So I feel inspired to share with you all my excitement for learning to garden! Do I have much experience? No. I have grown my own container herb garden, and I helped my mother-in-law (an expert gardener) to prepare, plant, maintain, and harvest her backyard garden last year. I was so lucky to have that experience, and I learned a lot. I would still consider myself a 'greenie' (pun intended), but I believe that with research, hard work, and faith, we will learn and have success in our gardening endeavors.
I know that we have a living prophet on the ear
th today, President Thomas S. Monson. He is just as
much a prophet as Moses and Noah were. There are also apostles. There have been many apostles and prophets in our time who have counselled us to grow a garden.
The prophet, President Spencer W. Kimball has said: "We encourage you to grow all the food that you feasibly can on your own property. Berry bushes, grapevines, fruit trees—plant them if your climate is right for their growth. Grow vegetables and eat them from your own yard. Even those residing in apartments or condominiums can generally grow a little food in pots and planters. Study the best methods of providing your own foods. Make your garden as neat and attractive as well as productive. If there are children in your home, involve them in the process with assigned responsibilities."
"Children should learn to work. Parents should not spend their nights and days trying to find something to interest their children. They should find something to occupy them and get them busy doing something that is worthwhile." - like gardening together as a family!
The prophet, President Ezra Taft Benson has said:"There are blessings in being close to the soil, in raising your own food even if it is only a garden in your yard and a fruit tree or two. Those families will be fortunate who, in the last days, have an adequate supply of food because of their foresight and ability to produce their own."
Apostle, Elder L. Tom Perry has said: "There have been very few years in my life when I have not been responsible for a garden. Even now as a city condominium dweller, I still plant and ha
rvest a garden each year. Let me encourage you to draw close to the soil. Have your own experience in planting a garden. Then make application in your own life of this great principle of the law of the harvest."
(www.lds.org is the website for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. This is where you can find out more about prophets and apostles in our day and what they are teach us through the Lord's guidance).
This month, I also read these 2 wonderful articles from the March 2011, and September 2010 Ensign magazines. They are inspiring!
Below are some great resources to help teach you how to get started:
www.providentliving.org also has a great website for gardening that will help you get started. It has separate pages for planning a garden, gardening in containers, recipes using garden produce, and links to gardening websites
www.eartheasy.com is one of my FAVORITE websites, and it is teaching me all about gardening.
It teaches a ton of the basics you need to know to start a backyard vegetable garden
the whole gardening menu on eartheasy.com from seed buying tips, organic lawncare to slug control
I am also excited to start composting - read all about it by clicking the link below:
Seth and I have opted to build our own raised garden beds because our backyard has a drainage problem, and it will be better for our backs, and for many other benefits. Click on that last link to see the instructions for creating and using your own raised garden beds. (They also have options for buying them if you want to)
Good luck with your own garden this year! And remember to start small (Seth keeps reminding me of this) You have to start with one thing, and then add another and another. You can't do it all at once. As you work at it, you will enjoy the blessings of your harvest, and the beauty you can create.
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