I STARTED GARDENING...........

An excellent topic.
Never understimate the effects of your gardening endeavours on others, particularly children.

On my daily trek to and from Kindergarten, I walked by an elderly neighbour's. She had so many plants in her front yard, but what I remember most was all the flowers' colours & fragrances.
One day, she saw me "inhaling" one of her Roses, and invited me in for tea & cookies, which turned into a garden tour. A narrow but deep lot, divided into 4 parts: front yard, & 3 back yard gardens (vegetable, cutting & "resting"). This woman made a huge impact on me because she encouraged me to explore the textures & scent of foliage, buds cut open to show me what the inside looked like, beautiful taller-than-me Dahlias, Lilies & Lilacs & Roses. Her vegetable garden was tiny but filled to capacity - she shared the harvest: Corn right off the cob, tomatoes from the vine, carrots washed from the hose...
She had lots of Frogs, Birds, Bees & Butterflies. I learned that some bugs are good & others are "nasty creatures", like aphids. The resting garden was situated with a view of the entire back property, a perfect spot for tea & cookies. Apple & Pear trees - the fruit hung like giant jewels to my 5-year old eyes. And she always had time to stop & share kind words & the work of her hands.
I did not start my own gardening adventures until I lived in a flat in San Francisco. 2 friends had turned their's into a greenhouse, and that was all it took. I started growing anything I could indoors and always remembered my elderly neighbour's gentle teaching about the rewards of encouraging life. I have lived in different climates & gardened in each one. All credit goes to her; she was such a dear woman - one which I'll never forget.

It's surprising how many people owe their gardening interest to a kind neighbor like that. What a nice story!

My great-grandmother grew all sorts of things. I remember in one house she had lots of tulips... she loved the parrot tulips. Then when they (she lived with my grandparents) moved to place with more space, she started a big veggie garden and we had the best corn! She never let me help though. My other great-grandmother had a garden with lots of phlox (that's all I remember). My mother loved flowers and our one landlady let her plant in the tiny backyard. She even gave me a little space for my own garden. That's the first time I remember planting anything. I think I was around 10. Hollyhocks!

I've always wanted to grow things. When we lived in apartments I always had lots of houseplants. At one time we lived in DH's grandparent's house as caretakers and I had a veggie garden and cared for his grandpa's roses. When we finally got our own house, I used the only sunny spot for veggies. I had a little kitchen herb garden and some bulbs. Tried a rose garden but it didn't thrive because the conditions were just not right. Then we moved to our present house and now have more room, more time and lots of sun. and I found DG which has been a tremendous help. Now I want to grow EVERYTHING and I want to do it NOW. LOL

~ jan

Great stories!
Gotta love that neighbor Katye.

Great stories. I now am the aged old goat. Baaaaaaaaa :) What I have discovered is that one can not push a rope. Not in the least! Seems I am seeing more and more younger folks that turn into a rope when one trys to help them garden. For instance I am deeply into aerobic teas. Yes... I grow my own biological community and love to share. My extended position.....love to share.... when someone is at least doing or willing to do some improving because of the association. What I too often find is the 7/11 or Zippy Market mentality not really interested or willing to work just a little to make me feel like I have a greatfull interested student.

Where I live everything needed is largely free and within five miles of the patch. Some horse people will even load the horse poop. My position is now simple. You show me some serious interest, in your patch and I will be glad, to show you more. None of the neighbors in sight seem to understand that some effort on their parts is required to improve the soil. Just dumpping a free bucket of hot air and unfullfilled intent does not quite make it. My compost and teas do not go onto those poor souls patches. I even stopped giving away free books after I saw one come around the corner in the garbage truck.

I do not ask why. I just observe and try to understand what is. What is................ sure has changed over the last third of my lifetime which I really know I am in. :)))

I've had my share of ungrateful people, too. Most "just want a splash of color". Let them get free plants someplace else. Daylilies that originally cost me $10.00 and are now at 20 and 30 fans are viewed as just color! Ungrateful doesn't begin to explain how I feel about those people.

Pirl................These changes in attitude, consistancy and determination coupled with a touch of human shared love seem to be on the wane....over all age brackets. I'm on a walking route that gets lots of traffic. Twenty years ago if I put out excess garden produce I would see an individual pick one or two items and on occasion leave a thank you note. Now if I would put them out it would not be unexpected for someone to gobble it all up, never say thank you and come back after dark to steal my sprinkler head. Yes that has happened.
.....Now they have the ear plugs in, the volume up and rarely say good morning or even render a smile.
.....I now take my excess to the soup kichens where I know the hungry can at least get a bowl of soup. They seem more than greatfull.

