“God Almighty first planted a garden. And indeed, it is the purest of human pleasures.” —Francis Bacon

Even the most garden-limited individuals sometimes get an urge to dig in the dirt. Any home can have a garden if there is a deck, patio, or rooftop available simply by filling a plastic wading pool with potting soil. The container efficiently creates a microclimate that holds moisture in the soil to keep plants from dehydrating yet allows enough space for healthy root development. Not only that, but it’s easy, inexpensive, and the container lasts for years.

You could plant a mixture of herbs, small vegetables, and flowers. Create a tapestry effect with ground cover and plants in different heights. You can plant flowers that attract hummingbirds and butterflies—even in the city.

Working in even the smallest garden provides the opportunity to think about your goals and plans and how they are growing. If these goals were plants, shrubs, trees, and flowers, how would they look in this garden? Are they still beneath the earth in their mounded seed beds? Or have they begun to sprout? Have they grown into small plants? Have they begun to leaf out and set buds? Visualize them fully.