You Know you're a gardener when....

All so true, so true.

.....When you hear about any tropical depression and immediately start developing a plan to store all those container plants you SWORE you wouldn't have after last year's storms. Suddenly you discover you have somehow accumulated twice as many this year!
Pati

When you head outside each morning, early, in some oddly mismatched outfit (hey, lucky it wasn't the nightgown!), hair askew, no makeup, to start collecting that precious pollen, marking each container, sighing at the beauty of those lovely blossoms, photographing each, deciding which to cross, marking the tags, crossing the pollen onto pistils, hanging the tags, writing all this down as you go... not realizing hours have passed and you've greeted all of your neighbors who are out walking their dogs or heading to work. They think I am nuts - and half of them are psychiatrists (uh oh). I know they are telling "therapy" jokes behind my back. Not that I'm paranoid.

Why am I surprised that suddenly I am so brown?

As someone else mentioned above, LOVE Farm stores - real tools! Love corn fields, too.

When you buy Culvers Frozen Custard in bulk, so that when you come in from the garden all hot and sweaty you can reach into the freezer for a quart you brought home. Who has time to eat real food? The psychiatrists I suppose...

You know you're a gardener when you go from bed to the kitchen to start the coffee. And then you head out the back door to check on all the plants, seeing how everybody made it through the night, who's up, who's blooming, how the newcomers and repotted plants look today. Then you can get your cup of coffee and go wash your face, brush your teeth , brush your hair and change chothes.

The morning inspection is done in the backyard and I hope the neighbors don't look out of their windows early in the morning.

You know you're a gardener when you fly from Ireland to New York for your better-natured half's birthday and spend your weekends at home weeding and rearranging hostas and daylilies!

Your a gardnerer, if you keep pretty bottles, full of cuttings next to your coffee pot in the kitchen window.

When you spent your bathroom renovation money on plants so you can only buy the jetted tub nothing else and start eyeballing the tub with thoughts of compost tea running through your head. My DD keeps reminding me I would never get it clean again.........oh well.

LulaLu, I too do the yard walk first thing in the morning to check on everybody. When I pour my coffee the dogs start screaming and run to the door because they know it's time for the yard walk.

You know you're a gardener when..... you have a farmer's tan from the t-shirt, another tan line from the gloves and you don't worry about the tan lines anymore.

I do a morning and evening walk. And...if it is an especially hot or stormy day I have been known to go out in the middle of it. Only a fellow gardener would understand this behavior. While my family rolls their eyes at my 'obsession' with anything green, they tell me they do very much appreciate the fruits of my labor (lots of fresh veggies, fruit and herbs). So, I guess I can live with the rolling of eyes. lol

you know you're a gardener when you ride down the highway and see large plots of open land and start thinking of all the veggies and fruits you could grow there while observing the pattern of the sun on that particular piece of land.

You know you're a gardener, when you haul plants to newlyweds 5 hours away, because Mom has lots of plants!

..................when you start visualizing--planning--wondering about NEXT SUMMER'S garden projects, changes, additions, plant-relocations, weather, etc etc etc.........NOW, during the busiest time. adding "garden greed" to our other sins...like "garden porn" LMBO!!!!

this is an entirely great thread! more! more!

when you and 2 of your 3 kids at home have mono, and you still go outside at 8 AM to water, even though the sunlight makes your eyes feel like they are frying, and you have to lay down on the couch for 2 hours to recover LOL
Gonna beg DH to water tonight when he gets home

Janis

That is dedication! I hope you and yours feel better soon Janice.

Thanks :)
I just can't stand the thought of my poor babies frying in this heat. Most of my plants are in containers, so they need lots of water.
The DR says the only thing to do is rest, but that is so hard with little ones. My 14 yr old is away at a friends because he is over it already, my 3 yr old is getting better, my 6 year old started running a fever today and the 8 yr old is fine so far.
Sigh.... it'll be better soon :)

Janis

when you finaly understand that hollyhocks just wont grow for you and you pull them out, instead of trying to save the last few leaves on a bare stock!


Viv

You know you are a gardener when...

You consider changing your doctor or dentist because they don't have garden related magazines in their waiting rooms.

You know you are a gardener when...

You can't resist pulling weeds in public gardens.

too true, viola. that's how i tell if someone 'new', that i don't know well yet is rrrrrrreally a gardener...if when taking the nickle tour of my garden (no matter how dressed-up they may be) they guiltily look around and cannot help themselves and bend over and pull a weed. makes me laugh every time. GRIN

of course....i do it too LOLOLOL.

when you keep checking this thread to see other people's responses :)

laffin'.

love it!

You know you're a gardner when:

- you get a renovation loan for1/3 the value of your newly purchased house and you re-do the landscaping before the kitchen, bathrooms, etc.

- during the wettest June in recorded history you leave the dinner table (at the sound of the garden timer) to go out into the pouring rain to move the hoses which are dripping water onto your new trees for 1 hour a day, each, and then update your watering chart before returning to your meal, and you continue this for a month.

