Maryland Grows

Gardeners are a grateful lot.  Why? We toss a handful of seeds in the soil and up come all manner of flowers and food. The sticks we plant turn into roses. Acorns become oak trees. It’s all quite miraculous. Granted, in between there’s a bit of work. We water and weed, hoe and mulch, and spend an inordinate amount of time on our knees. Perhaps it’s that prayerful stance that graces our harvests.

Perhaps it also helps us to accept the vagaries of wind and weather, rain and frost that would make lesser humans weep. We know, somehow, not to toss in the trowel when things go wrong. It’s character building, I’m told. Tomorrow the sun will shine.  The frost will nip only the outer buds.  The torrential rains eventually end.  When disaster departs and we are left with dew-dazzled leaves, the warmth of the sun, and the smell of musty earth, we are grateful.  It could have been worse. 

So, we celebrate the first handful of fresh peas, the juicy tang of a tomato. We savor the wine-tinged nectar of a grape and the heavenly scent and squish of the first strawberry. My, but there is so much to give thanks for that feeds both body and soul. Beauty abounds in a garden. It stirs the breeze with a butterfly’s wing. It hums with a pollen-dusted honeybee.  It sings in birdsong and glows in a lemon-yellow tulip. As gardeners, we are front row center to all this loveliness.

And we appreciate the mental and physical workout that gardening provides. Bending and stretching to pull weeds, tie up vines, and turn compost is good exercise. No gym can compete with the fresh air and sunshine we get in tending our plots. We also value the lessons learned. What’s that bug? What caused those spots?  What tree would work best there?  What shrub?  We look it up, phone a friend, or Ask Extension. We never stop learning.

Gardening friends are a godsend.  They bring a sympathetic ear, a scrap of advice, a tender cutting, and abundant camaraderie. Most of my closest friends are gardeners, and I value them dearly. Together we live the seasons. Spring brings rain. Summer brings heat. And fall brings the avalanche of harvest.  Bushels of potatoes, tomatoes, beans, and squash fill our larders and set our canners boiling. We gladly share our bounty with friends and family. 

Who among us is able to get through a holiday season without giving a few gifts from the garden? Jars of jam, tins of lavender cookies, homemade applesauce, and herbal liquors are wrapped with care. We give of ourselves and our gardens. So, in this season of thankfulness, we gardeners are especially grateful.  For we touch the earth and it gives back so much.  Food.  Beauty.  Knowledge.  The fellowship of gardening friends.  We grow with our gardens and count ourselves richly blessed. 

By Annette Cormany, Principal Agent Associate and Master Gardener Coordinator, Washington County, University of Maryland Extension.  Read more by Annette.