A year without a garden?

We talked about the nearly unthinkable last night: not having a garden next year. And while it seems like a shame and a rejection of our general lifestyle to go garden-less, even for one season, the appeal is not lost on either of us. More than that, when you think about it, it can be done and still respect our lifestyle.

First, what a year without a garden would mean. My, the opportunities are endless. First and foremost, it would eliminate pressure to plant in the spring, from starting seeds to turning dirt. At a time when we’re usually busy with a myriad of other tasks, this would be welcome. I’m typically mowing about every five days and we have a ton of yard cleanup in spring. Then, no garden means the opportunity for a summer vacation and weeding-free weekends. Imagine that? A whole weekend to take a bike ride together, train for an event or even sneak away for a romantic weekend away. And a summer vacation? Crazier words were never written in a gardener’s world. Finally, without a big garden harvest and cleanup, we would have less food preservation in the fall and our freezers are already pretty filled. So, it’s not as if we need to garden in the first place.

If we didn’t garden, however, we could still preserve our lifestyle. First, we would likely do a couple of container pots with tomatoes, some basil and sweet potatoes. That would allow my husband to enjoy his favorites from the garden. We can also make sure that we take our bumper crop of onions we can expect this year and get them chopped and in the freezer for use over the next two years. Same with the garlic. Then, we won’t run out of the things we need. Finally – and here’s where the good stuff comes in – I can use the resources around us to get many of the things we grow ourselves. Our local community garden and farmer’s market offers great fresh produce that I could buy in the quantities we need and support our local farmers. There’s also the local Amish who sell their excess produce.

Finally, there is a ton of gathering I could do to turn into things we either really like or things I’ve wanted to try. We could actually harvest leeks next year or hunt wild mushrooms. I’ve been wanting to try plum jelly for ages as it was a favorite when I was a kid. And the piece de resistance? I’ve had my eye on an elderberry elixir ever since my husband bought me that “Not Your Momma’s Canning Book” about five years ago. That would really rock my world.

A year without a garden sounds like a sad song or movie, but it may also be a year of unexpected freedom. We have been renovating and working to our fullest capacity for so long that there hasn’t been a lot of room leftover for us, honestly. We’ve talked about training for a marathon/half-marathon, of making time for fun on the weekends and slowing our lives down. But we’ve never seriously done anything about it. It was always grind-out-the-work-and-eventually-we-will-get-there. But if I’m honest, we are both exhausted and both in need of a true break from the norm. I wouldn’t want to abandon gardening altogether, but taking a full year off? That doesn’t feel like a bad idea. We could make next year a respite year. Build the deck this summer and fall, finish a few of the projects on our list between Thanksgiving and the end of Christmas break and start January 1^st with a “maintain only” approach to our lives.

Just imagine: a whole year without “extras”. It seems a bit improbable or impossible. And yet… .

Well, it is actually something to think about. If we had that year, what could or would we do? The possibilities seem endless.