Garden Coach

Vegetable gardens in back yards haven’t seen such popularity since the Victory Gardens of World War II. The problem created by that 60+-year gap in gardening is a major shortage of people with knowledge and experience.

The relatively few of us who have been gardening for many years find ourselves inundated with questions and e-mails from people needing information on every subject from soil preparation, fertilizers and starting seeds, to getting rid of aphids and rats. Some want more extensive help, from “how to” start a garden to re-building cutely designed, but non-functional, raised beds. None of it is at all complex or difficult, but it does take some learning.

In my observations of people who start gardens for the first time, the foremost problem is simply a lack of confidence. That someone has a “green thumb,” and someone else doesn’t, is silliness. You either want to do it and know you can, or you give up at the first setback. A “green thumb” is nothing but the commitment and desire to have the freshest, best organic food possible for your family. With information and help available on the I-net, answers to every possible problem or question abound. Some of the data is non-sense; some garden gadgets and products don’t work-but make money for the sellers. I’ve been duped more than once myself.

Ten thousand years ago people first began domesticating animals. Since they didn’t have to constantly follow the herds of wild animals, they began staying in one place long enough to also begin growing plants for food. By 5,000 years later, the Greeks had pretty well mastered vegetable growing and were even using raised beds for greater production. The gimmicks and gadgets available today, the powerful deadly pesticides, the “revolutionary” new methods, are really unnecessary. Gardening is simple, easy, and if you have a little understanding, it’s a total joy.

Problem solving is part of the activity. Every once in awhile I encounter a pest or other kind of problem that I’ve never had to deal with. When I do, I have a good idea how to handle it. It always comes right back to the basics of keeping it simple-and organic.

People with no experience at vegetable growing hire me from time to time, either to build gardens for them, to examine their gardens advise them on how to solve a problem, or how to actually get their vegetables plants to produce vegetables.

Not much is more rewarding to me than to help someone produce his or her own organically grown food. It not only helps them, the environment is well served.