Back to Natural Basics: Gardening on the Homestead

If there’s anything I’ve learned over the course of the almost past two years since I started this blog, it’s that good things come to those who wait. Well, I’m not good about waiting patiently, so maybe I should say that good things come to those who stick it out and stay the course the best they can.

All I’m really trying to say is that the combination of hard work, dedication, and perseverance in an individual will win out every time. And, that “win” might not come in the package that was originally anticipated. It may be something entirely different. It may be something much, much better.

So, even though a lot of chaos is going on in the world right now, I’m experiencing the best stage of my content creation journey thus far. It’s so odd to be incredibly apprehensive about the world events that surround me, yet wholeheartedly secure in the current direction I’m going with my passion projects (creating educational tools for parents and their children). Go figure!

This almost two-year journey has definitely taken me through some extreme peaks and valleys; but all in all, it’s been one of my top adventures yet. And I must say that there’s still so much road left to travel. Good thing too, because I’m finally having a blast with it all.

Another lesson I’ve learned to embrace on this road much traveled is that many journeys of life are processes that occur over time. They tend to be more of the marathon than the sprint variety. And, I’m here for it. I mean, how can one truly enjoy the highly-anticipated arrival to the final destination if he or she never stops to appreciate the process it took to get there.

Well, I can go into so many topics of conversation related to my growth as a content creator and how I’ve developed a respect for the process that content creators go through in honing their skills and finding their creative purpose. But, I won’t. I’ll stop here. I just wanted to give a little prelude to the real message in today’s post, which has everything to do with getting back to the natural basics in GARDENING.

Now, for this next part of the post, I’ll be somewhat at a loss for my own personal experience on the matter, as I can’t truly attest to the process of maintaining my family’s garden. My daughter, Toodlez, has been in charge of manning the fruits and veggies (4 tomato plants, 3 watermelon plants, 1 strawberry plant, 1 bell pepper plant, 2 jalapeno plants, 2 blueberry plants, and 1 pea vine) that are growing at our homestead. And, she is doing a fabulous job with it all. As a matter of fact, what I lack in explanation for how the process has unfolded can be summed up with these pictures:

But, here’s how the process initially started indoors (back in February of this year).

I did manage to interview Toodlez to get a little context to just how miraculous the growth of the garden has truly been. And I have to say that my daughter has absolutely embraced this process from the get-go. She did the necessary research, secured the locations for where everything would go down, purchased the required supplies and equipment, and put in the unwavering effort it’s taken to get this far in the gardening process.

In other words, the fruits of her labor are a direct reflection of the hard work, dedication, and perseverance she’s put into this passion project. Even with all the ups and downs, uncertainties, and do-overs, she’s managed to come out on top with this garden. And, the whole family is the better for it. I mean, look at what she plucked off from the tomato plants yesterday:

No spots, blemishes, or decaying marks anywhere. Just bright red, perfectly-shaped, juicy cherry tomatoes. I don’t know what my daughter did to get that kind of tomato production from the plants, because we’ve never had that many first batch tomatoes turn out so well like this before. And yes, they taste as good as they look. (I’ve even heard people that don’t like tomatoes or don’t like the store-bought tomatoes say that they’ll eat them if they’re of the garden variety.) Well, I think these would be the type that the no-tomato advocate would devour.

Anyway, you can definitely feel free to check out the start of the gardening journey (here), where I went into some of the tips and suggestions Toodlez laid out for all the current and soon-to-be gardeners out there. And some of that same advice continues to be applicable to this very day. Regarding the tactics Toodlez used to cultivate this luscious garden (once she transplanted the plants from inside the house to the outside), here’s some of the information I was able to gather from her when interviewed this go-around:

• She maintained a consistent watering schedule of once a day in the evening (except for rainy days and Saturdays).
• She fertilized all the plants about every 3 weeks.
• She added mulch to the potted plants and even to the base of the plants planted in the ground. The mulch acts as a barrier and helps the plants retain their moisture.
• She utilized plant trellises and supports to help the weighted plants to continue to grow upright.
• She positioned the plants in an area where they received a little shade underneath one of our trees with a wide canopy. But, the wide-spreading tree still let plenty of direct sunlight through to the plants.
• Because the plants were pretty much low-maintenance, she didn’t micromanage them, but let them grow how they naturally wanted to (with the help of the trellises, that is).
• She pruned the plants as needed, cutting away only the leaves that had holes and that were wilted beyond repair. Basically, she just made sure to visually inspect the plants every day and cut away the dead stuff. (NOTE: Toodlez did mention that plant leaves will curl up when exposed to extreme heat. It’s a defense mechanism they have that reduces their surface areas to help retain moisture as much as possible. So, curling up of the leaves is normal in such cases. It simply requires one to be on top of the watering of the plants, especially during repeated days of high temps.)
• She added two different varieties of flowering plants to the outdoor garden to help bring the bees by for the pollination process, which is essential for plant production. She even mentioned that, in the future, she might try setting out a watering station for the bees. (She saw some information somewhere that watering pots for bees is an actual thing. People set out bowls of water with rocks to provide the bees with a little something to drink since they apparently need water too.)
• She didn’t give up on the process when some of the plants (originally planted in February) wouldn’t produce. For example, here are some of the things that went wrong:
  • The lettuce plants never grew.
  • The original jalapeno plants got eaten up by a worm, but she replanted some more in May and they’re growing nicely now.
  • The melon plant that was originally planted indoors died when transplanted outdoors, so Toodlez replanted some new ones in May and they seem to be thriving (plenty of healthy leaves). She noticed that these watermelon plants, planted directly into the ground, seem to do well in the extremely hot weather we’ve been having. (It also helps that they’re underneath our deck and are receiving plenty of shade.)
  • In late April/early May, she decided to work on some herbs and planted cilantro, oregano, and thyme in some small pots indoors. The oregano and thyme have never materialized (and we still have the pots sitting on the floor of our breakfast nook), but the cilantro is growing by leaps and bounds. Toodlez had even pulled a bunch of the cilantro to use in a salad recently and it’s quickly replaced itself and then some.

To sum things up, it’s important to remember that the process is the journey and there’s so much to learn and grow in before arriving to your final destination. My daughter has learned so much from this process and I’m learning a lot just by observing her and having her share her knowledge with me. And as I stated before, our whole household will get to benefit from the knowledge she’s gained while traveling on this gardening journey.

We’ll all be the better for her efforts. And, who knows? Maybe I’ll get in there next year (if I’m blessed to see it) and get my own crop going. There’s no better feeling than eating earth’s food that brings wholesome nourishment to your body. You don’t have to worry about it being compromised by pesticides, herbicides, or COVID-19. It’s just all-natural and perfectly designed for your overall well-being.

GROWING YOUR OWN FOOD IS DEFINITELY A PROCESS WORTH EXPLORING.