You Should Grow Something. Yes, You.

You should start gardening.

It may be November, but you can stick a scallion in a glass of water and watch it sprout roots.

You can grow some lettuce or herbs under a grow light.

Or, you can start collecting seed catalogs and make a list of plants to grow in the spring. You can sketch out a garden plan on paper. Spring seems far away, but it will arrive sooner than you think.

If you’ve never grown anything in your life… if you gardened a long time ago but gave it up… if you are 22 or 62… you should grow something.

It doesn’t really matter what you grow. Flowers, herbs, vegetables. Succulents? Start with whatever you’re most interested in, whatever grabs your fancy.

Gardening is satisfying on multiple levels:

If you love planning and prepping, you can spend hours reworking your garden design, your greenhouse plans, your grow light setup. If you prefer to wing it, you can scatter all different seeds across a plot and see what comes up.

You can get a great workout from weeding, digging, carting mulch around, and so much more, and that exercise carries physical and, perhaps more importantly, mental health benefits. So many days I get home from work and go straight into the garden. An hour of yanking weeds always makes me feel more at peace.

You may also, like me, get a thrill from simply observing plants grow, the progression from tiny green shoots to sturdier seedlings to sprawling thick vines or palm-sized leaves. How can a tiny seed hold so much potential? It feels like magic.

Gardening isn’t just good for you; it’s good for others. Your flowers could help increase pollinator populations! Your extra produce could go to a neighbor who needs more fresh veggies! Your compost pile could divert food waste from landfills! Some heroes wear overalls.

If you’re reading, consider this your sign to get started!