| It's not so easy to hand the care of your | | | | time on keeping the spinach going during your |
| garden over to another person. But sometimes, | | | | two-week vacation.Then make clear your |
| you just have to do it, and you might as well | | | | greatest priority, such as "This is an |
| make it as painless as possible for both of | | | | organic garden, so please use only the |
| you by preparing a checklist, giving a brief | | | | supplies in my shed. No Round-up or Miracle |
| tour, and then letting go of all illusions of | | | | Grow, thank you." But in general, your |
| control over what happens in your | | | | temporary help shouldn't be asked to deal |
| absence.Since one characteristic in common | | | | with fertilizing or pest control unless |
| among many gardeners is the enjoyment of | | | | you're going to be gone a long time, or the |
| bringing order out of chaos, the letting go | | | | person owes you a really big favor.Now, for |
| of all control part is the hardest, and | | | | the tour. Before you leave the precious |
| perhaps the most important. So let's save | | | | vegetable or flower garden in a caretaker's |
| that for the end and start with the easy | | | | hands, make a point of meeting with your |
| stuff: the garden sitter checklist and | | | | garden sitter in person in the garden. Make |
| tour.Keep it simple. Trust your garden | | | | sure she knows where things are, from |
| caretaker to have some sense, and just give | | | | watering tools to an emergency number for |
| general instructions such as, "Thin the | | | | backup.Also, make sure she knows what things |
| vegetables if they look like they need it. | | | | are. Else, she might pull the joi choi, |
| Weed if you're inspired. Harvest whatever is | | | | thinking it's a weed rather than an Asian |
| ripe and enjoy it yourself or share it with | | | | vegetable.And that brings us to the |
| friends. Water before the plants start to | | | | letting-go-of-illusions-of-control part of |
| droop from thirst."Then you can go beyond the | | | | the deal. If she does mistakenly pull the joi |
| general to a few - read, very few - specific | | | | choi, oh well. Unless the garden is burnt to |
| requests. If your checklist gets too | | | | a crisp or mowed down, just be grateful that |
| detailed, the caretaker will be overwhelmed, | | | | someone was there to care for it as best she |
| so choose your special situations carefully. | | | | could. Who knows? She might even have done |
| After all, the garden is your labor of love, | | | | some things differently and better than you |
| not hers. She's just doing maintenance.For | | | | would have. Then you've got some new tricks |
| example, let's say you have a new asparagus | | | | up your sleeve.Expect miracles, and do your |
| trench that is gradually being filled in as | | | | best to enjoy whatever it was that |
| the shoots grow. If you have a pile of | | | | temporarily took you away from your |
| topsoil mixed with manure on hand for the | | | | garden.Life-time gardener Judith Schwader |
| interim gardener to use as needed to cover | | | | specializes in organic gardening methods. She |
| the new asparagus, then ask her to help | | | | shares expertise, humor, and advice for your |
| sustain this long-term crop.But if you have a | | | | gardening success at A to Z Gardening. Also |
| patch of spinach that is bolting, don't ask | | | | visit FB Home for additional home and garden |
| her to keep pinching off the blossoms unless | | | | information. |
| you really really want her to spend valuable | | | | |