General
For the Gardeners
I had a liver transplant in May and, unfortunately, can no longer work with dirt. Before the transplant I always loved container gardening, especially desert roses. A couple of months ago I received a large package in the mail and it turns out a family member had heard about the "no dirt" rule and decided to send me a hydroponic set up. I haven't set up the actual hydroponic set that was sent to me yet because of the amount of space it takes up, but I have experimented with growing plants in mason jars and in five gallon buckets using only water and plant nutrients. I can't do much with my desert roses in just water but luckily I do have people around who can help me handle the dirt related work and I can still enjoy watching them grow and bloom. It's strange but the biggest thing I miss after transplant is the dirt. I guess it's easy to take the small things in life for granted. The truth is, though, after coming through the transplant I learned (and I'm guessing I'm not the only one) to live in the present and to just appreciate more often. As The Grateful Dead puts it, "every silver lining's got a touch of grey."
Anyway, this post is just to reach out to the gardeners on the forum and to throw the idea of water based gardening out there as a potential option. My liver specialist told me that my blood tests are looking better every time and I've eaten some of the lettuce I've grown, but as everyone here knows I would double check with your doctor to see if the idea of hydroponics will work for you.
If anyone is interested in any of the information I've gathered as far as the plant nutrients, types of plants you can grow, or anything you can think of please let me know and I'll post a reply.
1 - 6 of 6 Replies
@tom1991 I'm glad that you've found something that works well for you! I think that different transplant programs have different recommendations. Mine didn't tell me to avoid gardening, so I've kept up a backyard garden with my family. Like you said, you need to check in with your doctors to make sure what you are doing is safe for you. I've checked in with my specific doctor about what I should avoid. My family mostly does the work getting the beds ready and I help with the maintenance (while wearing gloves).
I think those that are avoiding dirt post-transplant would love to hear your tips!
My transplant team cautioned me about working I dirt but suggested gloves and extreme hand washing and keeping nails clean. I garden a lot. It’s great you’ve found other ways to enjoy your hobby.
Hi, my TP the same. I to ❤️❤️🌻🌺 to garden🌼 makes me so happy to watch everything grow.
Yes I am so happy to that u r still able to enjoy your hobby, makes a big difference in our lives.💚
i didn’t have the transplant, my son did. The team said to try and keep him out of the dirt as well. If anyone knows how hard it is to keep a little kid from playing in the dirt, it’s me - and I can’t!! But seriously we do our best when he’s done to shower and wash hands really well and it seems to be working for him.
The idea of hydroponics is intriguing. I actually met the lady who wrote the book about it. She’s great and I think it’s a great alternative - especially being so close out from transplant.
That's so cool you know her! I have a friend in Japan who is also doing hydroponic gardening in his basement. What an incredible idea.
My transplant team told me to wear gloves if I was going to work in a garden and to wear a mask because some plants can get a fungus that you can not see. They also said to wait 6 months post transplant. 💚