It's become clear to me through posts and PMs that there are some gardeners here just waiting for the chance to discuss gardening!
So, I was thinking... how do you use gardening, or how does it affect you if you need a break, need some respite, need to relax, need inspiration....how do you use it as a therapy tool in caregiving?
What are your activities: Do you go out and pull weeds, read a magazine, design new beds? Look through garden catalogues? Go to garden stores?
And what interests have you added to your gardening? Visit estate or garden displays? Do you go to garden shows?
Does anyone design and plant Knot Gardens? Raised bed planters? Assistive gardens? Pollinator gardens (and have you thought of ways to help the bees and butterflies?)
Are your gardens primarily for pleasure or food, or a mix of both? Do you grow plants for medicinal purposes? Which ones, how do you harvest and process them? Any suggestions?
Do you grow plants that can be used in crafts, such as grapevines for wreaths and lavender for lavender wands? Do you make herbal products such as creams, lotions, chapstick?
What else can you share about gardening and the means in which it nurtures your soul?
What a beautiful story. I am happy for you. I’m sure that you realize it isn’t everyone’s story. Those who don’t have this situation should still be happy for you. I didn’t have it but I would never try to make you feel badly that you do. I wouldn’t want to have jealousy eat me up either. My caregiving days are over. I have good and bad memories. As you well know, caregiving can be a challenge and is exhausting at times.
For some people caregiving is a nightmare nightmare. It is lovely to see that it is working for you. I hope it will remain that way.
I would venture to say that your grandparents were always lovely people, thus making it easier to be a caregiver.
It’s sad but if people have a nasty personality when they are young it usually stays with them, making it difficult to care for them.
It’s terrific that you lost so much weight. Congratulations! Gardening is rewarding, indeed healthy and of course taste the best.
I think that the most happy and productive people in this life are those with a purpose. You are a prime example of that. You should be very pleased with your transformation. I am thrilled for you. Your grandparents are blessed to have you and this may indeed be your calling so it’s a blessing to you as well. What a wonderful situation!
But then I started doing all the things I was doubtful of. I began losing weight, and have lost over 100 pounds. I volunteered to become my grandparents' caregiver and I'm doing a good job of it nevertheless. I now love to cook and garden. Nothing "beets" fresh produce! (see what I did there?! lol) My love of gardening started with the lawn guy discovering a tomato plant in the backyard; now I'm on my third tomato plant and planning a whole vegetable patch- I love it and even got my nieces into it, too! Maybe I'll even plant an herb garden with a little sundial in the middle. This whole experience in caregiving has been cathartic for me on so many levels. Though there are difficult moments, this is truly a blessing and I am grateful for it.
I can't imagine what daisies would look like *except* in a lawn! Isn't that just where they live?
My favorite tiny flower is Johnny Jump Up. Little mini pansies. So cute!
Yes, it’s an evergreen. I absolutely love it. It grows anywhere. It’s extremely low maintenance and I promise you that you can’t kill it. The foliage is very attractive. I have it planted around my trees.
Some people plant it where nothing else will grow, like around the base of our live oak trees and others have it in beds and it is so dense that it can replace mulch. It’s fast growing and is aggressive so be careful where it is planted. It will climb easily along a building or house if you desire that look.
Our live oaks have tremendously large roots and nothing else will grow around them. Grass won’t grow in those areas but the Asian jasmine is beautiful around a live oak. The jasmine will thrive anywhere.
Or people plant it where a front yard is really small in the city and then there is no need to mow a tiny patch of grass. The jasmine makes a very attractive ground cover.
Does the asian jasmine stay green all year?
Capricious is right; there's still the last day of March that's as yet uncertain. Our March "came in like a lamb", so if the saying holds true, we'll have some "lion" like exit weather.
Glad, another South side early bird? I haven't seen weeds growing, yet, but I did notice that some of the grass in the back yard is starting to brighten in color.
I love my squills! They expand every year; I hadn't thought about moving some to the front but I think that's a good idea; I'll be the only one on the street with a bluish/purple lawn.
Goodbird, weed pulling and clearance really seem to brighten the garden, don't they? I like the crisp, clean and orderly semblance once the weeds are gone, from the dirt and into the compost pile.
Techie, do you grow all or most of your own veggies too?
I love to grow cherry tomatoes! It’s pretty easy and they are so fresh and yummy. I always look forward to new tomatoes ripening so I can pick them and put them in salads.
I do find it very sayifying and therapudic to pull weeds out of the garden. I just love to get them all cleared out so the soil is mostly free of them. When I work on pulling them out, I don’t really think of anything else.
And of course the weed are waking too.😕
Kbuser, I don't think I've ever seen potato starters. I did check my russets that I used for baking, and they're loaded with sprouts. I might try to put them in early and mulch them very heavily.
I feel the need to dig!
On a positive note my snowdrops are up and budding and should be fully open if we get the temperatures they are predicting for Sunday - yay!
Do you have all your seeds? Started your seeds under lights? Planned your garden? Have your catalogues?
I confess to no accomplishments other than the typical daydreaming of gardens, minimizing the factor of hard work but imagining that it's already been done.
I've seen seeds in the stores, haven't checked the early vegetables as I hope to directly seed them early this month. This will be the second time I've been able to start the spring garden in March. Hopefully there won't be any blizzards to interfere, but I'm also going to haul out the container pots to create barriers in case Mother Nature decides to play a trick on us.
Where are others in this scenario? Already planted? Still daydreaming (that's good!). Still ordering and perusing catalogues?
A lawn service could do this, especially one which has expanded beyond lawn mowing to include weed whacking, cutting small trees, collecting debris, and even cleaning eavestroughs.
I must correct myself. The magnolia is our state ‘flower.’ The bald cypress is actually our state tree.
I’m with you. I hate chemicals! So glad you love our sweet magnolia trees. I have a gorgeous painting of a magnolia blossom in my living room. So southern!
It is being landscaped and a drip system put in.
Minding my own business, I just came in from outside. I helped take down the christmas lights, raked a few leaves, and found it is a mess out there. No worries. Spring is here.
Magnolia trees do very well here in So. California. I like them because growing up, we had two out front at the curb, my Dad had planted. Big white blooms!
Do not need a gardener to come and blow leaves around, but I do need help out there. Maybe a handyman? Move this portable fence over here; move a few pavers; empty the leaves into the trash bins; pull weeds (gardeners just spray poison). Build a doghouse for my hubs???
Our state tree is our lovely magnolia tree that blooms later on, around April and May, ending in June with large creamy white flowers. This tree is very common in our city. It’s an evergreen. This tree is native to our region.
I just love seeing a burst of color in the winter so I planted a Japanese magnolia with a beautiful pinkish, purple color flowers. Mine has always had tons of buds so it blooms like crazy. So pretty! This tree is deciduous.