Your Garden: Not Just For You

Picture this: orange chunks of sweet, juicy cantaloupe; crisp, dew-dropped lettuce; warm, fresh-roasted sweet bell peppers; firm, juice-gushing vine-ripened tomatoes.

Is your mouth watering yet?

It’s gardening season. For years pallets of bagged soil and six-pack starts in store parking lots made me cringe with guilt. Everyone always said that you need to plant a garden. I have never had my own home. I have never had enough space for a garden. To top it all, for a long time I had zero desire to garden.

My positive thoughts on gardening came on gradually until a major life change—becoming a stay-at-home mom—opened up enough home-focused time in my life to give me a chance to embrace gardening. But I don’t think I would have ever had the desire to plant a garden for myself if it were not for years of examples of wonderful gardeners from my past.

First: my parents. We tried to plant a garden every year of my childhood that I could remember. We most often failed. Our soil, climate, yard orientation relative to the sun, and infiltration of gophers just didn’t make for much success. Then we had a dog that ate our green vegetables before we had a chance to let them ripen and harvest them. That didn’t help things either.

More recently, even though the nest is mostly empty, my parents keep plowing ahead with their gardening efforts. Over the years, they’ve acquired citrus trees, which have been their best success, and now my mom’s homegrown lemonade is becoming the envy of summer wedding receptions in the area. My parents, even after decades, are still working and learning to make the best of their home and bit of earth.

But our struggles were not universal to our area. I could list a good handful of ward members whose thumbs were completely green. My wedding reception was held in the fairyland-like yard of one of those ward members. When I was a kid, we used to pick apples for a widow in the ward who didn’t have the energy to can anymore. Although I never pictured myself as a gardener for a long time, the success of these beautiful yards still filled me with an awe that I could not deny.

Finally, there are my in-laws. They are amazing gardeners. They have a huge backyard. They buy fancy seeds from a catalogue. Their produce looks better than what you can buy from the store. They have so much experience that they generally rotate from a fruit garden to a vegetable garden every other year just to keep themselves interested because they are such experts. And they are probably the ones who impacted me the most with regards to gardening. Why? Because they have shared.

A fall hasn’t gone by since I have been part of their family when my in-laws haven’t given us several laden baskets of beans, grapes, squash, berries, tomatoes—you name it. At first I felt bad about these generous gifts. I hadn’t done any of the work, and here I was basking in the riches of their labors. I felt even guiltier when I realized that their generosity was also saving me a lot on my grocery bill. But in time I realized that their garden produced more and to spare. They loved sharing the joy of their harvest, and they had so much that they needed to give a lot of it away.
It was this sense of generosity and bounty that really attracted me to gardening. My in-laws’ home-grown gifts brought me a lot of health and happiness, but I could tell that the health and happiness that the givers felt was many times more than what they gave away to me.

I have heard it said that the greatest joy of wealth is the ability to give it away. I have learned that the same is true with planting a garden. It is wonderful to grow your own produce, but even more joyful to have so much that you can give it away. Even our first tomato plant produced much more than we could dream of consuming. I loved giving tomatoes away to everyone that I loved!

I dragged my feet for years and years about planting a garden. Even now, I don’t own my own home; I live in a small apartment and garden out of a small, homemade garden box. Maybe you only have room for a small pot. Whatever it is, I hope you choose to garden at least to give. I aspire to being a neighbor or in-law who can’t help but give baskets of gorgeous tomatoes away every year. I want to be the older ward member who invites the younger families to pick and can from my fruit trees. I want to garden so I can give; how about you?

Your Garden: Setting Up for Success

So, you’ve decided to start a garden. Whether that’s in a small pot on your windowsill, a makeshift box on the balcony, a tiny plot in the side yard, or a full-sized gardening-dedicated backyard, here are a few ideas from a gardener who was in your novice little galoshes not too long ago on how to set yourself up for success.