Doc, it is my observation that people don't have time to spare, as they once did. Typically, both parents work; the commute is long; kids are farmed out to various activities so they are occupied while the parents work & then need to be picked up; etc.... that coupled with the predisposition to instant gratification creates a situation that leaves little interest in activities which require patience, or waiting. Not to mention how folks choose to spend what little time they do have.
The percentage of children that play inside versus outside has grown exponentially. In many areas around the country, the suburban neighbourhoods are virtual ghost towns when it comes to kids playing outside. Understandable during seasons of extreme temperatures, but, I must say that many of us survived all sorts of weather growing up.
I worry for the future for the very reason you described - the mentality has changed, and what else will those with that mindset accept?

But I can echo Jan:

KAYTE..............back to gardening. You should see what Mt. Hood ashes have done for my overall good soil condition!

Two years ago we took the train up the back side of Mt. Hood where we enjoyed quite a climb through the pear orchards of Harry and David.

If you can lay hands on it that Mt. Hood barf is some kind of good stuff. I was amazed at the new growth timber and how it has grown in a very few years where the ash fell heavily. I DO NOT KNOW.... but I will bet my last dollar that all of the known trace minerals and more are in those ashes. Strictly in the interest of science I removed a lunch bucket full from a privately owned draw. Guess that is a good CMA statement.

You have other goodies being mined out there too. Ironite, azomite and Redmond Salt. I would not be surprised to find that all three are from the same strata deep below the surface of your native soils.

Gots volcano barf???

Not that I know of, but you triggered the Bloodhound that resides deep within the recesses of my my grey matter!
My folks live south of Mt Hood in Bend, Oregon. I think I need to pay a visit and i'll take a few buckets.
Great cma, by the way - secret's safe with me...and everyone else on DG!!!
My property is on the side of a "bowl", which i believe was once lake bed. The soil is clay-based but nutrient rich, and really warms up with the addition of humus. Just wish I had a truck so I could bring home the available manure in the area.

I started gardening with my grandpop in NJ when I was a little girl. He always had a vegetable garden and we would always "help" him plant it when we were little. Peas in after St. Patrick's day, plant your onion sets upright or they will "grow down to China" and tomatoes after Memorial Day. I have had to adjust the planting dates now that I live here in MA but essentially the same is true. The big hosta was the "August" Lily, now I know because that's what they always called this variety back in the 50's and because my dad and my grandpop were named August and that's why my Nana planted them. I learned to pod peas, snap beans and grow big tomatoes from him and it is a giant part of my great memories of my childhood. He also had the huge mulberry tree that I would climb to the top of {40' I believe and it would terrify my mom} and the Japanese flowering cherry that bloomed on or near his birthday, May 10. He's the reason I LOVE gardening!
Martha

My Maternal grandparents weren't much of gardeners, but they did have a lot of land in Virginia outside Washington, and my uncle (my mother's brother) decided he'd rather be a full-time farmer than a weekend vegetable grower. So when we would visit them for a month in August I was plunged into a total immersion working farm next door to my grandparents, who were ordinary retired people. Vegetables were WORK! I remember as a very young child, along with the other exploring and adventuring that was a part of childhood, solemnly planting rows of seeds that I found in my grandmother's kitchen. Dill seed (for pickling) and maybe sesame seeds and poppy seeds and other food stuff, split peas. We never stayed long enough for anything to grow, LOL.

My father's mother was a grand flower gardener, but as I recall, her gardens were to look at, and for her to cut, not to participate in. I was young enough when she died to be interested in grad schools before gardens. I do remember being allowed to pick small bouquets - she would instruct me as to the colors I could pick, does that make sense?

Really interesting thread - glad you started it. xx, Carrie

I have a student gardener that is ninety something years old. She is in a nursing home. She and a couple of other oldsters have Southeastern windows. I gave them each a different violet. They respectively call themselves gardeners. The get jealous of each other when someone's violet is blooming and theirs is not. Rules mandate just one living plant pre room person so two in most instances is the limit. They have to care and clean up after their plants.

What a great story!

I love this thread! Docgipe, there are a few of us young'ns out there that understand that quality does not come from the Quickie-Mart. Katye's right, people are too busy. Kids don't go outside. It is very sad, but there's still some that understand the value that the Earth has for us right here and now.

I grew up with lots of friends, neighbors and family members that all had their own close relationship with plants. Lemme think... Grandmother, Auntie Helen, Mom, Dad, The Gilbert's, The Soldovieri's... was that it? Seems like there was more. There were very few houses I visited that didn't have several houseplants and gardens out back. My siblings didn't catch the bug like I did, though. They all have plants indoors and out, but I'm the crazy one.

I remember growing up, my Grandmother planted the seeds from the apples and oranges she ate right into the soil. She'd tell me all about how much life was inside those tiny seeds. She had a backyard plot about 15' x 20'. No bigger. She grew so much in there. Roses, lilacs, daylilies... oh, it just went on.

