who really owns the backyard lettuce?
I remember my grandmother’s garden—rows of crisp lettuce, guarded by nothing but her watchful eyes and a rickety fence. Back then, neighbors swapped tomatoes over the fence, and the only salad thief was a curious rabbit. But last week, I caught a young man plucking lettuce from my raised bed, right in broad daylight. He smiled, called it 'community gardening,' and strolled off munching my greens.
Is this the new way? In our North American suburbs, we used to respect boundaries—your yard, your rules. Now, some say sharing is caring, while others feel it’s just plain disrespect. The climate’s changing, food prices are up, and maybe he needed that salad more than I did. But where do we draw the line between neighborly generosity and trespassing?
I’m torn: should I lock my gate, or plant an extra row for anyone in need? My lettuce patch has become a battleground between old-school values and new-age sharing. What would you do if someone helped themselves to your garden?
#gardeningdebate #communityvalues #oldvsnew #Gardening
