Benefits Of Gardening

Hey there! Have you ever thought about the benefits of gardening? How about starting your own garden? If you're on the fence or wondering if it's worth your time and effort, I'm here to share with you why gardening might just become your next favorite pastime.

Gardening has always been David's favorite hobby. When he got back from Afghanistan in late 2008, he started thinking about what he could do for work. He took a customer service job and in his spare time in 2009, he started David's Garden Seeds®.

Let's dive into the amazing world of gardening and explore the numerous benefits that come with growing your own food. Trust me, there are more perks than you can imagine.

Benefits Of Gardening - 2/17-2/23/2025

Monday, February 17, 2025

Here is our Farm Store, waiting for you to visit.

Good morning and Happy Monday! It is 34° and sunny this morning. I just made a hearty breakfast so David doesn't complain.

I found a new recipe for dinner this morning which I will be trying out this evening.

I have a lot of orders to fill today and it is a USPS holiday. Happy President's Day! Speaking of President's Day, back in the early 1990s, we lived in Colorado Springs. On President's Day in 1994, David had off from work and school so we packed up our three small children, ages six, three, and one and a half, and we visited the Hall of Presidents Wax Museum. We had a wonderful time meeting each of our presidents in wax and learning something about every one of them. Some had their wives along.

President Lincoln's chest would move up and down in bed while his wife looked on.

Abe Lincoln was on his deathbed, breathing. It was an animatronic, the only one they had in the museum. It was very interesting. Sadly, that museum closed in 1996 but it was one of the best I have been in.

Yes, our Farm Store will be open from 9am to 5pm so come on by if you enjoy the chilly temperatures. We have over 1200 heirloom seeds to choose from. You are bound to find something you will enjoy growing whether it be a veggie, an herb, or a flower.

We have a few dozen eggs in the fridge along with some pecan coffee and both long grain and jasmine Texas rice with just rice in the bag--no chemicals.

This week, as I introduced above, we are talking about the benefits of gardening so you should be ready to give gardening a try by the end of this week.

We are all eagerly pulling orders, trying to fill bags for the mailman when he comes tomorrow. Meanwhile, the orders are pouring in because lots of people are off from work today. If you want to order seeds, here is where to get them. If you would like to come by, we are open for business. I have four dozen eggs available for purchase today.

Matt and I spent most of the day pulling and filling orders and they just kept on pouring in.

No news on the goat baby watch but both girls are getting bigger and bigger.

We did not have many visitors today even though it was sunny and a holiday.

I forgot to take a photo until after we had cut into it.

For dinner, I made a sombrero, also known as a cornbread casserole. Early this morning, I found a recipe for it and it sounded good. It is good. I just put the recipe up on this website. Click on the link in this paragraph.

Benefits Of Gardening - Health Benefits of Gardening

Just looking at this pretty Swiss chard makes you want to learn more about the benefits of gardening, doesn't it?

First off, let's chat about the health benefits of gardening. You might be surprised to know that gardening can actually improve your physical and mental wellbeing.

Physically, gardening is a great form of exercise. You'll be bending, stretching, digging, and lifting. It's a full-body workout, and the best part is, you might not even realize you're exercising while you're at it!

Plus, spending time outside in the fresh air is good for your lungs and overall fitness.

Mentally, gardening is wonderful for reducing stress and anxiety. Many people find tending to plants to be incredibly calming and meditative.

There's something magical about being surrounded by nature and seeing life flourish because of your care and attention.

Additionally, gardening connects you with the earth, which can be grounding and provide a sense of peace and satisfaction.

Tuesday, February 18, 2025

Good morning. I woke up about an hour ago and finished my page on the Sombrero recipe discussed yesterday. I cannot wait until lunch to eat more of it!

It is 56° this morning, a good 20+ degrees warmer than yesterday but tonight it will get down in the 20s, unless they have decided to change the forecast again.

Norma in the backseat of our truck and, yes, that is my eye on the left...LOL!

Happy birthday to my sister, Norma!!! I sent her some Titanic gifts--what else?

The air is warm but the sky is overcast. What will happen? Will a cold front really come in? Stay tuned. Time to fill orders.

My sister sent this to me today. She made her cake.

I will tell you what happened. Matt took down the tattered Texas flag at the gate and put up a fresh, new flag.

He watered everything in all of the gardens and greenhouses. He fed the bees who are doing very well. We wanted them to be prepared for the cold coming tonight.

