Ep 141 Essential Nutrients for Gardens and Life
Sat, Dec 30, 2023 10:08AM • 9:44
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
gardening, garden, plant, growth, gifts, give, pencils, deficiencies, include, essential nutrients, water, wrote, macronutrients, gardeners, beautiful, share, ken roberts, learning, chlorophyll, listeners, mary stone, garden, nature, inspiration
SPEAKERS
Mary Stone
Mary Stone 00:00
Hello, fellow lovers of all things green. I'm Mary Stone and welcome to Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries. It's not only about gardens. It's about nature's inspirations, about grasping the glories of the world around us, gathering what we learned from mother nature, and carrying these lessons into our garden of life. So, let's jump in in the spirit of learning from each other. We have lots to talk about.
Mary Stone 00:23
Hello there, it's Mary Stone on a very, what can he say, wet day? Actually, the day after a heavy rain that went on for hours and hours, you may hear the brook sounds like a river running through our property. It's an enormous amount of rain, I can only imagine if it were snow. Anyway, thanks so much for joining me. I hope you enjoyed your holiday, whatever it is you celebrate, I certainly did. And I mentioned last week that giving is more glorious than receiving. But now I'm not so sure. I exchanged gifts with my singing partner, Ken Roberts. My gift to him is usually in the form of baked goods, which I gave him, and he gave me a bag that had other hidden treasures in it. So when I wrote a note to Ken, I'm just going to give you a few bits of it.
Mary Stone 01:20
As I've always told you, I like to wait for the official day, but this morning, after sitting by my writing chair, your gift bag called my name, staring at me from the piano. I justified that maybe there's something perishable and I should open it. The turtle book has been on my list. You know how much I adore turtles and your favorite pencils, which are now mine. Today. Another surprise came from the gifts you gave me while marveling over my new green pencils. I discovered they were gardening pencils. I adored reading the write up how thoughtful, kind, clever, and generous you are putting together your gifts added to the beautiful card. You've made my Christmas as you make my life so much happier. What a gift you are to me. Oh my gosh, I think I have a column and podcast coming on. I look forward to sharing that with you, kind listeners. And it starts like this.
Mary Stone 02:11
I'm sure you are busy putting away some of the things from the holidays. While I was putting away a box of pencils Ken Roberts, my singing buddy at the hospice, gave to me, I noticed that they were labeled series 17 gardening pencils. They have them right here, and here's this description: Gardens have long been a place for Meditative Contemplation. They provide us with an escape from a world that constantly demands our attention. Gardening has been proven to uplift spirits and lower stress and anxiety. It provides us with an opportunity for new growth, a meaningful routine, and a template for nurturing other aspects of our lives. Just as there are 17 essential nutrients for healthy plant growth. There are many essential nutrients for a fulfilling life. Keeping a garden allows us to tend to ourselves with love, happiness, and purpose.
Mary Stone 03:07
Isn't that beautiful and reminds me of a story I wrote during the pandemic when the interest in gardening in nature grew markedly. And it's still ongoing, which is one of the good things that came from such a difficult time. I'm just going to give you a few tidbits of the story: I hope you are holding up okay and enjoying more time at home with your families during these challenging times. I encourage you to find comfort in therapy and the many benefits of gardening beyond producing food. It provides moderate exercise just as bicycling and walking do, but with the added benefit of an upper body workout. Plus, gardeners are likely to engage in the labor of love for 40 to 50 minutes longer than those who opt to walk or bike.
Mary Stone 03:49
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Exercise has immediate benefits, including reducing anxiety and depression and assisting in more restful sleep. It helps children, including us grown-up kids, to focus better and improve learning, not to mention the many lessons learned in the garden. Then, there are the long-term benefits of reducing the risk of obesity, osteoporosis, high blood pressure, diabetes, and certain cancers. Plus, the outcomes of a beautiful garden or bounty of vegetables are rewarding, adding to the joy of being outdoors. Of course, those are my additions - the gardening part added to what the CDC wrote.
