Of zinnias and Eden

"And God planted a garden eastward in Eden; and there he put the man whom he had formed... And out of the ground God made to grow every tree that is pleasant to the sight, and good for food...And God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it."

As larkspur, nasturtiums, and hollyhocks begin to set seed and die, zinnias are beginning to come into bloom. I didn't plant these zinnias (or the larkspur, hollyhocks, and most of the nasturtiums either for that matter). Flowers from seasons past dropped seeds that lay dormant until the instructions encoded in their DNA told them that conditions were right for them to germinate. The time of year they show up varies somewhat, but zinnias like warmer temperatures and longer days.The main thing I've had to do in this bed is pull out zinnias in places where they were crowding out the beans and squash I did plant. There are also a lot of tomatoes I didn't plant mixed in with the zinnias, and in some cases I've had to pull them out too.

In the story of the biblical Garden of Eden, God planted the garden and Adam and Eve were supposed to take care of it. God did all the heavy digging, so to speak, but from the way I read the story, humans were supposed to tend the garden. The work wasn't meant to be burdensome, but enjoyable and creative. That's how I like to think of our garden. I like to let nature take its course as much as possible, making adjustments as I see fit.

That means I let plants nearing the end of their functional lives get a little straggly as they set seed and provide food for birds and insects. My HOA probably would object to this were the plants in our front yard, because their emphasis is on maintaining appearances. It means I probably don't get the maximum yield in terms of fruits and vegetable production, because I like to leave room for flowers in my vegetable beds. I also allow birds to eat some of our excess peaches and other fruit, because I like to watch birds. Farmers might see this as wasteful, because their emphasis is on growing enough to make a profit.

 I like a garden that is both pleasant to the sight, and good for food, not only for me, but for other living creatures. It provides enough fresh fruits and vegetables for us to enjoy and some to share. And it's not burdensome to take care of it, but enjoyable and creative.