Everyone loves the harvest. A gardener loves the whole process, from sowing seeds to the generous bounty that follows, to collecting seeds again.

My parents were gardeners, though that was not their occupation, they were solid gardeners just the same. My grandparents were gardeners and I’m certain my great grandparents loved gardening too.

There is the thrill of dropping seeds into the earth that in time will deliver so much more than the little effort put into sowing them.

To quote Petra Page-Mann, “Sowing a seed is to invest in yourself and hope for tomorrow.” Petra radiates enthusiasm from her, and her partner, Matthew’s farm in Naples, New York. Does she ever stop smiling? I imagine only when she sleeps and then only momentarily.

Petra’s love for gardening propelled her to start a successful seed business, Fruition Seeds. If you did not grow up with gardening parents, not to fret, Petra delivers a lifetime of tips, facts, pros and cons of every aspect of gardening, always with an infectious smile. Her love for organic food is simply contagious. The seasons are her friends and she speaks of them respectfully. I on the other hand shamefully exclude old man Winter as a partner, except when he kills the annual weeds.

Petra and Matthew also grow dahlias. Glorious dahlias. On August twenty-fourth their farm is hosting “A Watermelon Party in the Dahlias.” All you can eat watermelon and there will also be over the top dahlias that you can pick and cut yourself for a very small price. What fun! Free farm tours as well. Go and experience their passion for gardening.

Until tomorrow…I’ll be in our dahlia field singing songs.