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The Accidental Gardener
Tuesday, August 05, 2008
If you've followed my back-story at all, you know I am a pretty enthusiastic gardener. Or was, at any rate. So enthusiastic, in fact, I quit a dream job as a section-front metropolitan newspaper columnist to try my hand as editor of Organic Gardening magazine. In Marley & Me, I describe how I quickly realized that career move was a mistake – that it is never a good idea to try to blend your hobby with your vocation. What I didn't say in the book was that during those years I was at OG (1999-2002) I threw myself into gardening with abandon. I planted big perennial beds. I sprouted hard-to-grow seeds in my basement over heating mats and beneath fluorescent lights. I tilled up large swaths of the backyard and planted corn and tomatoes and garlic and melons and pumpkins and squash and beans. I fussed over giant piles of decomposing green matter -- the stuff of compost -- stirring and fluffing and adding pinches of water and various ingredients like a chef perfecting a soufflé. I picked tomatoes by the bushel and experimented with the best way to preserve them, cooking them down into sauces that I canned and froze.
The gardening part of the job was a blast. It was the "putting out the magazine" part that wasn’t tremendously challenging or rewarding.
Flash forward six years. I found my way to another columnist job --at the Philadelphia Inquirer -- then on to write Marley & Me, and now to have just finished my new book, The Longest Trip Home, which comes out October 21. Along the way, I got mighty busy and more or less let the gardening go. It was a luxury I no longer had time for. I kept up on the weeding and trimming, but stopped planting vegetables and annual flowers, except for a few tomatoes and zinnias. I even returned several garden beds to lawn.
This fallen-away gardener has only one thing to say: Thank goodness for volunteer seedlings and steadfast perennials. Even in my gardening hiatus, I am still finding pleasant surprises around our property because of those two gifts. The perennial beds come back every year, even when ignored, giving me a bounty of flowers to cut -- peonies, phlox, purple coneflower, daisies, Joe Pye weed, bee balm, and on and on – and good things to eat -- rhubarb, fennel, blueberries, raspberries, cherries, grapes. I just came back from a stroll around the property with a bucket of fat, juicy blackberries, at once sweet and tart. My neighbor Digger Dan (he is the guy in Marley & Me who warns me about naming chickens) gave me canes he dug up from his garden several years ago. In the fall there will be apples and pears, too.
The volunteer seedlings -- basically any plant that comes up from a seed dropped from last year's plants or fallen fruit -- also offer surprises. Snaking through a bed of ornamental grasses by the driveway, I found a giant pumpkin vine. I followed it for twenty feet before discovering two plump green pumpkins. They are already nearly the size of basketballs, so by Halloween they should be memorable. Various flowers have also come up from last year's seeds, including a number of sunflowers, bachelor buttons, and marigolds. My philosophy is to let things grow where they sprout. It's bedlam out there, but in a happy sort of way.
This season, I did find time to put in six tomato plants (now coming on strong), six kale plants (I love the crinkly blue-green leaves sautéed in olive oil and garlic), a couple rows of garlic (just harvested), and my two favorite annual flowers – sunflowers and zinnias. Of course, the neighbors give us more zucchini than we can use.
Anyway, that's it from eastern Pennsylvania on this muggy August evening. Hope everyone is similarly enjoying the summer. Thanks for all the notes about the new book and the cover. I appreciate all of your feedback.
posted by John Grogan at 6:26 PM
 
42 Comments:
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My grandma and mom are like you. They throw themselves at the garden with abandon, growing veggies, planting flowers and trees. I couldn't care less. In fact, any plant I've ever had, I've killed (accidentally, of course). I wonder if a green thumb is a genetic trait that some kids don't inherit? Or perhaps the fact that I was raised in an apartment and moved out before mom bought the house with the garden prevented me from developing the green thumb?
Heeeeey, John!
Aw, great, I'm gonna be the second one to post a comment! lol
John, when I started reading about the plant and stuff and remmembered that in your book you say that Jenny only started looking for a dog after YOU BOTH killed the plant (or maybe you gave her the plant and she killed it, whatever lol) so a plant really made a huge difference in your life... ;)
I like gardenning and stuff but I also don't have time for it... but my mom loves it and takes care of all plants at home :)
Maggie (my dog) eats some plants some times but I guess she likes it too...
