All it took was a single seedbed outside her kitchen door and some social media inspo for preschool teacher Diedre Riedlinger to take her patience and perseverance from the classroom to the garden.
Just like teaching, gardening requires patience and perseverance. At least that’s what Pinetown’s Diedre Riedlinger discovered when, much like she nurtures her learners with unwavering dedication and engaging educational lessons, she started tending to her garden. In celebration of Garden Month, she shares how her love-hate relationship with tomatoes turned into a hobby she found good for the soul.
Head of the Foundation Phase at St Benedict School in Pinetown, Diedre has always enjoyed dabbling in the garden, but never really put much energy into it until the start of Covid. She’d planted some capsicum seeds, which did sprout, but didn’t quite thrive given the season they were sewn. Not one to easily be deterred, Diedre built a garden bed outside her kitchen door, thinking it would be the perfect spot for herbs, some cherry tomatoes and a few vegetables.
“I couldn’t have been more wrong. For a second time, I learnt the hard way that what I planted, where I planted it and what season it was, all played an important role.”
For inspiration and guidance, the mother of two not-so-green-fingered offspring turned to YouTube gardening channels like Garden Answer and Roots and Refuge Farm as well as some friends who shared a passion for gardening. After one raised bed, the bug bit and it bit hard!
“I chose a section in our front garden where the sun was ideal for starting a veggie garden. It was an in-ground garden that became hard to maintain. I was also limited with space, so I opened things up, using rocks and lintels and kerbing.”
Diedre says diving into the vegetable growing world opened her eyes to veggies she’d never even seen or heard of before.
“I’m in total awe of what I’ve been able to grow. One of my favourite things to do is try and include different varieties and colours. Who knew there were things like purple cauliflower and watermelon radishes? I can spend hours just looking at vegetable seed catalogues, dreaming of all the things I would like to grow, if only I had the space!”
To date, Diedre’s best crops have been eggplants, butternut and beans. And she’s so proud of her success and passionate about what she does in the garden that she recently launched her own YouTube channel, Chaotic Gardener, where she shares all the chaos and joy of growing your own.
As for tomatoes, she says she has a love-hate relationship with them.
“I’ll keep trying until I get it right. They seem to succumb to powdery mildew every year. Oddly enough, one of my favourite garden smells is pruning tomatoes.”
Having become more aware of the different types of bees and an increasing number of butterflies actively searching for nectar and exploring her bountiful outdoor space, Diedre readily admits that gardening has made her more aware of pollinators and how important they are in the ecosystem.
“It’s always exciting to see all the friendly pollinators in my garden, knowing that I’ve made a positive difference to the environment. Our bird life has also increased. Fortunately our cats are not a deterrent, for which I am so grateful.”
While her kids Ethan and Trinity are not big fans of digging-in and helping in the garden, Diedre says they do enjoy taking in its beauty and, most importantly, they appreciate the harvest of mom’s home-grown herbs and veggies for their salads and dinners.
“My husband Rob is my biggest support. He loves buying me plants, compost, or tools to have fun within the garden. There’s so much I enjoy about gardening. It’s where I go to fill my cup; where I often let go of frustration, play out conversations in my head, have in-depth chats with God or just switch off and focus on the task at hand.”
Diedre says gardening also gives her a great workout, with the added bonus that feels as though she has contributed positively to the world.
“Gardening has taught me patience. You need to get your timing and circumstances right for growth to be successful. This is so often the case in our own lives. I’ve become more aware of how much we throw away.
“Food scraps can easily be composted, putting nutrients back into our soil and helping to create a healthier environment. No effort is ever too small, and I encourage every household to give it a try.”
Details: Follow Diedre on YouTube: @ChaoticGardener and IG: a_chaotic_gardener
Diedre’s top gardening tips
- Jump in! Don’t overthink it. Don’t worry about not having all the correct supplies. Do it your way and learn as you go.
- Pick something and grow it.
- Start small and then grow. Soon you’ll be dreaming about spaces in your garden that you can repurpose for vegetables and flowers.
- Failure is pretty much a guarantee but, failure is not forever. Learn, pick up the pieces and try again. Failure gives us new opportunities to learn and to grow, both in the garden and in everyday life.
- Never stop learning! The garden is always changing and every country has different growing conditions. We all learn in different ways, so learn from everyone you can, and find what works for you.
