Musings About My Garden

As I was thinking about the garden at Mira Ranch, I was trying to come up with one word which would describe my garden.

RECALCITRANT.

Why it is that despite all of its unruly behavior I still love that garden?  To put it simply, I have a strong relationship with it. My garden continuously gives me so much more than I give it. It explodes with colors, textures, fragrance, tastes – the sheer beauty and magic of it all! It feeds my body when it’s hungry and it is food for my soul.

When I was a child I loved to play in the dirt. Mudpies and mudcakes were my specialty. My little friends and I used flour and water for the frosting and we decorated our cakes with leaves and berries. A few years later I found joy in my dad’s flower garden and played in (weeded) our neighbor’s vegetable garden. With gratitude he would fill my basket with vegetables and I would run home in sheer delight proudly handing the overflowing basket to my Mom.

Gardening here in Colorado takes things to a whole new level – one of discovery and observation.

Durango’s dry high altitude (approx. 6500 feet and above), with it’s hot days, intense sunshine, cool nights and short growing season offers a whole unique set of challenges.

We want to know what you think. Please share your simple everyday gardening tips or thoughts with us.