Eye of the Beholder

I was walking down the street yesterday, checking out people’s front yards, and musing to myself: “What makes a flower desirable?”  So many perfectly lovely flowers are looked at as scourges by many, if not most, gardeners.  I’m talking about the ones we call weeds: dandelions, goutweed, creeping charlie, etc. On the other hand, some people leave dandelions in their lawns, since they look rather bright and lovely in the spring and the bees love them.  Some people plant goutweed in their gardens because it makes a very reliable ground cover (very reliable!).  Others probably don’t even notice creeping charlie, it’s so small and blends in very well with other similar looking plants, plus it has a pretty little purple flower.  Eventually, though, creeping charlie will creep all around everything, creating an unsightly mess and choking other plants.  I guess that’s the trouble with a lot of lovely looking plants, they are way too much of a good thing.  If you don’t control them, your neighbours won’t appreciate the seeds that get transplanted to their yard, or the runners that come out from your side of the fence and your own yard will be a big old mess.

I think the reason I ponder the issue of plant desirability is to keep things in perspective.  As someone’s mother said once, “There are no bad plants, only ones I haven’t discovered a use for yet.”  For someone who loves dandelion greens, the more would be the merrier!  They’re welcome to come forage in my backyard anytime!  For those who want to keep their yards simple and easy, goutweed would do the trick in many cases.  I need to ponder a bit more to find a use for creeping charlie…but at least it’s easy to yank out.

Keeping things in perspective helps you not get too stressed about the state of your garden.  Some plants will always come back, no use in getting frustrated.  As long as you pull some out every year, you can keep a balance that works.  Mulching keeps the worst of the weeds at bay, and also keeps your soil moist.  Focus on the plants you want to nurture and develop selective blindness towards the ones that insist on popping back where they’re not wanted.  There are only so many hours in the day and only so much energy to expend.  Use some of those hours for the pure enjoyment of being in your own tranquil garden.

Here’s something to help you keep your cool about weeds and pretty much anything else that bugs you!  Bill Evans with his trio playing Waltz for Debby. (Sorry about the ad beforehand, but this rendition is a delight!)

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