At this time of year, I suspect that most of us create a mental list of things that we’re grateful for. This year especially, in the midst of a terrifying pandemic, being able to garden has taken on new and important significance. Like other outdoor activities, such as hiking or birding, gardening has provided a healthy outlet when so many of our other favorite pursuits may have been curtailed by safety concerns. And as we all know, we can be thankful for gardening for many other reasons as well. I am sure all of us could come up a long list of items for which to be grateful, and many of our choices would be similar or would overlap. The holiday has inspired me to write down a few of those items related to gardening that I am especially thankful for.
I am constantly grateful that I garden in the climate of the Central Coast of California. Having moved here many years ago from the hot and steamy southeastern United States, I stay appreciative for our mild and cool summer weather, with winter temperatures that rarely freeze. Being able to comfortably garden year around is a gift that I can never take for granted. I am also grateful that our mild climate allows us to grow, and grow well, an astonishing variety of plants, from woody flowering and fall-coloring deciduous plants to subtropical or Mediterranean fruits and flowers.
This year and especially in drought years, I am thankful for fresh water. That gratitude has me expending effort toward safeguarding that precious water supply, by installing drip irrigation, collecting and storing rain water and filling more and more of my garden with low-water need plants. And I am thankful for the many excellent local growers, nurseries and suppliers that furnish the materials and plants to help preserve our water. I am grateful too for the continuing efforts by many local folks to keep our air, soil and water clean and safe. Local resources like the Organic Materials Exchange (http://www.ome.sccrcd.org/find/) make possible the safe treatment and distribution of animal manures to help keep our streams clean and our soils rich. The many local activists and responsive officials who expend great efforts to safeguard our environment, making organic gardening practices feasible, are my heroes.
Two local colleges have wonderful agricultural and horticultural programs, which welcome local gardeners’ participation. We can all be grateful for the advice, information and training these college programs and personnel offer. We can also appreciate the beautiful campus gardens; both the Arboretum at UCSC and the Botanic Garden at the Horticultural Center at Cabrillo College provide a visual display that satisfies the senses and inspires us to greater efforts in our own gardens. We can also be grateful for and support the Life Lab and other garden programs provided in many of our local schools. Both our children and our schools benefit, as do our communities and the environment.
My list wouldn’t be complete without mentioning the critters that live in and around my garden. Birds, butterflies, insects, salamanders, even our native Banana Slugs, add their own beauty and movement to enrich our gardens. Watching the tiny golden Lesser Goldfinches flitting from my feeder to my fountain where they enthusiastically bathe, hearing their musical calls to each other, fills me with thanks that such beauty comes to my garden. And watching the butterflies, most often the brilliant orange and black of the Monarch and Gulf Fritillary adults, never fails to delight my senses and remind me to be grateful that I can grow the flowers that they need. May you too find this kind of contentment and satisfaction as you ponder the gardening joys of this Thanksgiving season.
Garden tips are provided courtesy of horticulturist Sharon Hull of the San Lorenzo Garden Center. Contact her at 831 423-0223.
