Two Bookish Gardeners Got Together and...
Season 6, Episode 28, May 29, 2024
For this week’s episode, Carol and I waxed on about lavender, including a new book about the subject, our current, favorite books for vegetable gardeners, our dirt, rabbit holes and so much more. In other words, it was a pretty normal episode.
First, let me apologize for my poor sound quality. It has a weird echo. We don’t know why, and I hope it isn’t too distracting.
It’s that time of year when we have a lot of garden updates. Here’s my Instagram reel on how to do the Chelsea Chop and what it is. Speaking of vintage, Carol got some new vintage concrete rabbits. Stay to the end to see her photo. These are the best kind of rabbits to have in the garden. She also got a fun package in the mail. Listen for more. Two of my favorites this week were my calendula and the nasturtiums.
Carol’s favorite is Spigelia marilandica, Indian pink. It’s a great native plant that is easy to grow in our gardens once established.
Our flower this week is lavender. I grow a lot of lavender, and you can see Carol’s lavender, above. Listen to the podcast for our favorite lavender varieties but one is 'Phenomenal.’ After you listen, if you want more information about how to grow lavender in Oklahoma, here is a blog post I wrote a few years ago. Carol wrote a Family Handyman article on growing lavender from seed.
We discussed a list of vegetable gardening books we still love for our veggie topic. See below.
Plant Partners: Science-Based Companion Planting Strategies for the Vegetable Garden, by Jessica Walliser (Amazon Link)
Vegetable Garden Pest Handbook, by Susan Mulvihill (Amazon Link) (Susan’s Instagram is SusansintheGarden.)
Edible Landscaping: Now You Can Have a Gorgeous Garden and Eat It Too, by Rosalind Creasy (Amazon Link)
Homegrown Vegetables, Fruits, and Herbs: A Bountiful, Healthful Garden for Lean Times, by Jim W. Wilson (Amazon Link)
The New Heirloom Garden, Ellen Ecker Ogden (Amazon Link)
The Chef’s Garden: A Modern Guide to Common and Unusual Vegetables, With Recipes, by Farmer Lee Jones with Kristin Donnelly (Amazon Link)
And a few others:
How to Grow Fruits and Vegetables by the Organic Method (Rodale) (Amazon Link)
The Garden Primer: : The Completely Revised Gardener's Bible - 100% Organic, by Barbara Damrosch. It does still mention double digging which no one does anymore. (Amazon Link)
How to Have a Green Thumb Without an Aching Back, by Ruth Stout (Amazon Link)
On the Bookshelf we kept with our lavender theme. The Lavender Companion: Enjoy the Aroma, Flavor, and Health Benefits of This Classic Herb by Terry Barlin Vesci and Jessica Dunham (Amazon) is a beautiful cooking, gardening, and craft book with great information and gorgeous photos.
An English gardener finds a 1,600 year old inscribed rock while weeding was our dirt. I never find stuff like that here.
Our rabbit holes had an English accent. I dove into the RHS Chelsea Flower Show 2024 on Britbox and Bridgerton, National Trust & More by Stephanie’s Grand Tour of Europe. Carol is still reading Agatha Raisin mysteries by M. C. Beaton (Amazon.)
It was a fun and long podcast, and we enjoyed chatting with you over the garden gate. Have a great week everyone!
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For more info on Carol visit her website. Visit her blog, May Dreams Gardens.
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Hey Girls! Great yellow rose for me … Vanessa Bell! Another pretty soft yellow is Imogen. 💐😘
See here… https://thegardendiary.com/2024/03/15/bloom-thyme-friday-yellow/