Planting Gardens
Practice
Walk around the neighborhood. Look for houses oriented in the same direction and see what is growing.
Start with a single potted plant. See if you like watching it grow.
Help a neighbor in their garden to see if you enjoy having your hands in the dirt.
Visit and talk with your local garden center. They know what will grow in your area. (Anita’s favorite garden center is Tagawa Gardens. She visited first while in college, and has supported it for decades.)
“I grow plants for many reasons: to please my soul, to challenge the elements or to challenge my patience, for novelty, or for nostalgia, but mostly for the joy in seeing them grow.”
Planting a garden was one of the first things Anita Wanberg’s family did when they moved to Boulder in 1969. She remembers as a child, her father coming home from work and slowly walking around their yard with her each day to see what was growing. That practice instilled a life-long love of plants. After high school, she left Boulder to attend Colorado State University, graduating with a degree in horticulture in 1979. When she moved with her husband Tom into their home in Centennial in 1986, one of the first things she did was, of course, plant a garden. Her house is now surrounded by gardens. Planting gardens has cultivated her connection to both people and place.
Anita’s advice on planting gardens contains wisdom about far more than seeds and soil. “It is not a forgiving hobby if you’re not forgiving of yourself,” Anita graciously states, “I have plants that die every year. It’s a practice in being forgiving and patient.” She shares how it took years to learn how to fix the hard, clay soil in Colorado. “Every year I add one to two inches of organic matter and compost to every garden.” But, when visiting friends in Kentucky, and they asked how to improve their gardens, she humbly stated, “I don’t know the soil here. Go to a local garden center and talk with them.” For Anita, planting a garden is a balance of planning and allowing the plants to surprise her. Each spring she slowly walks around the yard and sees what is blooming. Her response is a joy filled, “There you are!” as she sees the return and life of each plant as a blessing.
The gardens she has planted in the front yard provide consistent opportunities for interactions with neighbors. They often stop to talk with her while she is working the soil, watering, or pulling weeds. The personal joy of having her hands in the dirt only grows, as she watches her neighbors pause to enjoy the array of flowers in the front yard. She regularly offers family and friends to, “Shop my yard first,” when starting a garden at their own home. Her wisdom for those beginning the practice of plating a garden is patience and forgiveness. “It will take a few years to learn what will grow there.” She recommends starting by planting a few containers to see if gardening brings you joy. Every place in her opinion, indoors or outside, benefits from the comfort and beauty of a something growing.
The practice of planting a garden is an embodied way to engage both the people and place where you live. It is a practice of forgiveness and gratitude. It is an invitation to be present and patient. It is an opportunity to slowly walk and see what is growing.
Read about City Floral, the oldest operating garden center in Denver.
