A Walk in the Garden

Quote of the day: ““I love spring anywhere, but if I could choose I would always greet it in a garden.” — Ruth Stout

Early morning on the pond - crab apple tree in bloom reflections in the water

Early morning on the pond – reflection of crab apple tree in bloom in the water

I remember summer evenings as a child when relatives came to visit. It was almost a ritual that sometime during the visit my mom and grandmother or aunt (whoever was visiting) would walk through the gardens, especially in the spring.

First they walked through the large vegetable garden looking at how all the plants were growing. Then they visited the raspberry patch, the flower gardens and the orchard. Depending upon the season, some parts of the garden tour were omitted, but the vegetable garden was always a destination.

Wild Violets bloom in the park area next to our back yard

I ran alongside and ahead of them playing my own childish games while they paid homage to the gardens. Through my time playing in the garden I developed a love for plants that has stayed with me my entire life.

At age 12 I created my first flower garden. My mom gave me a columbine plant and some iris, lily of the valley, larkspur, and violets culled from her flower beds near the house. I dug up a spot of dirt in a fairly shady spot and carefully planted my treasures. Visiting my garden daily, I watched the flowers grow and spread. When leaf minors left their trails in the leaves of my columbine plant I worried about whether the plant would survive (it did). Over time the garden grew wild and finally disappeared but my memories of the garden live on.

Lily of the Valley in back yard

My gardens now are not as large as those on the farm where I grew up. My vegetable garden is scattered through a collection of containers and just last fall I decided to try perma-culture in the back yard, planting red and black raspberry bushes, blueberries, aronia berries (choke cherries), honey berries, and a small cherry tree.

Early in the morning I like to make a cup of tea and stroll through my garden looking to see how everything is growing. I understand now the quiet satisfaction that comes from watching a garden grow.

Container tomato plant

Last week when the crab apple tree across the pond was in bloom and the early morning light cast pink reflections in the pond, I surprised 4 mallard ducks sleeping at the edge of the pond in our yard. As they slowly swam off, they created a water-color painting swimming amongst the pink reflections.

Enjoy a walk in my garden.