the art of having a garden

I was reminded this week, that just having any sort of  garden is a lovely thing to do and should be aspired to.

It doesn't have to be hard work, or contrived or really really special and be able to be shown off to everyone.  It doesn't even have to be a vegetable garden which for some people the thought of is stressful  and tantamount to hard work.  I know in this day and age, we are supposed to be embrassing our vegetable gardens and lots of us of course do.....but its not the only way or even always the easiest way to have a garden.

I am lucky enough to work with people all day on creating gardens and sometimes it just involves putting something green and enjoyable and even possibly flowering into a small space that can be viewed from inside for a instant pick-me-up and leisurely sat in during the warmer months for more instant pick-me-up. 

 Its ok to be a little wild, a little unkept, and not necessarily straight.  I wonder sometimes if we are making it all a little too hard.  We want beautiful, fabulous gardens, like we see in the magazines, but these are a bit more that minimal amounts of work usually and often done on a larger scale than we would like to pay for or have the time to implement.  

So instead of worrying about having the perfect garden, just aim for the garden that gives you enough pleasure with just enough work to give satisfaction.

I picked up the latest Gardens Illustrated and was inspired that even the smallest space you can have the garden that reallly gives you green, a little colour, space to sit, a few veg if you are inclined and not too much headache for a continual weekend schedule that has a long list of must be performed jobs to accomplish in the garden.  Sit, chill, enjoy the birds and bees.