-and when you cry because you finally have the dream garden you've always wanted with plants like Grandma had and all your other favorites, and each day begins and ends with a stroll to see how everyone is doing.

Happy gardening. Thanks for the thread momof2d.

Chops

You're welcome Chops! Lots of dedicated gardeners here, some more than other's but All dedicated! :) Jill

Ha! This is a great topic, loved reading it.
How about when the dh finds a job on the internet that he is interested in, but wants your input before he applies. You quickly spout off reasons it won't do- cost of living, too far from the family and friends, etc etc. Secretly, you knew that zone just would not mesh with your new garden plans.

You know... when you are sick with a fever, stopped up head, weak and feel like you have the flu. The neighbor calls and wants to return a dish and because you are feeling anti-social and not wanting company you meet her outside. While waiting for the neighbor in the 100 degree heat (with a fever) you notice weeds in the azaleas and start pulling them so intently that the neighbor startles you when she finally gets there!

You have a snake phobia and have learned how to kill them without having a panic attack because you know snakes are just part of being outside! (its actually quite a show according to my neighbors and family... I apparently look as if I am trying to kill a guerilla with the shovel instead of a 3 inch long snake! My mom called it comic relief!
Carla

when you read a message about someone killing snakes in their garden and then look at where they live to see if you might possibly be able to drive over and 'harvest' the snakes for your own garden (assuming they aren't poisonous of course).

Ewwwww! I've got goose bumps.

Ok, when you try to hide the garter snake that has taken up residence in your front flower bed, cause DH is terrified of them (and you aren't) to keep him from killing it :)

Janis

I "picked" a particularly nice greenbean once. Turned out to be the tail end of a garter snake, who was not best pleased with my thoughts of snapping and canning, so s/he moved to safer haven in the watermelon patch.

Stop or I'll have to stay away from my garden. (Like that could happen) :)

Sorry LaLamb :)

I have never really been afraid of snakes (non poisonious ones) I could tell you stories about when I lived IN AL that would really freak you out. Copperheads in the house curled up next to the fridge for warmth just aren't cool

Janis

Janis - been there - do NOT want to go back to there!!!!!

Me either..... the worst part was, at the time my now ex and I raised red tailed boa constricters for sale. When I called the neighbor screaming that there was a snake my house.... he said very calmly... "so?" I was like "no you don't understand its not MINE" he asked me if I had anything to kill it with.... I said the only thing I have is my 9mm. Needless to say he was across the street in no time flat LOL

That was our first encounter with a copperhead..... the 2nd time was like an episode of Keystone Kops.... it was outside in the carport, and our gas hot water heater was in a cubby right next to the carport. The cops wanted to shoot the snake, right in the direction of the water heater!!! When they decided that was a bad idea, they went after it with a long squeegee type thing used to clean restaruant floors, had rubber on one side, and was hard on the other.... well, AL cops..... decided to use the RUBBER SIDE to pin it down ROFL Needless to say that didn't work very well, and pi$$ed the snake off pretty bad to boot. It started to chase one cop down hte gravel driveway.... he tripped and broke his wrist so badly it needed pins in it, and someone cut the snakes head off with a shovel before it could get to him thank goodness. It was terrifying then, now I wish I had had a video camera.

Janis

TGIF-----

i PMPLOL........stop stop stop LOL!


OMG woofens!!! you guys stop this....i ruined my puter chair! laffin laffin laffin.

(makes note to self--place old towel on puter chair before going to read this thread...)



This message was edited Jul 25, 2005 6:02 PM

ROFL

What do you do when you'er sitting on the toilet contemplating your navel and just happen to notice that there is a young (18 or so inches) cotton mouth between you and the door? Once I got OUT of the bathroom with the little feller still trapped IN the bathroom, I had the time of my life watching two football team sized cops trying to do the little feller in. It took them 45 minutes, (I refused to allow them to shoot it because I didn't trust them to be able to shoot straight) the bathroom being all of 4x5 feet, and even after they were SURE it was dead, they were still terrified of it. I had to put it in a bag, tie the bag in the end of a long stick (their idea, not mine - I knew it was dead), take it out to their car and put it in the trunk! And when I say football team I'm talking about each one of them! Best laugh I'd had in awhile. I will admit, I looked before entering after that.

Oops didn't mean to change the subject to snakes but since we are there....

tgif... even better... sitting on the toilet contemplating my navel and looked directly pass my navel to see a small but ugly unnammed snake trying to fight his way out of the toilet bowl between my legs! Lesson learned... never sit on the toilet without first checking the contents of the bowl!
C

stop ... pleasse your killin me

Dear SY...

Don't stop now....WHAT HAPPENED??????

OK, now I can't garden or pee! I don't think I will be able to sleep either but I have a lot of admiration for you all who are so brave and have lived through the sn-a-key (we don't even say that word around here) incidents. Do you all live in the very deep woods, I hope?

Grinning as I write,

Leslie