(Useful vocabulary has been highlighted in bold and is defined at the very end.)

Good Morning,

Lately, I’ve become a little obsessed with my garden.

I can spend hours out there, tinkering around: deadheading, weeding, trying to propagate, and generally pottering about, tending to my plants.

Now, I don’t have a lot of space. So when I decided I wanted a little kitchen garden, I had to give up some of my existing planting area to build two raised beds.

And because these two small beds are all I have to work with, I have to be very particular about what goes into them.

The temptation is always there, wandering around a garden centre, picking up seeds for every vegetable and salad under the sun. But I made myself a rule:

Only grow what you actually use.
Only grow what gives you the most value.

So right now, I have berries, cherries, cucumbers, courgettes, tomatoes, one pumpkin, kale, lettuce, and peas growing in my little patches.

All things I consume regularly. All things that cost a small fortune at the supermarket.

Every bit of my energy, time, and effort goes into those plants. And the yield? Very yummy.

🌿 Now, here’s where you come in…

Think of the English language as your garden.

You don’t need to grow everything. You couldn’t even if you tried, the language is vast!

But your active vocabulary? That’s your raised bed. It’s precious, limited space, and you should be very picky about what you plant there.

Of course, you’ll develop a passive understanding of all sorts of words, phrases, and expressions, like the trees and wildflowers growing beyond your garden fence. You don’t tend to them, but you appreciate them when they appear.

But when it comes to the vocabulary you actively use and practice?
Focus on what is most useful to you.

Ask yourself:

• What topics do I talk about most?
• What words come up again and again in my work, my hobbies, my daily life?
• What vocabulary would give me the most yield?

Plant those seeds. Water them. Come back to them again and again.

A well-tended small garden will always outperform a neglected large one. 🌻

Your Teacher,

Anna

P.S. If you fancy a trip to the metaphorical garden centre, I’ve got something for you! 🌱 I’ve just released a new podcast episode giving you five commonly used phrases that may be worth adding to your collection. Have a listen, I think you’ll enjoy them. Here a listen:

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Useful Vocabulary

• Tinkering around – spending time making small adjustments or improvements, often in a relaxed and casual way
• Deadheading – removing dead or faded flowers from a plant to encourage new growth
• Propagate – to grow a new plant from a cutting, seed, or part of an existing plant
• Pottering about – moving around slowly and doing small tasks in a relaxed, unhurried way
• Under the sun – in existence; used to mean every possible type of something ("every vegetable under the sun")
• Small fortune – a surprisingly large amount of money
• Yield – the amount produced; in gardening, the crop you harvest; in language learning, the results or output you get from your efforts
• Outperform – to do better than something else

Anna Tyrie​ Founder, English Like A Native hello@englishlikeanative.co.uk Want guidance with your English? ​www.englishlikeanative.co.uk ​​​​​ Not interested in offers? Click here: Update your profile​ ​ ​ Don't want any emails from me? 😢Unsubscribe​

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Amelia House, Crescent Road, Worthing, West Sussex BN11 1RL