ANN ARBOR, Mich. (WXYZ) — Willie Smith, a 90-year-old gardener from Ann Arbor, has been cultivating plants his entire life. It's a tradition that began during his childhood in Mississippi.
"It was a thing I've done all my life," Smith said.
Born and raised on a farm, Smith and his family grew their own food and vegetables while raising animals.
"It's a thing we used to say: 'living off the fat of the land,'" Smith said. "And it worked. That wasn't just a saying, but that was just the reality of what people done in those days."
After moving to Michigan in 1959, Smith began working for General Motors and raising his family, but he always made time for his garden.
"I just don't like to sit inside the house all day long. I don't see how people can do it. I have to stick my head out the door or something," Smith said.
His daughter, Sheila Smith, who now lives in Georgia, remembers her father's dedication to gardening throughout her childhood.
"He was always so obsessed with it. 'Go out and don't forget to water my garden.' It was just plants and dirt to me, but I grew to appreciate it because we would always have fresh vegetables," Sheila Smith said.
Willie Smith focuses primarily on growing tomatoes, cucumbers and greens in his garden, which wraps around his house.
He recommends planting after Memorial Day when the weather is warm, using rich soil and having the proper tools to create neat rows for seeds.
During hot weather, Willie Smith advises watering plants twice daily — in the early morning and late afternoon.
To keep deer away, Willie Smith created his own scarecrow.
"They think it's me standing out there," he said.
While Willie Smith acknowledges gardening requires effort, he finds it deeply rewarding.
"You don't get something from nothing. Life is like that. The plants are like that. If you don't prepare for it, you won't make it," he said.
For Willie Smith, gardening transcends being merely a hobby — it's a lifelong passion that brings him joy and peace.
"If I don't have company or something, I can just come here and sit like we're sitting and just watch the greens, see how beautiful they are," Willie Smith said. "My garden somehow or another entertains me."
————
This story was reported by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
