A few observations from a master gardener.

master gardening observations

I am now a master.

Not a ninja or anything. Though that would be pretty darn cool. Nope. It’s not that exciting. After months of class time, reading, volunteer hours, tests, and more reading, a couple of weeks ago I became an official Master Gardener here in South Carolina. Officially official. Although I don’t think the learning will ever end. There’s just so much to know. And for the record, I still have weeds out the whazoo. That’s official. There are weeds.

master gardening observations

Since hearing about my mastership (tee hee … it sounds so important) friends have asked what my big tip or take-away is that I learned over the past months. I’d have to say that, other than getting a soil test (always get a soil test), the biggest lesson for me from the Master Gardening course is observation. Much of learning is observing. Knowledge and understanding comes when we’re watching, listening, being quiet, being still, paying attention to the details.

Isn’t it funny how other things teach us so much about life? Gardening is certainly like that for me.

When we’re always talking and moving, we miss out on so much. When you’re talking, you can’t hear. When you’re moving, you miss the subtle things. So lately I’ve tried to remember to approach not only my garden environment my way, but also my personal environment. Watch and listen. That’s when you really do learn.

Happy gardening and happy living!

(By the way, all of the photos in this post were taken with my iphone. I’m having a little too much fun lately on Instagram. Are you too?)