LETTING GO

Each growing season I plant with the best of intentions and for the most part, everything goes great.  However, there always comes a time when letting go is essential to the success of the garden.  My intention in this case is to grow a robust crop, harvest as much as possible, remove at the right time and go forward with planting something else.  Yet, I consistently struggle with letting go and as a result, it has been difficult for me to make the most of my gardening space.

I have the hardest time parting ways with the collards and kale.  I love having beautiful, fresh greens on hand for sautés, soups and salads throughout the week and my absolute favorite is a good pot of greens with smoked meat on the weekends. 

 

Yesterday, I had all but decided to let the kale and collards hang out for a few more weeks; a decision made in spite of seeing that my watermelon was vining and would soon need the space in the bed. 

Then I noticed them… there in the cracks of the collards were tons of cabbage white butterfly eggs.  I could blast them off with the water hose but the butterfly would just return to lay more eggs.  If there were still wasps lurking around the garden in search of food, I would probably have let them stay but that is not the case.

With a few larvae already getting fat off of my good greens, I knew I would be constantly picking them off and dropping in a warm soapy bath.  Right now, I really don’t have the time to do that.

This week we’ll enjoy the last of the collards and soon a decision will be made about the kale.  Letting go was hard to do but it was the right decision. 

 

For those interested in learning about the life cycle of the cabbage white butterfly, please click here.    

What do you have a hard time letting go of in your garden?