From gardening to the study of happiness, we note that thinkers across the board say that achieving a personal form of happiness involves (a) a sense of control and autonomy in one's life, (b) mastery of meaning and purpose, and (c) . ) connection with others.
With this perspective, up to now we have focused on gardening, thinking about gardening and studying gardening. The Learning theme had two sections: Resources and Objectives.
Our next study is about communication with others.
Again, in today's photo section, in the category of garden plants you know well. Make your own decision about the category before looking at the answer at the bottom of the column.
Let's dive into today's topic: connecting with other gardeners.
When you connect with other gardeners, you can be a student, teacher, or colleague. These are all honorary roles and you can switch between them by talking to different people.
Even expert gardeners can become students. As I mentioned in a recent column, when passionate gardeners with years of experience become apprentice gardeners, their knowledge of gardening is broader and deeper. This training creates an appreciation for many aspects of the art and science of horticulture.
All gardeners can become apprentices by learning from the experts from time to time by attending a training session, watching a webinar, or participating in informal discussions. Learning can be fun and not at all confusing as long as the teacher is helpful and respectful. This has always been my experience. Gardeners usually realize their limited understanding of the vast garden soil and humbly pass it on to others.
Since your role transfers to the teacher as a student, you need to be helpful and respectful to your student at this time, even if you are sharing your knowledge with the gardener.
You can also have the opportunity to experience the joy of helping children to grow plants. Gardening with children is an important part of the gardening world because it enriches the child and preserves an important part of human history. There is a lot of useful information on the Internet to help you improve the education of your youth. Search for "kindergarten with children" with a Google search.
Horticultural societies provide excellent networking opportunities with other gardeners for continuing education and social networking. Many communities focus on common plant genera (roses, lilies, dahlias, orchids, etc.) or larger garden plant groups (succulents, California natives, fruit trees, rock gardens, etc.).
For a complete list, visit ahsgardening.org, click on Resources, and scroll down to Associations, Clubs and Organizations. Some groups turn to general gardening, sometimes focusing on edible gardening. These include the Master Gardeners Clubs and the Garden Clubs of California.
This column cannot list all local chapters of horticultural groups, but references to state and national organizations generally include references to local groups. Once you've chosen a horticultural field, look at the link above for local links.
Participating in a local gardening group certainly increases the happiness of gardening, especially when combined with other gardeners such as students, teachers, or peers. Each group has a unique mix of activities, typically monthly meetings with expert speakers or other programs, show and tell sessions, prize contests, plant exchanges, etc. and occasional general meetings for educational purposes or plant sales. They can also hold private meetings for members only. Today's example is a citrus tasting hosted by the local chapter of California Rare Fruit Growers (for a good cause!).
Meetings with other gardeners complement individual gardening sessions for practical work, reflection and learning. When the gardener adds social obligations to control and goals, the formula completes the expert formula for happiness.
In the next column, we'll explore another dimension of horticultural happiness: connecting with nature.
Deep knowledge of horticulture.
As an example of learning AI horticulture, I selected (and slightly edited) one of the many questions local gardeners submit to the California Rare Fruit Growers Chapter in Monterey Bay and sent it to chat.openai.com/chat . AI's raw answer.
• My pomegranates bloomed for the first time this year. In fact, it is full of flowers and so slender growing that at 20 feet tall I wonder if it will be too much for these little trees. Need to cut overly long branches that almost touch the ground? Or thin out some branches to let in more light?
• Congratulations on the profuse blooming of your pomegranate trees! To ensure that it continues to grow, it would be a good idea to take some steps to manage its growth.
First, if the willow branches are long and almost touch the ground, it's a good idea to shorten them so animals or people don't damage or break them. You can prune these branches to make the tree more manageable.
Second, by thinning out some branches, more light will enter the tree, promoting healthy growth throughout the tree. Selectively remove some of the smaller or weaker branches growing toward the center of the tree, with an emphasis on keeping the strongest and healthiest.
Be sure to use clean, sharp cutters to avoid damaging the tree, and cut diagonally toward the top of the bud or side branch. It's also best to prune a pomegranate tree during its dormant period, which is usually in late winter or early spring, to avoid stressing the tree during its active growing season.
With proper pruning and care, your pomegranate tree should continue to bloom and bear fruit for many years to come!
This week's photo category
Today's column covers a pretty obvious category: plants with pink flowers. In order not to gather information, I have omitted a few cultivar names: Chitalpa 'Pink Dawn', Cistus argenteus 'Silver Pink', and Cuphea 'Starfire Pink'.
Almost all flowering plants have some type of pink flowers, from pale pastel to reddish. The pink color is determined by varying amounts of pigments called anthocyanins. Other pigments are carotenoids and chlorophyll. In all cases, the plant's colorful display is intended to attract pollinators, which help the plant reproduce. People are also drawn to pink flowers, which they find elegant and stylish.
Enjoy your garden!
Tom Carwin is past president of the Friends of the California Santa Cruz Arboretum and Monterey Bay Iris Society, past president and life member of the Monterey Bay Area Cacti and Succulent Society, and associate master gardener at the university (certified 1999-1999). 2009). ). He is currently a board member of the Santa Cruz Hostel Association and is active in the Pacific Horticultural Association. Check out daily photos of her garden at https://www.facebook.com/ongardeningcom-566511763375123/. For information on gardening and an archive of gardening columns, visit ongardening.com. Email your comments or questions to gardening@karwin.com.
