Has gardening changed, or have you?

[dexterdoglancashire]

Interesting post wayne,,,,gardening has made me calmer, made me appreciate what I eat, what I put on our plate. I dont go buying fancy tools, there is no need for it. I enjoy the peace and quiet, I also enjoy the banter and competition. Always learning new things and teaching others what I know.
There is nothing better than being on the lottie at 6am, listening to the birds, saying hello to the old chaps that saunter up, making them a brew, putting some bacon in a pan and making bacon butties, talking about the weather, crops, what were doing next......
I can honestly say that gardening has always been in my blood, I love it.

Actually Mo, I think you've summed up having an allotment perfectly. I too, enjoy the peacefulness and quiet, the birds singing etc. Being on my lottie brings me a sense of fulfilment and happiness, and yes, after the IOM will be taking my frying pan down to the lottie for a bacon sarnie!

[miffy]

My attitude to gardening has changed Wayne. I enjoy it now for the relaxation it gives me rather than the finished product as such. I used to garden to make it look nice. Now i garden to create habitats for critters, to feed my family but as i have said mostly for relaxation purposes.

[Couperman]

I blame the chickens

Well my gardening has changed almost as much as I have in the past 2 years. Not so long ago I only used to cut the grass occasionally.
It started for me when a guy I worked with used to bring fresh eggs in from home and sell them in the office. I couldn't believe the difference in taste. So when he left we got some hens of our own in the garden at home.
Then came the predictable 'what are we going to do with all this chicken muck?'
'We'll compost it said I"
4 full compost bins later and it was 'What are we gonna do with all this compost'
'grow veg' came the reply. So I built a raised bed at home and applied for a lottie thinking it would be a long wait. No sooner had I finished the raised bed we were offered a plot.
So now the raised bed is my nursery bed, I have two greenhouses and a chicken run in the garden leaving very little grass left to cut
And we have a huge allotment plot full of veg and a freezer full of last years veg. I just wish I had a bit more land to keep a few pigs, goats, ducks, geese
We have basically turned into Tom and Barbarba Good and are dreaming of that little smallholding that will follow the lottery win.

[allotmentlady]

Cripey! Where's your plot/ I'll be there in the morning - shall I bring the braan sawse?

Anytime hunny anytime

[Reks]

Such lovely and interesting posts.
I moved to this country 10 years ago from India. I always loved growing plants (got that from my mom I think) but living in a city like Mumbai it was very difficult to find the space to do it. So as kids my sis and I would grow whatever we could in pots and be excited when we saw little plants grow. When I moved here I was amazed at the types/varities of flowers grown in different season, very different to whats grown in hot tropical Mumbai. Saw all the gardening programs and always dreamt of having an allotment as when living in flats there was not much chance to grow anything. When we bought our first house I went mad with my flower garden and slowly progressed to growing few veggies.
I always thought getting an allotment was next to impossible. But this year managed to get one and I am thrilled to bits. Its hard work but so therapeutic! My OH also enjoys it. I have learnt so much more about growing the right way, the different way, the organic way from this forum so need to salute u all for being there for novices like me, for enabling us to change in subtle ways how we grow and what we grow!