At some point last winter I hatched the idea of growing my own seedlings for my garden.
I don't have a tremendous vegetable garden. I don't necessarily have a "green thumb". I just like to doodle around with plants and see what happens.
My husband bought me some heirloom seeds and in February, I started my seedlings. They were off to a treacherous start, however, as I had started them in our shed hoping that the light from the window would warm the shed enough to start the seeds. I really wasn't sure of what I was doing, and figuring that my venture may fail, I planted and over sowed my seeds into the seed starter pots. To my amazement, I think they all sprouted. Broccoli, tomatoes, zucchini and lettuce. I was pretty proud of myself.
One March afternoon, however, I came outside to find my seedlings dead. They had been removed from the shed to access other tools and not put back inside. Some of the seedlings actually had been spilled out onto the brick patio. All the plants were destroyed.
As I swept up the seed starter soil and cleaned the patio, I was discouraged. I had high hopes for these plants. I was looking forward to a summer of delicious fresh vegetables. I would harvest seeds from them from the next year's crop. I was left only with frozen seedlings.
After the first frost, my husband took me to the nursery to pick out plants. Knowing the area we live in, and knowing the soil we had, I hadn't many hopes for the plants at the nursery. He encouraged me to buy replacement plants for the ones I had lost. I hesitated, and then consented. I purchased the plants I wanted and brought them home along with fertilizers and some soil treatments to help grow.
Time passed and my garden was thriving. I had more zucchini than I knew what to do with and the grape tomatoes were ripening like wildfire. I was happy for the harvest, but wished for the lost seedlings. I wanted to collect their seeds. I wanted to sow them the years following.
As brick patios often do, my patio became in need of weeding. Weeds began to sprout between the cracks of the bricks. How anything can grow in such limited space so quickly is truly beyond me, especially as the cracks are sand packed, and are less than a few millimeters wide. Aside from those conditions, thick and rocky Virginia clay lie underneath the bricks. It doesn't take much for the weeds though. They have enough stubborn to succeed I guess.
As I was weeding, I made an interesting discovery. A tomato plant was growing from between the bricks on the patio. It was growing in the same place where the seedlings had spilled over. Not only was it growing, but there were blossoms on it, and there was a small tomato too. It was less than eight inches high, but its stem was broad and so were its branches.
I was amazed. I couldn't believe that after all this time, a tomato plant from lost seedlings from 4 months earlier took root. A bird didn't find the seed. It had been "sown" onto bricks. The patio had been well swept from the topple of the plants. Yet here stood this tomato plant. It was thriving. It was producing fruit.
Last Saturday I picked the biggest tomato from my garden all season. I had other plants that had been pampered, watered, caged, and fertilized. Yet the plant who had the least produced the best fruit. It took longer than all the other tomato plants, in fact they are all finished for the season. Not this tomato plant, though. It has more blossoms on it and another tomato in the making.
I cant help but think that God has a lesson for me in this. In this life, God honors the faithful. He gives strength to those who need it and protection for those who need it so that all may bear fruit. We may have the best circumstances or the worst circumstances. That doesn't matter to God. He can grow fruit anywhere He chooses in any circumstance He chooses. He honors obedience. He honors diligence. He honors humility and humble circumstances. The end result is the fruit of His Spirit.
I don't have a tremendous vegetable garden. I don't necessarily have a "green thumb". I just like to doodle around with plants and see what happens.
My husband bought me some heirloom seeds and in February, I started my seedlings. They were off to a treacherous start, however, as I had started them in our shed hoping that the light from the window would warm the shed enough to start the seeds. I really wasn't sure of what I was doing, and figuring that my venture may fail, I planted and over sowed my seeds into the seed starter pots. To my amazement, I think they all sprouted. Broccoli, tomatoes, zucchini and lettuce. I was pretty proud of myself.
One March afternoon, however, I came outside to find my seedlings dead. They had been removed from the shed to access other tools and not put back inside. Some of the seedlings actually had been spilled out onto the brick patio. All the plants were destroyed.
As I swept up the seed starter soil and cleaned the patio, I was discouraged. I had high hopes for these plants. I was looking forward to a summer of delicious fresh vegetables. I would harvest seeds from them from the next year's crop. I was left only with frozen seedlings.
After the first frost, my husband took me to the nursery to pick out plants. Knowing the area we live in, and knowing the soil we had, I hadn't many hopes for the plants at the nursery. He encouraged me to buy replacement plants for the ones I had lost. I hesitated, and then consented. I purchased the plants I wanted and brought them home along with fertilizers and some soil treatments to help grow.
Time passed and my garden was thriving. I had more zucchini than I knew what to do with and the grape tomatoes were ripening like wildfire. I was happy for the harvest, but wished for the lost seedlings. I wanted to collect their seeds. I wanted to sow them the years following.
As brick patios often do, my patio became in need of weeding. Weeds began to sprout between the cracks of the bricks. How anything can grow in such limited space so quickly is truly beyond me, especially as the cracks are sand packed, and are less than a few millimeters wide. Aside from those conditions, thick and rocky Virginia clay lie underneath the bricks. It doesn't take much for the weeds though. They have enough stubborn to succeed I guess.
As I was weeding, I made an interesting discovery. A tomato plant was growing from between the bricks on the patio. It was growing in the same place where the seedlings had spilled over. Not only was it growing, but there were blossoms on it, and there was a small tomato too. It was less than eight inches high, but its stem was broad and so were its branches.
I was amazed. I couldn't believe that after all this time, a tomato plant from lost seedlings from 4 months earlier took root. A bird didn't find the seed. It had been "sown" onto bricks. The patio had been well swept from the topple of the plants. Yet here stood this tomato plant. It was thriving. It was producing fruit.
Last Saturday I picked the biggest tomato from my garden all season. I had other plants that had been pampered, watered, caged, and fertilized. Yet the plant who had the least produced the best fruit. It took longer than all the other tomato plants, in fact they are all finished for the season. Not this tomato plant, though. It has more blossoms on it and another tomato in the making.
I cant help but think that God has a lesson for me in this. In this life, God honors the faithful. He gives strength to those who need it and protection for those who need it so that all may bear fruit. We may have the best circumstances or the worst circumstances. That doesn't matter to God. He can grow fruit anywhere He chooses in any circumstance He chooses. He honors obedience. He honors diligence. He honors humility and humble circumstances. The end result is the fruit of His Spirit.
