The Gardenangelists: Flowers, Veggies, and All the Best Dirt

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol talk about tall phlox for the garden, all the troubles you can have with tomatoes (and the best trouble is too many!) and if you see something strange in your garden—a weed, a bug, a weird plant disease—try to figure out what it is and talk to your local cooperative extension service if you need help identifying it. They want to know! Some helpful links: Phlox panicu...

Send us Fan Mail Carol and Dee talk about coneflowers and some of the varieties they've had good success with, dill & fennel in the vegetable garden, and the mysterious world of herbalists. Helpful links: Echinacea  'Cheyenne Spirit', a 2013 AAS Winner. Echinacea  varieties at American Meadows. Dill varieties from Burpee Seeds Fennel varieties from Burpee Seeds Books: Culpepper&...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol discuss two native flowers, Spigelia marilandica  and Asclepias sp., cucumbers in the vegetable garden, and Dee's new pelargonium theater. For more info: Spigelia marilandica 'Little Redhead' Milkweed from High Country Gardens Milkweed info from American Meadows Dee's Cucumbers and Onions recipe Geraniaceae.com , a source for pelargoniums Groovy P...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol discuss all the types of hydrangeas you can grow in your garden, how to safely grow mint and what the old custom of Telling the Bees is all about. Some links you may find useful: From Plant Addicts, the different types of hydrangeas Answers to the question, "Why isn't my hydrangea blooming?" From Proven Winners and the National Garden Bureau . Hydrange...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol discuss growing sunflowers—all kinds of sunflowers—some of the calamities they've experienced in their own gardens, and a few presidential gardens worth a visit.  Some helpful links: Sunflower Houses by Sharon Lovejoy. Sunflower seeds of all types from Botanical Interests Suncredible™ Yellow sunflower from Proven Winners The Essential Earthman: Henry Mitchell on...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol talk about edible flowers, basil, and provide tips on touring other people's gardens. Some helpful links include: The Edible Flower Garden , by Rosalind Creasy, a book on growing and using edible flowers.  (Affiliate link. We may earn a small commission if you make a purchase after following this link Basil varieties: Italian Basil ‘Genovese ' from Burpee ‘...

Send us Fan Mail Carol and Dee discuss Japanese maples, which grow in both Indiana and Oklahoma. Dee suggests several varieties and provide tips on how to care for them in hot climates. They also talk about what to do with your vegetable garden when you leave it to go on vacation so when you return, the garden isn't overtaken by weeds or loaded down with overly ripe vegetables. They wrap up t...

Send us Fan Mail Carol and Dee discuss geraniums, both the perennial Geraniums and the annual Pelargoniums, figs, and a few plants they've failed to grow successfully in their gardens. Some books mentioned include:   Merry Hal l, by Beverley Nichols Gods, Wasps, and Stranglers by Mike Shanahan  Back to the Garden by Ursula Buchan Grow Figs Where You Think You Can’t by Steven Biggs An Omelette...

Send us Fan Mail All about growing roses, including different types and some of the problems with roses, including the virus, rose rosette.  Also, Carol and Dee talk briefly about growing cabbage and how they met. They also discuss where to listen to learn more about organic and non-organic gardening. Some books to read more about roses:  Chasing the Rose: An Adventure in the Venetian Countryside...

Send us Fan Mail How is it that Dee and Carol can go from peonies to Wallis Simpson to tomatoes and then the Chelsea chop in one episode? Well, just listen and you'll find out! Flower : Peony, a wonderful long-lived perennial flower that both Dee and Carol and millions of other gardeners grow. Peony’s Envy is one site that will give you a good overview of peonies. Another source is Song Sparr...

Send us Fan Mail "Is there a better month in the garden than May when the skies are blue, the garden is lush, and there are flowers blooming in every color imaginable.  The promises of the season have yet to be broken and optimism reigns!" ~~ Carol Michel Flower : Clematis, a member of the Ranunculaceae family. A good place to buy clematis online if your local garden center doesn't...

Send us Fan Mail Have you always wanted to grow vegetables, but didn't know where to start? Dee Nash and Carol Michel provide the information you need to get started growing your own vegetables, including tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, green beans, corn, okra and squash in this bonus episode of The Gardenangelists.  Support the show On Instagram:  Carol:  Indygardener , Dee:  RedDirtRamblings ,...

Send us Fan Mail “ In my early childhood I had some kind of vague yearning to Save the World from something or other; now all I ask is to save a small part of it from over-working in the effort to produce things that are good to eat or are lovely to see. ” Ruth Stout   Ruth Stout got people to stop double-digging their gardens, which is hard work. Her books included The Ruth Stout No-Work Garden B...