1. Get Advice
Why reinvent the wheel? People have been gardening since the Garden of Eden—why start from scratch? Look around for some good advice—people in your area who are good at gardening, the bestselling books at your local bookstore, or even an internet search on gardening in your area. One of those pros in your ward might even be willing to come take a look at your gardening space and give you some helpful suggestions and tips. Anyone who loves gardening would love to help you get started!

For myself, my mom and sister recommended the Square Foot Gardening method by Mel Bartholomew. Having a handy guide that was geared for beginners was extremely helpful to me in getting started. Plus, I originally borrowed the book from my mom for the first year until I decided I wanted my own copy. You could probably do the same and borrow a book from someone you know loves to garden as well.

2. Start Small
You don’t need to plan on eliminating your produce grocery budget in your first year of gardening. Make sure that you feel like baby steps are okay. When my husband and I decided to build a garden box outside of our apartment, at first I thought we should use three times the space that we finally settled on. I changed my mind when I realized that it would be okay to add a second box later on. It was really helpful to start small and learn how to maintain a small area before adding more space.

3. Start Easy
Some of the advice you’ll want to ask for from the gardeners you know is what is easy to grow in your area. Gardening books will tell you a list of crops that are easy to grow almost anywhere, such as zucchini or tomatoes. Although we all laugh about providing zucchini for the whole neighborhood from one plant, easy-to-grow crops will give you a lot of encouragement and sense of success. Why not set yourself up for that?

4. Get a Head Start
I decided to plant my first garden late in the year and didn’t get it all planted until the very end of June. Because of this, one of my mentors suggested that I use plant starts instead of seeds. That was incredibly wonderful advice.

By that time of year, all the plant starts were on clearance, and I bought whatever was left for really cheap. I don’t think waiting that long to get started is worth it unless you have to, but it was really nice to have an “instant garden.” If this is your first time gardening, consider buying mostly started plants instead of seeds to help set yourself up for success and give your garden a little head start. You can take on the challenge of seedlings when you have a little more experience under your belt.

 5. Learn and Grow
Some of those starts I bought for my first garden were cabbage, which I learned my family didn’t like to eat and I should never grow it again. I also planted onion seeds late enough in the season that the onions did not have time to develop all the way before the fall frost. Despite these setbacks, my zucchini, tomatoes, and carrots were sterling successes.

Be willing to learn and grow with your garden. Don’t expect everything to turn out perfectly, but be all the more grateful for your successes. Live and learn and grow.

The Church teaches that “planting a garden, even a small one, allows for a greater degree of self-reliance” (“Growing a Garden,” http://providentliving.org/content/display/0,11666,6637-1-3427-1,00.html). Make the decision to feel the blessings of earth, soil, and sunshine by setting yourself up for success.

Your Garden: 5 Reasons to Get Started

 “There is a great work for the Saints to do. Progress and improve upon and make beautiful everything around you. Cultivate the earth, and cultivate your minds. . . . Make gardens, orchards, and vineyards, and render the earth so pleasant that when you look upon your labors you may do so with pleasure, and that angels may delight to come and visit your beautiful locations.”
- Brigham Young, Deseret News, Aug. 8, 1860, 177.

I am a gardener, and I never thought I’d say that.

In the past, gardening was always something I associated with the mature folk, with retirement and stiff knees, with everybody but me—with people who had extra time on their hands. But then, all of the sudden, I found myself wanting to garden last summer. I was a new mom and despite the demands of an infant, I knew that changing to be a stay-at-home mom suddenly opened up enough time in my life to garden. Even more surprising than that, I actually wanted to do it. And I didn’t even want to do it for provident living, self-reliance, or any other commandment—just for the joy of it.

