I love working in my yard. I never really new it until we bought our home. I guess I learned it from my dad.

 

I enjoy mowing the lawn and tending the garden and the fruit trees, especially the big avocado tree. There is something very satisfying about coming into the house with an armful of red tomatoes, nectarines or apples; or with a bucket full of avocadoes. It’s a great exercise in gratitude. 

 

After our boy’s were born I found I didn’t have as much time to dedicate to vegetable gardens or mowing the lawn. So, we hired a gardener (although he doesn’t do vegetable gardens). The yard was looking great but I felt like I’d lost something...

 

My father spent most of his youth working on farms; planting, picking and driving a tractor.  On family trips across the state my father and mother could name most anything growing in the fields we’d pass along the way. Farming was part of their identity and a year didn’t go by when my father didn’t have something growing in our backyard. 

 

Well, let me clarify that. My father always had something growing behind the house. Growing up we never actual had a backyard. We rented a house and in the back was a block fence.  Between the fence and the house was about 4 feet of mostly dirt that ran the length of the property.  I was always amazed by what my father could do with this little patch of nothing. 

 

In early spring, “the back”, as we called it, would start empty except for tight rows or soil, carefully planted and watered. Eventually the back would grow into a forest of green leaves and vegetable. I remember most years my father would plant jalapeno peppers and tomatoes. Occasionally, he’d plant watermelon and even strawberries.   One year I remember clearly, my father filled the whole back yard with only tomatoes plants. They must have grown 5 feet tall. And I recall it was the year my brother and I fought the “Great Tomato Worm War.”  

 

For some reason, probably the amount of tomato plants, there seemed an unusual large number of Tomato Hornworms. The Tomato Hornworm is a 3-4 inch green caterpillar that hatches and grows on tomato plants. They mostly eat the leaves but on occasion chomp into the green tomatoes. My younger bother and I enjoyed going out back and walking through the tomato plants trying to find those illusive “bugs”. Tomato Hornworms are the perfect shade of green to hide on a stem or under a leaf without being noticed. Sometimes we’d be staring at a plant and not see one of the fat green leaf eaters sitting right in front of us. When we did find one, we would pick it off the plant and squash it good. My brother was the best at figuring out creative ways to do the critters in. While I’m not a big squasher these days, back then we enjoyed a good squishin’.

 

With the economic slow down these days we’ve had to cut back on some things. One thing has been our gardener. Last weekend the boys and I spent some time working in the back yard. We dug up weeds in the garden, picked the last of the avocados as the tree gets ready for its new batch. We cut the last of the key limes and picked an arm full of loquats.  It was wonderful. I loved watching the boys working and getting dirty.  It was a chance for us to be together and for them to do something that benefits the family.  Granted, they clocked-out before all the work was done and soon were off playing but they’re a work in progress.

 

This spring I’m feeling like I want to plant a big vegetable garden again. We’ll watch for Hornworms and maybe plant watermelon. I may rethink hiring a gardener even after finances even out. I don’t want to miss out on these do-it-yourself opportunities with the boys. 

 

Yes, there is something special about getting your hands dirty and watching things grow in your own yard. My dad taught me that. I can see it in his eyes when he comes over and sees our fruit trees or vegetable garden. On more than one occasion he’s looked at our avocado tree, heavy with fruit, and said, “You guys are rich.” Well, if I’m rich it’s because my Dad taught us, by his example, the value of growing something yourself and the importance of watching out for the Tomato Hornworms of life.      

 

--DiggyDaddy