My dad was the plant experimenter when we were growing up. He was always trying to get his jade plants to weep, or his cacti to flower. He tried grafting unusual things together with many failures and a few successes. He never quit. He's still gardening, but now he lives in Central America. He had the biggest influence on me, I guess. He always gave me plants as gifts. He must've noticed me reading his plant books. I still visit my childhood house and gardens in my dreams at night.

My neighbors had a veggie garden and fruit trees. I had to walk through their yard to get to the bus stop, or a friends house, or just about anywhere. I remember so many delicious smells! The Mrs. of the house planted flowers. Every morning her morning glories thrilled me. I never wanted to help the Mr. garden, though. He'd always ask me to weed during the hottest, buggiest, most miserable time of day.

When I got to college, my father bought me plants to decorate my dorm room. Ever since then, I've always had houseplants. I have only two left from my college days, but there's so many more here now! When I bought my first house in '04, before we even closed on it, I was out buying bulbs, annuals, perennials, trees, more houseplants... I have gardening stuck in my veins.

I could go into more detail about the specific plants I remember and specific memories to go along with them, but maybe that'll be another time.

Harper

Harper - I know what you mean about visiting your childhood house & gardens in your dreams. It was a comfortable, easy place to land a long time ago, and still feels that way in my dreams.
Funny though, my mother gardened minimally - she did not have time to fuss. But aside from the one neighbour I spoke of - there were others that also had "stand out plants". Like the lady next door in Seattle that planted a wide hedge of Scarlet Geraniums every summer - I remember the smell being pleasant. Other kids hated them.
The folks across the street had fruit trees as did we: fruit was a given. When i moved to California, my best friend's mom had a large lemon "shrub" - she had pruned it in such a manner that we could hang out underneath it, which we did. (and I still hang out under the shrubs to this day...) the Fuchsias, Gardenias & Jasmine that bloomed in my neighbourhood - the shocking wake-me-up colours of the Spring Azaleas. And on & on. So - the impact is very deep. I hope that I can always engage in this pursuit - it brings lots of simple joys.

Oh, Katye! You're torturing me! It's too cold here for gardenias and jasmine, but I'm trying to keep some indoors. It's so hard! My dad used to have geraniums every summer. We both marvelled at their smell. We had a stand of forsythia that was 12' high and who knows how deep that ran the length of our driveway (probably 100 feet). The color on them in the spring was blinding. In the summer, we'd make tunnels and secret rooms inside them. My brother made a pipe from one old cane. Who knew they were hollow?

Not I. I remember one winter? Vacation? Unusual for us . . . trip to Puerto Rico, my mother made flutes or whistles or something out of local bamboo? but of course we couldn't take it back to the States. So sad, and I didn't know until we turned it in at the airport. Childhood memories are SO STRONG!! xx, Carrie

We had a Victory Garden too, same dimentions .
With gas prices going sky high and imported foods showing the change, there is talk of buying locally. This is not do able as far as I an see, most people have no idea how many square feet of tilled soil it takes to grow a seasons produce even if they could find the land, it's all developed into big houses around here. Once again the experts speaking who have not really thought the problem through.
Enough sermonizing.
Your post reminded me of my childhood and gardening and tradeing and canning and freezing. When we moved my grandmother to a "home" in 1972, we found frozen elderberries marked 1952, she never got down to the botom of the freezer. What a delight your post was.

Gosh, I wish my freezer were that big! And to have a freezer that lasts 20 years is remarkable by today's standards, too. . . . xx, Carrie

Hi Carrie: Freezer was bought during WW2 when freezing was invented. It was huge, opened from the top, there were canned goods in the potato cellar and the freezer was in the part of the basement where the wash was done, handy for kids who snuck ice cream on a stick called (cheerios). This was a luxery at the time. I am a novice gardner compared to some of you whose posts I have read.
It's sunny today and spring fever is on me.

This is not about freezers. I have a question about wintering bulbs.
Last fall I planted tulip bulbs in 22" diameter containers, left them out all winter , can I expect sprouts?
Anyone?

My garden in surburia is in my back yard. It is about 20 ft. X 50 ft. There is another raised bed about 5 ft. X 16 ft. By double and triple cropping I can exceed the normal needs of four people for nearly a years use. If I were permitted to harvest one deer a year that would be seventy pounds of venison to boot.

At the present time I am just fooling around....rather seriously using most of my patch in an attempt to grow a giant pumpkin. The net weight value counting pumpkin we do not use is about $1000.00 worth at a dollar a pound. Now that is a nice hobby that would produce an equal amount of food we really do like.

Tulips in pots? Interesting. They are forced inside in pots. I don't see why they would not bloom from pots outside. I would have some reserve about expecting a second year though....from pots unless the pots are quite large.

