Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Why I Garden

A quick note before I write this post. Cool weather is killing our honeybees. They like temps above 57 F this time of year. Gardeners and lovers of bees, be concerned. (http://cliffmass.blogspot.com/2010/06/cool-returns.html)

Unlike last year, this may not be a great year for tomatoes. Good thing I bought Walls-o-water for mine! They are like tomato jackets. It may be 65 F outside, but my tomatoes think it's 75 degrees!

I started reading the book "Animal, Vegetable, Miracle" by Barbara Kingsolver today. It's about how the author and her family attempt to locally source their diet for an entire year, while living on their Virginia farm. I'm just starting the book, and I know it's going to be a good one. Kingsolver writes a lot about her relationship to the land, and ponders whether or not Americans know where their food comes from anymore. She wants to grow her own food as a way of getting back in touch with a local eating culture -- something that Americans often lack. In places like Italy or France, local cheeses and breads are protected by those who love them. They've become part of the local culture. There used to be a reason why we eat what we eat. But now, Parmesan cheese comes from a green can -- not from Parma, Italy. And kids think that vegetables grown in the dirt make those veggies dirty -- not organic and wonderful.

While putting compost on my tomato plants today and adjusting my walls-o-water, I started thinking about why I garden, and whether or not I know where my food comes from. I would say that I know where about 50% of my food comes from. I grow my own veggies, and am splitting a CSA share with my friend Kim. I try to buy local meat from Skagit Valley Ranch when possible. But my beloved Clif bars are made in a factory, and my Trader Joe's yogurt definitely is not local. I'm doing what I can, but there are some foods that I just don't want to give up. Every now and then, a baked Cheeto tastes really good. But the sweet green peas ripening in my garden always taste better.

I garden because I get so much joy out of seeing a seed that I planted become a pea-producing plant. I garden because I love the feel of good dirt under my fingers. I garden because a tomato I've grown myself always tastes better than those you can find at the grocery store. I garden because I feel a sense of accomplishment when I pick and eat a salad I grew myself. I garden so more of my food literally comes from my backyard, and not from some big box grocery store. I garden because I am in love with the earth, with green growing things, with the rain that feeds them, the bees that pollinate them, and the sun that makes them grow tall and strong.

What I have learned from being a vegetable gardener is that there is so much more that goes into a veggie. Way more than one can understand if one buys all ones veggies at the grocery store. Growing vegetables is, for me, a labor of love. It's how I show love for the Earth. And it's how I show love for my body. I don't think it's a coincidence that I lost 20 pounds this last year. I radically changed my diet by locally sourcing my own vegetables. I'm not putting as much crap into my stomach.

From my little 4x6 raised bed, I have learned that farming is hard work. I have learned that peas become Peazilla with enough rain. I have watched my plants grow and change almost daily, reaching for the sun. I have learned what a healthy plant looks like, and am learning to spot bug damage on my leaves. I have practiced organic methods of gardening, choosing compost and organic fertilizer over chemicals. And I have tasted the sweetness in a home-grown pea.

One of my friends told me once that the adjective "cosmic" describes me quite well. I'm definitely a free spirit, and I've always been fascinated by stars. When I was little, I wanted to be the first woman on the moon. My head is often years ahead of my body. And most of my friends will tell you that I am a consummate planner -- I am always, always making plans. Well, gardening keeps me in the present. It adds some weight to the lightness of being cosmic. Gardening gets my hands in the good earth.

Quite literally, gardening keeps me grounded.

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