Each spring I make plans for the garden. Some ideas work, and some don’t. Last year, the beets barely showed up, but I had a bumper crop of potatoes, garlic, and squash. The edge of our property runs along a city walking path, and I’m still figuring out what plants work best because the light is tricky there.
The occasional surprise pest can wipe plants out in just a few days — I learned this the hard way the first time I grew broccoli.
Our early spring also could get disrupted by a sudden cold snap late in the season. And tomatoes, my favorite thing to grow, are subject to a variety of challenges here in the Pacific Northwest.
The work doesn’t always pay off. And yet, over time, bit by bit, the garden takes shape. Each spring, I feel renewed hope for the season. I keep trying…and sometimes I surprise myself with the results.
Maybe that’s why writing and gardening go hand in hand. Both activities take a certain level of persistence, and an ability to shake off the tough times. The stories don’t always take shape, so I have unfinished novels sitting in the drawer, some of which are salvageable, some not so much. Readers may not find me or like my work when they do.
Yet every day, I get up, and I do them both, and I maintain hope. One day, I hope to have a magnificent “food forest” in my front yard. Every spring, the seed catalogs bring new excitement. Maybe this is the year the carrots take off. I hope to finish my current WIP this year and share it with the public. Other ideas are formulating in my brain.
They don’t all work out. But I persist.
Gardening is most definitely a lesson in persistence!! Last year, in one week all our beautiful tomato plants, full of nice green fruit, died off. My brassicas all were eaten off by slugs and bugs. The chickens loved them, but we didn’t get any! And, I also, have several WIP that I NEED to be persistent to get done. Thank you for connecting it to the garden- it helps me!!
I feel your pain. It’s frustrating when your plants are going along so well and then get wiped out so suddenly.
Your garden sounds luscious. I’m not a gardener and never really was… now because of my back issues. However, I admire people who can garden. I tried growing tomatoes several times, but I always picked the summer where it rained and the tomatoes never ripened. Even my neighbors gave up on tomatoes and they have a beautiful garden… when they plant.
I love your descriptions. Are you out toward Fort Warden or more in town?
Tomatoes are tricky around here. I have a deck that gets a lot of sun and plant them in big black pots, so they get nice and toasty warm.
We live up on Morgan Hill, if you know where that is, so about a 15-minute walk to uptown and 20 minutes’ walk to Fort Worden. Because we’re up high we get a great view of both the water and the Cascades.
I love the feeling of optimism in your post, that positivity. Now I must go and dust off that re-write that I’ve been putting off …
All right! You can do it!
This is the first year we have no garden whatsoever. Hubby just hasn’t felt up to messing with one, and I don’t feel like it either after 10 or 11 hours away from home each day.
Visit me at: Life & Faith in Caneyhead
I am Ensign B of Tremps’ Troops
with the A to Z Challenge
A garden is a big commitment. Next year may be an off year for me, since our daughter is getting married & I will need to focus on that.
I always wanted to start a garden and you just made it sound so fulfilling. I wish you a “bumper” crop this year!
You can find me here:
ClarabelleRant
Thank you! When I got started, I took a class at our local “Urban Harvest,” and that helped me a lot since I didn’t know where to begin.
We have a very small garden, but although I want it to look good I hate the process of getting there. My husband likes gardening but doesn’t have the time, so last year we cracked and got someone in to give the garden a low-maintenance makeover. If I really care about something I will be very persistent, but sometimes you just have to admit that something is never going to work for you….
You are so right! I have a spinning wheel ready to sell once we return home. I enjoy spinning, but there aren’t enough hours available to gain mastery with it, and I’m not willing to sacrifice writing or gardening time to do it. We all have to do what speaks to us and leave the rest alone.
Persistance is the name of the game. At the end of the week add up all those little things and being persistant really pays off!
It is about the slow, steady, consistent pace, isn’t it? Never giving up even when the way is unclear…just keep on keepin’ on.
I’ve learned a lot about persistence, but never applied it in terms of gardening. Which is too bad, actually, because I have a character in “The Storm Mirror” who’s inherited a garden and needs to learn how to tend it, so there’s a lot of possibilities for story there…
That sounds interesting! I agree, lots of stories are available with this aspect of your character. Thanks for visiting!
Persistence pays off. It’s a marathon, not a sprint, and I think it helps to remember that. Nice post! (also, we put in an April fools garden this year. Finger’s crossed.
http://drfaeriegodmother.blogspot.com/
Hi, Rena! I took a look at your blog today…the video format is really interesting and worthwhile. Thanks for stopping by!
Persistence is a wonderful character trait. Those who have it are the ones who go far… 🙂
Persistence has served me well. It helped me overcome a long and difficult illness to enjoy excellent health, and I think that experience taught me to keep going after what I want, whether it’s health or writing success.