GO Docgipe GO Thumbs up for a half ton of fun.
I applaud your use of garden space. I have participated in a "garden on shares" program.
Organic farmer send out a list of the crops he will grow that year and everyone who does not have garden space buys shares in his crop. We were notified when certain vedgtables were ready to be picked up, we would recieve an amount relative to how many shares we owned. It was a nice community project and the farmer made out as well.

ge, I don't see any reason why your tulips wouldn't sprout and be beautiful.

20 year old elderberries?! Did you eat them?

The pots are quite big. Left out all winter, maybe I'm just impatient. I can't wait to see what comes up at this new house. We moved in July so spring will disclose old plantings.
You are right I have never had luck with "holiday "forced bulbs set out side.

Oh, yeah! Do you know if the previous owners were into gardening? You might find all kinds of surprises this year. I'm sure your tulips will come up.

We too support one or more of our local farmers. We enjoy the association as much as the farmer needs our bucks to meet his families needs. We really like the one who makes up organic meats in $25.00 packages every two weeks. The order is placed added to or taken from for the delivery in two weeks. If we need a few racks of ribs we have to call well in advance. He sells so many rib racks he wishes there was such a thing as double breasted beef. We would rather have less better or something like that.

ge - I have planted them in pots left outside and they did fine.

20 year old elderberries were gawdafful, full of seeds, couldn't even disguise them with canned Blueberry pie mix. Gramma was a frugel German and generous with her teaching of "woods lore" found a frozen snake once, and gardening.
I love to be out side. My children and I bought a house together, the old gardens are in pretty bad shape, soil is clay, I'm too lame to dig so my daughter will have to do that part. I just give advise about color and shape when we go to buy plants which will be in about 2 months, hope I dont freak out by then. I didn't plant anything at my old house so have had clean hands for a year.
Do you have a big garden?
Is spring at your house yet?

Thanks everyone ,I'm just impatient. This is the second day with temps above mid30's Spring fever has set in.
Former owners had let the garden go, but we all know bulbs go on forever. I believe, based on what I saw while spraying Liquid Fence, that this place will pop in a few weeks. We are near Lake Ontario , snow is all gone from south facing slopes but still stands in deep ditches and under shaded areas where pine trees grow.
this is where we are reviving the old garden. I want some tall stuff like delfinium. There are iris and some tulips, mostly formr ownrs had a cottage garden, lotts of pastells.
Deer are a problem, but I'm ready for em!

How do you deal with the deer?

Wow..........you had former owners with pretty good taste and design touch. Keep reading and trying deer resistant plants. Some really are. Don't trust your tulips out of your sight. They are gormet for deer.

What luck, ge, to have moved to such a beautiful place. It will be very exciting to see what blooms all around you this first year.

I use Liquid Fence and Milorganite. I also opt for deer resistant plants as a first choice when possible.

I have a list of plants that are deer resist. The website prefaced it with "of course deer will eat anything if they are hungry"
There are lists of annuals and perennials I was greatfully supprised when the lists were so long. I am aptroling with Liquid Fence anyway.
This si how I found forums, I only checked out bad mailorder nurserys and noticed on the homepage the forums currently active, some of the topics were interesting.
When the established tulips had grown to about 3 inches I thought it might be a good idea to spray.
The company didn't have any info. about when to start so desperate I went to the forums and found members from Michigan( similar weather and garden zone) I asked one of them when to spray. She starts in January, saturates all the ornamentals and when the snow meltsshe saturated the emerging bulbs ( deer love grape hyiasenths) and the ground around the bulbs. Theoreticaly deer have a regular path they stick to, when they encounter a bad smell they change the route. The Mich. gardener lives on 28 acres and the deer come through by the herd.
DG gives thumbs up to Liquid F more positives than negatives which includes the people who live next door and down wind from the factory.
Works for me.
I went from Mich gardener to Northeast gardening, now I have to figure out how to navigate. I'll get it pretty soon. You are great people and this is a wonderful thread, I'm motivated.

I spray all year around when I can and remember to. They do a lot of damage in winter. I'm seeing it now as I walk around the garden. Lots of woody stuff chewed.I have not found that 'change in path' deal to be true. Even when I don't find damage, I see them going through the garden and leaving their poop.

Tulips, in my limited experience, tend to peter out and not perennialize the way daffodils or crocusees would. Do you mean tyou used to live in or near Michigan, or you just switched forums, LOL. xx, Carrie

Switched forums, still snowing in Mich. generous member though, was patient with my bad computer skills.
The history of this house is the original owner sold it about six years ago(wife was avid gardenr) It was bought nd used as a rental for w few years and let go to seed, never trimmed the ornamentals never weded the gardens.
The original owner bought it back in 2006 and lived in it for a few months and then put it up for sale last Jan.
My kids and I were looking for an in-law. this has one on the first floor. It's a much grander house than I ever expected to live in so I am diligent about paying back and reviving the gardens. my old house was on a 40X120 lot, not much garden. My old porch.

this is my old porch planters.