Are You a Gardener?

 My very first book is "Diary of a Wannabe Gardener."

It is actually one of my flower gardening journals turned into a book. One year, while waiting for Winter to turn to Spring, I made my flower journal into a manuscript, then published it. It is a book filled with folklore, humor, plants, and a mystery.

Each gardener has their own style and favorite type of garden. Whether it's a vegetable, flower, or cacti garden, gardeners share a love of seeing the stages of growth their garden goes through. Some use seeds, others use cuttings to increase their plants, but no gardener ever have enough plants. There is always room for one more somehow.

   This is the story line of my book Diary of a Wannabe Gardener.

 "Have you ever thought about the various ways people judge one another and how a person may see others in their own mind? Could there be someone somewhere trying to decide whether you are a beautiful gracious rose or a defensive prickly pear? That is exactly how Samantha Black judge people.

    Samantha, a stay-at-home mom, is at war with the weeds in her flower garden. She has suffered yearly defeats but knows this is the year of her victory. Her thumb may not be green, but she is green with envy as she views breathtaking landscapes of various Mississippi gardens. She pinches money from the household funds behind her husband's back, to achieve her goal of the perfect garden. 

    Her family become reluctant participants in her yearly war against the weeds. She will not allow herself to entertain the idea that she is actually a gardener until she has created the "perfect" flower garden. Even when the family omen of the death birds comes to her house, Sam keeps her focus on her garden, her soul.

    Sam chronicles the garden murders, the revolts and injustices of nature, and her determination to overcome old wive's tales in her yearlong diary. Family and community bonds are formed and strengthened in the oddest ways as Sam's "perfect" flower garden comes to life."

    If you are a gardener in the South in the United States, you may already be getting garden fever. There are days during our mild winters where it does not seem like Winter at all. The ground warms earlier for us than our Northern friends. Right now, there are daffodils in bloom and Lenten roses.

    I always ask this question, "What does a gardener do when they are not gardening?"  The answer is, "They think about gardening." 

    One positive thing the pandemic caused was a return to gardening. During lockdowns many people found the time to get outside and become one with Mother Nature. Master gardeners started ordering heirloom seeds to plant and seed companies found themselves struggling to keep up with product. The vegetable gardens thrived, and proud first-time veggie moms and dads posted their pride and joy vegetables on social media.

    My book is a delightful look at the life of a gardener and all of her hopes and dreams, successes and failures trying to produce perfect blooms and a breathtaking flower garden. She learns as she goes on her flower journey, sometimes it is just about the journey and not perfection. Many life lessons can be learned in a garden and Samantha learns an important one.

    To all of my gardening soil sisters and brothers, as you wait for the land to awaken once again, purchase my book and reminisce about your own gardening joys and frustrations. Read and see if you can see yourself in Samantha who is obsessed, consumed with thoughts of plants. Meet a few characters along the way, and maybe, just maybe, pick up a few gardening tips. This is a book about you, for you, the gardener.

    If there is a gardener in your family, this will make a wonderful gift for them. I would love for you to read my book and leave comments as to whether you too get gardening fever or learn life lessons in the garden. I wish you all an early Spring even though the groundhog said differently, and a happy gardening adventure this year.

DON'T FORGET: purchase "Diary of a Wannabe Gardener" on amazon.com and I will be posting pictures of flowers from my garden as the season gets underway. For non-gardeners, I encourage you to give it a try. Beginner gardeners, you are doing better than you think. Master gardeners, I am still jealous and envious of your gardens.