The key to great things is planning ahead. See that lily pad shaped plant in front of the back stone wall? It is a hollyhock. Hollyhocks are biennials and don’t bloom until their second year.

I grew the one pictured above from seed and it is in its first year. The blooms won’t come until next summer.

Pictured here is the hollyhock I planted last year. It is about six and a half feet tall. I have fertilized it, kept it weeded, treated it for Japanese beetles, and staked it.

A garden can be a metaphor for our lives. If you want good results, you have to put in the work.