Good Gardening Advice

Jim DeCamp has been gardening his whole life and drew inspiration from watching his grandparents’ garden. Pam began 32 years ago in 1980, feeling compelled to be self-sustaining and in harmony with the land. Starting up was a trial and error process, learning along the way, especially since they do not use pesticides or fertilizers. It takes time to learn what works and what does not for your plot of land. Each year the DeCamp Gardens experiments with new techniques such as companion gardening. Additionally, every year they try out new and unique varieties,such as purple green beans, white cucumbers, purple potatoes, or black tomatoes. Satisfaction, accomplishment, self-fulfillment are just a few of the phrases the DeCamps use to describe the benefits of gardening,along with exercise of both body and mind. The three-acres of gardens truly are their own personal gym membership. After hand-weeding the entire garden who has time to work out, especially after spending much of the winter months planning!

Starting all the plants from seed in plugs, not everything goes as planned. Frequently, the DeCamps discover what plants got mixed up in the planting process or mis-marked. Having hot peppers in the row where the egg plants are supposed to be is surprising. So, DeCamps’ advice to anyone wanting to start a garden? Don’t be afraid to fail, that is how you learn, learn by doing and most of all, be patient. Jim and Pam DeCamp garden in Noble County.

They can be reached at p_decamp AT hotmail.com or decampgardens AT gmail.com -Submitted by Julia Gorrell