I’ve thought about whether my intrinsic gardening desires are manifestations of a heritage from generations of agrarian ancestors across the centuries, but I think that it’s more likely that wanting to plant, cultivate, nurture, and harvest is an endowment from my heavenly ancestry. Elder Uchtdorf has said, “The desire to create is one of the deepest yearnings of the human soul. . . . Your very spirits are fashioned by an endlessly creative and eternally compassionate God” (“Happiness, Your Heritage,” October 2008 General Conference). I have found that, as Elder Uchtdorf said, “Creation brings deep satisfaction and fulfillment” in gardening.
This year I planned my little garden and bought seeds in February because I was so excited about it. I started growing plants from seed indoors in March, and I’m growing twice as much as I’m going to plant so I can give my extra starts away to friends who might need help starting their garden.

I am so excited about this joy that I’ve found. I feel like people in my life talked about the joy of gardening to me for years and I never listened, but now I want to share it with everyone. If gardening doesn’t seem like your thing; if you never, ever picture yourself in galoshes, gloves, and a straw hat; if you can’t bear to get your hands dirty and don’t care about where your vegetables come from, I still encourage you to give gardening a try—this year.

Maybe you have a backyard to fill, maybe, like me, you only have a tiny plot of earth to work with, or maybe you only have one little pot of basil. Whatever your situation, give it a try and share in the joy of the miracle of creation. These are the top five reasons I think you should.


1. Get Outside
Gardening got me outside last summer. As a new mother, I needed the fresh air, the sunshine, and the green grass to help me cope with all the changes I needed to handle in my life. We all have changes and challenges going in our lives, and whose trials can’t be helped with a little sunshine and fresh air? The world is for our enjoyment and is so full of beauty. Gardening might be just the thing to get you out there and enjoying it.

2. Be Grateful
I have an aunt who gardens with her middle school class. She reports that there have been students in her class who honestly didn’t know where produce from the grocery store came from—that it originated in the ground or on a bush, tree, or vine. That’s not how I want my children to be raised, but who is going to teach them unless I do by gardening?

Doing the work yourself can help you appreciate food and farmers, technology and agriculture, but above all gardening has taught me what a miracle life and growing and the whole world are—all as a gift from God. Yes, I did make a garden box, filled it with dirt, planted seeds, weeded and watered, but in the end I still can’t believe that a dozen carrots appeared in the ground. It was such a miracle. I can’t wait to watch it happen again.


3. Feel Pretty
The only flowers we planted last year were marigolds to help keep the bad bugs away. Marigolds: bright and smelly. The bees loved them, though, and that flattered me enough to make me love the bees.
No matter what you plant—flowers, vegetables, trees, shrubs, grass, whatever—gardens are beautiful. I felt happy every time I saw my pretty little 7’x2’ garden. The world always needs more beauty: Plant a garden.

4. Enjoy the Fruits
Oh, the vegetables of my labors. My father-in-law always says, “Now this is a tomato!” at least a zillion times every summer after they pull in their massive tomato crop. I never really believed him until I ate my own home-grown carrots. My life will never be the same. Plant a garden and enjoy the fruits of your labors!

5. Unify Your Family
The Home and Family Relations manual says, “Families who work together in a home garden build family unity because they share a common purpose.” Even though my family consists of me, my husband, and my baby, I found this to be true. I love letting my baby play alongside my garden. It makes me feel like he’s helping even though he’s too small because I know that one day he will help. Even though my husband works all day and doesn’t have much time for the garden, calling it “our garden” means that I tell him all about its progress and point out all the growth to him, even if he only has time to help out on an occasional Saturday. President Kimball said, “There is so much to . . . harvest from your garden, far more than just a crop itself!” (Ensign, May 1978, 79). I have found this to be true even in my little family.

I am a gardener of exactly seven cubic feet of earth, plus a few random flower pots. I wouldn’t call my thumb exactly green, but I guess that gives me something to aspire to when I’m mature, retired, and have too much time on my hands (which we know will probably never happen).

The Lord has said, “All things which come of the earth . . . are made for the benefit and the use of man, both to please the eye and to gladden the heart” (D&C 59:18). I have tasted of that joy; I have had my heart filled with gladness from my garden. I hope you can experience it too.