Meanwhile, we worked hard to pack seeds, pull orders, and mail them out.

We had two sets of customers who came by today. Orders poured in.

Matt delivered seeds to a new customer in Lytle on Monday evening. As soon as he did, he let me know where he left them. I emailed the customer and I thought that was that. They did not see the email so today, they told David they never got the seeds. They did not go out and look. If you are expecting a package and you have a locked gate, where do you think the package will be?

After a few hours, they emailed back and said they found them. Out here in the country, everyone has a locked fence so you cannot get to the front door to ring the bell and deliver a package. You pretty much take a chance every time you make a delivery. In all of the deliveries we made, we have never been able to get to the front door. This is the first time someone said they did not get the seeds. So they ruined it for everyone else. If you want seeds from us, come to the Farm Store or order them online. We have stopped the deliveries.

This evening, to watch Kitchen Nightmares, I made enchiladas and rice. They were very good.

The wind started blowing hard during the show and it got down in the 30s by the time I went to bed.

Benefits Of Gardening - Environmental Benefits

Butterflies are attracted by our zinnias all year long.

Now, let's discuss how gardening can impact the environment positively. By growing your own food, you're reducing the carbon footprint that comes with transporting goods from faraway places.

You're also contributing to biodiversity. Gardens can become mini-ecosystems, attracting beneficial insects, bees, and birds. Our garden plants attract bees and butterflies all spring, summer, and fall. My zinnias are always full of pollinators. Hummingbirds flit from one colorful bloom to another and there are always bees, especially now that we have our own hives. When the butterflies migrate, they always stop here.

Using sustainable practices and organic methods in your garden also helps protect local wildlife and keeps the soil healthy. We use the very best seeds we can get our hands on, not dollar store rejects which are years old.

Plus, growing your own food means fewer chemicals and pesticides in your meals, which is a win for both you and the environment. Keep your family safe by protecting them from pesticides and chemicals that could harm them.

Wednesday, February 19, 2025

Good morning. It is 29° and I hate it. I have been working on the website, taking down old seed sales and such. We will be having some specials on certain flowers, beans, corn, and pumpkins that will go up a little later today when David gets to it.

Matt just came in from feeding all of the outdoor animals. He seems to be alive and well. Just thinking about it makes me feel so cold. I need to make breakfast and get a move on.

We filled orders and then David, Matt, and I headed into town to celebrate the birthday of one of our dear friends out here in the country. We had a nice lunch, just the five of us and then we came back to the farm.

We had a set of customers late in the afternoon, very nice ladies who don't live too far away.

It is currently 6:30pm and 37° Fahrenheit. It is so cold already. Matt put down the flaps on the rabbit and chicken coops so the north wind won't make them miserable.

We are having leftovers from last night. David is still out there working. I came in, fed the dogs, put away the clean dishes, loaded up the breakfast dishes...then I got laundry out of the dryer and warmed up some enchiladas for David and took them out. I also took out the trash. Matt went on home just a few minutes ago. It is supposed to get down to 25° tonight. That is just horrible.

Let's Talk About What We Do Here

As we were leaving, two women drove in. After we got back, I asked our employee how that went. The driver came in because she did not know what we were.

I cannot tell you how many people say that they drove in because they were curious as they drove by. It is all in the name.

Our signs all say "David's Garden Seeds". What on earth could that mean? The gate says "David's Garden Seeds® Farm".

Some have asked if we are a restaurant. Others have come in saying they want to rent out our cabins. (We don't have cabins--the buildings are where we count, pack, store, and ship seeds. Some people have come in asking to see our trees for sale, our merchandise like they have at Walmart, the animals we have for sale, and our drinks.

Now keep in mind that when you set up a company, the experts say to keep the name simple and specifically say what you are about in the company name. Again, our company name is David's Garden Seeds.

Let me address all of this. We do not sell animals, drinks, restaurant food, trees, or merchandise and we do not rent cabins. So what do we do? It's all in the name...

We sell garden seeds. The name shows that a guy named David sells seeds that you can grow in your garden. Our gate also indicates the fact that the name David's Garden Seeds is trademarked (®) and that we are located on a farm.

We grow large gardens of vegetables, herbs, and flowers. We grow plants in greenhouses. We have chickens and eggs to eat, rabbits, and goats. Sometimes we have plants to sell. Sometimes we don't. We do not sell grass for lawns. We do not design and plant gardens for clients.