Well, I'm not enjoying the summer time here in Brazil because now it's winter here ;P lol
Well, I guess that's it!
And I'll be back on the next post!
Regards;
*Oh, and I don't know if it's too personal, but I would like to see a recent pic of the kids here on the blog... I guees that everybody that reads you book ends up in love with Marley and your family!
Giovana - 18 - Brazil
You always have something so lively to write about! Oh, how much I'd like to be able to throw myself into such a nice hobby. But living in a big city (Recife - Brazil) in an apartment, just ruins any change of living with some green around.
Best wishes! Just can't wait for your next book!
John, I just wanted to stop by and give you and your family a big HIII!! I loved your book.I bought it as soon as it came out because I am a huge animal person and have dedicated most of my life to fostering and working for the SPCA.I must say that it was probably the best doggie story I've read, and loved the that you included your family matters.I've been procrastinating writing a story myself about my fight with life and how the animals blessed me through all the good and bad.One day I will do this and you're sure and inspiration.Hurry up and get another book out for me to read,even if it's not animal related I love your humor,simplicity and down to earth style.Thank you for giving me a good read that had me smiling,frustrated and sometimes in tears.Take care and hope to see another book of yours soon.Give gracie a big doggie belly rub from our home zoo..lol
John, I just wanted to stop by and give you and your family a big HIII!! I loved your book.I bought it as soon as it came out because I am a huge animal person and have dedicated most of my life to fostering and working for the SPCA.I must say that it was probably the best doggie story I've read, and loved the that you included your family matters.I've been procrastinating writing a story myself about my fight with life and how the animals blessed me through all the good and bad.One day I will do this and you're sure and inspiration.Hurry up and get another book out for me to read,even if it's not animal related I love your humor,simplicity and down to earth style.Thank you for giving me a good read that had me smiling,frustrated and sometimes in tears.Take care and hope to see another book of yours soon.Give gracie a big doggie belly rub from our home zoo..lol
Hi John,
I just finished Marley and Me last night and had to tell you how much I loved your book. I originally bought the book 2 years ago and never had a chance to read it (I was supposed to be writing my thesis). Since that time I have lent the book to my grandma to read and my mom and it finally made its way back to me. All three of us loved the book. I have not enjoyed a book so much since I read "Where the Red Fern Grows" when I was a child. The book reminds me of my life right now. I have been married for 4 years and we have had our dog Oreo just as long (we adopted him from the pound). He could also be in the bad dog club. He recently escaped and ended up in an Emu pen chasing the giant birds and snapping at them, each time getting a mouth full of feathers.
I have never experienced losing a pet, since my childhood pets are still holding on (my cat is 20 and my parents dog is 12). I think this book will help me with both of there passing when their time comes. As for children, we still have none but instead we have a house full of pets to fill that void. After hearing your story I think my husband and I might try the whole "let nature take its course".
I just needed to say thanks for a great book and I am looking forward to the next. I hope you and your family are doing well. Take care.
"it is never a good idea to try to blend your hobby with your vocation"
Oh no...don't tell me that!!! Tell me that everything will be alright and that my book will see the light of day after all!! Tell me that one day, I will sit at a Starbucks, mocha in hand, typing endlessly on my laptop and knowing that I have the greatest job in the world!!! Please....!!!
Or perhaps, as they say in the gardening world, "we must bloom where we are planted"?!?!?
Wow!!!!
This post was difficult for I read!!! (Like I said, my english is not too good!) I'm not accustomed with this words but I think I can read and understanding everything!
So, as well as dogs, I also love of plants! It's my hobby plant too. Unfortunately, I live in a small apartament and my flowers/plants stay in small pots! But they are beautiful! What a shame I can't post its photos! I have in my windown "Azaléia"! Beautiful! Beautiful!
Maybe some day I'll go to Philadelphia and pass in front of your home and eat some tomatoes (I looove!) with you and your family! :) :) :P Just kidding! Visit me in Brazil!
