Friendships are like gardens. If one tends to the relationship with time and tender care, it’s bound to grow and blossom into something bountiful. That’s the case with these two Rio Grande Valley residents and their passion for gardening.
During an interview with Brenda Garza, she described Yvette Vela as one of her dearest friends whom she loves dearly. Brenda described how both have bonded throughout the years and how they can always count on each other for everything.
There is one thing that has made the relationship between these two grow deeper throughout the years and that is the Tres Angeles Community Garden in Brownsville.
“As the years go by, obviously the program is just thriving, and I think there’s just so much potential for the growth of the program and it’s going in such a great direction because so many people are getting interested now in being outdoors,” Yvette said.
“That’s the thing about the pandemic and what it kind of forced us to do,” she said. “It’s pointed us in that direction of,’OK, we need to be more mindful of what we consume.’ Growing vegetables is great because now you’re eating things that you harvested, things that you’ve grown. … It’s fantastic, it’s a really, really great place.”
Yvette has been involved at the garden for more than 10 years, and she remembers how it all started with the Farmer’s Market and the Healthy Communities of Brownsville.
She said the most noticeable change since she started doing this has been that she feels more at peace.
“The most noticeable change is peace, peacefulness,” she said. “For me, it’s become very much a place of reflection and meditation. When the garden is thriving in springtime or early fall, it is a beautiful place to be.
As cheesy as it sounds, it is one with nature, because it is just you and the dirt. And you hear the birds and you see the bees and the flowers growing that is just really, really nice to be able to nurture that environment and help it grow.”
Brenda said she started gardening after Debbie Cox, whom she describes as a nature and garden enthusiast, and Cheryl Houghtaling, whom she describes as the “Magnolia Mom,” inspired her to grow a garden.
She said Debbie, who retired from selling herbs and other plants at the Brownsville Farmer’s Market, sold her most of her first vegetable transplants and flowers.
“As the story goes, Houghtaling eventually borrowed a tiller from a family member, and we dug out an 8×8 area in my backyard. She provided me everything — seeds, a glittered baseball cap that said, ‘Brenda’s Garden,’ small gardening tools and instructions on what to do,” Brenda said. “That year, I grew an abundance of okra. Lesson one: Don’t grow what you don’t want to eat. Along the way, I did learn a lot of valuable lessons from these two good friends who made gardening look so easy and rewarding.”
Brenda said in 2014 she joined the community garden under the supervision of David Vasquez, whom she affectively refers to as “Farmer Dave.”
“I was able to dramatically improve my gardening skills,” she said. “Vasquez, who works with the Brownsville Wellness Coalition, taught me the organic gardening process from seed to harvest.
“He brings positive energy to the garden and motivates me to learn new gardening techniques. Each year, I try to grow a variety of plants, but I’ve had the most successful yields with cucumbers, zucchini, tomatoes, basil, mint, eggplant, kale, Swiss chard, peppers, cabbage, greens, lettuce, fennel and cilantro.”
Similar to Yvette, Brenda said the serenity of the garden allows her to meditate and pray. She said in light of the pandemic, staying healthy is essential to cope with the changes created by the pandemic.
“My senses are heightened in the garden,” she said. “I am entertained by the sound of the Mexican Red-Headed parrots flying overhead, the warmth of the sunlight, the aromatic basil and rosemary-filled breezes, the feel of the soil between my fingers and the close-up view of butterflies, ladybugs and other insects. I also appreciate the serenity of the garden which allows me to meditate and pray.”