Story time--One day when our store was in San Antonio, a lady we used to go to church with came in and looked at our seeds. She was excited and told us that she wanted us to go to her yard in the miserable heat of June, design, dig, bring in soil, build raised beds, plant her garden and take care of it for her. We told her that we don't do that. Even if we wanted to (and we did not want to!) we did not have time for that.

Owning and operating David's Garden Seeds® is a full time job. There is so much computer work, counting and packing seeds, making envelopes, printing orders, filling orders, shipping orders, stocking the store, dealing with in store customers, phone calls, social media, and emails, not to mention taking care of our own gardens, yard, home, animals, etc., that there is no extra time for us to spend hours away from our business. There are landscaping companies that will design and plant gardens for you. We sell seeds.

This lady was a bit offended that we were turning down work. Apparently, she thought we were desperate to make money and that we would be happy to go dig in her backyard. I still don't think she fully understood that David and I each put in 10 to 12 hours a day five days a week, plus six to eight hours each day of the weekend. Anyway, she never came back in and our store was right in her neighborhood. She has six kids, all teens and adults at that time and they could have built that garden and planted it. No, she never bought any seeds from us. She just wanted us to build her a garden.

Benefits Of Gardening - Financial Benefits

These are Celebrity slicing tomatoes. Delicious fresh off the vine...

Let's not forget the financial benefits of gardening. With a little bit of investment in materials and good garden seeds, you can save money in the long run.

Consider this: the cost of buying produce at the grocery store can add up quickly, but when you're growing your own food, you're cutting that expense significantly.

Furthermore, when you grow your own, there's less waste because you pick what you need and nothing goes to spoil in the fridge.

Plus, there's the unparalleled taste of fresh-picked fruits and vegetables that money just can't buy. Now this is totally true. The tomatoes you buy at the grocery store have no taste. Why is that?

Because the growers have to pick them before they are ripe so they won't be spoiled by the time they get to the grocery store. But the tomatoes you grow in your garden can be picked right on time. Believe me, the taste is incredible! If you have never grown a garden before, prepare to be amazed!

Here is a homegrown beefsteak tomato that weighs 23 ounces. David grew it and has it next to a soda can for size purposes.

Thursday, February 20, 2025

These flowers were planted by me last fall and they survived the freezes--flowering kale, calendula, and red bluebonnets.

Good morning. It is 25° at 6am. That is way too cold for us Texans. The high today is supposed to be 44°.

Overstock Sale!

David has put some of our seeds on sale for $1.99 and $2.99. These are overstocked so the sale won't last long. They are not grouped together on the website. They include certain beans, squash, tomatoes, fruit, flowers, herbs, beets, corn, leafy greens, cucumbers, peppers, lettuce, and more. Just look through while you are shopping for your seeds and you might be able to save a lot of money.

David heard from the organizer of the Vegetable Conference today that we went to on February 6. She sent us a few photos and told us to save the date for next year. I am going to say no thanks.

This was the conference audience. We were way in the back by the bathrooms.

We are at our table of seeds and you can see the people lining up for something.

It stayed cold all day. It is 3pm and the temperature reached 45°. The sky has been overcast all day long and we have not had any visitors other than the mailman and the Amazon man. We have been busy filling orders all day long.

We paid the rest of our property taxes on the business today. We did that by sending Matt to the tax office. It is a relief. Now he is at Walmart picking up a few things for David. So we are finished paying property taxes for another year.

The low tonight will be 34° which is good but the high tomorrow will only be 39°. Can you believe that?

I am now in the house, warm and cozy in my jammies as I type this. We are watching the end of season 13 of Dallas. We had chicken, mashed potatoes, and green beans for dinner. It was very good.

David finally came into the house. The dishes are washing. I should be folding laundry but instead, I am working on this. It would be nice if the laundry could fold itself, right?

We got another letter in the mail addressed to David's Garden Seeds but inside, the man who wrote it said he has eaten our sunflower seeds since he was a little boy and he wants to know where he can buy a size XL T-shirt with the David Seeds logo on it. Darned if I know!

Benefits Of Gardening - Educational Opportunities

Here is Matt planting cucumber transplants. Looks like you can see a part of our little Trump who is now gigantic at nine months old.

Gardening is also a fantastic opportunity for learning. Whether you're an adult looking to pick up a new skill or want to teach children about nature, gardening has something to offer.

You learn so much about plant biology, ecosystems, and sustainability.

