So I’ve been adding to my knowledge base by the second best thing after doing… reading! I’ve found a few gardening blogs I am really enjoying. The best ones I’ve found so far are Garden Rant, This Garden is Illegal, and Rob’s Plants. I discovered Garden Rant and This Garden is Illegal when I was searching for gardening blogs because I was looking for some stuff to read. Amy Stewart writes on Garden Rant, and I’ve been really enjoying her books recently. I read her first book, From the Ground Up, a couple of weeks ago.
From the Ground Up
I think I picked a good time to read this one, because I was reading the story of her first garden shortly into the second season of my first garden. So a lot of her concerns mirrored my own… I loved her discussion of trying to figure out the culture of the nursery and look like she fit in. There are times I still find the local nurseries incredibly overwhelming and intimidating. I would do better if I asked more questions, I think.
But I’m very independent about my gardening. Just this morning, at Center Ridge nursery, which is an excellent nursery, at least four people working there asked me if I wanted help. And I (politely) blew them all off. I am a very garden-by-happenstance kind of person. I have a vision of where there’s a spot I want to fill, and the general needs of a plant in that area, and then I kind of wander until I find something that seems to fit the bill. And then half the time, I rearrange when I get home anyway. Like today, I bought most of the shade plants for Elizabeth’s garden, because she said she wanted more plants, but I ended up putting them all in the left garden instead. However, assuming everything takes, I think the left garden came out perfectly. I don’t see how asking advice of a worker at the nursery, however knowledgeable, would have helped me today.
I also read Amy Stewart’s Flower Confidential.
I really enjoyed this expose of the flower industry. I’m not in full-on book review mode, but I enjoyed going behind the scenes at the various growers, the Dutch flower auction, etc. I’ve never been a huge cut-flower person anyway, but I will say that I would far prefer organic cut flowers now (are you reading this, Mike!?!?!?) and that I got a chuckle out of the craptastic looking roses Mike brought me for Mother’s Day while I was reading this (sorry, Mike). Yes, they were a product of Colombia. Somehow, I wasn’t surprised…
Still on my shelf are a couple of Ken Druse books, a book about soil, and a new book on caring for perennials. I’ll let you know as I read them.
But it was nice to feel knowledgeable this weekend. My best friend bought a townhouse a couple of years ago, and has done nothing (but let the weeds grow) with the 15 x 10 foot rectangle that is his front yard. The builder apparently put down a layer of gravel covered with a layer of mulch. But the weeds came anyway.
So yesterday I went to visit him, and we spent the day working on gardening stuff. I’d googled some Lehigh Valley area gardening blogs, and came across this gem: Rob’s Plants. This guy just seems to be a true plant lover, and he’s built a tremendous suburban garden. He has tons of local advice that is perfect for my friend, including a list of better than average nurseries in the area. I highly recommend checking out his blog, especially if you’re gardening in the eastern part of Zone 6. We checked one of the nurseries recommended on his blog… Kuss Brothers, and a worker there generously pointed us (I think) to the free compost my friend could get in Bethlehem. However, there is always a catch when something is free, isn’t there? For us, it was the fact that the compost smelled like rancid pickles, and the smell got into everything. My car still reeks.
Kuss Brothers’ itself seems like a decent nursery. The people were helpful, but the selection seemed really small to me. I am not sure if I am assessing this accurately, or if I’m just spoiled by the amazing nurseries here northern NJ.
Anyway, my friend has now managed to spread about a foot of compost in his front yard, and our nursery tour gave him plenty of ideas to design a plan for his front yard. I can’t wait to see the final product, and I’m thrilled to be passing on the gardening bug!
Tags: Amy Stewart, Flower Confidential, From the Ground Up, Garden Rant, Kuss Brothers, Lehigh Valley, Rob's Plants, This Garden is Illegal
