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Your Home Tomato Garden: The 7 Key Factors
A few friends and I were tossing this subject around the other day... actually we were talking about the things that make a difference to our gardening efforts... and it got me thinking. You see, the things that we each really saw as important weren't the sort of things that you generally find in the “how to create the garden of your dreams” information that abounds in the on-line world. Perhaps it is because we have been around the traps, so to speak, as gardeners and the “techniques” of growing are second nature to us already. Whether that was the reason or not though, the thoughts and feelings that we had were, to say the least, surprising... and not at all what I had initially expected. As well as I can recall (no I didn't have too much to drink) here they are, in point form, for your consideration... 1) Purpose – Gardening is a lot of work. Why are you doing it? One of the things that we found that we all shared was an absolute love of gardening itself. It brought us peace and contentment, or satisfaction, or fulfilment or whatever... but it brought each of us something... and this 'something' was incredibly important. It has many effects, some of them hard to describe, but the main effect was that we all looked forward to being in our garden. It wasn't just something that we do, rather it is a part of us. 2) Knowledge – Fairly obviously this is important. But what exactly do I mean when I say knowledge? Well really it can be broken down into three types of 'knowledge of'... Conditions: I have written about this often and it always seems to me to be the thing that needs more emphasis. In short, knowing your local conditions including the conditions in your backyard is paramount and affects what you can grow and how it will grow tremendously. You can find more details in my other articles. What you are growing: Understanding the plant that you are attempting to grow is vital if you are to have any success at all. If you understand this then you know what it is you are trying to achieve and you can act in harmony with the plant to achieve the best results. As far as I am concerned too much attention is put on what to do and nowhere near enough is given to knowing why we are doing it. Techniques: The most obvious and most covered subject. There is a ton of information around, most of it good. 3) Assistance – This was quite surprising in a way, but it probably shouldn't have been. Not one of us failed to be able to name at least one person who had served as a guide or inspiration for us. None of us had learnt everything all by ourselves and in fact all but one of us were involved constantly with not one or two, but in fact many other gardening experts. We were a community, and we shared a passion. Who do you go to when something goes wrong? 4) Materials – Be prepared. Overall, compared to some other pursuits, gardening doesn't require much in the way of equipment, it isn't rocket science. But the right tools do make the job so much easier and the wrong ones (or not having what you need) will make things a lot harder. 5) Attitude – Further to the point made in (1) above we each found that there were a few “attitudes” that we shared in common in relation to our gardening efforts. These were... Fun: We were invariably more successful when we were having fun. And most of the time our gardening was fun. But of course there were certainly times when things didn't happen the way we wanted and this meant that we needed a little... Stoicism: Things don't always go to plan and the ability to quietly accept setbacks and persist, never-the-less, was an art that somehow we had each picked up somewhere along the way. You could call it a calm determination in the face of adversity. Love: Or caring, (for all the men out there) was also vital. Quite simply we care for our plants. We care what happens to them and we want the best for them. They are companions that we can share moments of solitude and introspection with. Of course the boys didn't quite phrase it this way but the sentiment was the same. 6) Discipline – Possibly above all other things in regards to our success was this... and again it can be broken down into a few important areas. Preparation: Be prepared! Boy Scouts, Girl Guides... whatever. Getting caught with your plants down (pun intended) is really not clever. Make sure that you have everything that you need before you start to garden. It is really very inconvenient to be halfway through an important action only to find out that you have forgotten something vital. Routine: Absolutely crucial. Each of us had his or her routine. And it was a part of our lives, like breakfast, lunch and tea. The routine that we 'groove' into means that we don't forget crucial steps that must be done. Persistence: We all had our failures (plenty of them actually) and we remember each one of them. However we didn't let those failures stop us from trying again, and sometimes again, and again. The point is that, whether it was because of our passion for what we were doing or some other reason we became 'expert' eventually through persistence. Which leads us to... 7) Experience – Nothing replaces it. And, of course, it doesn't happen overnight (I all of a sudden feel like washing my hair... very strange) but it will happen... if you have the above 6 points covered. In one way or another they contribute to creating a life out of whatever activity you are undertaking, one that leads to becoming 'expert' and certainly one that is full of satisfaction at the end of the day. All in all it was an interesting day and one that I got a lot of realisations out of... here's hoping that the things I have pointed out will strike a chord with you too. Article Directory: http://www.articledashboard.com Tired of having poor results in the garden? Go to www.growingbettertomatoes.com and sign up for my free mini-course. It's full of helpful tips and information on creating a thriving tomato garden. For a fantastic resource that you really shouldn't be without get How to Grow Juicy Tasty Tomatoes. |
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