I never expected a garden to become my sanctuary.
When we moved here a few months ago the garden was honestly a disaster. It wasn't the beautiful, productive space you see in my dreams. It was a place of mole hills, nettles up to my thighs, patches of grass and rubbish from its old owners. It looked like it had been forgotten for years, no love, no little corners to sit and breathe, no colour, no life.
But slowly with a lot of hard work, stubbornness and a lot of love, something started to change.
And i think that's the because this garden already had a story
A story that started with Tom.
Tom had the greenest fingers. He could disappear for hours into his allotment. completely lost in his own little world. It wasn't just gardening for him, it was his happy place, a place where he could potter, plant, grow and create, a far cry from the tearaway teenager I had fallen madly in love with all those years ago.
I think Tom understood something that I am only just learning now, gardens aren't just about what you can grow, they are about how they make you feel.
And somehow without realising it, this garden has become my version of toms allotment.
My escape
My quiet place
My little piece of peace when life feels to much
Every time I'm out there digging, planting or checking on something new growing I feel connected to that love he had for growing things. It feels like I'm carrying on something he started.
Although.... I do sometimes wonder if Tom and his famous mischievous side are having a laugh at my expense and the "radish incident" his practical joke.
I bought a tray of radish seedling, planted and carefully watered weeded and took care until they looked large enough to dig up and add a few to my salad, I was looking up if I could eat the leaves as I hate waste when the search asked for a picture of my crop, clearly it realised I was a novice, and stated the obvious .....what i was faced with was rainbow beetroot and yes I could eat the leaves.
I have to laugh at someone out there hoping for rainbow beetroot only to pull up radish.
Dinner plans were changed and I managed to cook up a beautiful roasted beetroot and "pea" pasta. I say "pea" because by the time i got to making it the kids had eaten all the sugar snap peas...... in fact not once has made it to the kitchen, they have become a garden snack.
My herbs have always been a favourite part of all my gardens, being a green witch I use them in a manner of ways from cooking, to medicine to spells. Yes I do have a cauldron, broom and hat, no I don’t fly.
There is something magical about stepping outside and picking what I need, whether it be a herb, fruit or vegetable. growing and then cooking something I've grown myself.
This weekend I found the first of this year's crop of tomatoes, a tiny green ray of hope that all the hard work will pay off, a representation of everything my garden has become.
from holes and nettles to life and abundance.
and now I'm already planning what comes next.
Bruschetta
Fresh tomatoes from the garden, herbs picked moments before, crusty homemade bread, a drizzle of olive oil... the kind of simple food that tastes better because I know where it all came from.
My garden isn't perfect
There is still loads to do, still mole hills popping up, still nettles fighting back, but maybe that's what makes it special.
It's real.
It’s lived in.
It's loved.
A place that started with no hope and almost put us off when viewing the house has become a haven.
And every time I step outside, I think of Tom in his allotment, happily lost, growing and I wonder if he knows that his love for gardening became something I needed too.
A place to escape
A place to heal
A place where in a way his green fingers are still helping things grow
Including me.
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