Not to mention, it's a rewarding challenge to nurture something from seed to harvest.

You'll gain knowledge about recognizing the right conditions for planting, understanding the weather, and learning which crops grow well in your region.

And if you're using good garden seeds, like those from David's Garden Seeds, you're setting yourself up for a successful and productive garden.

Friday, February 21, 2025

It's Friday morning and it is windy and cold at 34°. I have been up for almost two hours now. David just woke up. Matt is here and he brought breakfast so I don't have to cook this morning.

I pulled orders as usual. We had three sets of customers today which was a surprise since it was so cold.

It stayed cold with a high of 40°. After work, I went out to check on the goats. Still no babies but the mothers are both getting huge.

Then I went inside and fixed grilled cheese and tomato soup for dinner. We stayed up way too late to find out how Dallas would play out. We are now several episodes into the final season and did not care for the way it is going in Paris.

Benefits Of Gardening - Community Building

Another often overlooked benefit of gardening is how it can bring people together.

Gardening can be a social activity, whether you're sharing tips and seeds with neighbors, joining a community garden, or trading homegrown produce.

It fosters a sense of community and cooperation.

You'll be surprised at the friendships that can bloom when people bond over their love for gardening.

Plus, sharing the fruits of your labor with friends and family can bring everyone a step closer while promoting the benefits of gardening.

My maternal grandparents, Mildred & Floyd Pitcher. She grew the flowers and he grew the veggies. They were both very good at what they did! Just look at those snapdragons!

When I was a little girl, my maternal grandfather always grew a huge garden, at least an acre big in his backyard. He lived out in the country. He always planted way more than he and my grandmother could ever eat each year. They would can vegetables and share the fresh vegetables with their neighbors and with extended family including us. During the winter months when we would visit, we also went home with jars of canned vegetables to help out our grocery bill. My grandparents were generous people, as are most gardeners.

When David has excess produce from our gardens now, he will give it away to friends in the area and, sometimes, take the rest to church to give away.

Saturday, February 22, 2025

It is 35° on this very cold Saturday and the high should be 45°. Everything is wet and it is misting right now. I have to go out and feed the animals in it.

The store will be open from 10am until 2pm.

Benefits Of Gardening - Personal Fulfillment

David holding Trump when he was about 4 months old. David loves dogs and feels fulfilled with them and when gardening.

Digging a bit deeper, let's talk about the personal fulfillment that comes with gardening. Everyone deserves a hobby that brings them joy, and gardening could be just that for you.

There's an undeniable sense of accomplishment when you've taken the time and effort to grow your own food.

That first bite into a tomato you've nurtured from seed to fruit is a satisfying reward for your hard work.

It's incredibly fulfilling to watch your garden thrive and change with the seasons.

Gardening gives you a stronger connection to nature and can fundamentally change your perspective on food and the land.

The reason David's Garden Seeds® exists is because gardening is David's favorite hobby. It is said that when you find something you love to do, figure out a way to make money with it and you will never feel like you are working. What we do is hard work but we enjoy providing gardeners with the best seeds around and giving them help with good gardening information.

Sunday, February 23, 2025

Benefits Of Gardening - Starting Your Gardening Journey

This growing zone map hangs on our store wall. We are located in growing zone 9A.

Now that you're eager to experience the benefits of gardening firsthand, let's talk about starting your own garden. It's not as daunting as it seems!

Begin by researching what plants grow well in your area. Knowing your growing zone will help you choose the right varieties.

Gather your supplies: good soil, quality tools, and top-notch seeds like those you can find at David's Garden Seeds. These are essential elements for any gardener.

If you're short on space, consider container gardening or vertical gardening, which are great alternatives for limited areas.

Don’t rush! Start small and expand as your confidence grows. You'll learn as you go; gardening is as much about the journey as the destination.

Remember, every garden is unique, and part of the fun is discovering what works best for you and your space.

With just a bit of love and care, you'll soon be reaping the benefits of your very own garden.

Happy gardening, and welcome to a world of incredible benefits and endless possibilities!

Return from Benefits Of Gardening to Our Sixth Year

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Since 2009, over 1,500,000 home gardeners, all across the USA, have relied on David's Garden Seeds® to grow beautiful gardens. Trust is at the heart of it. Our customers know David's Garden Seeds® stocks only the highest quality seeds available. Our mission is to become your lifetime supplier of quality seeds. It isn't just to serve you once; we want to earn your trust as your primary supplier.

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