Just as the garden gives us glimpses of wonderful things that are in the future, so does the Word of God:
1 Corinthians 2:9 (KJV) But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.
The Master Gardener is at work in your life. Don’t give up hope. He has beautiful things in store, just for you!
Happy peppers & potatoesBaby Yukon Gold PotatoesBlue potatoes Blue potatoes Soon-to-be Rattlesnake Pole Bean blossomsA perfectly twirled tendril – so amazing!A new cucumber blossom!And he has friends!Cantaloupe & watermelon seedlingsA sprouting field of wild flowers planted in an old tire. Can’t wait to see what pops up! Happy little fig tree!
Everything is growing so well. I’m surprised every day by some new growth or blossom or bug or snake… you just never know what to expect in Florida!
We’ve had some disappointments, too: yellow peppers that refused to germinate, cilantro that has only grown four tiny leaves, & tansy that never grew. Our sugar baby melons are struggling & the oregano never even popped its heads up out of the seeds. The loquat tree is being munched on by weevils & out of 8 plants, I have only 1 tomato growing.
But the process had been so rewarding and I’m learning SO much! I love being outside right now before the horrible heat arrives & the Lord is showing me many Spiritual truths out in the garden as well.
Sometimes, it feels like everyone else is doing so well. Achieving. Growing. Accomplishing.
While I seem stuck. In a rut. Making no great progress. Just existing. Or to be honest, just barely existing.
My tasks feel unimportant. My growth is so slow. Even I’m bored with me.
But as my pastor reminded me last night, there are no unimportant jobs in Christ’s work. And even my small contributions are worth my very best effort.
Whether I’m doing dishes…or calculating our budget…or greeting a church visitor with a smile…or praying for my church leaders… maybe sending out a get well card… these “small” efforts are important in God’s grand scheme. And I should do my best.
His goal for me isn’t great accomplishments. His goal is my growth. He wants me to keep growing to be more like Him.
And even if my growth isn’t the same as some others…
I am still growing.
Be faithful in your tasks today, my friend. God will bless your work in His way & in His time.
We’ve been busy, busy, busy, getting seeds into the ground and setting up our garden. This will be another picture post, as I don’t have a lot of left-over energy for writing all the words that make the sentences that make the sense. 😉
Tomato and Pepper Seedlings sending up their little stems.
I’m trying to be patient and wait for the second set of leaves on these little guys before I transplant them!
And even though I didn’t get a picture of him, we’ve seen a little bumble bee buzzzzzzing around our blueberry plants. Yay for pollinators!!!
Coconut coir, vermiculite, perlite and compost
I’m becoming enamored with mixing my potting soil. It’s so satisfying to move the ingredients around until they thoroughly mixed and ready to go into the planters.
Bare root strawberries
These arrived in the mail on Monday. We soaked them and got them into the soil right away! Isaac’s old wagon makes a great planter. It even has pre-made drainage holes in the bed! The company I ordered from sent FOUR extra strawberry starts. I had to scramble and find another planter. They looked very healthy after their bath and I’m so excited to see how they do!
This represents about 1/3 of our garden so far. The drip irrigation was a new project for me, and I enjoyed it immensely. AND it was incredibly satisfying to turn the water on for the first time and get water dripping into EVERY plant and have no leaks or lines popping!
We still need to regulate the nozzles on the stakes, to be sure each plant is getting the right amount of water, but since some of these plants won’t be in this section, we’ll wait to do that when the final buckets are in place.
Urban trellis.
All of our climbing vegetables and fruits will be in front of the gate here, trailing up these sections of fencing. We’ll have a couple different kinds of melons, cucumbers, squash, zucchini and more.
The master list
The master plan
My plan is ambitious, I know! And I’m hoping it’s a success. But ultimately, I know that I will learn so many things, whether I have a successful garden or not. Then I can build on the knowledge I have, and the things I’ve learned, to make a more successful garden the next time.
Ultimately, I’m leaving the results up to the Heavenly Gardener! After all, He’s the Creator of each tiny little seed I planted. We’ll see what He wants to teach me as I garden this year.
Onions just peeking through the soil. Happy radishes!Drip line irrigation for the spatially-challenged. 😆These are going to smell sooo yummy! Funky nasturtium seeds.
We’re staying busy in the garden. Waiting to transplant tomatoes & peppers as soon as they are ready.