Some of my happiest childhood memories are those of my maternal grandmother’s farm. Maybe it was that she grew up during the Depression, but my grandmother knew how to be self sufficient. She kept chickens, sheep, and cattle, but also grew her own fruits and vegetables in her massive gardens and orchards. As a child, she would teach me how to plant and harvest everything from apples to zucchini. A sea of flora containing bachelor buttons, snapdragons, and geraniums flooded through the front pasture until it was stopped by the gravel road leading to the farmhouse. I believe that these childhood memories are the reason why I enjoy gardening today.
Oh, did I mention I had a pony! Every little girl’s dream, right?
This year, I wanted to create similar memories with my granddaughter who is six years old. So I purchased an few packets of flower seeds, a tomato plant, a few onion sets, and seeds for peas and carrots. It wasn’t a pony, but I got her a pink matching set of garden gloves and a hat. So one afternoon, donned in her hat, gloves and sundress, we planted “her” garden in one of the established raised beds. And although we didn’t perhaps accurately plant the seeds according to the directions , I hope that she will have obtained some great memories of the time we spent together.
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