Who do you get your Green Fingers from?

[janeyo]

OK so mine are pale green and sometimes not green at all when things go wrong.. but wondered how you all got your interest in growing?

Mine comes from many places:

My paternal grandad (who dies way before I was even a twinkle)kept an allotment for years.

My maternal grandad grew loads in his garden and I used to strip redcurrants, gooseberries, shell peas, slice runners for the freezer and generally be a nuissance asking daft questions while he was digging when I was a little girl. (I still miss him even though he died 20 years ago)

My mum used to love to garden but can't do so much now as she has mobility problems.

When I grew up I had little interest in the garden except for sitting in it and sunbathing! My now ex husband wouldn't let me touch so much as a weed, he was particular about his garden. When I met OH he hated gardening and actually had all of his gravelled over!

When we moved we had loads to do in the garden and as he hated it I sort of got forced into doing more and more. Then I started growing veg in pots... then I decided when pregnant we HAD to move house as I NEEDED a veg garden and chickens (have always been terrified of birds, lol)

And bless OH he went along with it, as you don't argue with mad pregnant women and here I am now, expanding the beds from last year, got me chooks and can't really believe I am the same person!

And it's a good job when the pregnancy hormones wore off the urge to just sit in the garden didn't come back or I may well have been put under the decking by now lol

So waffle over - how did you get your green fingers?

[pigletwillie]

Partly from my ma but in the main from my Eldest sisters husband Jeff. He is a font of knowledge and his enthusiasm rubbed off onto me.

[lynda66]

we had a huge garden when i lived at home, and we had an orchard and a sometimes used veggie bed, but i only grew flowers in my little patch,

my grandparents had a farm, with chooks, and lambs and calves for me to bottle feed, and grew veggies too, i spent all my school holidays with them, so guess it was inevitable really, that eventually i'd get a house with a garden and get over the flower urge and dig the lawn up

although my fingers aren't that green, at least i'm havin a go

[Alison]

Used to go up my paternal grandad's lottie when I was a sprog and my dad got me growing a few things. My brother and his missus grow too but mainly I owe a vote of thanks to my grandad, even though I didn't really appreciate it back then.

[gemlady]

Can only aspire to have green fingers, but I think I got my gardening bug from my dad, wish I had taken more notice of him when he was alive.

[MrsC]

Both sides of my family. Grew up with a large garden (half of which was veggies) used to love going out on a Sunday to collect the veg for Sunday lunch. Greenhouse full of toms, used to fascinate me! My Mum's family is huge and since getting my lottie she has found out that at least 3 other people on her side have an allotment today.

[vegnut]

I got mine from both my parents, now long gone. But both really enjoyed the garden. My dad enjoyed his spuds, onions and runners & my mum enjoyed her flowers. Thanks to them both.

[coomber]

My Lovely lovely dad, when I was young my dad spent most of his spare time in the garden and I would help - he only ever grew flowers though.
I started off growing flowers but would lose interest half way through the summer so thought i'd give some toms and runner beans a go - I was hooked. when we decided to move house the only thing i wanted was a huge garden! which I got I now use most of it for growing fruit and veg and I love it!

[Nicos]

A family history back into the 1600's (on several trees) of Agricultural labourers

Actually- closer to home my father and grandfather loved gardening!

[allotmentlady]

My grandfather had a farm and his kitchen garden, where as a little girl I could sit for hours listening to him talking to his tomatoes, I learned so much!

My mother was a gardener in growing exotic species but not veges but I soon turned her.

They have both now passed away and I miss them so much. I am sure they are proud of my lottie, a lot of family knowledge goes into my growing.

[LizyDrippin]

I've never been interested in "gardening" the thought of cutting grass makes me shudder.

I have always wanted to grow things though. My mum's dad (I never really knew him, he died when I was young) had an allotment, and I've grown up hearing stories about him.

He grew prize winning flowers amongst other things and I admit that my favourite flowers are the ones he grew.

I want an allotment so much, my garden isn't tiny but it isn't big enough to grow all the things I want to in the amounts I need to make it worthwhile.

I keep dreaming that the local council will open a new site, or even better that I win the lottery and can buy a house with a couple acres

[MaureenHall]

I haven't a clue where I got my interest from. I was brought up in a city with a tiny "garden?" that consisted of a patch of grass and my mum would buy a packet of night-scented stock every year to put round the border and that was it. My family are intrigued by my interest and love sampling some of the produce but apart from my youngest daughter, nobody else wants to give it a go. I'm cultivating one of my granddaughters though, she loves helping and is always thrilled to bits when I give her a few seeds to grow herself or a little pot of something that's already germinated

[jackie j]

From my dad he loved his garden especially his roses they always remind me of him,also chrysanths, dahlias to name a few. My mum could break of a bit of plant stick it in the ground and it would grow !!! My eldest sister and I both love gardening for her its mainly flowers now, but she and her OH used to have an allotment in shaldon when they lived in the village. For me though its veggies and a few flowers. this year I am tring harder to grow flowers as well.

[miffy]

My paternal grandad and maternal great grandad were both very keen veggie growers.
My great grandad was head gardener for a big house in the midlands and i still have his pruning knife which i use today. Grandad spent hours with me when i was a little un telling me how to grow things and let me have my own little patch in their cottage garden. I often think of him even now when i am plantin,potting on even though he died twenty years ago.
When i lived at home my mum was always in the garden she is an obsessive gardener and although disabled and quite elderly still gets out there every day. We also had a council allotment when i was at Infant and i loved being out there too.
I have always enjoyed the outdoors, playing in the mud at the age of 18 months, there is a fab photo of me eating dirt at that age! So i think i could definitely say that being in the garden, wanting to look after the environment and growing things is in my veins. Mr Miffy never had that as a child but he has said that my enthusiasm is infectious and he has just bought his first spade, they do say you are never to old to learn and i am loving sharing my passion for growing things with him, something we can share as we grow old together.

[RedThorn]

My Mom.