Green Thumb

March 21, 2024

It is appropriate that on the first day of spring I managed to push ahead with the planting for my container garden.  When I first read the article on January planting, I was skeptical.  That meant I was 10 to 12 weeks prior to the last frost (April 15 for zone 7).  I started planning and managed to get in my 8 to 10 weeks inside seedlings.  Several weeks later I replanted both the red onions and artichokes because they never took, along with (mostly) tomatoes in for the 6 week seedlings.  I was under the weather when the 4 week seedlings needed to be planted, but as of today I am caught up.  That means I now have 20 seedling plants in three inch pots, 40 new seedling sets under my grow lights, and 10 to 15 others in stages between, all sharing space among Melissa’s succulents on the glass porch.  Sadly, most “others” are the red onion seedlings.  I can get them to sprout, but they do not seem to get far beyond that stage.  I planted five bunch onions as part of today’s forty (I still hope for onions).  The remainder of my seed should be planted directly into the ground after the last frost date.  I will probably plant more onions directly in the ground and try some onion sets as well.  I may not have a green thumb for onions, but I am persistent.

When I looked online, I found both green thumb and green fingers have been common expressions in England and the US for well over a century.  The Oxford English Dictionary cites the use of green fingers as early as 1906 in the novel The Misses Make-Believe by Mary Stuart Boyd.  Green thumb can be pinpointed to a 1937 Ironwood Daily Globe newspaper article, which described the phrase as “horticultural slang.”  Some believe the origin comes from the result of handling potted plants, which can often have green algae on the underside that coats hands.  Others point to a (likely apocryphal) story about King Edward I and his love of green peas.  The peas were shelled by his servant workers, and one would be honored for doing the most work and having the greenest thumb.  Plants contain chlorophyll, and the green pigment can discolor your hands.  However the phrase was cultivated, it caught on in the 1940’s when wartime Britain enjoyed a popular gardening radio show titled, In Your Garden, hosted by C.H. Middleton that made use of both green thumb and green fingers. 

Most of the online gardening sites tout their ability to transform you from a beginner into someone with a green thumb.  Most will also tell what products you need to buy (often from them) to ensure a bountiful crop.  I cannot fault these sites, because they are the ones I have been pouring over for the last two years to enhance my own container garden.  This has taken me from 5-gallon paint buckets purchased from the hardware store (or lying out back the shed), to grow bags designed to provide self-pruning roots systems, to the metal raised beds employing Hügelkultur that are being prepped in my yard this spring.  Each experience has given me insight into the complexities of gardening.  A green thumb now refers to someone who can seemingly effortlessly grow a wide variety of plants.  This also implies extensive knowledge and experience, and proof can be found in the beds and gardens produced.  I would say I have yet to reach green thumb status.    

THOUGHTS:  Melissa’s mom was known for her green thumb before she became too il to take care of her garden.  The house still shows signs of the hook and chains she used for the hanging baskets to grace the underside of the eaves and the self-watering system is still functional in several areas.  Loki is trying his best to remove it for us.  I asked Melissa what made her mom good at growing things, and she responded she spent 3 to 4 hours a day in the yard.  That implied I could have a green thumb if I was willing to put in the work.  That was not the easy answer I was looking for.  Gardening is like any skill, the more time and effort you spend the better you get.  You do not get to be an expert by merely claiming you know what to do.  Act for all.  Change is coming and it starts with you.