My Gardening Experience

When I was a young mother my husband and I listened to our prophet and we planted a garden. "We encourage you to grow all the food that you feasibly can on your own property. Berry bushes, grapevines, fruit trees—plant them if your climate is right for their growth. Grow vegetables and eat them from your own yard. Even those residing in apartments or condominiums can generally grow a little food in pots and planters. Study the best methods of providing your own foods. Make your garden as neat and attractive as well as productive. If there are children in your home, involve them in the process with assigned responsibilities.” Spencer W. Kimball, ‘Family Preparedness,’ Ensign, May 1976, 124 A garden was work and not always as successful as we would have liked. For example I pulled the weeds more than once in Wisconsin because I used the Wyoming method I learned from my family of pulling up the weeds and laying them between the rows to die. To my amazement in Wisconsin they grew. I have learned over the years that by following the prophet admonition to have a garden there are benefits. Our family learned to enjoy many things made out of zucchini in the summer time. This past year in California my family has enjoyed winter squash most of the winter. We have many fruit trees in our yard which include oranges, lemons and grapefruit most of the year. We enjoy apples in the summer and fall as well as apricots, peaches and pears. We have two types of grape vines. We enjoy watching the birds in the almond tree. What a blessing. We also have a little garden spot for other produce. I have grown children today that are teaching their families about the benefits of a garden. I am grateful that I had the faith to follow the admonition of our prophet many years ago. It has benefited my family today. I know that we as a family received more benefits from our garden that the produce it provided for us. See the quote by Spencer W. Kimball, ‘Welfare Services: The Gospel in Action,’ Ensign, Nov 1977, 78. “I hope that we understand that, while having a garden, for instance, is often useful in reducing food costs and making available delicious fresh fruits and vegetables, it does much more than this. Who can gauge the value of that special chat between daughter and Dad as they weed or water the garden? How do we evaluate the good that comes from the obvious lessons of planting, cultivating, and the eternal law of the harvest? And how do we measure the family togetherness and cooperating that must accompany successful canning? Yes, we are laying up resources in store, but perhaps the greater good is contained in the lessons of life we learn as we live providently and extend to our children their pioneer heritage.”