Just get growing: Anyone can plant a garden
Thursday, May 12 was a perfect day for the annual Herb Sale* in Chester Springs — a bit of sun with some overcast, but no threat of rain. Just dry and bright and full of hundreds and hundreds of seedlings and plants waiting to go home to gardens throughout the Greater Philadelphia Area.
For me, the Herb Sale is a great time to see other volunteers and Herb Society members I’ve gotten to know and only see on this day — Sheila, Elaine, Joyce, Holly, Evie, Cheryl. I also get to meet new folks — this year, Alice and Martha. Everyone is somehow a friend here whether you know them yet or not, and that makes for such a good feeling. It’s impossible not to feel happy around fellow gardeners and all those plants. Plus, it’s a good fundraising day.
Sometimes people read my name tag, put two-and-two together and talk to me about this column. Getting feedback is always helpful and often inspirational. Sometimes, though, comments can be a bit troubling. For instance, this year one Herb Society member told me she’d read one of my columns about growing a particular vegetable (I forget which — that wasn’t the important part of the story) and that “I could never do what you do!”
I looked back at her and said, “Of course you can!” And that’s true, not just for her. It’s also true for you — if you’re reading this and thinking, “Oh, I could never grow vegetables.” Or herbs. Or …
In this column, my goal is to encourage, inspire, inform. Over the years, I hope I’ve spoken often enough about my own gardening mistakes and failures, because they happen to every gardener at some point. Gardening isn’t about perfection, making everything looking like the photos in the magazines and seed catalogs. It’s about learning and growing and enjoying the process as much as the fruits of your labor.
That’s not to say that failures aren’t terribly disheartening. They are. But as happens elsewhere in life, you need to evaluate what happened, see what the remedy is, and then decide if you want to try growing that plant again. Which hopefully you will, since experimenting is such an important part of becoming a skilled gardener.
I’m reminded of a book that resided in one of the bookcases in our house when I was young. My dad — in addition to being an English professor — had a side gig as a book reviewer, and so the shelves contained a more varied assortment of books than it might otherwise have had. This book, for example, on plant diseases, with lurid, color photos of all the pests and diseases mentioned in the book, had a spot on the shelves when there were no gardeners in the family.
I was a voracious reader and loved picking out new things to read. If my parents had only known! That book put so much fear into me that it nearly killed my innate desire to grow my own food. I thought that any plants I grew would develop ALL those ailments. Fortunately, I understood better as I got older. Sure, I’ve seen some of those pests and diseases, but only a few. And the more I learned about them, the less often they showed up. I no longer worry so much. Plus, not everything fails at the same time. Despite a setback or two, there’s always enough to feel successful about.
So, if you doubt yourself, this is an encouragement to just get out there and grow. The worst that can happen is that a disease or insect pest finds some of your vegetable plants, or that hungry
squirrels or deer take a nibble before you realize you need to put up some barriers.
*The Herb Sale is an event of the Herb Society of America— Philadelphia Unit.
pamelacbaxter@gmail.com, or send mail to P.O. Box 80, Kimberton, PA 19442. Share your gardening stories on Facebook at “Chester County Roots.” Pam’s nature-related books for children and families are available on Amazon, at Amazon.com/author/ pamelabaxter.