By Gabriel Foster
Ever since planting my first rose plant St. Joseph’s Coat many years ago as a new organic gardener, I’ve been at serious war with the numerous bugs and black spot disease that tend to infest and harm a lot of the rose species of the world.
Sure, I’m a much more experienced gardener today, but many years ago before I learned the valuable lesson of never giving up, I was still losing the rose war. I was on the run from aphids and other bugs. War of the Roses wasn’t just a movie from Hollywood, but a smaller interpretation of heartbreak, revenge and hurt playing out in real life in my backyard between the love affair of my roses, me and those darn garden wreckers that take pride in being rose pests. Those little creepy bastards had broken me so bad, even my wife tried to raise my spirits with her smiles of encouragement, letting me know that I was still her superman, but it was too late, the damage was done. I had given up, called it quits, I was done with roses period. Even In my early years during the rose war, I mixed up some natural soap and other recommended compounds to create a natural formula to combat the bugs and diseases, but the side effects were terrible. I ended up losing at least one plant and damaging another where it never quite functioned the same again. Even then the bugs were winning, making a mockery of the so-called human intelligence.
Two planting seasons after my exit from roses, I discovered the Rose Rx spray, an organic little miracle that would take care of all the rose problems I had in the past. I then switched to the Neem Oil spray (very similar to Rose Rx, so no real difference) and that was a turning point for me deciding to re-enter the rose gardening business. It did the job so well; I could finally afford to have more roses than I would have allowed myself to have previously. I try to use a lot of organic gardening techniques as much as possible over the chemical strategies that commercial companies and some gardeners use. Neem Oil is an organic product, so I was easily sold on the idea when I saw a master gardener using it on a Youtube.com video. I figured I’d give it a try myself.
For two years I had no rose plants in my garden. A choice I made because I was defeated, those disgusting pests finally did in my spirit and motivation to plant and maintain roses. The lesson I once again learned was to never give up. No matter how bleak and defeated the path looks ahead of you, there is always a solution that lights the way of your journey, if you just continue to keep the flames of hope alive in your positive mind and heart.
If you give up, you essentially rob yourself of ever finding a solution to your problems and close the door to any potential success at whatever it is that matters to you and is important to you. If you keep moving along on your journey, the opportunities to your success will keep showing themselves in different ways to you. Something that usually doesn’t happen once you’ve given up. I just got lucky, so my giving up period just turned into a setback. Setbacks are normal and must be treated as a temporary resting place until you can continue your journey or goals. For example! In continuing my knowledge and experience of rose gardening, I discovered a species that is naturally immune to bugs and diseases that normally inflict other roses. That rose species is known as the Julia Child and stands beautiful in my gardens of today without requiring any spraying at all. Something not possible if I had truly given up and quit my rose growing journey instead of experiencing a setback.
Click here to learn about the success principles implemented by thousands of people according to well known author.
GF Wisdom | Never give up on the things that enlighten your spirit, for they may be the inspiration of your serene garden growing in your heart. ~ Gabriel Foster
