Mint In The Garden

Okay, I’m going to be frank and up front.

I do not possess a green thumb. In fact, I have the antithesis. Literally. My husband has jokingly referred to me, as the “grim reaper of plants.”

Now on a personal level, this actually pains me! I love plants and admire/strive for a well-tended, healthy garden. And maybe that’s the problem – I am trying too hard. Killing my leafy friends with kindness as I overwater, over-fertilize and over-analyse what they might “need.” If plants could talk, they’d probably be screaming at me just to leave them be.

Interestingly, I can grow two things well:

Succulents (Well, duh! Who can’t?); and
Gardenias

The latter, I find fascinating, as gardenias have a reputation for being fickle and hard to thrive! Maybe they secretly like all my attention?

Last week I was outside conducting my “weed patrol” routine (not sure if this is therapy for, or encouraging of, my OCD 🤔), when *gasp* I noted a large weed protruding from my beloved gardenias! With satisfaction I ripped it from its stronghold and pulled it out by its root. And then to my surprise, I could smell it. This was no weed – it was mint!

This posed an interesting question. From where did this mint come? I don’t grow any herbs and we are on a corner block, with no immediate neighbouring yards. So the source, is a bit of a mystery 🧐

But it did get me thinking, maybe mint in the garden isn’t such a bad idea. Why was I so eager and willing to destroy something that had grown organically? That clearly wanted to take root and flourish?

And so I potted it instead.

Author’s Note: The Bloganuary prompt for 12 January 2023 is What chore do you find most challenging to do? My response today is not a “chore” but something I find challenging.