Sara Sandstrom-Kobi, Peak to Peak. I love to garden. I love the smell of the dirt. I love the feel of the dirt in my hands. It is exciting to see the first little bit of plant pushing through the soil. I love seeing the plants growing. Even more thrilling is hearing my children’s cheers of joy when they see the plants growing. 

One of the things I miss about living in the Midwest is having a long growing season compared to living at 9,000 feet. I grew up in a family that had a garden every summer. Both of my parents are great gardeners. They learned from their parents. Neither of them grew up in a wealthy family so a garden was truly a necessity. I think my parents continued gardening because it saved us money on groceries (which was needed) and they just loved to do it. 

I did not always like helping in the garden. My job mostly consisted of pulling weeds, or so it felt at the time. However, somewhere between the weeds I did learn to appreciate the process and joy of seeing our gardens grow and harvested. 

I have found it challenging to grow vegetables and flowers where I live now. We do have a greenhouse of sorts, but it is in desperate need of repair and proper ventilation. So, I attempt to grow only a few things each year. 

This spring, with school buildings closed, I made it a goal to make sure the kids had a bigger part in growing some vegetables. We decided to start with the things that have been successful in the past for us, spinach, lettuce, kale and tomatoes. I have also always wanted to try to grow some garlic so we planted some garlic and are waiting impatiently to see if it will grow. 

I made a trip to Ace Hardware. The kids helped prepare the soil, plant and water the seeds. I told them how lucky they are that they don’t have to pick out a bunch of rocks for this gardening project. I remember having to pick rock for the purpose of a better garden. Then, one year my dad thought it would be a great “broaden your horizons” experience to help pick rock on a friend’s farm. I know what he was thinking. He had to pick rock when he was a kid so his kids should do it too. It was an entire field. It was miserable. As I retold the story my kids gave me a what-are-you-talking-about look and my son dramatically said, “I would never do that.” Hummm…maybe my dad was right. 

While we were planting, my daughter asked why we were doing all this. This was the perfect segue into my mini lesson on the importance of gardening.

I told them how former First Lady Michelle Obama had a huge garden at the White House. This was the first garden since Eleanor Roosevelt’s victory garden during WWII to grow food on the White House lawn in large quantities. Michelle Obama did this to bring awareness to the fact that we need to eat healthier. She especially wanted children to know that they deserve to grow up healthy. She did this through exercise and gardening. 

It is wonderful to see how many community gardens have been started across the county especially in urban areas. There are more farmers markets again. Fresh and healthy food is slowly becoming more available. 

As we got our hands dirty digging in the dirt and looking at the difference in seeds, I talked about how gardening helps relieve stress, is good exercise and can make us happier people. 

I know my kids were not listening to everything I was saying. Which was made clear each time they asked if it was time for a snack yet. And I know they are not going to remember all that I am trying to impart on them. I do hope they see the value of growing some of their own food to nourish their body and their soul.

As the weather warms up, we will head to the flower garden. For me, a flower garden is one of the most calming and tranquil places to be. I dream of going to Queen Elizabeth’s gardens at Buckingham Palace someday.  I just have to figure out how to get an invitation. 

Last summer the whole family worked hard to have a small area with poppies, irises, columbines and peonies. We are waiting for the summer weather to arrive so we can see what comes back this year and learn what more we can do to create our own little paradise on our little plot in the mountains.  

“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature. To nurture a garden is to feed not just the body, but also the soul.” Alfred Austin

(Originally published in the April 30, 2020, print edition of The Mountain-Ear.)