Mary Stone 04:28
As with our bodies, when you look at plants as they grow, they give clues about things they may need or nutrition that are missing from the 17 Essential Nutrients. If there are too many of some and not enough of the others, plants struggle. There's quite a science to it all, and the Blackwing Pencil Website has a surprisingly good explanation of things. I'll quote some of their explanations here and, of course, share the link in the show notes.
Mary Stone 04:53
As you would expect, the basic nutrients come from water and air, just as with humans, we can only survive a few days without water our bodies are made up of mostly water, which every cell in our body needs to function. It makes me think of episode 89 we shared last January, Wisdom in the Rhythm of Water you may wish to tune into. Plants also require substantial amounts of six macronutrients from the soil.
Mary Stone 05:17
So the basic nutrients come from water and air. As I mentioned, there's hydrogen which comes from water that builds plant sugars and plant structure. Then there's carbon, which takes in the carbon dioxide from the air and converts the carbon into energy to develop sugars and carbohydrates. Then there's oxygen. Of course, most of is released into the air but some is also saved for future energy.
Mary Stone 05:41
The macronutrients that come from the soil include nitrogen necessary for chlorophyll production and photosynthesis. When there are deficiencies, leaves turn yellow, and growth slows. There's phosphorus, which contributes to energy storage and transfer within the plants. And it's vital for roots, flowers, and fruit growth.
Mary Stone 06:00
So Another macronutrient they mentioned is potassium, which is the component that helps plant moisture regulation and cold resistance, plus it helps determine fruit quality. And then there's magnesium, which is critical for root development, the production of chlorophyll, and enzyme activity. One of the symptoms, by the way, of not having enough magnesium is the yellowing between the leaf veins.
Mary Stone 06:25
Sulfur is an essential part of the amino acid, vitamin, and chloroplast growth. Shortages of sulfur impact new growth, whereas nitrogen deficiencies often target the old growth. Lastly, there's calcium, which is a significant part of the cell walls and helps strengthen foliage deficiencies caused by stunted plant growth and defective roots. And there are a few other nutrients that I'll include in the article and there'll be a link in the show notes.
Mary Stone 06:52
So how do you know if your soil has enough of the 17 essential ingredients? Your local extension office provides soil testing, and they will advise you on fertilizer or supplements should there be deficiencies. In addition, if there are symptoms of plant decline, you can share samples of the problem along with soil samples, and they can guide you on remedies.
Mary Stone 07:13
So, the lesson of the gift of the green pencils is that the significance of the gifts we give and those we receive may grow if we dig further, and there are glorious gifts in the Garden of Life. I'm so grateful to share them with you, my kind listeners and readers.
Mary Stone 07:29
As I was preparing this column for you, my friend Barbara sent me a quote complete with a floral graphic. This made me think of you: To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow. That comes from Audrey Hepburn. As you likely know, she's a famous British actress and a philanthropist who dedicated much of her later years to UNICEF. And I have another quote to add: Let us be grateful for the people who make us happy. They are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom. And that comes from Marcel Proust, a French novelist. From 1871 to 1922, he was on this earth, and he was famous for the Remembrance of Things Past in the Search of Lost Time. Thank you, dear Ken and all of you faithful readers and listeners. Indeed, happiness makes our souls bloom.
Mary Stone 08:23
This gives me an idea. How about gathering other favorite quotes about gardening and nature? Do you have any you'd like to share? I'd love to hear from you by emailing me at AskMaryStone@gmail.com. Or reach me through the social links in the show notes or at the end of the episode. Indeed, learning from the wisdom of others who enjoy digging in the dirt and observing nature is inspirational. As is our time each week on the screen ports and hearing from all of you. Thanks so much for coming by and sharing this time together. May we all dig deeper into the messages of the gifts we receive and pass them forward. As we approach the New Year, think about planting a garden because you're believing in tomorrow while enjoying today. Thanks so much. See you next time on the screen porch.
Mary Stone 09:14
You can follow Garden Dilemmas on Facebook or online at GardenDilemmas.com and on Instagram at hashtag Mary Elaine Stone. Garden Dilemmas, Delights, and Discoveries is produced by Alex Bartling. Thanks for coming by. I look forward to chatting again from my screen porch. And always remember to embrace the unexpected in this garden of life. Have a great day.