If it were up to me, every garden center would sell Adventure Glasses. Hell, why quibble? They’d be passed out for free, and not just in the nursery but at every college graduation, wedding and job interview. Street corners even.

Adventure Glasses allow the wearer to view the world without any desire for guarantees. An adventure, after all, is by definition “an unusual and exciting experience or activity.” To be on an adventure is to engage in hazardous exploration of an unknown territory.

Gardening is an adventure, as is work, friendship, and family life. No promises are made but there are interests and thrills galore. Growing anything is a journey of discovery and we never know what will happen.

Reminder to self: put on Adventure Glasses every day, and joyfully travel down unfamiliar paths.

Do Adventure Glasses come with purple frames? Or am I just being picky...

Last Saturday when more than 400 people toured my gardens, I heard this comment several times. “Oh…it’s an annual.” The last word was said with a downturn of the voice implying extreme disappointment.

Now, I love my perennials, and frequently champion my favorite varieties. Shrubs and trees aside, my gardens are planted with about 60% perennials and 40% annuals. I would not want to be without that 40%, however. I think that gardens absolutely benefit from both.

Some object to annuals because they have to spend money for them every year. Others don’t like the effort it takes to place them in the ground each season. O-Kaaayyyy…but let’s look at these viewpoints honestly.

In terms of the expense, let’s compare the cost of annuals to a couple of restaurant meals. How much do you normally spend when you eat out? I’d say that most couples can spend between forty and eighty dollars easily, depending on where they eat and if they order drinks before and with their meal.

You can buy a lot of annuals for forty to eighty dollars, and they last far longer than that two to three hour restaurant meal. For the price of a couple of meals out, you can have flowers from June through September or beyond.

Yes, we have to plant annuals every year…but if you want a beautiful garden you’ll be doing something in the landscape every season without fail. Perennials need weeding, dividing, mulching and other care. Shrubs and trees the same, not to mention pruning. Spring and fall cleanup is necessary in all gardens no matter what is planted. All gardens take work…so what’s your problem with annuals?

Like much of life, it’s all a matter of perspective.

For the price of a few cups of coffee to go you can have this spectacular Vertigo fountain grass from Proven Winners, and enjoy it for three or four months! How many cups of coffee last that long?

Two or three packets of zinnia seeds from Renee's Seeds cost less than $12. and takes less than an hour to plant. We've spent another five or six hours weeding this cutting garden and watering it over the past summer, and have been rewarded with dozens of bouquets for us and our friends.

Dahlias only need to be purchased once - we save the tubers from year to year and share the overflow with others. Yes, we spend a half a day planting and another day digging them up and wrapping them for the winter. Most people spend more time watching television in one week than we spend on dahlia care, but I'm willing to guess that these colorful flowers provide more joy and grace than what is on TV.

My gardens, The Rapture and 1940’s gospel music have all rooted in my mind these past few days.

Let me begin by asking this: Have you ever had a tune stuck in your head so that you wake in the night listening to your mind playing a song? Since last Friday I’ve been awakened by my brain repeating, No Restricted Signs In Heaven, a gospel tune sung by the Golden Gate Quartet.

I attribute this to the May 21^st predictions of the start of Armageddon and The Rapture, when certain evangelical Christians said that they would be lifted into heaven while the rest of earth’s inhabitants would  remain or go to hell. The deepest, truest part of me believes more in the message of this gospel song than in Herald Camping’s prediction.

“So how does this tie into the landscape?” you garden geeks ask. As an answer, I invite you to go outdoors between 5:30 and 7:30…AM or PM, it doesn’t matter. Stroll around the landscape with no other purpose other then being there, totally and completely.

Do you feel it? The life force in the garden is almost overpowering at this time of year, especially at the beginning or ending of the day. Growth and spirit are so strong that if you’re open to it, God’s presence is inescapable.

Bringing this message fully into the present moment, God’s being here is available to all. As the song playing in my mind says, you’re “Welcome! Welcome!”

A stroll through my landscape makes me absolutely, completely sure that The Rapture is here, right now, in the garden. Welcome home.

This part of the garden happened to be the area where I felt tremendous spiritual energy, but it is not singular to this landscape or my gardens. Growth, love, God, is everywhere for everyone. EVERYONE.

Showers likely. Cloudy with a chance of drizzle. This is how the forecast has been for the last two weeks and continues to read for the next six days. The lilacs and peonies show signs of botrytis, and any annuals I plant just sit and sulk. Who can blame them? The weather sucks.

As I freely, willingly, grumble about this cool, wet growing season, I’m also aware that where I put my attention matters. Absolutely.

Wandering around the web, be it to facebook groups or reading various blogs, I am struck by our collective propensity to complain. I think that talk radio and the internet encourages this somehow.

It’s easy to criticize, of course, and we can quickly draw an audience that feels the same way. Yes! The weather sucks! Substitute what ever word you wish for “weather”, be it the government, our state Senator, school cafeteria lunches, etc…no matter which direction you go, you’ll find agreeable listeners/readers.

