Last weekend was officially “planting weekend” and for the first time in 16 years, I actually planted my vegetables and herbs. The picture on the left is what it looked like when we started and the picture below is how it looked finshed. Do I like gardening? No. And this is not a salute to the glories of the outdoors and getting back to nature. Am I good at it? No. If herbs were not basically weeds we choose to grow, I would, year after year, have little to show for the little effort I actually make. Yes, there have been some cherry
tomatoes over the years and the occasional cucumber. One year there was even kale that grew the entire season. The rhubarb, fortunately, thrives on its own without my involvement. But that is the extent of my ability to grow.
So why bother? Life is tough. People are difficult. Technology makes us able to do more and more so we do. There never seems to be enough time for all that we need to do. We have a variety of food available to us from all corners of the world, all year round and far more than we need. For many of us, it is getting harder to figure out why we do what we do and how our lives came to be as they are. That is why I like growing things that are edible. It is so simple. I plant, it grows all summer and into the fall and I go out and pick for my own consumption, something I grew. It makes me feel more connected to what is real. It reminds me of the kind of live I should be working to achieve where there is more time to have more pleasure. It is a basic activity that can help ground us and makes us feel human. While I take my hat off to the skilled gardeners who create beautiful gardens and grow copious amount of foods in a natural way, it clearly it does not require much skill grow something about since I manage to pull it off.
So do yourself a favour and grow something this summer, even if is just some delicious herbs in a planter on your balcony or in a window. Give yourself a little piece of sanity. For more ideas and tips, check out these sites:
Toronto Balconies Bloom
Life on the Balcony
Organic Gardening Tips – Athomeo Farms
Natural Pest Control Tips
Oh My Garden
