How Does Your Garden Grow

There’s a special kind of magic that I am only now beginning to understand. It is a beautiful thing that affects all of us — whether practitioners or observers.

This spring, as my understanding of this craft grows, so does the joy I take in it.

The art of gardening has often eluded me despite how much I love the look of other people’s gardens. Flowers, trees, shrubs and resin figurines come together to create beauty in a sometimes ugly world and I want so to be a part of it.

I started small last year with the help of a friend, weeding and thinning out the garden I inherited when I bought my house. After removing much of the aggressive ground cover already there, I planted some annuals for instant color and some perennials that, in theory, would come to greet me every spring.

Throughout the summer I watched my garden, unable to stop myself from comparing it to the visions of loveliness and obvious hard work in those plots of beauty in the neighboring yards. By fall, I found my garden lacking and not entirely sure what it needed to be the happy space I so desired.

Then, in recent weeks, a wonderful thing happened. After clearing out the winter’s debris from my garden, little splashes of color began to emerge. It wasn’t much — three tulips — but it was enough to bring Spring to my heart. Next to these little rays of orange and red sunshine I could see the potential for more color as the days grow longer in the form of the various lilies (day and calla) and daisies planted last year.

I plan, again, to plant annuals for instant color and a few more perennials in my special space for even more joy and beauty next year but, for now, I feel that my garden is finally beginning to grow.