When Quality Matters

I'm all about saving money, but sometimes cheap is cheap. This is cheap:

It smells like Nexxus, but it does not work like Nexxus. I don't know what salon "proved" it. Over time (a little over three months) the health of my hair has been completely deteriorating. At first I thought that I just needed a trim, but when I still didn't like wearing my hair down anymore, I knew this was a problem.

Enter this:

This isn't necessarily a Pantene ad. I chose Pantene because it was on sale at Costco. I'm happy to choose any shampoo from Costco because Costco always has quality products. But I am never trying a cheap or generic brand of shampoo and conditioner ever again.

It's only been a few days, but my hair already feels smoother, less frizzy and tangled, shinier, and much more moisturized. Goodbye cheap. Hello hair health. Welcome back. I'm so happy you're here.

Next up in ditching cheap for quality in my life . . . moving from this:

To this:

I can't wait.

Celebrate August!

“There is no month in the whole year in which nature wears a more beautiful appearance than in the month of August. . . . It comes when we remember nothing but clear skies, green fields, and sweet-smelling flowers-- . . . what a pleasant time it is! Orchards and cornfields ring with the hum of labour; trees bend beneath the thick clusters of rich fruit which bow their branches to the ground; . . . A mellow softness appears to hang over the whole earth.”

- Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers, Oxford: University Press, 1997, 208.

August is the last full month of the summer. Do you love it as much as Charles Dickens? Without any big holidays in August, sometimes it feels a little monotonous. Here’s a list of lesser-known holidays in August that might just be the pick-me-up you need this month. Maybe you need some fun ideas to help you survive the heat. Maybe you need some activities to keep your kids interested this month before school starts. Maybe you and your spouse or friends need some days of fun. Check out the following ideas and start celebrating August!

Monday, August 2 – National Ice Cream Sandwich Day
Buy and eat ice cream sandwiches, or make your own by layering ice cream between two homemade cookies.

Tuesday, August 3 – National Watermelon Day
Enjoy a watermelon today. Cut it in slices, or use a melon baller to make a fancy salad. Have a seed-spitting contest in the backyard.

Wednesday, August 4 – National Chocolate Chip Day
Make and enjoy a treat with chocolate chips.

Thursday, August 5 – National Waffle Day
Have traditional waffles for breakfast, then make waffle sandwiches for lunch by making grilled cheese using the waffle iron.

Friday, August 6 – Wiggle Your Toes Day
Paint your toenails, then paint a picture holding a brush with your toes.

Saturday, August 7 – National Mustard Day
Make homemade pretzels to dip in mustard, or enjoy other mustard-friendly meals like corndogs, hotdogs, or hamburgers.

August 9-14 – National Apple Week
Make and eat as many apple dishes as you can think of, such as sliced apples, applesauce, apple crisp, apple pie, apple butter, baked apples, or apple dumplings. Read books about Johnny Appleseed. Slice apples from the bottom to the stem to reveal the star inside. Have an apple sampling session by buying one of each type of apple at the store and taste-testing them as a family.

Monday, August 9 – National Rice Pudding Day
Make and eat rice pudding. Make it an all-out rice day by making fried rice and rice cakes too.

Tuesday, August 10 – S’Mores Day
Make s’mores any way you can—over the fire pit, a candle, or in the microwave.

Wednesday, August 11 – Play in the Sand Day
Find somewhere to play in the sand, such as the beach, a lake shore, a playground sand pit, or a sand volleyball court.

Friday, August 13 – International Left-Handers Day
Have fun trying to do things left-handed today (and lefties in your family get it easy today!).

Saturday, August 14 – National Creamsicle Day
Enjoy creamsicles today. Sample different flavors, such as orange, raspberry, and lime.

August 16-21 – American Dance Week
Set a time every afternoon when the family gets together for a dance party. Play different types of music and mimic different types of dancing each day.

