About a month ago, I worked a local market and had wonderful conversations with so many gardeners, both new and experienced. One thing that kept coming up again and again among the new gardeners was that they were using ChatGPT to plan their gardens this year.
My first reaction? I was horrified!
Personally, I am strongly opposed to using A.I. and do so as little as possible. I understand it’s practically baked into our digital lives at this point, but let’s just say I don’t seek it out.
P.S. Does this blog post sound familiar? A few weeks ago, I sent an email to my newsletter subscribers, and I heard back from many of you saying how valuable you thought it was and that you totally agreed with the sentiment! This blog post is that newsletter (with some minor edits). If you’re not already a newsletter subscriber, subscribe here!
After a moment to settle, I asked myself why I was so horrified.
The quick answer? A.I. has no real experience of the physical world. And, not only that, but there’s just so much conflicting information online! How will A.I. know which information to pull for your specific gardening needs?
What I kept hearing from these new gardeners was that the information A.I. provided was, indeed, wrong. And by the time they realized it was wrong, they had invested time, money, and resources into a plan that was never going to work in the first place.
While A.I. can be a significant time saver for many tasks, it simply doesn’t have the real-world experience to help you in your garden.
It doesn’t understand your growing zone, your microclimate, or your soil health.
Sure, it might be able to calculate how many seeds to start if you have a certain amount of space in your garden. But it can’t predict that you’ll overwater your seeds and lose half your seedlings! It also can’t predict that half of the seeds you start will germinate perfectly, while the other half won’t germinate at all.
And, more importantly, it can’t accurately tell you what to do and how to pivot if any of that happens!
A.I. doesn’t grasp those nuances, and it can never truly experience the blood, sweat, and tears of trial and error in the soil. Only you will know once you step into your garden and experience it firsthand!
So, why am I so passionate about seeking gardening advice from humans rather than robots?
Gardening is an oral tradition! It’s passed down through generations and rooted in specific landscapes. It’s about connecting with family members who have handed down their knowledge, as well as with friends, community members, and neighbours.
It’s not just data or facts. Gardening is a personal connection with real people!
It’s like making a meal from scratch: the recipe isn’t just the ingredients or instructions. It’s the memories, the relationships, and the history behind it. It’s thinking about who made it originally, how you can add your own touch, and how you can pass it down to the next generation.
Gardening is so much more than the copy-and-paste directions from a seed packet!
Every year when I plant seeds, I think not only about the seeds themselves and what I have to do with them, but also about years of memories in the garden.
I think of my grandma venturing out on the May long weekend to plant her favourite vegetables.
I think of hoeing potatoes and harvesting flowers with my parents.
I think of my other grandma growing marigolds in milk cartons on her windowsill.
I think of all of the garden helpers I’ve had over the years and what I’ve learned from working with them.
I think of my girls toddling around the garden and the memories we create together, and how, when they’re older and have their own gardens, they’ll think of their mother.
A.I. just can’t replace that!
I don’t want to shame you for using A.I.
Turning to it for answers makes sense! It’s easy. It’s accessible. And, sometimes, it provides insights that make us think!
I only want to encourage you to be cautious. If you’re going to use A.I., think critically about the results you’re given and question the motives behind the push to rely more on it.
Every time you ask A.I. something, you’re choosing to connect with a robot instead of a human. And, now more than ever, it feels incredibly important that we make choices that protect and preserve our humanity.
If you take nothing else away from this blog post, remember this: enjoy the simple joys of your garden.
Get dirt under your nails, feel the sun on your face, hear the buzz of the bees, taste a fresh strawberry right off the plant, and breathe in the earth as you admire all the beauty your living garden provides.
These are joys that A.I. will never experience.
If you liked this blog post, find me on Facebook, TikTok, and Instagram for more cold-climate vegetable gardening tips, delicious recipes, and cut flower goodness! I also make weekly videos over on my YouTube channel. I hope to see you there!
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