A is for Alyssum, Agastache, Artichokes & a Bunch of Other Topics
Season 7, Episode 14, March 5, 2025
It’s a new garden year so Carol and I thought we’d run through the gardening alphabet! This week is all about alyssum, agastache, artichokes, a new book, Gardening to the Max, and crown bees. Then we served it up with a side-dressing of other books and topics.
Use this link to listen to this episode a day early and thanks for subscribing!
Carol’s favorite this week is all the crocuses in her lawn. My favorite is the begonia above. Carol bought a lot of vintage books this week. Because of her purchases, we discussed pelargoniums (geraniums) at length. They are probably my second favorite flowers, next to roses.
Here are some links related to our topics.
Alyssum seeds at True Leaf Market
Agastache 'Golden Jubilee' at Select Seeds
Agastache foeniculum info from Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. I have this one growing in my upper pasture meadow.
Artichokes from Burpee if you’re so inclined to grow them, and if you are, please let us know how it worked out.
We didn’t discuss asparagus this time because we have before in this episode.
Our Grandmacore Gardening episode was super popular. We were trendy before it was a trend.
On the bookshelf is Garden to the Max: Joyful, Visionary, Maximalist Design, by Teresa Woodard (Amazon link.) It is rip-roaring fun for gardeners who are looking at putting as many plants as they can in their gardens. No judgment from us either. I definitely garden to the max.
Carol found our dirt which is Crown Bees plus Sarah Raven's latest podcast episode: Our role in supporting wild and solitary bees as gardeners with Richard Rickitt - Episode 213. As the kids would say, we’re here for it.
Other books we mentioned included:
Mastering the Art of Vegetable Gardening by Matt Mattus
Harry Potter: Herbology Magic: Botanical Projects, Terrariums, and Gardens Inspired by the Wizarding World by Jim Charlier and Jody Revenson
Onward and Upward in the Garden by Katharine S White
Two Gardeners: Katharine S. White and Elizabeth Lawrence--A Friendship in Letters (Amazon link)
Cry, the Beloved Country by Alan Paton
Time to Be in Earnest: A Fragment of Autobiography by P. D. James (Amazon link)
Jane Austen’s Bookshelf by Rebecca Romney
If you would like to support us, the best way you can do that is to tell your friends about our podcast and newsletter. You can do that by sharing this newsletter.
Our Affiliates are listed below. (Linking to them to make a purchase earns us a small commission, and it costs you nothing extra!)
Eden Bros (They also sell spring-flowering Bulbs)
Insect Shield. The discount affiliate link is DEENASHRDR.
You can also support us via a monthly subscription for as little as $3, or send a one-time donation through Paypal. Thank you to everyone who has already done so!
Book and Amazon links are also affiliate links.
Please email us anytime at TheGardenangelists@gmail.com.
For more info on Carol visit her website. Visit her blog, May Dreams Gardens and check out her new weekly newsletter, In the Garden With Carol.
For more info on Dee, visit her blog, Red Dirt Ramblings.
On Instagram: Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings.
Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube. All our episodes are now available to listen to on YouTube. Check out our new intro video!