If you are a gardener at heart then you will have hoped at birth that God, or the genetic code, would have thrown you a bone. Thick skin that does not burn easily, maybe, or rough hands that can withstand almost all that gets thrown at them, maybe a keen eye for arranging or a great nose for finding those perfect scents. There are also some things that you would have wanted to avoid in the genetic lottery. Two of them, I have.
In fact my skin is also not fantastic in the sun either – so let us call it three. Having hayfever is bad enough when it comes to gardening; almost completely ruling out any work on bad days even with medication. But asthma, too, can render even the most honest attempts at work completely pointless when you are short of breath with a mouth full of pollen. Yet we persevere. We get smarter, we learn when and where to garden – and that is the true mark of a pro.