Whew! Guilt Free!
I’m not one to do much reading of gardening books or watching or listening to programs about tips for a better crop of lettuce or aphid-free roses. I find they make me anxious and discontent. Somehow, “they” make it all sound so easy but when I go outside and consider what’s in front of me, the prospect of making order out of chaos seems overwhelming.
But, on Tuesday I happened to turn on the car radio just in time to hear most of “In Season” – a program that “explores the gardens and farms of the Lower Columbia Pacific region” says KMUN’s website – and I didn’t find it daunting at all. In fact, I got home before it was over and sat in the garage, listening until the very end.
The hostess of the program is Teresa Retzlaff who, with her husband Packy Coleman, owns a small farm on the other side of the river. Her guest on Tuesday was a fellow-gardener, Jessica Schleif. They were talking about spring gardening tips and cautions and I found them to be reassuring to the max!
My main take-away (and music to my ears!) was: resist the temptation to plant anything yet; the soil is still too cold. When I heard that, relief washed right over me and I was actually able to listen intelligently to some of their other points. As in: this is a good time to observe; pay attention to what’s coming up in the garden – things you might have forgotten you planted a year or so ago.
Say what!!! These really-o, truly-o gardeners are saying that they sometimes forget what might be in their gardens? It’s not just me? The ‘surprises’ I see each year might have been surprises to the experts, too? Oh my! I like these women sight-unseen!
As for what I can do right now: put out the slug bait. Okay. I can do that. Otherwise, just wait patiently for things to warm up. No problem. I’m on it big-time!