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A Lesson From The Garden - part 2 of 2

Category: Short Stories | Posted: Fri May 09, 2014 9:55 am

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He found it about a month before, one little leaf poking out of the ground at the end of the bean row. He started to pull it up, but it looked like a squash plant, so he left it where it was. He checked it almost daily and the little plant seemed to take on a life of its own. Before long it had put out large green leaves and Preston decided that it was a pumpkin. Then, it started branching out with long, wispy tendrils that reached out and took hold of the fence. One day he looked in on it and a beautiful white flower had opened up. There, attached to the flower, was a small green fruit shaped like an hourglass. He knew then what it was; it was a gourd.

Disappointed, he thought about pulling it up. It was, after all, in the bean row, but he couldn't bring himself to do it because he enjoyed watching it too much. So, he left it where it was and every day since then he had rushed out to the garden to check on it. He spent a lot of time manipulating the vines so they would grow up the fence and it had practically covered every square inch of it. He was amazed how something that started out so small could grow so quickly.

Preston was still admiring the gourd plant when he felt something brush against his leg. He looked down and saw Misty. Her small hands were holding onto the chain link gate and her face was pressed up against it so that one eye was staring through a rusty link. She only said five words, "I like your garden Daddy," and then she looked up at him and smiled. Then, as quickly as she was there, she was gone.

Preston watched her skip away and a disturbing thought crossed his mind. Misty was, in fact, just like his precious gourd plant. The plant came up unexpectedly; so did Misty. The plant showed up in the wrong row; Misty showed up in the wrong part of his life. He was disappointed when he found out what the plant really was; he was disappointed when he found out his wife was pregnant with Misty. His heart melted as he thought about Misty. Was he treating this gourd plant better than he was treating his own daughter? How much time had he actually spent with her? How often had he really listened to what she had to say? Was it possible that he was holding a grudge against her for coming along so late in his life? Was he actually blaming her for some of his marital and financial problems? The more he meditated on it the more he shamefully realized that it was all true.

He thought a moment and then looked back toward the flowing plant at the end of the garden. He had been so wrong about that plant. In a matter of weeks, with a little care and nurturing it had become the centerpiece of his garden. What if he would have pulled it up when it was just coming out of the ground? He would have never gotten to watch it grow or see it bloom. He would have missed out on so much.

What was he missing out on with Misty by acting the way he was? What would happen if he spent some quality time nurturing and caring for her? A sound shook him out of his thoughts and he turned to see Misty running across the yard with her arms held straight out to the side of her body. She turned and waved, "Come play with me Daddy."

Preston looked at his garden, then back at Misty. He could almost hear the gourd plant silently pleading with him to step inside the gate. There was a moment of indecision. Then, somewhere in the back of his mind a distant voice spoke to him, "Go play with her."

He spoke out loud, in answer to the voice, "But what about the garden?"

He was still thinking about it when Misty called out to him again, "Come on Daddy, play with me. Please?"

She stopped right in front of him, arms still extended, making bubbly airplane noises. Then, she stepped forward, wrapped her arms around his legs and said, "I love it when we play together Daddy."

Suddenly, the garden didn't look so enticing. With a slight tremor in his voice he said, "So do I Honey. So do I."

And this time... he really meant it.


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A Lesson From The Garden - part 1 of 2

Category: Short Stories | Posted: Thu May 08, 2014 9:34 am

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Preston Walters rolled his eyes and sighed heavily as warm air started coming from the air conditioning vents. This always happened when he was in the car line and it was one of the reasons that he hated picking Misty up from school. He shut the air off and pushed down on the electric window buttons. The front, passenger window glided down with ease, but the other three stayed put. He slammed down on the buttons with his fingertips repeatedly, hoping to get some kind of reaction, but the windows didn't budge. By the time he got to the pick-up point he was soaked with sweat and totally frustrated.

Misty saw his car and started jumping up and down, waving excitedly. When the all clear signal was given she ran to the window and shrieked, "Hi Daddy!"

In a sour voice he uttered, "I'm hot. Just get in the car so we can get out of here."

She opened the door and jumped in, throwing a pink book bag in the floorboard. Totally oblivious of his bad mood she said, "I like it when you pick me up Daddy."

Preston looked her way, forced a smile and lied. "So do I Honey. So do I."

Misty talked non-stop all the way home, going into great detail about every minute of her day. Preston simply drove and half listened, offering an obligatory, "Really?" or, "You don't say?" during the rare quiet moments. When they reached the house Misty jumped out as soon as the car stopped. Before he could even get out of the car she was bursting through the front door. As he watched her run inside he could hear her small, excited voice, "Mommy, Mommy! Guess what I did today?"

