Wednesday, March 21, 2012

Gardening in Tennessee.....


When planting in Tennessee, you really need to dress appropriately or you may wind up with a sunburn, heatstroke or both. Here I am with my planting attire on our second day of planting. The temperature was in the 80's which meant it was pretty hot out there in the blazing sun. Before I go on to my bullet list of "do" and "don'ts", when you look at this photo....remember, the camera adds 10 extra pounds which means that the people we see on our favorite T.V. shows must be twigs. Ok, ok, I have put on some weight since moving to Tennessee, but I started a new diet on Monday and I would kill for a Hershey bar right about now and I've warned the grandkids not to cross me in any way. There, now that I got that off my chest, let's move on......

  • Shoes:  Wear your crappiest worn out tennies. The day that I planted my new rose bushes, I wore my sandals and scraped off the nicely applied nail polish on my toes.
  • Pants: Go digging in your "fat" clothes (I know you have them) and find a pair of lose fitting LONG pants. These jeans are being held up by one of Grandpa's belts. You will be glad that they are lose when you start bending and stretching while planting. 
  • Shirt: Big and light in color. I chose this neon number from Grandpa's closet which was a good choice since I was planting flowers at the end of the driveway and I wanted to be seen when people came around the corner in their cars.
  • Hat:  You need a hat! And, a baseball hat is not going to cut it in the Tennessee sun. I saw many of our neighbors wearing them so I picked one up when we were shopping for top soil. Let me tell you, I LOVE this hat! The brim keeps the sum off the back of your neck while planting. It's lightweight and airy which is also terrific in the heat.
As for looks.....who cares what you look like? Dress for comfort. Besides, all the neighbors dress the same so you'll fit right in. It's not like you are going shopping to Walmart....although, I shop there a lot and you would STILL fit in.

A few other hints....you are going to be doing a lot of kneeling and some of those spots may be hard so get yourself one of those cute little foam rubber pads to kneel on. They are great and save on the knees, especially at my age. When picking out your garden gloves, be sure to get some that are made of tight knit fabric or leather so the dirt does not go through them....or else, there would be no sense of even wearing gloves. We also have our 'sweat' towels handy and mugs of ice water. You HAVE to stay hydrated or you will regret it; especially when you start to see spots in front of you eyes. Take breaks, even if your planting partner wants to go on....well, we already know that Grandpa is a nutcase when he's on a mission. 

Follow these and other suggestions or ideas that you might come up with and you too, will have a fun and safe planting season. Take care!

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