I love my neighbor. She gardens just as much as I do. Today I spent an hour digging and repotting plants from my perennial garden just to share them with her.
I suffer from severe anxiety and have never once spoken to her prior to her asking me about my plants. Now, thanks to gardening, I have gotten to know this wonderful woman and look forward to seeing her.
Sorry if this doesn't fit the general rules here, but I just wanted to celebrate my tiny win.
Do any of you guys have neighbors who you share plants with? If so, how often do you share and (because of my lack of social skills) how much is too much? I'd hate to become a bother.
Bonus picture of my perennials.
by CeilingStanSupremacy
16 Comments
I moved in a year ago. I only talk to my neighbor through the garden fence :p I ask what he grows, and he asks what I grows in mine. He once gave me some grapes from his garden.
If I have a special plant and can propagate it, I will bring it over and share. Otherwise, we walk the garden and they will ask about stuff, or I say “let me know if you see anything you like and I will share it with you”. I have a much bigger yard than most of my neighbors, and several of them already have a full garden, so they don’t usually have room, but I swap regularly with other neighbors, or give them seeds so they can start plants on their own time when they make space. That’s how I filled up so much of my yard as well, when I first moved, I would walk the neighborhood and ask everyone I encountered about the plants I liked. Or if their sun situation was similar, I asked what grew well for them and what didn’t. They would usually give me cuttings, seeds, or sometimes whole plants. I also grow a few rows of sunflowers every year and let the neighbors use them as backdrops for photos, so sometimes they bring stuff as a thank you.
This post made me genuinely happy to read. I’m an avid gardener, and your garden is beautiful – but even more than that, it’s lovely to see how it has grown into something shared. In the process, you haven’t just cultivated a garden – you’ve grown a friendship, and that might be the most beautiful thing blooming there. If you have doubts, maybe let her take the lead. Gardening heals the soul. I love being outside in my garden.
Gardening friends are the best friends! A family moved in around the corner from us and immediately planted fruit trees and flowers in their front yard. The first time I saw the woman working in the yard and we had a delightful conversation about our fruit trees and flowers. I’m convinced that if everyone had a garden and talked to their neighbors about their gardens, it would fix most of the problems in the US right now.
You got a beautiful house and a beautiful garden OP I wish I was your neighbor <3
I had never met a neighbor down the street til a day I ran out of milkweed. I was raising a caterpillar but it was eating more than what I had. So I asked the lady if I could cut some if need be. She said sure!
this is what gardening means, soul garden and friendship. I do share plants with my friends, love trade and discover new ones.
I moved a few months ago and started building a new garden. I was a bit worried about annoying my neighbor with all the work I’m doing. Last week she asked if I wanted some irises she just divided. Turned out to be a giant bucket of them.
I’m so happy for you. Gardening is a wonderful form of therapy. For years it helped me in ways I didn’t realize. Years ago while still living in the DMV my best friend’s mom introduced me to gardening. She gave me supplies and cuttings and I would stay out on my terrace and “garden”. I hope you continue to find strength and personal power from your garden.
That is one of the aspects of native plant gardening that I love. When I got started, I joined the local native plants group on Facebook and two of them gave me some of their babies! When I tried to pay them, they said no, you’ll do the same for someone else some day. And this year, I might be ready to!
No amount is too much imo! I’m very proud of my garden and will talk to any gardener all day about it.
When I was considering moving into my neighborhood, I walked past a woman planting things in her front yard and told her it looked great. She asked if I could stand at the sidewalk and tell her when the things she was planting were centered. You like my garden? Great, now WE’RE gardening!
Your place is beautiful 😭
I have gardening friends I have been surprised to make. Gardening used to be my solitary relaxation activity, and I mourned having to change my garden from the backyard to the frontyard… but it has opened me up to meeting many kind people near me.
A neighbor stopped by this morning to chat, we exchange plants and gardening goodies. Gave her handfuls of my cherry tomatoes today. ☺️
Oh my gosh your second photo is amazing! That is one beautiful yard you have!!
Many areas also have garden clubs, and will share that way. It’s an excellent “common ground” item for those of us with anxiety.
I have one neighbour that I got into gardening. I grow fruit/veg mostly and she liked the look of what I was doing, so now she does it too!
The other neighbour that sometimes gets free fruit/veg plants when she orders bushes for her garden, and she gives them to me 😁