I'm so exciting for "The Longest Trip Home". When they arrive in Brazil?
Hugs and Kisses!
With love, her fan from Brazil(Minas Gerais)
Patty ;)
Hi John and family! Learned about your book from a fellow dog lover who insisted that I read it in order to "lift" my way through my final cancer surgery at MD Anderson Cancer Center in Houston on July 30th. This trip to MDA from my home in San Clemente, CA was to be the hardest to endure during my year-long treatment for breast cancer and I was in need of something to laugh and smile about and "Marley and Me" was just the ticket! I read the first page as my husband and I were waiting at the airport gate to take-off and was reading the last page with tears streaming down my face as my plane touched down last night for home. During the last few weeks, I kept reading your wonderful book giggling out loud in the waiting rooms, recovery and hospital rooms filled with patients desperate for anything to smile about! I just kept laughing all the way! My two dogs, Oreo and Lucy, were there in our window last night rolling over themselves with delight that their masters were once again home and all is right in the world! They have been our constant companions for several years now but more so during this last year of illness. They rarely left my bedside during weeks of chemo and were waiting to take up their posts when I returned to recoup from surgeries and radiation. Today, August 9th, is one year to the day of my diagnosis and I am cancer free and will now spend the next two months hanging out with my "girls" until I can get back on my feet. Dogs are indeed gifts from God for they do teach us to live and cherish each moment of everyday that brings love, comfort, companionship, a good meal, and a good chew to boot! A big thank you for your tremendous book that I desperately wanted to leave behind for my fellow patients at MDA who are on the constant lookout for a good read during our long waits between appointments and treatments. Please send a few copies their way if you can! Lastly, can't wait for your next book - I grew up in Polish Catholic family outside of Chicago and can't wait to learn about your "return home" and how it sized up to mine! Lauren Jackson, San Clemente, CA
Hi John! I'm now halfway through 'Marley and Me'. I'm a student, and I plan to one day have a dog once again (a change in the course of my life forced my family to give up our 3 dogs). However, one thing that makes me adamant is that my dog would probably die before I do. This would break my heart surely. But then again, I think, it's better to have loved than not have loved at all. A dog is a wonderful friend, child and companion to his/her master. My dream is to have a lab one day when I have my own family :-) Take care and God bless...
Loved the book I have been wanting to read it for a long time but just found it in paperback at Kmart. It's probably the first book I have read in the past nine years. Merely by coincidence ;) My wife and I got our fist puppy, Duke a male black lab about then. He was to be strictly an outside dog. It was July in the California high desert. I asked my wife can't I just bring him in during the hottest part of the day? I'll leave him in a doggie crate. One small battle at a time. In short order he had full house privleges sleeping in the bed etc. Five months later along came pup-pup a black female, two years after Cocoa Puff a chocolate female, then two years later Maggie a 150 pound female yellow lab. For a few years we did backyard breeding. Sometimes we would have two liters at the same time. It was a lot of work, you definetly won't make any money doing that but very rewarding in other ways. I could go on but you know how it is being owned by a Labrador. Your book reminds me how blessed I am to have my gang and a wife who puts up with us. Thank You. Looking forward to the new book I guess it will be the second book In ten years for me.
John,
I am from Brazil and I am ending to read his book "Marley & Me," and I am loving!
This story is simply incredible!
I am thinking of journalism as you do, as I said is more or less the life of a journalist?
I hope you read this comment, and if I can respond by e-mail.
Thank you now.
Good luck to you and your family!
Luciana Carvalho.
Hi John!
I´m from Brazil too (You have many fans in Brazil), I love your book. I´ll finish today.
I love dogs, I have three in my apartment.
My Charlie is almost like Marley, just a little smaller, crazy but really sweet he is a Cocker...the sweetest creature.
I´m waiting for the movie.
I know what is the feeling of loosing a good friend...I lost one four years ago...our best friend .... always in our heart.
Charlie is my best friend now.
Best wishes for you and your family.
