Green Thumb? Hardly
Chat with Pat

While on the way to the office today a bright light shown from the sky, almost blinding me! A missile or terrorist attack? Thank God it was only the sun!

I should have known that periodically during this terrible winter it pops out for a few minutes just to confuse us.

All of us snowbirds who stay, tough it out and do not fly south should know that by now. Guess I was daydreaming.

My favorite seasons were always spring and fall. What happened to them? They seem to be eaten up by long winters and summers.

The Garden catalogs are out already so hang in there. Soon our humidity and mosquitoes will return.

I never was good at gardening (my parents never even tried), but occasionally I give it a shot. I quit for about 10 years after we had to, out of shame, scotch-tape tomatoes onto the vines. Really.

Those with green thumbs are always trying to figure out what we did wrong. Perhaps it's the soil - but look at the neighbors gardens. They have the same clay as we do. So I bought dirt and used planters. Maybe the shade is the problem, but again - look at the neighbors. I moved the planters to a sunnier spot.

My friends the gardeners (and they are many) have given up and bring us our harvest of homegrown tomatoes and vegetables. Our part is to let them laugh at our empty branches and dead leaves.

This year I bought 4 decorative pots and I will try to grow herbs in the kitchen. I have no place for them so important pieces of kitchen equipment will have to go to the basement.

I'll plant chives, we like them but I wish they were a little stronger in flavor; more like a green onion. I will plant parsley, (plant not grow), it looks good but I wish it had more character. Maybe Rosemary - it's good in its place.

What to put in the fourth pot? I really wish I liked Basil - it's so trendy. God knows I have tried; it's something that you think you should like. What's wrong with me?

Should I just leave the pots in the garage, is it all worth it?

My Grandmother planted some mint from her yard here in mine when we first bought this house over 35 years ago. I really want that to live, and every year my aunts give me some from the same original plant to add to it because it's getting scarcer and scarcer and they have to keep weeding theirs out. How could anyone not grow mint they wonder? Hey, so do I!

Growing flowers - - I wouldn't even go there! I make my spring trip to the Craft and Flower shop and plant the most beautiful artificial flowers you'd ever want to see.

Years ago the man who lived next door (a Gardner, naturally) commented on a flower I had that he liked. He had never seen one like it and wanted to grow one.

When I told him it wasn't real he walked away with a strange expression on his face and didn't speak to me the rest of the summer.

Oh well - there's more to summer than gardening. I guess God knew what he was doing when he made some people great gardeners and some people great consumers.

Let's Chat
Pat

If you really want me to, let us know at feedback@clevelandseniors.comThen look out!