• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary navigation
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Carol J. Michel

Award winner author of gardening humor books

  • About
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • Books
    • Shop
    • Gardening Humor
    • Children’s Books
    • New – The Halloween Hare
  • Social
    • YouTube
    • Instagram
  • The Gardenangelists Podcast
  • Gardening Humor
  • Children’s
  • All Books

May Dreams Gardens

Wabi-Sabi Gardening

June 19, 2023 By Carol 2 Comments

The all-knowing, all-seeing, all-spying internet algorithms pointed me toward a video last week that explained a little about the concept of wabi-sabi.

So why not relate it to gardening?

The concept, which I’ll admit to having only a tiny understanding of, is from Japanese culture. Wabi relates to the beauty found in imperfection. Sabi relates to how nothing lasts forever.

And sometimes a third concept is added: nothing is really ever finished.

So if your garden isn’t perfect, isn’t finished, and you accept that it isn’t going to last forever, you can just tell anyone who might criticize it or make a comment or two or ten about what hasn’t been done yet, that it’s a wabi-sabi garden.

It fits a variety of situations.

For example, wouldn’t it be perfect if that clematis clamoring through that rose shrub was blooming at the same time as the rose? But they aren’t blooming together. And by the time the clematis starts to bloom, the roses will be fading, so I’m going to call it a wabi-sabi moment in my garden. It’s not perfect, but it still has a certain charm.

And the new edging I dug around the garden borders in back? That edging is not perfect so if someone points out that maybe I should take off just a bit more in one spot or another, I’ll just explain wabi-sabi. I accept my imperfect edging.

And as the summer solstice arrives in just a day or so, someone might point out that the days are now getting shorter. We are heading closer to the end of the growing season with each day! Well, nothing is permanent, so wabi-sabi. I accept that. (But there’s a lot of growing time left so I’m not going to throw down my gardening gloves and call it quits this soon!)

I’m going to relax and enjoy my garden full of imperfections, my garden that won’t last forever, my garden that will always present me with something I should do.

It’s a wabi-sabi kind of garden.

Filed Under: Blog Tagged With: gardening

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Patti says

    June 20, 2023 at 10:21 pm

    This is my style of gardening. I just love your posts. Are you OK with me making copies of this to share with a garden club. I will, of course, give you credit.

    Reply
    • Carol says

      June 23, 2023 at 9:45 am

      Yes, you can share with credit!

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Categories

  • Blog (3,144)
  • Internal (2)

Blog Tags

annuals Blogging books bulbs dr. hortfreud embrace fairies fall family flowers fruits garden bloggers bloom day garden bloggers book club garden design gardeners gardening gardening geek gardens hoes holidays hortense hoelove houseplants humor indoor gardening insects lawn letters to gardening friends perennials rabbits reviews Secrets seeds shrubs spring tools trees vegetable garden vegetable gardening vegetables weather weeding weeds when a gardener wildflower wednesday winter

The Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Footer

Gardenangelists Podcast with Dee Nash

Gardenangelists Podcast

Connect

  • Instagram
  • LinkedIn
  • YouTube
  • maydreams icon

Quick Links

  • Home
  • Contact
  • Books
  • May Dreams Gardens
  • Podcast

Updates from Carol Michel

* indicates required
Email Preferences

Sign up for my new substack newsletter

Copyright © 2023 · CarolJMichel.com · Sitemap · Privacy Policy

Book purchase links are affiliate links and Carol earns a small commission if you make a purchase.

We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
Do not sell my personal information.
Cookie SettingsAccept
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT