Garden journal – Extension Master Gardener Volunteers of Durham County

Jennifer Van Brunt, NC State Extension Master Gardener^SM volunteer of Durham County

Gardeners are very special people. In fact, I would go so far as to say that one of the things I love most about gardening is other gardeners! On the whole, I find gardeners to be passionate and friendly people with a great love and appreciation for the natural world. We are creative problem solvers who engage our ingenuity to help feed our families and friends with the food we grow. Or, for those “humble ornamental gardeners” (in the words of our advisory committee chair, Melinda Heigel), perhaps you support the local economy at the farmer’s market. Either way, as gardeners we seek to beautify the spaces around us in ways that make a positive contribution to our communities and the planet.

Just a few of our beautiful volunteers helping to feed the community at the Briggs Ave Community Garden Spring Plant Sale (Image credit: Allie Mullin, EMGV)

The world around us is a complex and fractured place. I find that the more dividing lines we draw around ourselves, the more difficult it is to simply have conversations with those we believe disagree with us. Perhaps I am biased (but if you are reading this, maybe you have a slight bias in the same direction?) but I am of the opinion that gardeners are uniquely qualified to contribute to the process of creating strong and resilient communities and helping people begin to find common ground. You don’t have to agree on everything, just find something that connects you to the people around you.

“The garden reconciles human art and wild nature, hard work and deep pleasure, spiritual practice and the material world. It is a magical place because it is not divided.” – Thomas Moore

If you also have an interest in the healing power of gardening, for minds, bodies, and communities, you might consider checking out courses in Therapeutic Horticulture from our friends at NC State and the North Carolina Botanical Garden.

A Legacy of Gardeners

My Dad was a truly great gardener. He grew the plumpest, juiciest tomatoes and the crispest cukes. He tended the loveliest flowers of clematis, iris, azalea, peony, dahlia, rhododendron, and many more! He maintained a lush lawn that was the envy of the neighborhood. He even tried his hand at roses, although those were more of a specialty for his father.

A close-up of a vibrant red and yellow dahlia flower blooming in a garden setting.

Three blooming roses with vibrant pink and orange petals, surrounded by green leaves, growing near a stone structure.

Clockwise from upper left: Dahlia October, 2022; Roses July 2024; Lilies – July, 2019; Clematis June 2023; Iris May 2023. All images taken in Massillon, Ohio (Zone 6B) (Image credit: Fred Van Brunt Sr.)

Born in 1913, my grandfather was still very young in the midst of the Great Depression. It was exceptionally rare for him to indulge in anything that could be considered a “luxury”, even later in life when things were much more settled and secure. The exceptions I remember came in his garden. As a good Dutchman, he would order specialty tulip bulbs from Holland, and each year he would eagerly await his rose catalog to select a special, new rose to plant and tend in his home garden in Nutley, NJ.

A pale green house with a peaked roof and multiple windows, featuring a rose bush in front, showcasing white flowers.

Family home in Nutley, NJ Featuring a rose bush gifted to my grandfather by my mom. (Image credit: Valerie Starr)

Unfortunately, many of the photos of grandpa’s garden seem to be packed away in an album in my aunt’s storage. Here’s what we managed to scrounge up…

A pink peony flower surrounded by green leaves, showcasing its delicate petals.

Beautiful blooming peonies in a garden, accompanied by yellow irises, with a vibrant green lawn in the background.

Grandpa’s Peony (image credit: H. Kenneth Van Brunt or Madeline Starr); Dad’s Peonies – May 2024 – Massillon, Ohio (Image credit: Fred Van Brunt Sr.).

A vibrant bush of pink rhododendrons in full bloom next to a sidewalk and house, surrounded by lush greenery.

A vibrant bush covered in clusters of pink rhododendron flowers in front of a house.

Grandpa’s Rhododendron – Nutley, NJ (Image credit: H. Kenneth Van Brunt or Madeline Starr); Dad’s Rhododendron May 2024 – Massillon, OH (Image credit: Fred Van Brunt Sr.)

My personal gardening philosophy is much different from both of these special men. Rather than a conventionally maintained lawn, fit for a putting green, I tend to let the clover (Trifolium carolinianum) linger and the mock strawberry (Potentilla indica) fill in the gaps. I have a sign that says “Pardon the Weeds, We’re Feeding the Bees”.

A garden sign reading 'Pardon the Weeds, We're Feeding the Bees' featuring a bee and floral designs, placed in a landscaped area with colorful flowers and a brick background.

Yard signage at my home in Durham, NC. (Image credit: Jennifer Van Brunt)

My current policy on anything with prickles, thorns, or spines is that if it wants to take up space in my garden, it had better feed me (in other words, blackberries and raspberries have real estate; roses, not so much). I see the value in them for those who love them, but I don’t feel the need to grow them myself.

Finding Common Ground

My Dad and I were very different people, but we found our common ground in the garden. When there was nothing left to talk about because religion and politics were too contentious of subject matter, we could still share photos of our gardens and compare notes on the harvest. What varieties of tomatoes were surprising us or who was attracting more hummingbirds to the garden? (it was always me, by the way – they love my Celosia and this year I added a Canna lily to the back deck that they are simply devouring).

A tray displaying several large heirloom tomatoes in varying shades of red and green, alongside a baseball and a measuring tape for size reference.

A colorful assortment of freshly harvested vegetables including tomatoes, bell peppers, cucumbers, squash, and basil arranged in a woven basket on a dark countertop.

“My king size tomatoes. 20 lbs. off one bush. The biggest one is 5 inches across. Trying your suggestion to save the seeds. Just picked to avoid freezing. Will try to ripen in the sun. Hope you are doing well, love you. Not so master gardener, Dad” – Shared in text exchange October 21, 2024. (Image credit: Fred Van Brunt Sr); Harvest pride shot – August 2024 – Durham, NC (Image credit: Jennifer Van Brunt).

Even though our gardening philosophies were very different, those differences were small enough to open the door to conversations. We could respect one another’s ideas and opinions without the need for absolute agreement. When the gulf of opinion on the current state of politics threatened to swallow our relationship whole, we could still find a point of connection in our gardens. This connection was not a superficial one. We were able to have real conversations. He could tell me about how pain in his shoulder or knees were making it difficult to keep up on the weeding and I could suggest tools to make the jobs more manageable. He could express to me how he experienced God’s majesty in nature and I could share with him my concerns for pollinators and the planet and the ornamental value I was finding in native plants – all in ways that didn’t feel preachy because we knew we shared this common ground.

I lost my dad in February of this year, but I still feel him close to my heart when I’m out in the garden. I don’t say this to bum you out, but to maybe inspire you to tell someone you love them today, or better yet, show them how much you care. Grow something because it reminds you of someone you’ve lost, or teach someone else to grow something so they’ll have a special way to remember you when you can’t be near.

If I had one wish regarding our family gardening legacy it would be for a garden journal or a plan in writing. My Dad kept all of his garden plans in his head, so we were left scratching ours when I recently visited my Mom in Ohio and was trying to help recreate his successes. If you have struggled to find the motivation to keep a garden journal or have never bothered to put your plan down in writing, consider this a gentle nudge in that direction. Extension Master Gardener Volunteers in Durham County have all had the experience of developing a written garden plan as part of our training. Call us at our helpline (919-560-0528) or drop us an email at durhammastergardener@gmail.com and we can point you to resources that can help you do the same. And hey, you never know what inspiration this might provide for generations to come!

The love of gardening is a seed once sown that never dies.” – Gertrude Jekyll

A decorative lighthouse surrounded by a vibrant bed of pink flowers in a grassy area.

A vibrant pot containing blooming pink canna lilies, surrounded by green foliage and other plants on a sunny deck.

Lighthouse statuary in the yard at the family home in Massillon, Ohio – Ensconced in pink bubblegum petunias! (Image credit: Fred Van Brunt Sr.); Canna lily, a hummingbird favorite, at my home in Durham, NC (Image credit: Jennifer Van Brunt)