Anxious hopeful anticipation. That’s what I always feel at the May stage of the gardening season. You’ve prepped the soil. You’ve pulled weeds, added compost, and dug holes. You’ve made your garden plan by researching and selecting your plant and seed varieties. You’ve planted, fertilized, and sprayed for everything you could think of. You’ve trellised and watered. Now, you wait. And try to be patient.
You’ve done all the hard work. You’ve followed the rules. You continue to fret over the weather and every bug that lands on your precious plant babies. You watch warily for signs of critter nibbling. But, you are resigned. It may all be for naught. Your toils may all be for nothing.
Gardening is a frequent lesson in the futility of man against nature. Will my plants survive? Will the bugs and yard rodents get to eat more from the garden than me? Will there be too little or too much rain? Or sunshine? Will the plants grow healthy or diseased with blight and fungus? Will they bear anything actually edible or just taunt with the idea of it?
I am anxious, but oh so hopeful, in my anticipation of a successful season in spite of these challenges. Oh, for that first bite of a hard-earned tomato victory!