Preston sighed and leaned over to pick up the book bag.

Later on that day, while walking to the garden, he relived his drive home with Misty. He didn't like the way he felt toward his six year old daughter, but he just couldn't seem to get over it. Misty was their third child and the only one that wasn't planned. In fact, she was a total surprise, coming nine years after Tiffany and eleven years after Jack, now a senior in high school. He thought about having one child ready to graduate while another was just starting school. He suddenly felt tired… and very old.

He stopped at the gate and looked out onto the garden. This was his favorite place to be, his silent escape from life. He spent at least thirty minutes a day here pulling weeds, picking off bugs, looking for new growth and just enjoying the time outside. It always helped him get his mind straight. His eyes moved to the end of the garden. There, completely covering the fence was the plant that had become the central point of his backyard getaway.


Last edited: Sun Apr 17, 2016 1:25 pm

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Short Story Intro

Category: Short Stories | Posted: Wed May 07, 2014 10:28 am

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Even when I was younger I enjoyed reading short stories. I was that nerdy kid in high school who looked forward to the literature assignments, especially when they involved short stories. There was a point in time when I thought that I might want to pursue a career in writing, but that dream dissipated long ago.

Still, once in a while I find myself attempting to put a short story together. Starting tomorrow I am going to post a story that came about a few years ago when I walked into the garden and found a plant that I did not recognize coming out of the ground at the end of the bean row. I know it doesn't sound very exciting, but my experience with that little plant prompted a story that I just had to put to paper. Honestly, it almost wrote itself.

It is a short story, but it is just a little too long to put into one post, so I am going to break it up into either three or four posts depending on how it all works out. I know the length will probably discourage some from reading it, but I hope you take the time to do so. I will be on the lookout for other garden related short stories to post. If anyone has any suggestions I would love to hear from you.

Last edited: Wed May 07, 2014 6:00 pm

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The Little Plant That Could

Category: Gardening | Posted: Tue May 06, 2014 10:26 am

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A number of weeks back I came across a lonely tomato plant growing in the flower bed right beside the entrance to my work place. How it got there I'm not sure, but I rescued it and took it home with me that afternoon. This is what it looked like then:





I put it in a pot with some good soil and before long it was looking good and ready to transplant into the garden.

I was so proud the day that I put it in the ground, but it was short lived because when I came out the next day a cutworm had done what cutworms do. Devastated, I just left it where it was.

A few days later I noticed a leaf coming out of the ground. The tomato plant was still alive. I wrapped it to protect it from the cutworms and this is what it looks like today:


Unknown tomato plant ( photo / image / picture from eclecticgarden's Garden )





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After The Rain

Category: Bees | Posted: Mon May 05, 2014 10:17 am

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It rained for two days straight this past week. When the sun finally came out yesterday I made my way to the garden to see what amazing things might have happened.

As I was passing by the cucumber plants I heard the unmistakable sound of a bee. It took me a few seconds, but I finally managed to find her. I thought it would make a good picture if I could catch her on one of the yellow blooms, so I whipped out my trusty phone and went to work.

I'm sure anyone watching would have found it amusing as I crouched close to the ground, phone held close to the plant trying to follow the busy bee to as she buzzed from flower to flower. Every time I would try and take the picture she would fly away just before I could get her in focus. It took me a good five minutes, but I took a couple of good pictures.

Now I have some more pictures that I can show off to unsuspecting non-gardeners. I can't wait.


Busy bee on a cucumber plant ( photo / image / picture from eclecticgarden's Garden )





Last edited: Mon Aug 18, 2014 7:21 pm

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Allium Nigrum

Category: Gardening | Posted: Sun May 04, 2014 1:27 pm

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I bought these sedum bulbs on clearance last year. I kept them in the refrigerator over the winter and then put them in the ground this past March.


CORRECTION: Turns out these are ALLIUM NIGRUM and not sedum. My apologies if I confused anyone.



Sedum in the garden ( photo / image / picture from eclecticgarden's Garden )






Sedum ( photo / image / picture from eclecticgarden's Garden )





Last edited: Tue May 06, 2014 12:24 am

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My Grandmother

Category: Gardening | Posted: Sat May 03, 2014 1:53 pm

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I wrote a little about my grandfather yesterday, but he wouldn't have been able to be a farmer if it weren't for my grandmother. She went to work at an early age as a telephone operator and eventually retired in the early eighties. It was her steady income that helped them through the tough times of being a farmer.