Monday, August 16 – Roller Coaster Day
Make your own miniature roller coaster by taping together toilet paper and paper towel rolls and sending marbles through them.

Tuesday, August 17 – Davy Crockett’s Birthday
Celebrate the day that Davy Crockett was born in 1786 by reading books about Davy Crockett.

Wednesday, August 18 – Bad Poetry Day
Write bad (or good) poetry on post-it notes and place them around the house. Give each family member a different color of notes and see who can write the most poems.

Thursday, August 19 – National Aviation Day
Take a picnic to an aviation museum or memorial or an airport. Make and fly homemade paper airplanes. Read about how Orville Wright was born on this day in 1871. Also celebrate Potato Day by eating potato products today: hashbrowns, French fries, baked potatoes, etc.

Monday, August 30 – National Toasted Marshmallow Day
Toast marshmallows over a fire pit, a gas stove, or a candle. See who can toast the perfect marshmallow.

Tuesday, August 31 – Alan Jay Lerner’s Birthday
Celebrate how Alan Jay Lerner was born on this day in 1918 in New York by watching My Fair Lady (Lerner composed the music!). Eat trail mix as a snack to celebrate National Trail Mix Day.

The Local iPod Father

My husband and I love hiking. We love getting away from the city—from paved roads, fast food corners, and the demands of work—and escaping to forests, mountains, and wilderness. Several months ago, we went on a small hiking trip in a beautiful forest in Washington. The drive to the trailhead was a precarious incline on wet gravel, but as soon as we got out of the car and started on the trail we were enveloped with rich, dense rainforest. The reverence of the forest around us was profoundly silencing. I felt a natural urge to step carefully and quietly so that nothing would interrupt my feeling of awe. I could hear the rain—not a patter on a windshield or windowpane, but a light tinkling over pine needles or a tiny thud as water trickled through the high canopy overhead and landed on a branch or tree trunk. In response to the comforting balm inherent to nature, sometimes my husband and I talked quietly about ideas and things that came to mind. Not heavy, worrisome thoughts, but organic ones that seemed to grow up and out of our minds and hearts.

Our refreshing tromp through the forest was interrupted only by scattered passersby on the trail. We saw people of all kinds. Some were couples like us, old and young, who were quiet. A brief nod was enough recognition for them before we both moved on without interrupting each others’ thoughts too much. Others were louder, like a group of college students or a large family with several reluctant teenagers.

There were two parties on the trail that day who really stuck out to me because they contrasted so much. On our way up the trail, early on we passed a group that seemed to be two families—two young couples who each had an infant strapped to one parent or the other. Three of the adults were talking about their kids as they headed down the trail. One father, however, hung behind the rest about five feet. He was listening to an iPod. I contrasted that image with another father I saw on the trail. We passed him on the way up and he passed us on the way down. His son, probably about eighteen months, sat high in a child carrier above his father’s shoulders. It was just the two of them. The dad was a little slower than us going up, but a very fast hiker on the way down. We passed them a third time, however, just a quarter of a mile from the trailhead when we were nearly finished. The father had taken his son out of the carrier and was taking a picture of him crossing a little stream.

What a difference. In both cases the children were too small to hold a very reasonable conversation, but the father with the carrier was giving an experience to himself and his son. To himself he gave rigorous exercise and the enjoyment of the outdoors. To his son he gave an invitation to love those things as well. What an experience for that little boy! The iPod father, however, didn’t give anything to himself or his son but neglect and a missed opportunity.

I don’t want to knock iPods or people who use them, but I’m ashamed of anytime that I’ve acted like the local iPod father—-to family members or friends—-by shutting myself, them, and everything else besides an electronic media toy out of my life. There are times when I’ve shut out enriching opportunities just by my attitude, even without a handheld device. I hope that stops. I hope I can remember what I felt during the quiet, reverent moments on the trail that day and never exchange an experience like that for an hour with an iPod.