photo by Brie Cohen

Bob Sherman walks through his garden in his backyard and looks over a sprig of dill last Wednesday. Sherman has had this garden for 49 years.

Prairie Profiles: Bob Sherman

Man has been gardening since he was 10

By Brie Cohen (Contact) | Albert Lea Tribune

Published Tuesday, July 21, 2009

In Bob Sherman’s backyard, he has it all.

Red raspberries, yellow raspberries, cabbage, broccoli, string beans, cucumbers, grapes, watermelon, cantaloupe, onions, tomatoes, dill and many flowers.

Sherman started this garden with his wife, Agnes, 49 years ago from scratch and he said it has always been this huge, covering the width of the yard. Sherman is mostly in charge of the fruits and vegetables, and his wife takes charge of the flowers.

Sherman has been gardening since he was 10 years old. His father dug out an area on the family dairy farm in Aitkin County where chickens previously were and created a garden.They planted potatoes.

“It was an instant success, an absolute triumph the first time out,” Sherman said. The family was overwhelmed with potatoes that he said weighed 2 pounds apiece. They had so many leftover potatoes that the family brought them to the local store and traded them for things they normally couldn’t buy, like oranges, grapefruit and bananas.

With that kind of success at a young age, Sherman continued to garden.

“It’s a lot of satisfaction,” he said, “You make a lot of friends.”

His friends are as plentiful as his crop, as he gives away half of everything he grows. Neighbors come over and pick fruits and vegetables, and he uses his grapes to make wine for his church.

Sherman and his wife make jam out of the raspberries and pickles out of the dill and cucumbers. They also can tomatoes and string beans.

As far as tips for aspiring master gardeners, Sherman said there is an awful lot you know by doing it.

“It’s hard to pass it on,” Sherman said, “You’ve got to work and you’ve got to know when to plant.”

While Sherman has always been a gardener, he has also done a variety of things throughout his life. He was a radio operator in the Navy. To this day he remembers Morse code. He also studied topics such as political science, history and business at the University of Minnesota, Mankato and Oxford University. He ran Sherman Insurance Agency for fifteen years in town before going into teaching.

He taught for 15 years in Decorah, Iowa and 20 years at Waldorf College on the topics of European and American History.

Though Sherman had a variety of experience and jobs. He said he was always terrible at mechanical things. Which is why he says he might be great at and enjoy gardening.

“I love life,” Sherman said.

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