The Great Gardening Vehicle

Last Spring - with absolutely no idea what I was doing I began a backyard kitchen garden. Thats probably no different from how most people started, but anyone who knows me knows that I am a bit of a purist at times.

In this case I was bringing various philosophies together and this is very normal when you consider that my whole lifestyle involves learning and applying philosophy to the point that I am religious. I have been ordained as a buddhist monk since May 2003 - and I live in a buddhist temple in France. This blog won't be about that so much as about my goal to follow in the footsteps of the originators of organic, permaculture, natural, no-dig ecosystemic gardening ideals. Masanobu Fukuoka wrote books about natural gardening that many pioneers read. When I read those books I am carried away by the purist philosophy and by the astonishing results he mentions.

Last year though I discovered that you have a long way to go before you can make full use of these kinds of serious ideals. In the end you have to develop the instinct, the awareness just to grow something that produces something to eat. Its very hard not to be lured away to the "dark side" of normal fertilisers. I am not going to try and teach or anything although I might blog about the approaches I work with and how they go.

I live in a mountain where it is very late in spring before it is warm enough to get things out there. Late last year I received a gift, a convservatory outside my bedroom. There are big spacious areas to grow seedlings and keep them warm, and I can get up and tend to them half dressed. I also received a greenhouse which I couldn't get put in place before winter so it is waiting to be set up now. Next week I will finally get back to France after my winter travels abroad and it will be time to get my hands dirty. I have accumulated vast amounts of seeds for vegetables, herbs, and trees. I am really looking at making many efforts to emulate different garden ideas - perrenials, food forest but most important is the kitchen garden right beside the house I share with 9 other Buddhists wearing robes.

I hope this will be a great subject to blog on and thank the kitchen gardeners organisation for giving me access to write blogs.