To Garden or Not to Garden

The registration forms came around for the community garden plots.  I've had a 25 x 25 foot plot about a mile down the road from our place for 3 summers.  But this is not an easy decision for me this year.  

The pros:

-I love gardening.  I get the itch when the weather gets nice to dig and plant.   I love to plant seeds in the ground and watch things grow.  I love to fuss with the plants.  

-I believe it's good for my children to see where food really comes from and how much work people give for our food to get to the table, to learn the skills to produce their own garden and feel the satisfaction of yield from work, and to be connected to the earth and nature in this way.

-It's a good way to be involved in the community, to meet neighbors and take care of part of our community together.

-On a good year, it's a great way to supplement the food budget - plus I know the food is free of pesticides.  And fresh picked veggies taste SO good.  It's satisfying to grow food and feed my family.

The cons:

-There is no water on sight, and it's hard to haul enough water down to the garden during a dry spell.

-It is LOTS of hard work and takes a lot of time.  Duh.  Really, with it not being in my backyard I have to carve out large chunks of time instead of running out there when I get a few minutes like I do with the herbs and flowers around my patio. The bigger problem comes with my intention to take a couple of summer classes.  I really don't find enough time to work at the garden in a "normal" summer, so it will be really difficult with classes.

-My yield was so paltry last year it wasn't worth the time and effort in terms of input vs. output.  Even my go-to producers disappointed.  Jeff reminded me that I told him at the end of last year to not let me do it this year. 

-I think the location has been a mosquito breeding ground for thousands of years. (It probably was wetland not all that long ago).  And when's the best time to be in a garden?  When the mosquitos are out.  I am a delicacy in mosquito cuisine. But this one is a minor irritation. I live in Michigan and love the outdoors.  I'm used to spending my summer in bug repellent.  

I've thought about just putting some tomatoes in pots around my patio and training some beans to run up my fence.  I don't think I have sufficient room for zucchini, though (cue my kids cheering).  While it's a compromise, it still makes me a little sad because it is not the same.  There is something so therapeutic about being in those gardens in the early morning or late evening, so beautiful and quiet (they're surrounded by woods on three sides and a park on the other), hands in the ground, breathing in that earthy fresh garden smell.