Last month I did something I’ve been thinking about for years and which signified a real and definite change in my outlook on life. I planted an asparagus bed.
For those of you who aren’t horticulturally-inclined, planting an asparagus bed is kind of a big deal. Asparagus takes up a lot of space, with tall spreading plants. The plants don’t produce edible asparagus in the first year and have to be carefully tended and consistently watered to produce crisp, delicious spears the following year. With care, the plants will continue to produce year after year, but planting a bed means dedicating a large patch of garden and making a long-term commitment, which is why I haven’t done it before and why it’s so significant to me now.
So much in my life has been uncertain for so long that I’ve found it hard to make plans for a month in advance, let alone commit to a project that will take at least a year to come to fruition and will mean an ongoing commitment of many years. Ever since my future as a mother began to look uncertain, I haven’t been able to form a clear picture of how my life might look down the road. Setting goals and making plans has felt pointless when I’ve no idea what my desired destination is anymore.
Although having a bed of homegrown asparagus isn’t exactly a fully-formed picture of my ideal life, and there is certainly a lot of fuzziness around the path my life will take now, my decision to commit to planting took forward planning and feels like the beginnings of commitment and permanence. It’s a step towards a positive future…and a very tasty future, at that.
Good luck with your asparagus. We had a small “urban homestead” and I planted crowns three years ago. This was to have been the year for a harvest, but we moved. 🙁 So we’re starting over.
This statement: “Ever since my future as a mother began to look uncertain, I haven’t been able to form a clear picture of how my life might look down the road. Setting goals and making plans has felt pointless when I’ve no idea what my desired destination is anymore.” Totally rings true for me right now. Congrats to you on the asparagus… for me planning anything more than a month or two away is terrifying right now so I appreciate this long term commitment you made. Congrats again!
Asparagus is one of my favorite veggies… so I checked if I could grow them… I thought not, but it is confirmed. They are not for zone 10 where I live. 🙁
Klara just posted that she is getting her spring garden ready, and I responded that this winter-spring, I’ve been growing broccoli, radishes, zucchini, tomatoes and peppers… plus pretty much a wide array of herbs. I have had a great time!! I think preparing the soil (mine are all in raised beds because our soil here is not very good), planting the seeds, watering and, in my case even pollinating my zucchini, is such a wholesome rewarding endeavor! I look forward to strolling through my garden every day to see what my plants are doing, and then of course trying my veggies in new recipes. I’m going to be sauteing zucchini flowers today. Haven’t tried those before. I’m so looking forward to growing sweet potato, pumpkins and watermelon over the summer and kale and leaf lettuce next autumn. 🙂
I think I had a different reaction. I remember thinking, even before my last IVF, that even if it didn’t work, at least we’d finally be able to plan ahead. I’d spent a long time not being able to plan ahead (not just infertility-influenced in my case), and so the freedom – and I guess you’re also saying the confidence – to do so is wonderful. Glad you’ve committed to the asparagus – I’m envious. I LOVE asparagus.
I agree w/ Elizabeth!
I’ve been feeling ‘stuck’ lately, so goal setting and making plans has been very difficult for me. Now I know why! I’ve had strong feelings of being restless without direction. Thanks so much for sharing. So comforting to know that others have similar feelings.
I am certain these feelings won’t last forever. How to get through this phase is the question…planting an asparagus bed is a great start!
I’ve just planted rhubarb and I’ve sown artichokes which can be planted half May. I can’t harvest both until next year. Your post resonates very much with me, and I feel that I can really nurture these plants. I have a pretty large garden, most of it’s lawn now, but I have huge expansion plans! Start small though. Asparagus might very well fit into my future plans!