Accidental or not your garden sounds pretty good John. I also like to garden, only a very small plot but in addition to my shrubs and flowers I like to grow some vegetables, herbs and salad stuff, its a great feeling watching seeds sprout and grow and to be able to eat much of what you grow. Looking forward so much to reading the new book. I enjoy reading the blog very much and also other peoples dog stories, I've made some friends in other parts of the world due to the Marley and Me site that otherwise I would never have heard of, thanks John.
Joan
Liverpool
UK
I just finished Marley and Me & enjoyed it very much. I must admit to being a cat person but Marley certainly won my heart. Some pets just are one in a million. I look forward to reading your new book.
Hi for all!
Im a brazilian girl and I read this book.
I need say: I love dogs!
My english is not very weel but I cant understend a littles things in this site. I can't read this post =/
But the pictures are great.
John, your family is so beautiful! Marley make me smile and cry. I love it! =D
Kisses!!!
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Hi to all!
I live in Brazil and I´m sooo happy for to be acessing this site!!
Amazing!!
I received the book "Marley & Me" of a friend last year. A beautiful gift to me!!
I have 8 dogs. Many of them found abandoned on the streets, very sick. They are my happiness!! Make me smile!! :D
Well... John!! My sincere wishes that your life is blessed by God!! Your life and life of the your family!!
By Cacá Pinheiro
Brazil
hi john,firstly i would like to say congratulations on the up and coming book release (i will be buying a copy).i've seen the movie trailer or marley and me and i can't wait to see it. i didn't read marley and me until january,this was the time when me and my fiance emigrated to Canada,as much as this was a wonderful new adventure it was also heart retching leaving my family behind and rehoming my cats! i just wanted to thank you for writing a wonderful book which helped occupy my mind during the first few weeks of our new lives.i often pick the book up and re-read it! also me and my fiance have decided its time to get a puppy,although not as big as marley! i look forward to your new book and wish you well,kerryann
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Hello, Jonh!
I am a 17-year-old girl from Taiwan.(My English is poor. I sincerely hope you will tolerate that.:) )
I had only just finished reading your book, Marley and Me. I think Marley is very cute and childlike. I have never bred dogs before. I hope I could breed a cute, faithful dog someday, too.(If it could be,I hope it is Labrador Retriever or Golden Retriever or Old English Sheepdog. I prefer the "big size" dogs.:D)
My dream is being a veterinarian, hence I read many books which are about animals. Your book is one of the books that could let me realize how inestimable the animals are after reading. I want to thank you for writing Marley's story. Reading your book let me love dogs more.
Hope you can have nice days forever.:)))
P.S. I was wondering if I could ask you for writing in reply. It is on the premise surely that you are idle.:D
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Hello, John!
I HAD to post here, 'cause today I finished reading your wonderful book and I just fell in love with Marley and your family, how patient you all were in some situations that would be hard to laugh. I really admire you. I couldn't stop crying at the end of the book, sometimes I just felt silly, crying like a baby or laughing alone like a crazy person. I started reading the book loud to my boyfriend, 'cause I wanted to share the funny and sad situations, so we read "together". I can't wait to read your new book, thank god you wrote another one!haha
Sorry not to talk about your post, I'm so excited about the book I've just read that I couldn't talk about anything else!
After reading the first thing I did was looking for somewhere I could talk to you, so here I am. =)
Kisses
Vivian, Brazil
Hi John, I´m Leonardo from Brazil and finish to ready your book! Your history is amazing! My desire is to have a Labrador too. Just I prefer a dog more normal!
Thank´s for tell your love history with a dog for all!
Dear Mr. Grogan:
English is not my native language as you can easily see, despite of that I found your book (in English) in a library in my country and purchased it with no doubt.
With a dictionary in one hand and your book in the other one, I enjoy every page, every word, every feeling. I am a dog lover, at this time I have two female Labs, Kika the yellow one, and the Female version of Marley, and the black one Maya "The Perfect Dog".
As you wrote so beautifully through every page of your book, dogs teach us about love, forgiveness, loyalty, friendship and many other good things of life every day, as your Marley and the "Marleys" of every pet lover, did, do and will do, and not less important, they have the power to let you show the best part of you.
Thank you very much sir for such lovely book.