Because on one level or another, we’re all discontented. There is always something, or several things, that we can be unhappy about. The question is this: are we well served when that discontent is being continually fueled? Does it move us forward in any way?

The weather sucks, but so what? Are you and I any richer by dwelling on that which we don’t like but can’t change, or are we ultimately better served by focusing on solutions. And if ready answers aren’t immediately at hand, perhaps we need to look more closely toward those things that are beautiful, positive and life affirming?

So I invite you to turn away from the forecast and focus on growth: look at the stylish and magical Jack-in-the-pulpit that is blooming in my garden.

Wow.

Although I don’t have the means to indulge in spa retreats frequently, I have been fortunate to be rejuvenated by a few such visits over the last ten years. Three or four days at a spa offers relaxation, invigorating exercise, meditation and the experience of taking a total break from work and responsibilities. Being at a spa makes you feel healthier, refreshed, and positive about the days ahead.

Today I came home from work and since the weather was still nice I immediately headed to the garden. I wanted to finish pruning my hydrangeas and Physocarpus, and I ended up pulling weeds along the way. The air was crisp but not cold, the birds were calling, and even though it was nearly 6 PM, the day was still bright.

I began pruning and was bending, lifting and shoving the wheelbarrow from place to place. The natural sounds soothed me. I let all my current concerns fall away as I focused on cleaning and cutting the shrubs. Although I came home tired from my day’s work, after forty minutes in the garden I felt rejuvenated, energetic and peaceful.

OMG – I’ve been to a spa! Tending my garden for less than an hour produced the same results as a retreat that cost hundreds of dollars a day.  I took off my garden gloves and joined my husband for cocktails on the deck overlooking the flower-filled gardens…and I didn’t have to travel.

I’m remembering all the people who tell me that they want a no-maintenance garden and I’m thinking, are you kidding me? If you don’t garden, you’re missing out on the spa experience that’s in your own backyard.

At a spa you're there to indulge in many senses: touch, smell, hearing, and scent. All are found in the landscape.

Yes, it’s hard to believe but I’ve been hosting GardenLine on WXTK for ten years. How did this come to be? Well, I got hooked on radio when I did a weekly segment called “In The Garden Center” on The Cultivated Gardener, an NPR program hosted by Michael Weishan and produced by George Homsy.

When that program went off the air I approached WXTK, the top rated talk station in my area. They were in the process of changing station managers and were receptive to new programs, including the show I proposed, GardenLine, a two hour call in show heard every Saturday morning.

We’re celebrating ten years on WXTK this Saturday afternoon at Olivers in Yarmouthport, from 2 PM to 4 PM. Stop by to say hello, enter to win a door prize or ask about how to prune your hydrangeas.

Here’s what I’ve found to be true in the ten year’s I’ve hosted GardenLine:

1. Your question is everyone’s question. Many of my listeners start by saying something like, “This is a silly question, but…” Rest assured…it’s frequently said because it’s very true: The only stupid question is the one you don’t ask. If you’re asking, know that hundreds of others want to hear the answer too.
2. There’s always something more to learn. This is true for my listeners and me. I love it when someone asks a question that I don’t know the answer to…this gives me a chance to learn something new. My heartfelt thanks goes to those who stump me.
3. Sometimes we never know the answer. Mother Nature has her own ways and they are rich and complex. Frequently we can puzzle out what went wrong or right, but sometimes we’re unable to figure out why one plant died and another thrived. If only plants could talk! On second thought, it’s probably better that they’re silent…otherwise the din would be constant as our landscaping shouted comments such as, “Would you turn on the hose already? If you were a plant you’d know that it was just a mist falling yesterday, not real rain.”
4. My audience is gracious even when I tell them what they don’t want to hear. (Q: “How do I keep my Nikko Blue Hydrangea small?” A: “You can’t. Give it up.”) You folks are kind and polite even when I explain that there is no easy answer to your problem. Thanks.

I’ve often written about the various gifts that come from the garden…in fact, I’ve declared May to be Gifts From The Garden Month. On this fifth day in May I am here to say in all honesty that one of the things I’ve gained from my garden and gardening is all of you who listen to GardenLine. You are the individual blossoms that make up a lovely bouquet every Saturday morning and I’m so blessed to be a part of our weekly cultivation.

After a sleepless night followed by a jam packed day (mother-in-law who lives with us still sick, husband away, Mother's Day weekend prep at the garden center, landscape consultations, preparing for GardenLine on Saturday, and writing the sermon for church on Sunday) I see a rainbow over Poison Ivy Acres and count my blessings. Thanks for your continual support.

I confess that from the beginning of February to mid-April I’m orderning plants online. Some of these fall into the “I’ve always wanted one of these,” category and others are impulse purchases. In March I may read an article about a particular plant and think, “This sounds great!”  I Google the plant’s name, find a grower who sells it, and place my order. Done deal.

