Learning by Doing

Kwan Wah Kam of Hong Kong first decided to plant a garden to supplement her home storage. She had never attempted to grow her own food but assumed she could learn all she needed to know by reading books.

Although the information she found was helpful, Kwan soon discovered that the greatest lessons she learned came through the process of actually planting the garden. With each additional year of experience, she has learned more about the best soil to use for different seeds, how to distinguish between good seeds and bad seeds, different ways to water and fertilize plants, and the best seasons to grow various vegetables.

The lessons Kwan learned were not limited to gardening alone, however. One evening, a terrible storm threatened to destroy her garden. In the morning, she was surprised to discover that the plants were not damaged, but instead, grew stronger from the additional water.

"From that experience, I learned that with faith in God, we can become stronger as we face our trials and difficulties with courage," Kwan says. "The blessings I have received from gardening are both temporal and spiritual."

"There have been very few years in my life when I have not been responsible for a garden. Even now as a city condominium dweller, I still plant and harvest a garden each year. … Each spring as I look over an insignificant, small seed and place it in a well-prepared seed bed, I marvel at how much it will produce."

Elder L. Tom Perry of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, "The Law of the Harvest," New Era, Oct. 1980, 4.

Boxes, buckets, bottles, and other containers can be used to turn small spaces into productive gardens.

Photograph by Noelle Campbell

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