In this week’s podcast episode, we talked about how to give your container plantings a mid-summer makeover, answered some tomato-growing questions, and went on and on about old gardening magazines.
So, where did the title of this episode come from? Thanks for asking! Now that Dee doesn’t have a dog, the deer have decided that her garden, which I am now calling the “Dog-Gone Garden Buffet,” is open for deer and rabbit dining. The deer have taken full advantage of her lack of a bouncer—I mean dog—to make nightly visits and eat to their heart’s content. Listen to the podcast to hear what Dee has tried so far to keep the deer from eating her garden, and then please comment if you have any other ideas or advice.
Moving along, we had a chance to chat about other topics, like our favorites of the week, which, for me, are the tall lilies in my garden. For Dee, 'Bossa Nova' squash, an All-America Selection, is producing well for her right now. She didn’t say what stage her squash is at, but my new variety from Burpee called Rocio, is at stage 5, as per my blog post: Summer Squash Stages. After reading, Dee says, “I’m at stage four. I’m picking small to get some before the deer do.”
We’ve both been busy writing and, in Dee’s case, “reeling,” so please check out my recent blog post, A Guide to Garden Fairies in Your House, and Dee's recent Instagram reel on watering.
We offered advice on keeping your summer container plantings looking their best. Dee has several good blog posts on this topic. Start with her Container Garden tutorial, and then search “container garden” on her website, and up will pop several more great posts.
We also discussed tomatoes and whether you need to stake them or cage them, among other topics. For more information, see my Family Handyman article about tomato staking and caging from last year, or to find out what I really think, check out this old blog post.
On the bookshelf, we talked about some of the old gardening magazines we love. Fair warning, you may want to find some for sale once you listen to us go on and on about them. Or you may want to check out these two books: The Once & Future Gardener: Garden Writing from the Golden Age of Magazines 1900 - 1940, edited and with an introduction by Virginia Tuttle Clayton (Amazon link), and The American Gardener: A Sampler, edited by Allen Lacy (Amazon link) Our tip for buying used books is to go to Bookfinder.Com which searches all the bookselling sites to find just about any book you’re looking for.
Our dirt was an article about plans for the Queen's Memorial Garden. Someone asked Dee last week about a book on memorial gardens and how to plant one. We came up empty-handed, but one of our garden writing friends is starting a Substack about memorial gardens. Check out her first post.
Down in our rabbit holes, I finished researching Alice T. A. Quackenbush, my latest Lost Lady of Garden Writing, and I’ve started researching how to grow delphiniums successfully in my climate.
Dee laughed when I said that, and then I shared this quote from a letter Eudora Welty, who lived and gardened in Jackson, Mississippi, wrote.
“The delphiniums I planted in my ignorance have all bloomed like everything and are getting ready to bloom for the second time and Mother says the ladies of the garden club come over each day to worship and grit their teeth.” ~ Eudora Welty
If Eudora Welty can grow Delphiniums in the hot south, why can’t I grow some too? If you have some tips for growing Delphiniums, please share them.
Dee’s rabbit hole was finding new ways to keep deer from eating her garden. As noted, she’d love some new ideas. What’s worked for you, dear listener/reader?
Whoosh, there goes another week. Thanks for reading our newsletter and/or listening to our podcast. We appreciate you!
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For more info on Carol visit her website. Visit her blog, May Dreams Gardens.
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