Send us Fan Mail What do daisies, squash, and queen bees have in common. They are all topics in this week's episode! A quote to start with... “Gardening is an active participation in the deepest mysteries of the universe.” Thomas Berry.  This week we are harvesting radishes, lettuce, spinach, and green onions. Our flower this week is daisies , members of the Compositeae or Asteraceae family....

Send us Fan Mail While you weed in your garden, listen to Dee and Carol discuss weeding with quotes, advice, and encouragement to keep you on task so you'll weed faster, better, and stronger than you've ever weeded before.  Repeat this episode as often as you weed! Support the show On Instagram:  Carol:  Indygardener , Dee:  RedDirtRamblings , Our podcast:  TheGardenangelists . On Facebo...

Send us Fan Mail Flowers: Columbine, a perennial in the family Ranunculaceae.  Aquilegia vulgaris (native to Europe) and Aquilegia canadensis (native to North America). Most cultivated varieties are hybrids of Aquilegia vulgaris . Columbine are usually easy to grow from seed. It's easy to harvest seed to share but most flowers won’t come true from seed if they are hybrids, but you’ll get some...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol talk about some of their favorite petunia varieties, some of which Dee saw in 2015 when she went to the   California Spring Trials with the National Garden Bureau Some of the petunias she saw included Night Sky and Supertunia Honey petunias,  Supertunia Vista types like Bubblegum and Silverberry, and  Sweetunia Fiona Flash plus Crazytunia Moonstruck . Another great b...

Send us Fan Mail Flowers: The Easter lilies that you can buy in the store now are Lilium longiflorium, a type of trumpet lily. You can plant them out in the garden, zones 4 - 8, and they will come back each year. They like neutral soils, full sun, and cool soil. Don’t mulch right up to the stems or the stems may rot. Brent and Becky’s Bulbs has some named varieties including White Heaven . Madonna...

Send us Fan Mail Snapdragons, Turnips and the Signs of Spring! Flowers: Snapdragons All about snapdragons. Antirrhinum majus is a short-lived perennial most often grown as annuals in colder climates. It is winter hardy in zones 7 - 10.  They come in all colors and sizes and are fun for kids to grow. There is also another snapdragon, called Spanish snapdragon, Antirrhinum hispanicum, which is hardy...

Send us Fan Mail Want to know which flowers to plant for pollinators? Carol and Dee discuss easy to grow annuals and perennials that provide pollen and nectar for bees and butterflies. To follow the migration of monarchs, check out the Journey North website .  For more information in general on monarchs, we recommend The Monarch: Saving Our Most-Loved Butterfly by Kylee Baumle (affiliate link). Fo...

Send us Fan Mail The Gardenangelists, Dee and Carol, talk about daffodils and how easy they are to grow and how most critters won't touch them.  And for those new to growing vegetables, they cover a range of topics including the benefits of raised beds and which plants to grow from seed and which to buy plants for.  One of the best reasons to grow your own vegetables is to ensure you are gett...

Send us Fan Mail Dee and Carol talk about flowers in their lawns, including crocuses, glory of the snow, violets, and more.  Then it is on to root crops and some of their favorites, including radishes, turnips and beets, and whether or not the phase of the moon at the time of planting makes a difference. Dee's husband is channeling Monty Don and Carol's sister wants to grow one of "...

Send us Fan Mail This week on The Gardenangelists, Dee and Carol discuss planting pansies and violas and some of their favorite types of both flowers. In addition, they provide helpful tips for growing peas in the spring garden.  Plus TWO bits of dirt. The first dirt is to join the American Horticultural Society . Membership gives you free access to over 300 gardens in the United States.  The seco...

Send us Fan Mail Terrariums are popular once again! Join Dee and Carol as they talk about terrariums and how to plant in them, plus why you might or might not want a greenhouse. The next thing you know, they are talking about the great conservatories of the world and then wrap up with sowing seeds under terrarium like conditions. More info? Sure! Check out Dee's Pinterest boards on Glass Hous...

Send us Fan Mail It's all about houseplants. Dee got out of the house, finally, and went in search of houseplants.  Carol shares about her Sansevieria collection. Both wax poetic about their love of houseplants.  Dee's new plants include: Neon Pothos (gold leaf) Pearls and Jade Pothos (white and green) Scindapsus pictus 'Argyraeus' which is called Satin pothos, but there seems...