By Mike Hogan, Hall County Master Gardener Extension Volunteer
If you have been a gardener for even a little while, you are probably starting to receive seed catalogs this time of year. If you’re a gardener who’s on top of their game, your fading tomatoes, peppers and other summer vegetables have all been removed and fall crops have been planted. Sadly, I find I am not in that elite group. But whichever affiliation you have, all of us start thinking about next year when we get a new catalog.
The pictures of perfect fruits and vegetables are temptation enough to make us believe that we too might somehow achieve gardening nirvana. Tomatoes with no cracks, cucumbers which are uniformly fleshed, squash that produces all summer-- all are part of the elusive goal each of us pursues. Why do we hang our hopes on this quixotic dream -- because professional photos demonstrate that it is possible. I am neither upset with the marketing hype in a well-done seed catalog, nor disillusioned because perfection is such a challenge. I dream of a garden that would make me proud because I am a gardener. I garden; therefore, I dream.
All gardeners are fundamentally optimistic. That is not to say we don’t suffer setbacks, if you have gardened long enough you have had your share. But that doesn’t stop us from dreaming of what is possible and I believe it is the perfectly timed delivery of seed catalogues that sparks those dreams.
What new variety will you try in 2025? Perhaps you want to give kohlrabi a try or Brussels sprouts or Spoon tomatoes. So many choices, so many opportunities, so much to learn from dreaming big and then doing your part to make it happen.
Enjoy the holidays and especially time with those who mean the most to you. The catalogues will be there when you are ready to dream about what will be.
Author Mike Hogan was a member of the 2023 Hall County Master Gardener Extension Volunteer class. Retired from the engineering profession, Mike is often the voice on the other end of the line for people calling the Extension Office Help Desk (770) 535-8293. During the Christmas season, Mike and wife Gail greet special needs children as Santa and Mrs, Claus at the Hall County Public Library. Mike will serve on the HCMG Board of Directors in 2025.
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