Growing Excitement

February 17, 2024

Let it be known: the stereotype of gardeners fawning over seed catalogs in the dead of winter is entirely true. This year, I broke some kind of record by putting in my order before Christmas.

My previous gardening endeavors have been a corner of my dad’s community garden plot, half of a generous neighbor’s raised bed, and a neglected area by my apartment’s front door. See a pattern here? 2024 will be the first year I’ve had a relatively large, clear patch of dirt to dedicate to a vegetable garden.

Naturally, I’m going a bit overboard.

Before I announce the publication of “Grace’s Guaranteed Great Garden Guide”, I’d better wait at least until the growing season starts. But the knowledge is already accumulating. I’m learning what works and what doesn’t for germinating seeds and building garden systems. It’s not always a question of hard labor, but of quality supplies (hence the catalogs).

I also realized why I’ve never been interested in growing flowers or house plants. Between the time spent, the financial cost, and the wondering what I’m doing wrong, the reward just isn’t worth all the fuss. I can’t eat house plants, and cultivated flowers don’t fit with my conservation worldview. The cost-benefit equation feels off.

A vegetable garden, on the other hand, carries the promise of fresh food (or at least snacks) come summer. Maybe I should place more value on aesthetics, but the time I have to spend on gardening is limited. And this patch of dirt – at least on a superficial level – is my patch of dirt. Only I get to select what ends up not growing there due to forces beyond my control.