I reckon that most people don't get it right or succeed (regardless of how you define it) in anything – a job hunt, taking on a new hobby, let alone getting a love interest to like you back (lol) – the first time around. Or to paraphrase it, we often fail more than we succeed right away.
Gardening is no exception. Gardening is anything but a spontaneous burst of genius, and those who have done it and been there before would be the first ones to tell you just that. That while gardening can be "easy," there are some basic tricks, tips, or techniques that will help you get the best results with your newest project.
I am one of those who shined (lol) at consistently failing badly at most things, gardening included. Looking back, I expected it would happen. Who wouldn't when I completely ticked all the boxes for "How to fail at gardening" checklist out there? Hands down perfect score (lol)!
Yes, they are many, but here are some of the utterly evident and nasty, total novice mistakes I made that will make you grimace and ask me, "Seriously, Anna?".
Well, everybody seems to be doing it
We might as well try gardening – was the first thing I thought about when we moved house for the second time. With the kitchen windowsill getting some direct sunlight, I started with a pot of every edible garden's mainstay – the tomato – and the promise of fresh, delicious, and juicy fruits growing in no time.
It grew alright, but so were powdery mildew on leaves and stems (which I initially thought was pretty standard). I had it for months, thinking it would get any better on its own. Of course, it didn't.
The thing is, I wasn't ready, or to be precise, my heart was not in it. I couldn't think of a reason (now I discovered what inspired me which you can read here) why I even started in the first place.
It has taken me three years, and another house move with a lovely sun facing balcony to take a fresh shot at gardening. For real, this time.
Then I bought ready edibles like there is no tomorrow
The next thing I knew, weekends have become field trips to plant nurseries and a carload of fully-grown edibles back. Shopping for food and essentials has taken a detour from our carefully crafted grocery list to tossing pots after pots of some more plants into the cart.
I kept adding to the balcony garden until I have no space to move around anymore. It didn't take long for these impulse buys to catch up with me in so many ways. Plants began to wilt and die after a week or so. Excess water from the plants rains down on the neighbor's balcony (sorry!). You mean I have to transplant the plant? Wait, these babies don't like direct sunlight? Pot-bound roots, transplant shock? I don't have the faintest idea what you are talking about. There go hundreds of dollars down the tubes.
After so many disastrous tries, I decided to devote time to growing vegetables from gardening friends' seeds or cuttings. We also joined a local initiative to experience the joy of harvesting fresh produce and getting familiar with gardening 101 from preparing the soil for planting, sowing seeds, and watering them. We bought seeds too, a lot more than most people normally would.
Nobody needs that many seeds, but I guess I got carried away
It didn't seem like much when I bought them, but I might have hoarded seeds looking back. A case in point: When I was in Australia, I bought more than 30 pockets, most of them were different varieties of tomatoes I've never heard of or came across in my life!
That Costoluto Fiorentino tomato looks gorgeous, so off you go into the shopping cart. I didn't think about whether this mad rush shopping act makes sense for my garden. There was no attention given at all in which plants will thrive in Singapore climate or their soil, sun/light, and space requirements. I just wanted to grow anything and everything and thought to myself: "How hard could that be?"
Fortunately, gardening buddy Jessie helped me share the bounty with fellow gardeners. Otherwise, it would have taken me years even to try them in my tiny garden.
After about so many plants dying on me, seeds failing to germinate, I got a little better at gardening. Still, overseas trips always involve a quick check at the supermarket seeds' section, but I don't buy as much as before anymore. I found solace in a few dark leafy green vegetables we love eating the most. Except they still end up dying.
I didn't mean to kill them
I have a reputation for loving my plants a little bit too much; they can't breathe. I can't help it – I love them, I do. Once, I left the garden to my husband, so worried about the "worst-case" scenario. But guess what? They seem to be growing under his watch! The secret – he didn't pay them attention at all (lol).
It shouldn't be rocket science right – give the soil a chance to dry out before watering it again. Unfortunately, I didn't get it or did not pay attention to those obvious warning signs of distress. Well, not until I get pissed off with myself for killing another pot of mint for the nth time!
My first reaction was to remove mint from my dream herb garden. But how can I say no to that beautiful pot of Australian mint from a catalog? Soil moisture meter to the rescue! Now I have eleven pots (call it making up for lost time lol) in their two-week-old selves, still alive and growing more foliage!
The takeaway
This list looks pretty bad, doesn't it? The thing is that they were not that heartbreaking. I might have been "loving" the feeling every time I fail because failures helped me figure out what could have gone wrong. They inspired me to try new ways and play around a lot more. Even if just a handful, harvests are ten times satisfying (not to mention they add a whole lot of health) when we know they come from that place of hard work – aching backs, sweaty faces, trying again and again.
There will always be issues to solve, but I am ready. To do it over and over again. I will bounce back more forceful with another cutting, another pot of seedling, every time. I may have gotten a little better at it since I started this journey, but I still have none to boast yet except confidence to write about my epic fails (lol).
But I think I get it now. My failed attempts and small wins are part of a much bigger, larger purpose beyond just gardening. There is more to gardening that gets you out of bed with a smile in the morning. Gardening has given me great insight into myself and others and how I can live up to and progress to a better version of myself. Unfortunately, this post is already a five-minute read, so let's leave it for the next post, alright?
Are you ready to try? What's the secret? Well, for a start, don't make the same mistakes I did. While you are on it, you have to keep trying, finding a better way to be the best darn gardener you could be. And no matter how many mistakes you make or how slow your progress is, that's okay. Because we are still way ahead of others, who are not even trying. 😊😊😊
Comments