Diary of a Gardener: Happy New Year

Happy New Year. Is this the year of a new you or a new garden? I find resolutions to be so futile. I always start out with a gusto and wan off within a few weeks, or months… sometimes in a few days. Like the whole no sugar resolution. Well, that did not make it past New Year’s Day. Drinking more water is always on my list. Today I have not, yesterday I was swimming in water and tomorrow, well, who knows. I should take a weekly average of my water intake to make myself feel better. However, my garden resolutions or should I say goals and dreams have taken off with gusto and I have no plans of slowing down. Slowing down is a relative term when it comes to the relationship I have with my garden. Slow down with what exactly? Buying plants? That I can probably do. Not moving them around ten times? That I probably cannot do? Designing a less chaotic, less pot dependent, and using less plants. That I can do. That I am doing.

I have been using my inner ‘Marie Kondo’ method. You know the one where you hold an item and ask yourself does it brings you joy. I have managed to rid myself of approximately fifty pots of all sizes, twenty-five plant stands of assorted sizes and shapes, ornaments, shepherds hooks and plants. I have realized I have a love of roses that is going to require more room, but I also cannot see the plants I own, so out of necessity I created more organization. If you have seen my garden, you would laugh at that term, but to me it is more organized. And let us face it, the only person I am trying to impress is myself.

Welcome to my organized chaos, vintage/Buddha inspired, Florida garden jam packed with as many plants as I can fit. Everything from FL native plants, pollinators, host plants, tropicals, aroids, orchids, succulents, hibiscus, roses, and a diverse collection of animal planters. You know the typical gardener, right? This year I have started using a garden journal to help me keep track of what I plan to do, what I need to do and my fertilizing schedule for my roses. One of my goals this year is not to just “garden.” I tend to get lost in the minutia, those garden chores that suck my time and keep me from enjoying the garden. The goal is not necessarily to work less because I find some kind of therapy in the work but to enjoy the process and the fruits of my labor.

So… the first week of January was spent purging, moving, refilling the bird feeders, repotting, up potting and making room for more roses to come.

My garden is where I connect with myself. It is my stress relief, my creative muse and where I can turn the world off. I enjoy watching the plants grow from seed or cutting to maturity. I love color and texture. Plants are fascinating. They are also resilient and can teach us a lot about ourselves. One being, to be patient and kind to yourself. But also, to be adaptable. Just like plants, you need sun, water, food, a little confidence, and some courage.

I hope you follow along with me as I record the musing my gardens teach me. The mundane and the amazing.