, sun and the
keys to how these elements truly interact to create the happiest environment
for growth. I then, of course, started
thinking about life and the interactions of certain elements that help us to
bloom, grow and create the fruits of happiness.
So here are my
thoughts on this subject. Remember, I am
still an amateur gardener and an amateur person. I have many flaws in how I approach gardening
and life, but I am learning and willing to grow.
*Let’s start with seed, for if ye have not seed ye shall not
grow (my own proverb….you are welcome)
My view of
seeds when I first started gardening was the more the merrier!! Throw the seeds to the wind and let them
plant! Yes, I am very aware there is a
whole chapter in the scriptures on where seeds land. It happens to be fairly accurate. I tended to crowd things in and decided that
I would let natural selection take its course.
Well, it kind of does. However,
the stronger can plants destroy the more delicate ones. This was frustrating as I wanted basil and
chives, but basil said, “no way chump” and
the chives failed. If I had a better understanding of the growth tendency of
each plant I would have been able to put it in the right environment and allow
them to grow at their own rate and with the nurturing that they each
individually needed.
You can see
where this is going eh? How often weexpect
everyone to perform the same under a set of circumstances. I forget that I have had opportunities and
personality traits that others do not.
Everyone needs a chance to be in an environment that both supports and challenges. We need to make sure we aren’t pushing others
out because of our own pet peeves, anxieties, projections of our own
insecurities, needs to be recognized and biases. We need to think about what others really
need instead of what we want them to need.
I recently had this experience.
There was a woman I knew wanted me to visit and made a list of things
she wanted me to do. I was tired and
wanted to get work done and kept thinking that she was wanting too much from
me. When I really stopped and pondered
on her life and circumstances I realized what she really needed was just for me
to care, to be there, to be listened to and see a friendly face. She has been planted in a difficult
circumstance and the growing is delicate.
Humbled and grateful for the opportunity to serve I went. I don’t know all the answers to seeds and how
they should be planted…but I do know I really do need to read the tiny
directions on the back of the package.
There are always clues if we take the time to slow down and figure it
out.
*Soil and Water: If the soil is good and you water it-things
should grow well…right?
Ummm…ya,
no. Good nutrient rich soil is very
important. Water essential. However, it
doesn’t always guarantee that your plants will continue to thrive just because
you once put great soil in and you water it.
This is probably my biggest AHA! this gardening cycle. We put in wonderful rich soil. In my book the plants should have thought
they were in heaven it was so great. My
goal was to be the best waterer ever. (waterer should be a word) I planted the seeds in this awesome soil and
watered and watered and watered. The
plants grew and flourished and looked so promising! I was stoked!
But then, some of the zucchini started to rot on the plant. How could that happen? The plant looks healthy. I’m watering.
Water has nutrients, it should make the most beautiful zucchini in the
world!
As I researched I found that heavy watering actually
depletes the soil of the nutrients it needs. I tend to water heavy, meaning I put it on a
pretty good stream and fill up the planter fast. It’s water right? Plants need it, so it
shouldn’t matter how fast or slow it goes.
Wrong. When it says water deep,
you water slow and let it take its time.
This helps it retain the nutrients in the soil and hold on the nutrients
from the water. I also started adding extra
nutrients to the soil in the form of compost.
Now my plants are happier than ever.
Slowing
down, doing it right, making sure the important things are sticking. So many times in life we truly think that
the things that are important can be done fast and furious. We throw ideas, rules, doctrine, expectations,
learning, experiences at ourselves and those we love expecting them to sink in,
be appreciated and built upon because it is good and good is good no matter how
you get it. Ya, not so much. We need to
slow it down. We need to allow processing
time. We need to let things simmer and
soak and truly make an impact. We need
to take the time to make it authentic.
Guess what? It might take up some of your time….gasp….but it is worth
it. As I try to slow down and simmer and
soak and when I try to teach important concepts to others, I have seen greater
thoughtfulness, investment and love. Oh,
and my zucchini’s are rocking it.
*Sun. Light for
plants good…but what if the heat doesn’t turn off?
Watering at night helps the water to stay longer with the
plants instead of evaporating in 110 degree heat. This gives the plants a chance to have this
essential piece of life working to protect it in the intense heat of the
day. In the morning, I get to look out
and see everything looking strong and bright again. Sometimes, things look bleak until September,
but then, the temperature drops a bit and the plants returns to making fruits,
vegetables and flowers! YAY! And it is time to put in your winter garden so you
can harvest all winter long!
We go
through many periods of intense pressure, darkness, heat, pain and feel that it
will never end. It is taking the
opportunity to fill our veins with essential nourishment that will help us
stand up in heat of the day and say, I may wilt a bit, but I will keep standing
up in the morning! We can and have made
it through everything that has been thrown at us so far. What has been the most nourishing in your
life? I bet it is love and support of
friends and family. For many, including
myself, it is also the gospel of Jesus Christ and knowledge and hope in my
purpose and in the redeeming love of the Savior.
Reach out with your roots.
Lap in every drop and then bloom!!!!!
Give, love, encourage and offer the fruits of your life to others and
you always stand tall during the hardest of times.
There are many lessons I have learned and many, many more I
need to learn and will learn. I am
grateful for the opportunity to grow and learn with my plants on this
Earth. That is the point friends. We have been planted here and have had good
soil. We can’t let it decay, we have to
make sure it is nourished and enriched and remember we are here to stand and
not wilt. All my love!
