Persistence Gardening

From time to time I'll get a comment praising my gardening skills. Mostly, I chalk up whatever successes to persistence. 

I am reluctant even to use the term gardening. The word suggests, to me at least, the gardens of Kyoto, English gardens, or Linda Vater's yard. (See YouTube.) As for me, I think along the lines of growing stuff as in dig a hole, put in the plant or tree, and tend to it. 

Smartly--at least to my way of thinking--I generally go with tough shrubs and trees nearly always suitable to my growing zone, 7b. Tea olives, Knockout roses, Heavenly bamboo nandinas, Roses of Sharon, butterfly bushes, Mexican petunias, azaleas and the like. Good chance of surviving and minimal care. 

Remember, my slogan is managed, not manicured.

Maples, elms, crape myrtles, and dogwoods appropriately are located in the ground here now. Some apple trees, some ornamental plums, a Yoshino cherry, a couple of white fringe trees, too. The almond trees were a stretch, I think, but the spring flowering is showy. The Honey locust, a nice surprise.

The cucumbers and tomatoes do well here--jury still out on sweet potatoes for now. Garlic does okay, or at least my effort does. 

I get more bang for the buck amazement-wise growing things from seed like the French marigolds and the vegetables. 

Of course, I understand the space limitations for a lot of folks these days with the smaller--much smaller--lot sizes. However, let me extoll the virtues of a 4x4 bed or vertical gardening along a fence or tucking a small blooming ornamental tree in a corner out back.

And a lot of my effort turns on not being a grass farmer.  Yes, I understand the time issue for working folks who are also parenting. But, unless the playing fields of wherever you are are needed, how much of the lawn do you use? 

At the very least yard stuff gets me outside, which I prefer as much as the weather allows.

No, not everything thrives. But many plants and trees if they're not completely out of their element are going to root in and survive. Take note of a stand of wild trees--no one watering, mulching, or pruning. Or that dandelion growing in a crack in your driveway. 

That's about how I go about growing things. Get them out there, give them a good start as needed, and let them find their way. They generally do in my limited experience. 

And, no, I'm not going to suggest some analogy with raising kids or nurturing relationships. The world could do with a significant reduction in analogies. Maybe some other time, I'll get around to that topic.

Uh, probably not.