Gaby Vargas
I live in oblivion at times-never heard about the book, until my aunt bought it for me last week at the beach. I began the book Tue. or Wed. of last week and finished it last night (I have three daughters under 10, we were traveling and working, etc. Finishing a book at all seems like a feat many times)! Marley and Me is a real piece of work! Thanks for the insight-my poor little shelter girl (dog) seems quite well-behaved and much less psychotic. Love the way you shared your story. Definitley did your dog (and family) justice!
Dear Mr. Grogan,
my name is Mirela and I am writing to you from Romania. It is 1 a.m. here and I have just finished reading "Marley & me", a book that I bought from a book-store in Houston in January.
I would really like to shake your hand and congratulate you for what you have done not just for Marley but, also, for all the other dog lovers in the world.
You put on public display waht very few people - due to our modern ...(Part I)
Part II ...social restrictions dare to say: that, most of times, a dog teaches us a very precious lesson in terms of "giving" not "taking" and that, for most of us, a dog can bring a smile from the bottom of our hearts. they would tell us and teach us lots if they could speak ... probably they do, but it is us who don't know HOW to listen...
Dear John,
Just finished Marley and Me. Wanted to let you know what an amazing book!!! I sobbed and laughed through the entire book. You and your family are wonderful people, Marley is "a great dog". I am so sorry for your loss, I know the aching hurt that it brings. We lost our German Shepard Clyde to cancer six years ago, it still feels like yesterday. Thank you so much for sharing your wonderful story. Marley you beautiful boy Rest in Peace, you will always be in my heart.
Sou brasileira e li seu livro Marley and Me, chorei e me emocionei, gostaria de ver mais photos the marley, kiss!!!
Okay...so I just finished the book (I was mid-way last time I commented) and I can't even remember the last time that I laughed and cried that much all in the same night!!!
You hit a nerve, my friend!
Nicely done!
Hi John!
I can't wait for the new book. Saw on the HarperCollins page that you are going to be on GMA on October 21st. I'll be watching.
Looks like you have a busy fall schedule. Good luck with the new books.
Shirleyb
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Dear John,
Sorry to be adding an entry to your “gardening” blog on the Marley theme but, ever since reading Marley & Me (a few years ago now), I’ve wanted to tell you about my dog Marley. It’s not the most common name in the world for a dog although amazingly we did encounter another one who came to live at our village pub for a short time. So that makes 3 I know of (in spite of the unusual name)!
I first heard about your book when I read an article in one of the British broadsheets (The Independent) about “Marley and Me”. My now husband said “You’ve got to read this article – there’s a book coming out about a dog called Marley”. Well, having read the article, I couldn’t get hold of the book fast enough (it hadn’t yet graced the shelves of the British book shops but I got a copy through the Internet), loved it, and subsequently ordered numerous copies as presents for family and friends – it was the obvious present from me really! Whilst our Marley wasn’t quite as naughty as yours, he was a real character. He was a cross between an Alsatian and a Staffy (Staffordshire Bull Terrier) and whilst I used to hesitate telling people the breeds (as this cross tends to conjure up horror stories!), he worked incredibly well – he was handsome, playful, intelligent, obedient, and very loyal.
I got him from the RSPCA 9 and a half years ago. He was 8 years old at the time and had been at the RSPCA for 9 months (noone wanted an older dog I was told). When I saw him, he was standing on the top of a kennel in the outdoor enclosure barking and wagging his tail. One of the RSPCA workers told me that he was the ring leader encouraging all the other dogs to jump on top of the kennel. He was certainly a feisty one and friends told me he was far too strong for me and would demand too much exercise. He also wasn’t good with small children, cats, or other dogs (and I had all 3 as my criteria for getting a dog!).
I did hesitate, but on the 2nd January 1998 Marley came to live with me in my little house in Exeter, Devon, England. My Dad says getting Marley was one of the better things I’ve done in my life (along with marrying my husband and having my daughter Ellie I hope!).
A couple of chance meetings followed – I met 2 different people who had known Marley when he had belonged to his previous owner some 50 miles away. Apparently he had belonged to a drug dealer, had a son called Ziggi and so had to have been named after Bob Marley as opposed to Marley tiles or Marley’s ghost as some people suggested.
