Listening to Mother

A good day's harvest!

One of the most memorable things about gardening is that it is immutable.  Mother Nature operates on her own schedule and rushes for no soul.  Consequently, my garden is just now coming in because I planted it anywhere from mid-May to early-June.

The pepperoncini, and the serrano and jalapeno peppers are producing well.  The other peppers are beginning to produce reliably.  All of this is happening during a severe drought, which has forced me to water frequently.

Deer snack food?

The tomatoes are trying to produce, but the birds are pecking and ruining many of them.  The deer are nibbling at the tops (at least I don't have to "top" the tomato plants!), but the bugs have yet to attack in force (I'm sure they are standing outside my window, preparing to attack my garden).

All of this drives home a hard truth for me:  I cannot rush Mother Nature.  She is firmly in control and things take as long as they take.

I don't like that.  I'm a Type-A modern woman.  I Get Things Done.  This is why my garden has been such a source of frustration for me.  It does not follow my schedule.  It does not respond to my rushing.  It does not really respond to me.  It responds to the biological imperatives locked into the plants' DNA.  It responds to the soil.  It responds to the weather.  It responds to Mother Nature's voice, not mine.

I'm trellising my fall pumpkin vines.

Maybe I should, too.  Since Mother Nature does not do things my way, I need do learn to do things her way.  That means listening rather than commanding.  That means observing.  That means learning.

Sounds like a lifetime job.

So, what's happening in your garden?