Gardening Is What We Do Best

Every person has a capacity to garden. As ubiquitous as black thumbs are perceived to be, they don't exist. Gardening, as with most attainments in life, responds magnificently to care, perseverance and dedication. With some effort, all your fingers and toes will be green! But, you decide which shade of green your life will be.

At HandCrafted Horticulture we strive to present the fascinating facets and intricacies of gardening to help you discover who you are as a gardener. One perspective to keep in mind: to your stationary plant kingdom you are always the ringmaster, who literally does all the work. It's an encompassing endeavour with boundless benefits. What you envision can be realized, say as cottage garden, container/rooftop garden, wildflower/native scape, formal garden, xeriscaped wonder, rose garden, secreted green nook, water garden, or pollinator paradise. Whatever your personal garden becomes, you nurture into being. You are the creator. You can dive as deep into an area or subject as you like. Gardening requires attentiveness, patience, and appreciation. Anyone with a bit of these to spare can positively affect their life, and the lives of others. You do not need to be a scientist to garden successfully, but openess to understanding a little science helps.

One last thing from a more elevated perspective, before we dig into delightfully dirtier details. In the course of gardening you may lose plants, possibly one you love. Gardening guides the gardener to the web of life and its interconnectivity through illustration and practice. You can look at a tree and see its essential connection to the ground. The air around the tree and the nutrient makeup of the soil are its interconnectedness, and they may be affected by a nearby town or a factory hundreds of miles upriver. Any of these known or unknown issues can affect the garden. It's the gardener's job to pay attention, decipher this interconnectedness, and chart wisely onward. This is how gardening provides a microcosm of life on a larger scale, and a lens with which to view it. This life can always be nourished. The choice is up to the gardener. And in the case of that lost plant, there is no true loss. Only memories and lessons toward what can be... oh, and hopefully a seed or a cutting! See how that works.

So, are you green, black or neither? Maybe yellow, red and violet pull your attention, or a mash of wind and color in harmony? Let your mind's eye unlock imagination, and the tended garden will respond. Gardening will change your life, through your awareness, mindfulness, and perspective, deepening connection to the natural world. Patience grasshopper, a fountain of wisdom awaits.

Joyful gardening!