GO AHEAD, GET YOUR HANDS DIRTY

It time to get down and dirty, in the garden that is. Spring and early summer is the time to get outdoors and get in touch with Mother Nature, literally. Hope springs eternal, we are told, and at no time is that more true than in the spring of the year. We hope something good will come from out effort when we plant, prune and fertilize in our garden, flower box or patio planter.

It usually does. Mother Nature is reliable.

Yes, there can be disappointments. The tomatoes develop leaf wilt and die. The radishes have tiny worms in them. The raspberries are small and dry. And nothing bothers the blasted weeds.

Be strong and persistent. The gardener is the Sheppard and the plants are his flock. He must tend them, he must see that they have what they need to grow strong, and he must fight off all would-be attackers vigorously. Miracle Grow will help your “little ones” grow strong. Some Preen Weed Preventer will forestall new weeds from emerging after you put your tomato plants in the ground, a little wax paper around the base at soil level will protect other seedlings from cutworms, and a shot or two of Malathion spray will send other predators to their reward.

Each week, sometimes even each day, you get to watch your efforts grow, blossum and mature.

I like growing things from seed. I am currently nursing a prickly pear cactus grown from seeds I obtained from a red pear-shaped fruit I picked up last summer while in the desert around Phoenix, Arizona. You may never have seen a cactus grown from seed. Neither had I. However, since the fruit has seeds, I wondered why one could not grow a cactus from seed.

True, many cacti spread through pieces of the parent plant that fall off or are dislodged by a passing animal. You may have noticed that many cacti have large stems or segments separated by rather small or thin joints. The Cholla cactus is one example. If you brush against a section of this cactus, it will grab your skin or clothing and not let go, breaking off at the nearest joint to be deposited elsewhere when you relieve yourself of it. That section will take root and a new cactus plant is born.

Nevertheless, cholla cacti make flowers and create seedpods, just as prickly pear cacti do. So, is it unreasonable to think that a cactus can be grown from seed? Not at all. I have now done it.

My current effort is directed at growing a sycamore tree from seed. Why? Just to see if I can do it. It can be done, according to what I read, but I have so far not created the right conditions for it to happen. I will just have to keep trying.

This morning, however, I chose to get my hands dirty by hoeing around my tomato plants, my cucumber and zucchini plants, and my horseradish. My back did not care for that little exercise, but I have a small garden so it didn’t take long. I enjoy the exercise so my back can just get over it – and it will after a little rest.

So, if you haven’t done so already, get out that spade, that trowel, that rake and hoe and go plant something. Plants some flowers if you don’t care for fresh vegetables. Put a tomato seedling purchased at your favorite garden center in a planter on the back porch and nurture it along. You will be rewarded later this summer.