Did you know that today is National Gardening Day?
Yep, it sure is! Whether you have a few things to tidy up in the yard or an entire project to start (big or small), today's the day!
With the COVID-19 Quarantine/Stay at Home Orders/Shelter in Place/whatever you want to call keeping yourself indoors away from people to stay healthy, finding a good reason to get outside today gardening is a good reason!
Unfortunately, not everyone in the world has the weather permitting them to do so today, but you can work on something indoors, perhaps an herb garden.
But if you do have nice weather, try to get out and get your hands dirty! According to some articles I found, there is a microbe in the soil called Mycobacterium vaccae that is supposed to stimulate serotonin production. So serotonin plus a little extra exercise and with some vitamin D, you are probably going to feel better today regardless - especially after being cooped up for a month!
Luckily for me, I already love to garden. I really don’t garden for vegetables, although I have grown potatoes and tomatoes in the past; however, I usually garden my succulents and spend time in the yard for overall maintenance to keep it looking nice. But you, my friends, may garden whatever you want!
If you’ve never gardened before, you can decide if you’d like to start and if you would like to plant a veggie garden or perhaps some flowers for the spring. Sorry for those of yall under snow right now; Spring will come, I promise!
Just like anything, you want to start small. Any project can become overwhelming if you try to do too much at once.
Gardening can be simple in an apartment with flowers, succulents, herbs, or even rocks, or it can be a HUGE project on your property that involves a whole team that could last for days.
But first thing's always first...
1. Write out your plan.
2. Write down what materials you'll need. Right now, with the COVID-19 quarantine, you can call Home Depot ahead of time, and they will have your items ready for you to pick up; that's what I did.
3. Get started!
Today I have several projects:
1. Maintenance
1a. Weeding
1b. Landscaping - adding DG to the stairs
2. Transplanting Succulents.
1a. & b. Maintenance Weeding & Landscaping (Add DG for Stairs)
TADAH, It's ALL DONE, LOL! The magic of the interwebs, LOL!
2. Transplant Succulents.
You'll see some of my faves, the Rock Purslane, which are actually native to Chile, in the photo above. They are so gorgeous, and they smell amazing! They really get going and reproduce like crazy too. I uprooted some and put them in a pot and now need to find the perfect place to transplant them, but put them in the shade to rest first. I will transplant them either later this evening or tomorrow.
If you are in a pinch, they make the BEST bouquets for friends for even the house if you have guests coming over. Once cut and in water, the blooms open so wide, they almost open backward and look like butterflies, just so gorgeous. I cut the ones that get in the way of the garage door and take them to our neighbors or bring them into our house.
Here's an older post from my Instagram account I found of the Rock Purslane in a vase.
Once you have finished with your gardening project, maybe you can leave something you have cultivated or some of your succulent or flower cuttings for your neighbors on their porches later. Just a way to show you care but without getting too close right now. A nice little act of kindness during the COVID-19 craziness. It's also a great way to repurpose your gardening "scraps nicely"!
Happy Gardening!
Love,
Traci
Comments