Gardening is one of my hobbies. As a child I sat by my mother's side as she poured over the catalogs she used to make her annual purchases of seeds and bulbs. Later I helped her (or so I thought) plant a sunny spot in what seemed like an immense back yard. On weekends we often spent Sundays at a multi-family 30 acres that was farmed by the caretaker. I loved that parcel of land. It was there I nurtured the dream of owning my own farm where I could grow flowers and vegetables to share with friends and neighbors.

As an adult that dream has been tempered by life. I live in Oregon where our lengthy rainy season means gardening starts in very late spring. That rain also supports some of our nation's most beautiful trees. Several of them shade my small yard so, for years I've envied people whose homes sit on former farmland with sunny acreage that supports an abundance of sun loving flowers and vegetables with room to spare.

Last year I took my destiny into my hands. I rented a small plot of sun drenched land at the community college garden about 10 miles south of my home and joined 40 other plot owners in a hobby that precipitated new respect for hard working farmers.

This weekend my friends on adjacent plots and I were shoveling, mulching, planting, weeding and discussing last years successes and failures. My friend, Andi, said last year she planted snapdragons in the center of her patch but this year she was planting beans--part of her plan to rotate her crops. It reminded me of a comment I heard recently from a very respected physician who was lamenting (to her large audience) the quality of our food chain because fruits and vegetables are grown in depleted soil. (She was also endorsing a vitamin/mineral supplement.)

The physician didn't know what she was talking about. This refrain that "depleted soils yield less nutritious fruits and vegetables" refuses to go away even though there is minimal evidence for it.

Vitamins are not sitting loose in the soil just waiting for plants to suck them up through their roots. The plants do the work by synthesizing their vitamins from a variety of building blocks in the soil in much the same way your body makes skin and other tissues from the building blocks in the food you eat. That's why we (and the farmers) add mulch and other broken down products to soil. Alternatively fertilizers can be put in the ground before seeds are planted or added (witness the sale of Miracle Gro for home gardeners) to the water necessary to keep the plants alive.

The point is that if soil is depleted of nutrients (vitamins or minerals) the plants simply won't grow. When they do they look unattractive.. Since most people don't eat wilted or malformed vegetables (they usually don't make it to the store) there's little possibility that depleted soil is an issue for any of us. People who sell supplements may tell you differently but there's no legitimate proof to back them up.

Incidentally, after the lecture I mentioned above, I saw the physician outside the auditorium smoking a cigarette. Talk about depleting your body of vitamins and minerals.

Don't get me started (again).

P. S. For Breast Cancer Patients and Survivors: One of my favorite physician's, oncologist Dr. Marissa Weiss, is hosting an on-line conference for anyone who has ever tossed and turned, late at night, thinking about the "what if's"? of this disease. The midnight EDT conference (because midnight is when those nagging questions can keep you awake) is part of this week's official launch of the ibreast.com. For more details, log on to http://www.ibreast.com