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Why I Garden: Patricia Carpenter, Davis

Posted on: Saturday, 25 March 2006, 15:00 CST

By Dan Vierria, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

Mar. 25--From the street, is it obvious you like to garden? Yes, people pull in and say, "I can't stand it any longer; I want to see."

How would you describe your garden? Probably country-style. A lot of little rooms, a little miniature train garden, a tropical garden, native garden, shady woodland garden, vegetable garden. Hopefully, it's done well with transitions, lots of paths.

What plant are you most proud of? Rhubarb. I tried three or four times to grow it before and it always died. Everybody says you can't grow it here in Davis, but I finally did. This year I'll harvest.

Which body part suffers most from spring gardening? Nothing suffers because I don't do anything dumb anymore. I've had back surgery and I was literally an invalid. I don't take gardening for granted anymore. I wear knee pads; I don't bend over. I do everything I did before, just not the same way.

What would you like more of in the garden? Ranunculus. The ranunculus crop is going to be a little iffy. There's a rabbit out there causing me some grief.

What's your strategy for weeds? If the paths are clean of weeds, you assume (the garden is) weed-free. I try to keep paths relatively clean so there's the illusion.

What are you most anxious to grow this year? A special kind of sorghum that is sweet. I work with school garden programs and we tie it into the curriculum, geography, world history. I never could find the kind of sorghum you make syrup out of but I finally found seeds from Bountiful Gardens (in Willits). Supposedly you can cut off pieces and suck on them and it's sweet.

What do you grow in containers? Tradescantia, pansy, a lot of succulents in an old wheelbarrow and in a couple of old boots. Mostly succulents.

What does gardening provide that other activities don't? A good way to keep going - you're always four to six months ahead in life, always looking into the future. And I cope with the world better because of gardening. When my kids were little, I hired a baby sitter (Friday afternoons) so I could garden. My kids are well adjusted because I had time to garden.

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Copyright (c) 2006, The Sacramento Bee, Calif.

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Source: The Sacramento Bee

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