A Gardener’s Journey: From Clearing to Harvesting

Fridays are usually my days off from work, which are often dedicated to tending to our home garden. I woke up late today at 8:30 am. If I were going to work, I would have been up by 6 am. to catch the first bus. However, waking up late today didn't feel like a big deal since I only had garden tasks to handle. Still, getting up an hour earlier would have been better because I would have had more time to work before the sun got too hot and we all know that it is often difficult having had to work inside hot weather.

I decided to grab my cutlass and headed to the garden to start clearing the land, preparing it for planting. After cutting and clearing the grass, I need to let it dry before burning it to slow down weed growth before planting begins.

Once that was done, I checked on the crops we had already planted. There's a special joy in seeing your crops grow and bear fruit. I was thrilled to pluck the first ripe pawpaw we planted last year—and it was sweet! Our cash crops are also thriving, although we've had a problem with a neighbour’s goats eating the young plantains. I spoke to him and asked that he keep his goats penned.

Next, I visited the corn section. The stalks have dried up, which is perfect for my plan to process them for pap instead of using them for regular meals. It was perfect for what I had planned to use them for.

Another notable stuff i was able to do today was checking on the hens we are raising, and I'm happy to see one laying eggs again. I hope they hatch before the month ends. This will certainly make room for more chick and hen in our garden. The joy of having our crops and animals doing fine is beyond control. Imm just elated that all my effort to make all this work brings forth fruit.