GARDEN FANATIC:Plants need rest periods, too

“But God has never told us what a turkey means.”

— G. K. Chesterton

“It has been an unchallengeable American doctrine that cranberry sauce is a delectable necessity … and that turkey is uneatable without it.”

— Alistair Cooke

Next Thursday is the fourth Thursday of November; by congressional decree we celebrate Thanksgiving Day.

From my earliest history lessons, I recall that we commemorate the feast held at Plymouth in 1621 by the Pilgrims and their guests, the Wampanoag Indians (or were the Wampanoag the hosts and the Pilgrims the guests?). Our customary turkey dinner is a reminder of the four wild turkeys served at that first Thanksgiving feast.

The essential Thanksgiving holiday has been a personal “rest” from gardening and a time for being with family and friends. We are entitled to relax on occasion, and your garden will tolerate a day of neglect.

Most plants also require time to rest, just as we require sleep and quiet time. This is necessary to prepare a plant for its mission — namely, to grow, flower and produce fruit. Under natural conditions, a plant may remain at rest for a period of weeks or months.

Plants are said to be resting when they simply quit growing (not to be confused with an annual completing its life cycle). No matter how much we fertilize or water, Bermuda grass and St. Augustine grass will not grow or turn green during their dormant period.

Likewise, once a deciduous tree loses its leaves, it will not re-leaf until environmental conditions are favorable for regrowth. Quiescence is an internal mechanism of a plant, affected only partially by external temperature, quantity and quality of light, and available moisture. In other words, a plant “will know” when it is time to start growing again.

Many plants have adapted to their climes; they grow during the rainy season and rest during the dry season. Plants as diverse as cacti of the Baja deserts, orchids of Costa Rica and natives of the local chaparral are all examples of this adaptation. Resting prepares the plants for blossoming and prevents them from weak and puny growth — a possibility if nature attempted to keep them in a period of activity throughout the year.

The first Thanksgiving in Loreto will mark the beginning of the holiday season and my continuing battle of the bulge. I just love to slather cranberry sauce on my turkey and the trimmings. It is true; turkey is tastier with copious servings of my favorite sauce. And on second thought, I may have to work in the garden just a bit…. See you next time.