The Transformed Reluctant Gardener: Celebrate Earth Day with a Container Garden

Sunday, April 21, 2013

Celebrate Earth Day with a Container Garden

A sense of marvel flooded over me.

On my tiny 4-foot by 6-foot patio, thumb-sized potatoes grew from old peelings and three Kentucky blue green beans hung ripe on a piece of string attached to my patio chair.

Proudly, holding my agricultural bounty, I turned to show my visiting father.

Without a word, he took one of the beans and with a crunch, bit into it.

“Mmmmm, tastes good.”

A gasp of horror escaped my mouth.

In a flash, one-third of my harvest had disappeared.

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Discovering my green thumb DNA

"You want me to pull weeds?"

Shamefully, the teenage me uttered those words more than once. Anything involving dirt, heat and especially bugs turned me into a big whining wienie.

Green thumbery (if there is such as word) flows in my DNA.

My grandfather's Florida garden, full of kale and kohlrabi, thrived until he died at 90. During upstate New York's summers, my parents worked a 1/2-acre plot - abundant with tomatoes and beans, lettuce and beets.

Then four years ago, I had my first backyard.

Spring's early buds on my peach, apricot and orange trees unleashed my need to plant seeds - in the ground, pots (large and small) and tree baskets and containers along the fence.

Now during every season, something is growing.

Winter and spring has Swiss Chard and fennel, kale and herbs like rosemary and oregano. The full summer sun shines down upon a variety of tomatoes, squashes and eggplants. Herbs from basil to lemon balm and thyme to sage deliver added depths of flavor.

In late October's cool breezes, green tomatoes are harvested as are cabbages.

Gardening feeds me well and calms my soul.
The transformation is complete.