I met my husband Steve 6 months after getting Marley. It was definitely a case of love me, love my dog which luckily he did, and a year later Marley and I moved in to Steve’s house. I was 5 months pregnant. We’d seen Marley’s top lip go up on numerous occasions when in the company of friends with small children and we were naturally concerned about how he would react to the pending new addition to the family. We need not have been concerned as he accepted Ellie straight away and over the next 7 and a half years they became best of friends.
Almost 2 years ago we noticed a small lump appear inside Marley’s top lip. It was diagnosed as malignant melanoma, an aggressive cancer. The prognosis was not good and the vet gave Marley 8 months max. I was devastated. Even though he had already reached the ripe old age of nearly 16, he was otherwise fit and healthy. But, Marley was to fight this cancer against all odds and he lived almost 2 years after the diagnosis, enduring 2 operations to debulk the mass in his mouth and pancreatitis (nothing to do with the cancer but as a result of scavenging!!). He was eating (one of his greatest pleasures in life!) until the last, and still enjoying his walks (or should we say strolls in the latter days).
Sadly, we had him put to sleep a month ago. He was 17 and a half and had given us and many others, years of pleasure. Like your Marley, ours had a big personality, was loved by many, and is missed hugely by us, our family, and friends.
By the way, happy gardening!
From Judy (owner of another Marley dog!)
Today, I do not want to leave to pass this emotion when finishing to read Marley and Me. The great history of gratitude for the life, life without nothing charging and to only offer. We can say that Marley, between as much other dogs, are as many kind people that they had appeared in the World. Givers of joys and happinesses. Congratulations John, wife and children.
Hélio Bertolucci Jr.
From Sao Paulo, Brazil.
Dear John Grogan,
Even though, this may have nothing to do with the gardening blog, (which i think is really cool that you love to garden) but i would like you to know that i thought your book Marley and Me was AMAZING! I just finished it this afternoon, and it was so sad and hilarious, it gave me a new strength that i never though i could have from reading a book. i lost a cat to heart failure last year at right about this time. it was hard because i had grown up with this cat and we had a special bond, kind of like what you had with Marley. but, we all live on but never really letting those special pets and memories out of our hearts. i think from the way you wrote your book, we all know your family and you as if we had met you and your family in person. i appreciate your book and the way you wrote it from your heart. i am so happy for you that you got another dog. and soon in about 3 weeks i will be getting a siamese cat once it is weaned from its mother, and i fully intend on nameing it Marley, after your dog. i completely encourage you to keep writing more books. and i hope to see you at one of your book signings this fall.
P.S. and i also think that is cool that we are both from Michigan(:
Molly- Omaha, NE
Hello John, I have thirteen years and my name is Nathália, admired his book, Marley & me. And cried too much with the events portrayed. Congratulations by beautiful dog you had, the book is very exciting.
Hi John and Jenny,
I just finished your book Marley and me. A friend suggested that I read it before getting a puppy, but.... life gets busy! We are now 8 months into a yellow lab puppy (he still has that new puppy smell!) and I'm not sure that I would have got him ( BILLY) if I read your book first! He's really a challenge....maybe Marley reincarnated? Just want you to know your story really touched me...we lost our sixteen year old dog two years ago. It's been awhile since I read a book that I couldn't put down! Thanks for sharing with every one!
Scott Grooms
Lansing NY
When I took my beagle to the vet he asked me what I fed my dog because there was such a high content of bird seed in his stool. I started to laugh; Beau snuffles up the spilled bird seed from my cockatiel's cage, and then, of course, what goes in, must eventually come out, and when it does, it's virtually undigested. And, since it's already sitting in its own compost, and the hot Florida sun hits it, it actually sprouts! My back yard is liberally sprinkled with bright little purple, yellow and blue flowers; all growing out of Beau's dog turds. The vet warned me I might be in violation of the law... apparently there is hemp seed in some bird seed mixtures, and I could very well be growing something that could earn me an extra income! That's pretty much the extent of my gardening expertise, and I really do nothing. The dog does all the work!