Page 104 - South Mississippi Living - March, 2022

HOME & GARDEN
HOME GROWN VCreating a Garden Landscape
egetable gardens have always been a part of the Southern landscape. As far back as we can remember, it seems like everyone had a family
gardener, or a neighbor down the street, that provided everyone in the clan with fresh food.
Around this time of the year, plans would be made for the upcoming crop and it would soon be time to start getting the ground ready and seeds started. There would be tilling, planting, and weeding ahead, and all summer long there would be harvesting followed by canning and pickling.
And then there were those grandmothers who were born with green thumbs and needed no plan. They could just throw vegetable and fruit scraps on the compost pile and a healthy crop of cantaloupes or zucchini would magically appear. Fresh juicy cantaloupe would be served with every meal and zucchini recipes seemed endless.
The Gardener’s Almanac, the gardening bible, is still available believe it or not, but over the past couple of decades, large family gardens have nearly disappeared as communities become more densely populated, food sources are more plentiful, and the generation with gardening in their blood have left us. Gardens aren’t the necessity they once were, and most folks don’t seem to have the space
or time to tend to a large garden. Farmer’s markets have become our neighbors with a garden. But over the past two years, we have been reminded about the importance of simple things like watching something grow. Community gardens are thriving in the small towns all along Coastal Mississippi, and small-scale home gardening is making a comeback.
Think of a garden as part of your home’s landscaping, not a separate space that requires an enormous amount of work. Almost any food garden plant can be integrated into your landscaping. According to Dr. Christian Stephenson with the Mississippi State University Extension Service
in Hancock County, your landscaping should serve three functions. “Your landscaping should add beauty to your home’s exterior, support your yard’s ecosystem, and provide a service to the inside of your home.”
104 | March 2022
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living
story by Holly Harrison and Shannon Stage