Let's Talk about Gardens

@lioness.. I am so envious of you guys and gals who have a garden. I only have a small patio in front of my condo. I don't have any planting soil to fill any pots. I have two plumeria plants and they do flower in summer. My HOA is very strict about what we can have on our patios. I got written up for leaving a broom in plain sight.. It was wet and I left it out to dry... I would love to plant some strawberries and tomatoes. Oh well!

What about a hanging basket? You can get one in a variety of sizes and materials.
I cheat-I buy 2 hanging arrangements (in the green plastic hanging pot) and remove the hanger and put it in my porch pots. Just an idea.

@mayofeb2020 Do you have a window where the sun is all day ? This is where my plant/veg is . I got a big pot 3 in fact . Bought the seeds that are in a rolled up rug they have all kinds of flowers in them put in 2 pots the third I am growing beets I love beets and have canned all my married life I still do only beets Boy you landlord is stricke isn't she

@wildcat, " a small house on the edge of the sea lock with garden and greenhouse" are you Sure you are living in Scotland and not heaven??? Sounds like the best of the best worlds! "Shielded Group" is a lovely way to describe the elderly and more vulnerable.

Think Scotland may be planning farther ahead than the U.S. While it is a bum rap to be told you'll be the last group joining society, at least your country sounds like it has gone further in plans for phasing everyone back to more normal activity. Across the U.S. each state is pretty making up its own rules about what and when and how to implement going forward.

@lioness.. My house only gets a little sun in summer, which is ok because it can get very hot but in winter there's absolutely no sun anywhere. My landlord is a wonderful lady it's the Homeowners Association that's very unfriendly. No hanging pots or baskets. I have to keep my patio very clean.

@mayofeb2020 Have you thought about buy a ultraviolet light for your flowers or vegies

I don't have a greenhouse - I've always wanted one - but I have grow lights in the cellar where the temperature is between 40 and 55 degrees year round. My wife has been putting forsythia, grape hyacinth and geranium cuttings in bloom on the kitchen window sill.

Jim

Gardens, huh? Okay, let's talk gardens. As a child Oma had three gardens and Mother had three gardens. A few flowers were planted along the edges to discourage pests, but most of it was edibles. We would also look after the garden of the minister's wife when they were gone during the summer. After a while Mother closed one of here gardens and planted potatoes in one of the fields close to the house. We always, always, always had creeping jenny that we had to roll up and remove from the garden because every bit of leaf or stem left would start another 3-4 plants.
When I got married the house we moved into only had a small bit of yard and no garden area. Mother lamented that I would not have a garden until Father reminded her that I was working full time outside of the home and volunteering in the community. He suggested that I had enough to do without having a garden I was not supposed to hear that conversation, and I still get a chuckle out of remembering it.
From one place to another there was either no space or no time for gardens, until we bought our house nearly 40 years ago. Man oh may, did I ever break my back trying to grow edibles in our back yard! Carrots smaller than pencil nubs, not enough peas or beans for a meal, and weeds that grew faster than the plants we wanted. After a few years we gave up. Honestly, I don't regret it. I think I gardened myself out as a child and have no interest left. I'm glad so many of you enjoy gardening. I appreciate watching you toil and the plants go through their cycles with no input from me.

@2011panc For me, gardening is a love/hate relationship. I grant that it requires a certain amount of time, depending on the size of the garden. The love comes from the pleasure of watching things grow, seeing things bloom, enjoying the produce from the vegetables and the fruit trees. Sometimes I have to share it with various critters. If I weren't retired, I wouldn't have the time or energy to keep up with everything I've planted over the past 14 years. I'm trying to close my eyes to all of the plants in stores and remind myself that I have what I need/want, and that my goal is to make my property lower maintenance. I only buy seeds for vegetables, onion sets, seed potatoes and tomato and pepper plants.

Right now I have my riding mower apart to replace the belts, waiting for one of them to get here.

This has been a mild spring, so I've been doing jobs that usually can't be done for a month from now. I'll be glad to be ahead of the schedule, going into summer. I'm supposed to be having surgery as soon as the hospital is available for non- emergency surgeries. That will mean up to 6 weeks of recovery, so I'm going to have to get everything caught up, and self sustaining. I know - good luck with that.

Jim

@gingerw Again, unfortunate we are not closer in miles. We could have tea, pull weeds and solve the problems of the world-or not. I could teach you much about the green and growing things. Playing in the dirt is also cathartic for me. I don't plant annuals until after Mother's Day as covering them due to a late frost does not seem appealing to me.
@jimhd I hope you were able to pull some weeds. As for pulling weeds in the landscapes at stores I am guilty as well. I have been known to even dead head roses and perennials to keep them blooming. Worse yet, I dead head flowers in garden centers. It is truly an affliction or sure a type of disorder or syndrome and without a doubt chronic.