It's Been a Long Time...

Holy cow, it's been over three months since I last posted - call me the worst blogger ever. Life/work were a bit insane during this time, worthy of at least 10 posts if I wrote about every single plant-related topic. However, I figured I keep things from getting too long-winded and I'd write one instead - consider this the Cliff's Notes edition to my life - and just in time for OFA Short Course starting this upcoming Saturday!

April

Dear Horticulture Consumers - I'd like my month's worth of sales back. Love, Stephanie

Let's not talk about the Month from Hell now and leave that discussion for a time where we can have a drink (or a bottle of wine. Each.)

May

"Yes, I have Non-horticulture friends who grow their own plants."

Wendy LaManque - lawyer. Dani Zylberberg - foodie, wine sommelier. Hanna Block - ex-barista, teacher. Tristan Whitehouse - sailing instructor, teacher (ok, cheap point, he's my brother). I was having a conversation with one of our sales reps from a majore brokerage firm about the Edibles trend and whether it is gaining momentum with consumers. Rich made the comment that has been resounding in the industry for the last three years or so: "Baby Boomers are not getting any younger - how is this industry going to survive? It's not like [Gen X/Yers] are buying plants..." Do any Gen X/Yers beg to differ? My response: "Wendy LaManque, Dani Zylberberg, Hanna Block, Tristan Whitehouse. Give them a call and thank them for buying some plants."

My Future Sister-In-Law's College Graduation - Yay Kalee!

Urban Garden Season 2

We received the "Garden Writers" edition of the Hort Courture Sample Pack of plants at work and Lloyd told me I could use them in my garden as long as I kept record throughtout the season of the varieties' performances. Breeding companies like Hort Courture send out samples of their newest plants to growers and garden writers each spring in hopes of getting feedback and publicity. So far the annuals are doing quite well - more posts to follow!

June

Bucks County Garden Tour

A great girls' day out with Candy and Kristen, we toured the gardens of three houses in Bucks County and Paxton Hill. Beautiful, relaxing, and energizing!

Cornell Reunion - Class of 2006

We broke some reunion records (would you expect anything less from us?), gawked/cried at construction and fences, sang some songs, and drank out of Solo cups on the Arts Quad. It was supurb! Plants WERE involved too, with a visit to the updated Cornell Plantations with its LEED certified headquarters building, and a romantic picnic lunch at the Horticulture Field Trials in hopes of seeing this year's plantings underway.

APGA More! Conference in Philly

The American Public Garden Association (APGA) hosted its annual conference in Philadelphia, a perfect location since the city and its suburbs is home to the greatest number of gardens/arboretums/conservatories per mile than any other city in the country. My company decorated the hotel with mixed planters of some pretty unique and beautiful plants.

July

My Dad, the Next Charlie Hall

While at home this weekend for the Fourth, I was telling my parents all about this upcoming week as I prepare to travel to Columbus for the OFA Short Course and all that is planned for the trade show booth Peace Tree Farm is having for the first time. My dad is a graphics designer whose company does work for P&G and Energizer and so I thoroughly enjoy talking about market trends with him. Dad's market prediction/conclusion: "In the next few years there is going to be a major shipft in the way retail shopping works; it's starting to happen now. With Gen X/Yers becoming more and more prevalent and active in different markets, decisions are going to become more consumer-driven. [Your generation] is so used to customization - you are going to want to make every product and shopping experience your own." There's your homework friends! I'll be looking forward to your thoughts and comments later this week!

Plant on,

Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Lisztomania - The Phoenix

The Gen. X/Y Urban Garden

What is it about growing your own garden that is so enjoyable? Is it being able to see the end result of your hard work? Is it the contrast between a garden's beauty and the harst environment of city life? Is it the genes of my NH farm-raised grandmoster that's showing and making me itchy to get my hands dirty? I think it's a mixture of all the above.

This year marks the first summer I have a space to my own where I can plant a garden. University housing wasn't ever too keen on me installing a window box outside my 4th story apartment in a brand new building. For better or worse, I now live in a city apartment where the only green space to my name is a 3 sq ft patch of compacted dirt below a city-planted maple tree. So I decided with my limited space to try one of the few options city dwellers have - container gardening.

My fiance and I are fortunate enough to have a nicely sized fire escape that has become a "backyard". There were many sources of inspiration: Marty, one of our building mates, who has created his own garden out his bedroom window, the Philadelphians I work with every day who are constatnly looking for new ways to get plants into the hands of their neighbors, and the success of the vegetable garden my parents grew last year. So last week I stopped by a local garden center to pick up some essentials: a sizeable container to get the peppers and tomatoes started, smaller bins for the herbs, seeds, plant tags (I went for the au-naturale look of wooden stakes), organic soil, and an empty tonic bottle I used as a watering can.

I decided to grow green onions, green peppers, non-heirloom tomatoes, radishes (essential for tuna sandwiches!), cilantro, and sweet basil. I also have a Kentucky Wonder bean plant and spearmint (essential for mojitos). I kept away from the heirloom tomato route as the varieties can be finicky to work with, and I didn't want to go overboard in the first year here.
Throughout the planting I had an absolute blast! I felt like a kid again, as if I was working on a Girl Scout merit badge or something for the Skaneateles Junior Garden Club. Wat was even more gratifying was that within three days the radishes started to sprout. Got to love instant gratification!


Here are some helpful tips I've picked up along the way:
1. Make sure you purchase enough soil. I bought one small bag thinking I'd be ste, but there's a good 4" of space between the edge of the pot and the soil line.
2. Purchase containers with holes in the bottom, or drill your own! The tin bins are cute but don't drain well.
3. Read the directions on the seed packets. There is helpful info about how deep to plant the seeds, and the spacing requirements after the plants are established.
4. Over seeding is great. It eliminates any worry you might have about the success of your efforts.
5. Check out your garden daily. Make sure it's got enough water, admire your work, and talk to your plants. Research (and Myth Busters my fiance notes) has suggested that human speech has a positive effect on the health of a plant. Plus you'll get some nice oxygen in return.

I'll keep everyone posted throughout the summer with the progress of the Gen. X/Y Urban Garden.

Plant on and rock on,
Stephanie

Song for the Garden: Miss Broadway - Glass Candy