A gardening enthusiast with two green thumbs is feeling pretty good about the produce she will be getting this summer. 

Christine Doerksen says there are some pests to deal with, but overall, the plants are doing well. 

“My lettuce is pretty huge and thick,” she reports. “And the tomatoes have grown, I have them up on little swirly things that so that they can grow up right, they've grown probably twice what they were in two weeks here already it seems. My peppers, they started out as aphid infested little skeleton peppers, I didn't catch the aphids in time, but they are lush, and they are giving fruit already. There are tiny little green peppers on there and jalapenos.” 

Doerksen says her asparagus plants are also doing well. 

She notes this specialty crop requires a lot more time and patience compared to most other crops. Her plants need another year or two before they can be harvested. 

“You really want those roots to establish,” Doerksen explains. “And they say, ‘be patient.’ You'll wait a little to get it, but it'll be there for the next 30 years. So, it lasts forever but you just have to be patient at the start.” 

Doerksen says patience is an important part of growing plants. 

Her plants got a head start in a greenhouse this year, something new for this gardener. 

She says when it comes to growing your own food, it takes a lot of time as well as patience. 

“Patience both for yourself in learning, and patience with the land, and the plants,” Doerksen says, especially if you are starting a new garden. “You got to till that several times get the soil ready, maybe even amend the soil with some manure or different things.” 

Adding fresh soil can help improve growing conditions, she adds. 

“That takes time to establish, and then learning how to grow and how much space plants need and making mistakes and being OK with that.”

(All photos submitted by Christine Doerksen)

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