Gardening Gene ?

I think I know where my love of gardening comes from...I think it is in my genes! Every year, around this time, I think of my Grandmother. She was an avid gardener. I remember her lovingly tending her roses. She had many varieties in the rose garden and tree roses lined both sides of the entrance pathway. She spent many hours in that garden. In her garden were also paper whites, tucked behind the bird basin, near the camellia beds. She loved flowers and her house was always filled with them. Her daughter, my aunt,also chose gardening as a pastime.

From Grandmother's narcissus bulbs came the flowers which grow in my garden, today. They have been carried with us to each new home and have withstood ocean air and the hot, dry desert clime. They were first planted around 1930. To say they have withstood the test of time is an understatement! Each October, when I see the new growth pushing up through the soil, I am reminded of her. I, too, have given off- shoots of the bulbs to others. They make a beautiful, lasting gift.

I think a couple of other family members have also inherited the same gene. My niece in Northern California has a huge vegetable garden which supplies almost all of the family needs. And now, her daughter, recently graduated with a degree in botany, is following the family gardening tradition.

Wouldn't it be fun to know which ancient ancestor decided gardening and growing things was necessary to his or her well being?