Since I’ve declared the third week in April as the ideal time for such requests to arrive, at this time of year the UPS guy is my new best friend. He delivers boxes of plants that I’ve forgotten that I placed orders for. (Sad but true.) Not to worry…my favorite garden activity is planting.

Putting plants in the ground involves creativity: you have to imagine how the particular selection will add to existing foliage and flowers. You have to mix the plants into the garden as surely as an artist mixes paint or other media.

Planting is an act of faith. When we dig that hole and put our selection in the ground we’re not only placing roots into the soil, but expressing our belief that this plant is destined to absolutely, positively grace our gardens. We know in our hearts that it will grow.

Whether that plant lives or dies is only partly in our control of course, which is why the act of planting is so dear. “I’m willing to do my part,” we are saying, “and mix my efforts, hope and connections with Nature so that this plant may grow.”

Planting is one of the most positive, life-affirming aspects of gardening.

These are just a few of the plants I put into the ground in the past three days. Such satisfaction.

I understand that not everyone loves to work outdoors. There was a consultation customer that made this clear when she said, “I just want to start this off by telling you that for me, a good time gardening is when I put the golf clubs in the trunk of the car and go to the club for the day.”

It’s great when a client is honest and direct…it’s much easier to help that person with his/her landscape when everything is clear from the start. That said, part of me thinks that it’s kind of a shame that this woman got more pleasure from the out of doors when she was swinging a golf club instead of sitting in her own back yard. Oh well.

This opinionated gardener views a day working in her landscape as a gift. To be outdoors listening to birdsong, breathing fresh air and be surrounded by plants? Heaven. To have a stretch of unscheduled time to putter and plant? Luxury. To put effort into the creation of a beautiful, healthy environment? Priceless.

After a stressful day filled with unexpected family crises, I’m blessed to have a day ahead of me when there is work to do. Garden work. What a blessing.

Every day the garden wakes up just a bit more. Miracles! Discovery! Healing.

I met with the garden center employees of Snows Home and Garden today and we talked about how to best help the public with their landscaping. Toward the end of our session a woman asked me an interesting question. She first commented that recently there are many new plant introductions that we have little or no experience with. What responsibility do we have, she asked, for telling our customers that we’re completely uncertain about how these will behave long term?

My response was to say that I believe if a customer asks about untested plants we have to truthfully respond, “This is a new selection that I haven’t grown myself, so I can’t tell you what it’s going to do.” I might have added that we can also continue by asking, “If you decide to try it, will you come back and let me know what you think?”

I continued to say that I do not believe that garden center employees have the responsibility to warn people away from such plants. We are employed to sell the stock, after all. More important than the company’s bottom line, however, is the fact that in the garden we should never say never.

Just last Saturday on GardenLine I took a call from a woman who was frustrated about her inability to grow a gardenia plant indoors. I went through the explanation about how these plants often don’t do well outside of a greenhouse. They usually drop buds, get bugs and die.

Ten minutes later I got a call from another listener who said that she’d been raising a gardenia indoors for several years and right now it had forty plus buds and opening blooms. “This is what I love about plants and gardening,” I told her. “Sometimes people succeed against all odds.”

And this speaks to those who work in garden centers and wonder how honest to be about the plants we sell. Do nursery employees have the duty to warn people off of unreliable or untested varieties? I say absolutely not. Why should we deny someone the opportunity to see if they are the one who might be successful with a particular plant?

Should we lie to our customers about what a plant will do? Of course not. If they ask about a plant we must be frank and forthcoming. But gardening and life are journeys of risk, experiment and discovery. There are no guarantees no matter what we are trying to grow, and we should all have the pleasure and satisfaction of walking down paths of possibility to see where they lead.

Should we tell the gardener who planted this perennial garden to avoid the Delphiniums because they don't usually live? Or do we let that customer learn from experience and make the decision herself, balancing her love of the flower with the reality that she needs to plant them every year?

At the risk of beating the longing for spring to death, I want to confess that my impulse today was to scream at my landscape: “Wake UP!”  I know my desire for the growing season to get on with it already is pointless…the seasons will do what they will do. Still, I’m wondering if my eagerness might be turned toward greater gains.

Most of the ground is too frozen to pull weeds, although they are certainly there. Might I take this time to look for the metaphorical “weeds” that could be disposed of? Are there habits I’ve clung to, or excuses I’m fond of that clutter my personal landscape and impede further growth?

At this time of year gardeners are apt to look forward and prepare for the season’s planting. This is all well and good, but I’m thinking that after ordering the seeds and cutting down dead grasses I might look beyond my seed flats, flowerbeds and vegetable plots.

Soon we gardeners will be over busy with planting and tending. Might we take a final breath on the cusp of the growing season and look inward?  In what areas, I ask myself, would it be good to Wake UP.

After springing forward the evenings are light until well after 6 PM. Nice. I come home and look out over the lakeside perennial bed and say, "Wake up!" Then I decide that I might give myself the same command.