She worked the late shift, 11:00pm to 7:00am for many, many years. As a boy, I remember spending the night with my grandfather so we could go hunting in the morning and I would get to sleep with him because she was always at work.

My grandmother loved to can and I spent a lot of time helping her pick the vegetables, prepare them and then put them up in jars.

She passed away in January of 2003 at the age of 79. Even in the previous year, at the age of 78, she had us out in the tomato field picking tomatoes so that we could put them up. She sat in the car most of the time to stay out of the heat, but she was so happy to be back out in the tomato field again.

If she were here now she would already be scanning the paper for U-pick fields and getting her jars ready.

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My Grandfather

Category: Gardening | Posted: Fri May 02, 2014 10:41 am

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My grandfather was the one who steered me towards gardening. He was a vegetable farmer by trade. Growing up I spent many hours under the hot, Florida sun working in his fields. He mostly grew tomatoes, cantaloupes and watermelons, but I also remember peanuts, eggplant and even soybeans.

Even though he had acres and acres of vegetables in his fields he still kept a smaller, separate garden with a few tomatoes, squash, beans, corn and okra for himself.

I didn't appreciate his love of farming when I was growing up. That didn't come until many years later. He passed away in 1993. What I wouldn't give to just sit down with him now and have a conversation about this year's garden. I would love to ask him about some of his farming/gardening experiences. It would be incredible to have his wealth of knowledge at my fingertips. Mostly, I would just love to be with him and hear his voice again.

If I could be with him again I would let him know that I appreciated all of the blood, sweat and tears he poured into his chosen profession. I would let him know that all of those years were not in vain. I would let him know how a little boy who used to complain about having to work out in the fields under the hot sun now longs to feel its warmth on his skin as he is digging around in the dirt.

I can't tell my grandfather any of those things, but I can tell others. If you know a farmer then let them know how much you appreciate them. If they are anything like my grandfather they won't really want a compliment, but a few kind words can go a long way.

Last edited: Fri May 02, 2014 10:57 am

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Miracle Plant

Category: Gardening | Posted: Thu May 01, 2014 10:17 am

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When I was about twelve I showed my mom a special plant from a gardening magazine. The picture showed a beautiful, green plant with succulent, red tomatoes growing above and large, brown potatoes below. I couldn't believe that they could grow tomatoes and potatoes on the same plant.

My mom ordered it for me and I watched the mail every day, eagerly awaiting this wonder of modern horticulture. When it finally arrived I tore into the box, expecting to see something extraordinary. Instead, I found six pieces of potato with a hole in the center of each one and a pack of tomato seeds.

My excitement quickly began to fade and, as I read the instructions, it left me completely. The instructions said to put the potato in the ground, place a seed in the hole that was in the middle of it and then cover it up. If planted this way, the potato and tomato would grow at the same time and in the same place. I was so disappointed that I didn't even try it. I was expecting some new kind of miracle plant, not a trick.

Recently I've started seeing advertisements for the tomato/potato plant once again. They are calling it the TOMTATO. Look it up on the Internet and you will see some incredible pictures. This time, instead of planting a tomato seed inside of a potato they claim it is a tomato plant grafted onto a potato plant. I won't be ordering one, but I can't help but wonder if anyone has tried it.


Last edited: Tue Jun 03, 2014 3:16 pm

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Garden Nerd

Category: Gardening | Posted: Wed Apr 30, 2014 11:02 am

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I am a garden nerd and I don't care. Let me explain: I have a friend at work who wanted to start a garden for the first time. He asked me some questions and I tried to help him out. After a few weeks he came to me and told me that he was giving up because he just didn't have the time.

Not wanting him to give up I told him about some of my gardening challenges, the most recent being how to protect my young plants from the free-roaming chickens. I pulled out my phone to show him a picture of one of the cages that I had placed around the borage.

I saw his eyebrows rise when I started showing him the other pictures of the garden. I guess it could have been the excitement in my voice as I explained every picture.

I quickly realized that he wasn't very interested in looking at the pictures or even talking about gardening any longer so I squelched my excitement and shut down the picture show.

As I think back on the encounter his reaction made sense. Here I am, a 50 year old man, whipping out pictures of my garden and showing them off like they were my grandkids. The fact that I even carry around garden pictures to show off proves that I am a hopeless, albeit happy, garden nerd.

Here's the thing. If you are reading this I would be willing to admit that you have pictures of your garden too.

Anyone willing to admit it?

Last edited: Thu May 01, 2014 10:44 am

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