Fearing Failure in the Garden

We all have garden failures. Plants die, seeds don’t germinate, bugs and other pests eat our harvests. But it is okay, and any experienced gardener will tell you that. You cannot get all the information you need to have a successful garden from a seed packet, blog post, or even a class. Every garden has its own conditions, whether it is soil quality, your growing zone, the weather, or what pests are in your area. The only way you can learn how to have a successful garden is to try, fail, and figure out what works best for your specific garden.

Gardener’s are problem solvers. Especially when it comes to organic gardening. When organic gardening, you can’t simply go to the store and get a spray that will kill any pest immediately. You have to work with nature and experiment to fix your problem. This can look like, companion planting, attracting helpful insects, or growing some plants in the fall instead of spring.

One of the most nerve wracking parts of gardening, for me, is planting out seedlings. I will have seedlings that are thriving growing inside and having to decide when to plant them out in the garden beds can be quite the stressful decision. In zone 6B, where I have my garden, we are having some unexpected temperatures. We are having several days in the 80’s but still have several weeks left until the estimated last frost date. Planting somewhat cold hardy plants right now has been a challenge because there is a chance they will get too hot, but there is also still a chance they will get too cold. It is hard planting out your healthy seedlings, knowing there is a chance they won’t make it. Sometimes, though, you have to simply accept that you might fail, but it is still worth it to try.

With every fail you will learn something that you would not have been able to if you had succeeded.

It can be devastating having your plants die or not produce as much food as you hoped after putting in all the prep work. You build your garden beds, prep all the soil, and maybe even start your seeds inside, then just one hot day or one freeze and the plants are dead. It feels like all the work was for nothing and you may never have the harvest you want. You just have to remember, there will be another garden season, and you will be able to try again.

I have failed, and I will continue to fail, you can read my blog, 5 Things I Would do Differently, to hear about some things I learned my first year gardening.