Featured Garden: One Woman's Gardening Addiction

How did you become a gardener and what inspired you to start a food garden?

My Great Uncle and Great Grandfather were florists; my Dad always helped them in the greenhouses, so gardening was already in my blood. I grew up surrounded by beautiful flower gardens. It was when my son was diagnosed as ‘Borderline Hyperactive” that I decided to help him by getting as much of the artificial colors and preservatives out of his diet. I planted my first food garden over 25 years ago, raised a much calmer and healthier son - as well as two daughters - and I’ve been growing our own fresh veggies, fruits and herbs ever since. I’m also proud to say that my son, now married, has a vegetable garden too.

What's your favorite plant?

That’s probably the most difficult question for most gardeners to answer. I can’t choose by how much better a homegrown veggie tastes, because that’s every one of them. Ease of planting, yield, storage capabilities… no, none of those will narrow it down to one. So I guess I will choose Sunflowers, because although I am primarily a food grower and not as much a flower person, without plants to attract bees to my garden I wouldn’t have much harvest to talk about. Plus, they look wonderful, and we get to eat the seeds. Can’t beat that!

What's a favorite feature of your garden?

The best location for my garden happened to be next to the road, surrounded by our circular drive, on a hill. This is my favorite feature because it naturally invites passers-by to talk. We live in the country and don’t have sidewalks, so anyone going by is either out for a leisurely walk; on horseback, or on a tractor- and in some cases, in a car behind a tractor. Many will stop to chat and others pull over to take pictures (I love it!). Even in town I get stopped sometimes with “Oh I know you- you’re the one with that garden!” I really love that- it’s such a wonderful way to meet people.

What's your greatest challenge food gardening?

Keeping it simple. I called my Your Garden Show garden “One Woman’s Gardening Addiction” for a reason; I am obsessed with growing food. I just love the fact that I have the knowledge and ability to feed my family and to share with others and I know exactly where that food comes from. Every year I expand the garden, yet I’m getting older. So my real challenge is to get the most out of each garden area with the least amount of effort- so that I can continue to expand until my yard is full. What happens then? Time will tell.

What's your best tip for new gardeners?

Don’t be scared. You put a bean seed in some soil, give it water and sun and you get beans. Growing your own food is that simple. There are people out there who like to make it sound complicated, but really it isn’t. That’s why I started to blog about it. I want all gardeners, especially new gardeners, to know that anyone can grow food. The best way to learn how is to talk to someone who does it. Just ask, gardeners are a friendly bunch and more than willing to share what they know, and probably a few plants and seeds along the way.

Thanks to One Woman's Gardening Addiction for sharing with us! To follow this garden and learn more, visit One Woman's Gardening Addiction.