Great day friends. It's my first time writing in this community. I find it awesome that we can post in different communities and that there are plenty from which we can choose.
I'm not a green thumb myself. I haven't grown any plants or fruit trees before but my parents are. My father is a farmer so it's natural for him to plant various fruit trees. When he was young and single, he planted their piece of land with coconut. Twenty years after, we can now reap the fruits of his sacrifices. In addition to that, he also planted fruit trees. Depending on the season, we can enjoy different fruits such as pineapple, jackfruit, and more.
My mom is also a green thumb. Most of the time, she plants flowers and other vegetables in our backyard. Recently, she let me see her growing plants in the backyard. I took a photo of it so she can feel that I support her. lol
Near the dike, she planted bell peppers. Its height now almost reaches my knees and it has produced fruits already. They are still green though.
My mom was proud and beaming with confidence when she showed me this green bell pepper. Before it was always a struggle for her to plant as the chicken would only eat the little seedlings but now, she has a bell pepper to reap finally.
A few steps further from our back door is an endless view of greens. Thriving here are the sweet potato leaves. We usually consume sweet potato leaves as an addition to vegetable soup or fish stew. It's delicious. It can also be eaten when boiled and paired with some salty fish. Our neighbours would also grab some to be fed to their rabbits.
Thriving with sweet potato leaves are the Gotu Kola plant. Its scientific name is Centella Asiatica and it belongs to the parsley family. My sister shared that her brightest classmate claimed that the reason for her intelligence is her love for Gotu Kola. She would boil the leaves and use them to be her water. She believed that it helps you to have a very good memory.
Finally, here is a glimpse of mom's collection. Others are years old already. Some are just acquired during the pandemic. They have survived the heat of the sun and the floodwaters. Last year, our house was filled with knee-deep floodwater from the river but these plants survived.
The plants that we have at home helped my mom's mental health. It's her stress reliever. She finds joy in seeing her plants grow day by day. I also love going home to see the green scenery. It's appealing and therapeutic to my eyes.
There's no reason for us to be bored in life. We can always find something to do that would light us up. While most of us love to write, mom is into backyard gardening.
I'll share the garden that she has cultivated on a piece of land soon.
Thanks for reading. Until the next read!
all the images are mine
