I don’t want to see the water bill this Fall! There’s only one way that my gardens can maintain this appearances, looking all lush and green, everything standing tall or cascading as their growth habit prescribes and we all know it doesn’t come from simply wishing for rain. Short of stripping buck a**** naked and doing a rain dance – and lets be honest – such a display would likely result in a monsoon or hurricane, I have little alternative to watering every third day!
I know what you are going to say: ‘Have you never thought of planting drought tolerant plants?’ Well yes, and no! Yes because a few of them are drought tolerant, but predominately no because many of the rare and unusual treasures in my garden are endemic to the cooler, damp climates of Asia. Of course this opens up the can of worms that is Natives versus Exotics, and between you and me its an argument that I am not interested in participating within. Some of my most precious native plants request near bog like conditions to remain happy and healthy. In the meantime I continue to tie my feet in knots dragging the hose around the garden irrigating my babies!
The second episode of ‘Through the Garden Gate’ is in the can. I was amazed how much ‘easier’ it all felt, thanks in large part to the generous participation of my guests, Roberta, Julia and Katherine. An open, easy dialogue is a positive remedy for when those jittery butterflies strike, and it was refreshing to be able to catch up with friends at the same time! It still amazes me that three pages of print can translate into only three minutes of air time! My producer can definitely work magic.
Every week brings new recognition and new opportunities. Concerned that perhaps the show was leaning towards the more eclectic, connoisseur styled gardener, my producer and I did some brainstorming and came up with the idea of the last 5-7 minutes [a guaranteed way of ensuring that I use up my allotted time] of each show be dedicated to an editorial – something to engage gardeners of every caliber from the newbie to the sophisticated connoisseur – a way of bridging the gap that often exists amongst gardeners. Gardening is after all, the purest of human pleasures and should be enjoyed by all!
I’ve had little time to enjoy my own garden this week, and I have to admit I am not complaining. I remember a year ago when I was visiting a different garden in the area every other week. It was the perfect personification of that purest of human pleasures! Inevitably these visits were curtailed as time constraints prevailed. With the radio show comes a commitment to better manage my time so that I fulfill a vision that has been simmering for a couple of years. I have always wanted to ‘document’ these ‘visits’ to other friends gardens, and in many cases I have done exactly that, turning them into visual posts via this weblog. Deeply rooted in my subconscious mind what the desire to take it one step further.
I love talking gardens, and when I can have a serious one-on-one with a gardener, well, you can only imagine how excited I get! With a little creative ingenuity I think I have the perfect platform to fulfill this dream. I recently visited the gardens of two close gardening friends and plan on incorporating them into my radio show via a segment entitled ‘Botanical Trespassing.’ I visit the garden, savoring the beauty all the while capturing images that I will transfer onto my blog so that potential listeners will be able to follow along when I bring the owner into the studio as a special guest. It is still very much in its infancy but this is where I would like this segment to go! So far I have two gardens listed on the right sidebar under the title ‘Botanical Trespassing.’ I am hoping to have both gardeners in the studio in the coming weeks to discuss the creation of these botanical sanctuaries.
Meconopsis grandis from ‘Botanical Trespassing: Blue Heaven: The Gardens of Pat and Peter.’
I am hoping to get out into the garden this evening – during the ‘gloaming’ to catch up with and visually capture the kids after a refreshing watering! In the meantime, a favourite image from the past week!
1 comment:
Come on, I need you to strip a** nacked and do that rain dance. Remember my poor little carnival without anyone to water him. Take one for the team!
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