Welcome!
But the lesson I have thoroughly learnt, and wish to pass on to others, is to know the enduring happiness that the love of a garden gives. ~Gertrude Jekyll, Noted British landscape designer, artist, and gardener
Recently there has been an enormous revival of interest in gardening. I'm glad. It's important that people understand the work and effort involved in producing food. The reason for this revival is really two-fold. Food costs are rising and will continue to rise exponentially. Global demand and fuel and freight cose contribute to this, and will continue to do so. Additionally after about three generations of people in the US who have not been directly involved in farming and producing food, a great amount of interest has been generated in recent years over how our food is raised and produced. Then there is that whole thing of how it really makes a person feel good on some primitive, all-over level to know that you were responsible and able to provide what you consume.
The concept behind this website is gardening, but it's about so much more than that. It's meant to be a visual inspiration and a place that I can share information, experience and resources with my readers and friends. There are a lot of things I want to share. I'd like to give a part of something that has provided me with such joy all my life. I love living things of all kinds, and I love to grow them.
I'm Julie, and I garden in the Missouri Ozarks. Gardening here has both unique challenges and great rewards. I'm a native of this area. I've had the great privilege to live on a farm all my life, enjoying true closeness with the land, out of necessity. I believe that land does not actually belong to us (well, except in a secular, I-hold-the-title kind of way), but instead, we are stewards with a responsibility to that which we have the fortune to hold and care for while we are here. I think it's a little like the commercial for Las Vegas in a way. What we do here, stays here......for a long, long time. We should try to continually improve things, ultimately leaving it better than we found it!
My garden philosophy follows that concept plus the belief that gardening should be easy, enjoyable, affordable, and give back to you in beauty and sustenance for yourself and your family and friends, even that wandering rabbit family or squirrel or two, if you plant extra....OK, maybe not the squirrels. :)
I incorporate the theory that the best of the old-school and modern methods can be used for the ultimate gardening experience and success. Some subjects will have organic tenets, some will not. I believe in the correct and knowledgable use of pest control and fertilizer. Anything can be over used, and both these things are not under the column of "If a little is good a whole lot is better." That is what has caused the unfair villification of modern methods, in my view. A few bad apples, and all of that. Moderation and common sense are best used generously, on the other hand.
The topics that will be covered on this blog will be tailored to this area, but can be adjusted for time and place to other parts of the country.
Please spend some time and look around. I welcome your thoughts and suggestions for what would be useful and enjoyable to you.
Thank You for taking some of your time to visit. I will update and add material frequently, so I hope you return often.