
We’ve all heard the saying about perennials. The first year they sleep, the second year they creep, and finally the third year they leap.
This isn’t always true, but generally, the point is there are no instant gardens. Gardens can take years, decades, to mature and become the plant paradises that we all dream of.
In my garden, I planted the white-flowering shrub clematis (Clematis integrifolia ‘Alba’) ten years ago.
It’s been an interesting plant, one that people ask about. It has bloomed each year, but for some reason this year, after ten years, I feel like it has come into its own. It is no longer a background plant with a few white flowers each year, it’s a focal point that draws attention.
Or maybe I just wasn’t paying attention?
In my sunroom, the night-blooming cereus (Epiphyllum oxypetalum) sat in a large pot for 13 years before it bloomed for me. Then it was another five years before it bloomed again, I assume because I repotted it.
My night-bloomer seems to bloom best when I let it get pot bound, withhold fertilizer, and water sparingly. Under these conditions, it has bloomed more consistently the last several years, twice last year, and has a flower bud on it now, so I should have a bloom in a few weeks, or maybe a week.
When it does bloom, it is a one night event, and it is the closest you can get to ‘instant gratification’ in terms of a bud opening and flowering in just a few hours. I’ll use Twitter if I’m home when it blooms to post updates so others can see the rapid progression from bud to bloom.
But rapid is a relative term. It will still take a few hours.
And in this age of instant gratification, a few hours can seem like forever. We want it, and we want it now. Have we lost the ability to be patient, to wait? How often have you heard someone say “I can’t wait?”
In the garden, it doesn’t matter if you can’t wait, you have to wait.
We can be impatient with the rest of life, but in the garden impatience gets you no where. You have to wait for seeds to sprout, for the weather to warm up, for flowers to bloom, for trees to grow tall, for tomatoes to ripen, and for perennials to sleep, creep and leap.
If you can’t wait, get out of the garden!
How long are you willing to wait for a plant to flower in your garden?

Notes:
I believe I have effectively used botanical names in this post without going overboard or distracting from the content.
It occurred to me while I was writing this post that I could have told you to "embrace waiting" but I might have gotten a comment or two telling me, "Oh, yeah, well embrace THIS! It really is too soon to ask anyone to embrace something else besides weeding, bugs, your weather, your soil, mowing, and botanical names. I'm going to WAIT before I ask you to embrace anything else.
Comments
/Katarina
Your veg post made me chuckle, like you we don't use botanical names in the veg garden.
Waiting for plants is what got me through some difficult times - the plant will grow and bloom, there is a happier tomorrow. Instant containers are nice but don't have the magic that anticipation has.
Best wishes Sylvia (England)
In the garden I like to watch seeds come up and flowers come into bud. But once the plants are flowering, I begin to lose interest. I like the garden as it's becoming and get bored when it achieves static fullness. Not that it does for very long. I think the reason I prefer gardening to other hobbies is that the garden is different every day. It's never finished.
I always tell my friends, I'm a very patient gardener. I prefer to propogate my own plants through cuttings & seeds rather and run out to the greenhouse and buy more. This adds some years to the plan, but what else do I have to do? A garden is a journey, not something with instant gratification.
I always chuckle when those perfect gardens in magazines were planned by garden designers, installed by professionals and maintained by landscape companies, can you really call yourself a gardener at that point? Or are you just a garden manager?
Fabulous question Carol!
Miss being here.
With those "Slow-gardening" credentials established I'll now play devil's advocate and say it might not be a good idea to wait too long for blooms where a flowering plant is important to the whole garden design. For the good of the garden, either give away the non-performing plant or move it to a less prominent position.
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
Robin
Gardening Examiner
SuzyQ, That's a goog point about gardening, it does teach the impatient how to be patient.
Anne(in Reno), Congrats on your garden coming into its own! Worth the wait, I'm sure.
Katarina, How true! Patience in the garden may not carry over into 'real life'.
Sylvia(England), I think you are right about the anticipation aspect being as important to some of us.
Garden Girl, Yes, there are a lot of lessons from gardening!
MSS @ ZanthanGardens, Why, I don't think you are odd at all! I think we gardeners might be just a bit addicted to 'waiting', to 'anticipating'.
Susy, I don't think people who have others install complete gardens for them are even garden managers, more like garden wallets!
Kim, I think the patience comes from gardening...
Plantwoman, Well-said!
Cindy, MCOK, I agree, while we wait there is much to do and other things to see.
Amy, Take the plants with you!
Nancy J. Bond, In some areas, like mine, the abundant rain has really helped the gardens 'come into their own'. I'm just sorry that's not true everywhere.
Gail, 7 years is a long time!
Pam/digging, I agree, what's the point if you can make it perfect, have it all, right from the beginning?
Lisa at Greenbow, The next thing to embrace will probably be posted next week sometime.
Mary, With your dry weather in NC, you need patience. Come back anytime!
Annie in Austin, I agree, for the good of the garden, sometimes a plant has to be moved. There are some gardeners who seem addicted to moving their plants around.
Robin, Oh, yeah, Mother Nature gets very upset if you try to rush her!
Thanks all for the nice comments and for joining into the conversation and adding to it!
Carol, May Dreams Gardens