RickCorey said:A lot of my garden learning is finding out which things I read are just hot air that's been passed along for many generations and only apply in some conditions ... and which are vital do this OR ELSE absolute requirements.
Then there are other kinds of advice where after doing it wrong for a few years, I realize "Oh, THAT'S what that meant!"
Many of us go through that. It is only when specific details are explained will we have the "Aha!" moments. Until then, we are working with specific pieces of different puzzles and trying to make the outcome a picture in which we have no puzzle pieces. I learn through trial and error and trying to figure out ways to make things better for me to continue gardening. Additionally, I learn from discussions and reading too much. I can talk for hours about gardening. I'm fairly lazy once I start heading out to the garden with a bowl and maybe a jar of honey. I'd rather spend less time weeding (which I truly hate, except for the weeds that are close enough to my plants for me to bend down and give my little plants a little of my carbon dioxide while I'm killing the vile creature stealing nutrients so close to my plants. Hey! That's my food and you are just too close!
Spending more time in my garden grazing and taking photos is what I like most to do. So, I would really like to get past the weeds stage. Getting past the "I have no seeds coming up yet" stage is pretty torturous for me as well. I'd like to have more time to experiment with stuff like how many different varieties of my landscaping can I consume in one day. Aren't those kind of tasks and adventures much more enjoyable and engaging? Yeah, they would be if we didn't have to spend so much time unlearning stuff we have practiced so much that they are hard habits to break. But some stuff takes a while to sink in, and sometimes stuff just seeps out and we forget them many times before they are committed to a retrievable section of our memories.
By the way, many local resources are available to discover which specific weeds are specific to the area we live/garden in. Most of those resources provide some technical jargon how to be rid of those weeds. More often termed invasive species. For people that exchange plants, or purchase plants, the chance of introducing new weeds to our gardens is so high that we may as well accept that we bought both plants and weeds. And you get to learn about those new weeds you brought home. If they are they type that adapt to the environment- they may just go dormant. This is the reason some people only grow native species. Indigenous species are quickly losing ground to non-native species that spread, naturalize, and compete for natural resources needed by indigenous species.
Just thought I'd toss in more food for thought. I got all caught up in learning all this when I did some lobbying and was able to spend time with some experts that opened my eyes about a lot of stuff about my garden. I've never been able to look at weeds or composting the same way again. I'm still fascinated by it all, most likely because I can't possibly remember it all. However, I haven't surrendered all my non-native edibles and I never will, if I can help it.
