It was a beautiful South Florida day, you know, the kind you see in movies. The sun was shining at full light, the beach was a sea of colorful umbrellas lining the shore and children of all ages are staying cool with an icy drink while poolside.
This is the kind of day when I looked over at my very generous neighbors yards and admired their bountiful array of fruit trees draping bunches of mangoes, oranges, loquats and limes while vines of tomatoes lingered below. I had never known a life like this in Missouri. How amazing to be able to walk outside and pick these luscious fruits and veggies from the vine and voila, a fresh Mangorita and salsa to accompany dinner tonight! And so I decided, I am going to plant my own fruit trees and vegetables. It was perfect timing as my mom was about to arrive for a visit! She was to me the all knowing gardener who could help me on my new journey to produce independence. So we visit our local nursery to pick out that perfect orange tree and tomato plants. How exciting, it's the perfect time to plant she assures me, it's May! Now if you are like me and are a Zone 9 gardener, you will find the humor in this statement, if your from up north bear with me for a moment while I explain what was about to occur to take me on my journey of gardening patience. Now this is not to say that my mother is still not an amazing gardener, nor can I leave out the part where she mentioned she had never gardened in Florida and that I should research my zone. Zone, shmone, If it worked for her once upon a time, it would certainly work for me.
So proud of my 4ft. orange tree, which was beginning to flower and I was positive would bear the most gorgeous fruit, we began to dig. Luckily, this happened near Mother's Day so I was able to recruit the men of the house to help with the digging. They just love me so much they hopped at the opportunity to bless me on my special day, no guilt was used in the making of that hole! So let's fast forward about and hour. South Florida soil is a mix of rocks and more rocks with a little sand, crab grass and dirt mixed in. That beautiful sun was pelting down blinding rays at a tempature of 96, creating a lovely shade of hot pink on all visible areas of our bodies. "Nevermind that, we are going to have an orange tree!", I kept saying to my super excited crew, "We got this!". Finally, the hole is done and it is time to insert the tree. But wait, mom says that when planting a new plant we remove all of the dirt around roots and spread the root system out and so this is what we did. Then lastly, cover with the rocks and dirt that were once removed from the ground and water! Ok, sounds easy.
We turn on the hose, lay it next to tree and go inside for a much needed cool drink and fresh mango salsa. To ensure that my little tree got all of the water it needed to nourish those blossoming flowers, I let the hose run for about two hours. I really intended on soaking the ground and giving this tree the best start it could have. It only took about 3 days for me to know that my poor little tree wouldn't make it. It tried to fight but all odds had been stacked against it. I called everyone I could think of to inquire to why my once green tree was now a sad shade of brown. My mom was stumped, it seemed I did everything right. So I called the nursery, which to my surprise, belted a giggle on the other end followed by condolences and a bit of advice. "This is Florida, how and when you grow something can vary drastically to gardeners up north." And so there it was, the truth I hadn't wanted to see, I would have to research, learn and practice at gardening. It wouldn't just happen but it would be a growing process for me and my plants.
Now, I will admit that after the local ducks and birds ate all my tomatoes I wallowed for a while. I learned to grow a few herbs and had a little luck with palm trees but it is only now, inspired by my sisters journey in gardening, my love for fresh from the garden foods and a desire for my family to reach produce independence that I am all in!
We are two sisters going into this journey with different methods, planting schedules and obstacles, however we have one important common goal. We are excited to learn, grow in patience, and see what this years Harvest will yield!
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