Fallow Ground

In the garden there are times when rest is imposed upon us, when all is dormant.  There are other times when we impose rest on the garden, when we choose to leave some ground fallow, un-planted during a time when there could be something growing on it.

Fallow ground isn’t always just a plot of ground.  It can be a giant, empty Wardian case, or a large lawn or an uncleared field. When we leave something fallow, we are letting it be as it is, putting off until another day or season whatever we could be doing with it, or hope to be doing with it.

It can be dangerous to leave fallow ground untended.  On its own, it can become weedy. It can become a black hole that nags at us and reminds us of unrealized potential, of opportunities not taken.  Fallow ground is like the blank pages of a book.  If we don’t write upon them, do they remain blank or does someone write on them for us?

What really happens to fallow ground left unplanted?  And do we want to find out?

Now, when my gardens are dormant, I am making plans for taking care of fallow ground. Will I leave it be and let nature take its course? Or should I impose my own will on it and turn the fallow ground into something productive, that gives me energy and pleases me.  The answer seems obvious.