Spring has sprung, and summer is just around the bend. With a couple of years under our belts when it comes to gardening in this little corner of the desert, we’re not planting just yet. There is still potential for frost, though morning temps haven’t been below freezing in a couple of weeks; close, but not quite that low. Still, there is that anticipation of getting things going, knowing that a few months down the road there will be delicious, fresh veggies...perhaps, too many veggies to process, but still a wonderful part of the summer.



     I remember well the countertops covered with ripe tomatoes in my parents’ home. Mom had a garden, and worked it well. The tomatoes were always so flavorful. As an adult, I much prefer the homegrown variety, and am always disappointed when they’re out of season. The light complected varieties sold in the grocery stores, especially in winter months, are a disappointment. Even those with a rich red color, when found in a grocery store, rarely pack the fresh deep flavor that a garden grown tomato offers. If tomatoes are a necessary component of a meal during these out of season times, it’s frustrating to pay the price expected for such an inferior product. I’m spoiled.



     With the bit of experience we have, there are some definite lessons involved thus far, and more to come, I’m sure. And some great points of comparison. For example, in a grocery store, it is unlikely that you will find blemished tomatoes. Those don’t make it to the produce market. They’re unattractive, and I’m sure they wouldn’t sell well. I don’t look for blemished tomatoes at the grocery store, I avoid them. However, my garden tomatoes often have blemishes. I still try to make the most of these, not wanting to waste them. The bad parts get cut away, and the salad or sauce or salsa still tastes wonderful.



     Growing conditions impact the final product. Shade is a help, as the hot Nevada sun can take a toll on the crop. We’ll be trying to incorporate a shade cover to help with this in the coming season. Likewise, we hope at some point to adjust fencing so as to protect from regular winds. Watering, obviously, will impact. We’ll also be looking into some good “food” for the plants, as we want to get good production. Years ago, we used a product which was sprayed on the flowers to help them set. Again, something to incorporate in our newer locale. Location in the garden may need a new look. We planted tomatoes in a different area last year than the year before, and they didn’t do so well. There may be some issues with regard to what crop preceded the tomatoes in that area. We’ll also pay more attention to caging and tying up the vines. I wasn’t well-skilled at that last year, and the area was a mess. A little more control and care is also in order this year. We had many plants last year, and many produced little or no fruit. No unusual exotic varieties this year.



     Some of our best production was actually from stray seeds from the previous year’s crop. The pear tomatoes did well, especially in early fall. They started from seed, so didn’t develop until much later, and they were some of the more faithful producers. They didn’t have a long time to produce fruit, but what they produced was great!



     This might seem like a simple narrative about the life of our garden, but actually, I would love to share with you another fruit growing in my “garden”. Unlike those being grown and educated in a traditional public institution…school…they are growing in a homey environment. They are being given personalized attention, not mass produced, but considered in light of their unique, God-given gifts, traits, and abilities. Personal attention is devoted to the conditions which may or may not be successful, with opportunity to adjust and administer that which is best suited. There are late bloomers, who may not read as quickly as others, there are those who thrive on math, and those who thrive on learning random facts. There is opportunity to provide shelter when its absence might otherwise damage, there is opportunity to expose to elements of the world with a watchful eye. There are blemishes, by all means, as individual attitudes and irritabilities surface, as challenges likewise surface in an area of study or understanding.



     A typical outsider might wonder about how they socialize, are they deprived? But an interesting concept came to light a couple of years ago as we toured the produce department of a local grocery store. Tomatoes cause other fruit to ripen, and even to go bad. Certain things could not be placed near tomatoes. And if you’ve ever had one tomato go bad in a bag or bowl, it takes little time for the decay to spread. So it is with my other crop. Over exposure to bad habits of others will more negatively impact than positively. As a former public school teacher, I’ve seen how quickly a classroom atmosphere can deteriorate because one or two students decide to “socialize” in an unacceptable way. A homegrown and home educated child has the opportunity, on the other hand, to interact in unique settings with people from a variety of age groups and backgrounds. And there is potential for them to display that vibrance and flavor that so often lacks in the child who is shuffled through a system with the goal of meeting some institutional standard. The tomato at the store meets that standard, but lacks the vibrant appeal of the garden grown. Certainly, a child may pass through a system and meet a standard. However, the imprint of the institution may well be evident in many. The institution serves a purpose, but in the name of educating the masses, must sacrifice, oftentimes, individuality.


A.D.W.