Welcome to the site, and we are delighted that you stopped by for a visit. Take your time, browse and discover.

Who are John and Shawn?

Shawn and I are empty-nesters with two gorgeous daughters, Amanda and Michelle, two handsome sons-in-law, Daniel and Robert, and a pair of the most adorable grandchildren on the planet, Fern and August.

Shawn and I have been best friends for 42 years and husband and wife for 41. We love to garden and have since our huge green bean crop overwhelmed us in the summer of 1982. I can’t thoroughly explain our love for growing things, but I can offer a list of some of what revs our engines in the garden.

• Plants in general.
• The look of a well-tended plot.
• The smell of healthy dirt.
• Butterflies, hummingbirds, and bees sampling the blossoms.
• The privilege of participating in the miracle of growth.
• The endless beauty of creation.
• The unending stream of new things to learn and try.

In the garden we have some degree of control. We can’t fix Washington, but we can choose what to plant, move, compost, trim, and divide. We can design, install, and enjoy a garden in every step from preparing the soil to sitting on the bench soaking up the ambiance.

I do some of my best thinking in the garden. The solutions to many of the problems I resolved during my thirty-two-year engineering career originated while I was busy digging, weeding, or watering. Now, as a writer, I find that the garden gives me an unhurried break from the urgency of deadlines.

In recent years Shawn and I have taken our gardening practice to new levels as we uncover the meaning of the term stewardship. Gardening challenges us to discover and experiment. We’ve learned techniques for reducing water usage. We’ve made a shift away from dependence on chemicals as much as possible. And we’ve adopted a perma-culture philosophy with its focus on four-season gardening. I joke that Shawn is the lead garden designer and I am the lead garden digger on our plot which we have named, Paths of Hope.

Paths of Hope, with its dozens of garden beds, surrounds our home on a quarter-acre lot measured from the center of the street. That forces garden discernment into our practices as we search for the right plant for the right spot, evaluate plant performance, and uproot any plants which fail to deliver. We do use a three strike rule, though, and move plants up to three locations before deciding. The gardens are in constant motion and as of 2022 we have blooms in all twelve of the zone 7 months.

What is your garden design philosophy?

My personal design theme is simple. As Shawn peers out any window of our home and as she gazes in any direction while walking the property, I want her to see a botanical display. Sure, I can send flowers a couple times each year but how much better for her to enjoy a year-round demonstration of my affection. And given that we love being together our time in the garden is an investment in our relationship.

Why this garden site?

I am a believer in Jesus Christ. He is the Son of God. His purpose in coming to this earth was to take my place and pay the debt for my sins, something I could never do on my own. Jesus suffered crucifixion at the hands of the Romans, was buried, and rose again the third day to return to His Father. Someday I’ll be with Him forever. As I learn about the teachings of the Bible, I see Christ at work around me. As I observe nature and the design of this world, I find myriad reasons to praise Him. God’s primary media for revelation are His Son, His written Word and His creation. All I have to do to get to know more about Him is to cultivate a desire to learn.

GodPlantedAGarden is the mechanism for me to tie my faith to gardening and share both with readers who have an interest. My faith flavors the content of the site since I cannot separate my beliefs from my experiences. A relationship with Jesus is a daily endeavor, not something to pull out on Sunday morning for an hour or two. This site is not intended to offend, but if articles that promote creation, the teachings of the Bible, and the worship of God do give offense then please surf on. The web is filled with gardening sites of other flavors.

Explain your tagline. Isn’t that presumptuous?

Meeting God in the garden seems an appropriate tagline as it captures my intended purpose for the research and writing needed to support the site. In the Genesis record we learn that Adam, the first man, was placed in a beautiful garden with a mandate to care for the plot.

Then the LORD God took the man and put him into the garden of Eden to cultivate it and keep it. 

Genesis 2:15

Adam enjoyed daily fellowship with God until sin destroyed the relationship.

They heard the sound of the LORD God walking in the garden in the cool of the day, and the man and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the LORD God among the trees of the garden. 

Genesis 3:8

The overarching message of the Bible is God’s plan to redeem mankind and restore the relationship. That restoration came via the sacrifice of His only Son, Jesus. Because of Jesus a man can enjoy fellowship with God. In my life the garden is a sacred place where I commune with God. In the quiet. Marveling at His creation. Praising Him for who He is and what He’s about.

Won’t you join us? Let’s meet together with God in the garden.