Gardening and COVID-19 — Reflections from Campus Ambassadors
Oisín Brady Bates
PHA Campus Ambassador
This is my vegetable plot. Its dimensions are approximately 20 inches by 32 inch. It is diminutive and boasts only two planted crops, carrots and radishes. I do confess that I am not partial to the taste of radishes but have been convinced to plant it given the assurance that they are capable of withstanding even the most fumbling of green thumbs.
Although my vegetable plot is humble, in my mind’s eye it had not been designed that way. When I first resolved to dig the plot, I had visited my local hardware store and purchased at least five different types of seeds: mint, rosemary, runner beans, rocket, and tomato. I had pictured a broad patch sprawling along the perimeter of my garden with a harvest that would have the potential to contribute to more than one summer salad. However, as soon as I undertook the labour of digging up the plot, these ambitions soon diminished. I had equipped myself with a long spade and soon found that beneath the thin layer of topsoil blanketing the suburban garden lawn, the soil was inhospitable and rugged. The ground seemed to be laced with pebbles and shale. I uncovered increasingly large rocks as I drove my spade deep into the Earth. I had spent much of the day on my hands and knees as I sifted through pebbles from the soil. I finally conceded to planting two vegetables in my little vegetable plot.
Regardless, I am proud of this little rectangular plot of growth that I created after toiling under the hot June sun for hours upon hours. If I had not been spending my days in social isolation and wondering how to pass the hours beyond Zoom calls and writing commitments, I doubt I would have tried my hand at gardening. Now that I have, I do not believe that it is something I will ever give up.
