Get Out Your Green Thumb

“See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth,

Being patient with it until it receives the early and late rains.

You, too, must be patient.”

James 5:7-8

As I shared with you in last week’s memo, the new year provides for us the opportunity to begin anew (Nunc Coepi) by resolving to make some improvements, not only our own day-to-day routines, but also by making a concerted effort to elicit some positive changes for our children and grandchildren. I was pleased to receive responses from several of you affirming the value of music – both playing and listening -- as a means to foster intellectual as well as emotional development.

This week I share with you my second recommendation: Instill a Passion for Gardening. Once the Christmas decorations and lights are taken down, and the house is a little barer but much less cluttered, it is time, at least in San Diego, to get outside and start preparing for spring planting. Last week, after the rains, I weeded my front flower bed and buried nearly 100 tulip, daffodil, crocus, and hyacinth bulbs that had been “wintering” in the vegetable drawer of my garage refrigerator for the past eight weeks. My love of plants/gardening has been passed on to me from both grandmothers as well as my mother, and it is certainly my most successful stress-release. Research indicates that digging in the dirt has many benefits: probiotics found in soil have been known to support gut function, enhance the ability to absorb nutrients, and reduce inflammation. Additionally, gardening can help us maintain strength and dexterity in our hands and improve sleep quality, and microbes in soil support skin healing and regeneration.

Children love getting dirty, and introducing them to gardening at an early age has many long-term benefits, including fostering physical activity, teaching responsibility, and encouraging healthy eating habits. Sowing seeds, thinning plants, and weeding improves fine motor skills while carrying watering cans and moving soil focuses on gross motor skills. Asking questions based on observations challenges children intellectually, and new vocabulary is introduced as well (e.g., soil, compost, aerate, germinate). All of the senses are stimulated through gardening: Feeling (different textures), Smelling (dirt and flowers), Seeing (multiple colors), Hearing (water and birds), and Tasting (food they have grown). Finally, as with adults, digging in the dirt improves moods and reduces anxiety, and it exposes children to everyday germs to help build a strong, healthy immune system.

So, where do you start, given your already very busy schedules? You can begin by having your child pick out a house plant at Home Depot, or a local grocery store or nursery. Have them learn the name and origin of the plant as well as ideal growing conditions. Like a pet, they will need to water and feed their plant regularly, (you might also need to purchase a grow light if your natural lighting is limited), and repot it when it outgrows its current container. Small indoor herb gardens are also an option, and are generally easy to maintain. For outside, pot a variety of annual plants for color, and change them as the temperatures rise. If you are more motivated, I suggest purchasing (or building) a raised cedar planter where you can experiment with some favorite vegetables. If you have the space in the ground (or a large, deep pot), try your luck with cherry tomatoes or raspberries. It is fun to see the fruit emerge, and it is even more fun to pick and eat them straight from the plant. Don’t panic if you don’t think you have a green thumb, and don’t be disappointed if things die – that is going to happen. It is important to keep trying (cause and effect comes into play here). Eventually you, and they, will figure it out. Gardening takes a lot of patience, but the benefits are unbelievably rewarding.

Grandparents can be especially helpful here. Whenever I visit my granddaughters in Reno, we make a trip to the flower store. I’m not sure how long the plants last after I’m gone, but I keep trying, believing that I am sowing the seeds of my passion in them. Good luck, everyone, and let me know your thoughts.

Deo Gratias, Kathy