Wednesday, February 3, 2010

Honest Scrap Award

Being somewhat new to the blogging world, it took me a little while to figure out what exactly the Honest Scrap Award was. The wonderful landscape designer, Rebecca Sweet (http://gossipinthegarden.com ), tagged me with this "honor" so I'll describe it in my her own words,

Being somewhat new to the blogging world, it took me a little while to figure out what exactly the Honest Scrap Award was. The wonderful landscape designer, Rebecca Sweet (http://gossipinthegarden.com ), tagged me with this "honor" so I'll describe it in my her own words, What is the Honest Scrap Award? Well it’s not really an award, per se. It’s more like a TAG, you’re it! type of post where I tell anyone who’s interested 10 things about myself that they would never get from my post. I then tag 7 more lucky folk at recipients of Honest Scrap and they get to do the same. So ready or not, here I am:

1. My foray into the horticulture world is the old story of turning a passionate hobby into a profession. Having grown up on a farm in middle Georgia, with my daddy a forester and momma a mainstay in the garden club, a love of plants was inbreed in my soul. While I pursued a post college career of nutritional counseling and then full-time mom, you'd often find me either puttering in the garden putting in a new plant or strumming my guitar writing a new song. You see, gardening was just a part of life, and I thought my future was destined for song writing. After moving to Nashville and experiencing the slightest bit of interest in my songs (I was runner up one month on the VH1 songwriting contest), I realized that people were more interested in me composing gardens and container plantings for them than they were in me composing new songs. So now I orchestrate the harmony of horticultural color, texture, and beauty in Music City.
2. Speaking of Music City, one of my fun clients is a gal named Heidi Newfield who some may know as the lead singer of Trick Pony and now solo artist ("Johnny and June" - CMA award nominee). I got to do a backyard redo for her on the Discovery Home Channel show called "Picture This", which was a whole lot of fun in spite of the temperature being 104 degrees every day.
3. I used to have to milk our cow while in high school. Daddy thought it would build character.

1. My foray into the horticulture world is the old story of turning a passionate hobby into a profession. Having grown up on a farm in middle Georgia, with my daddy a forester and momma a mainstay in the garden club, a love of plants was inbreed in my soul. While I pursued a post college career of nutritional counseling and then full-time mom, you'd often find me either puttering in the garden putting in a new plant or strumming my guitar writing a new song. You see, gardening was just a part of life, and I thought my future was destined for song writing. After moving to Nashville and experiencing the slightest bit of interest in my songs (I was runner up one month on the VH1 songwriting contest), I realized that people were more interested in me composing gardens and container plantings for them than they were in me composing new songs. So now I orchestrate the harmony of horticultural color, texture, and beauty in Music City.
2. Speaking of Music City, one of my fun clients is a gal named Heidi Newfield who some may know as the lead singer of Trick Pony and now solo artist ("Johnny and June" - CMA award nominee). I got to do a backyard redo for her on the Discovery Home Channel show called "Picture This", which was a whole lot of fun in spite of the temperature being 104 degrees every day.
3. I used to have to milk our cow while in high school. Daddy thought it would build character.



4. I love watching football. It helps having four sons to feed that love of football, but I loved it even before they came along. Initially, I think it was because I had a huge crush on the quarterback of our high school football team (did you know that, Wilmer Moore Dickey, III?). I ended up being the football team manager, and when I went to Auburn University, I asked the coach if I could be the first female manager/trainer of his team. He agreed but said I couldn't date any of the players - I declined.

5. I'm terrified of heights, which is a horrible thing for someone who has to climb up ladders to plant windowboxes and column pots.

6. My car broke down on my way back to college on the interstate miles from an exit, and I sat for 8 hours on the side of the road hoping someone would stop and help me. (This was waaaaay before cell phones.) It was below freezing weather and I put on every piece of clothing from my suitcase. Two 18-wheelers finally stopped around 3a.m. and tried to get my car started. They said they always stop in pairs for protection - for each other! One of the guys drove me to an all night dinner and got me some hot chocolate, and I called some friends who lived about 30 miles away to come pick me up. Those truck drivers never gave me their names - I think they are angel truck drivers!

7. I have a brother who is 2 months younger than my oldest son.

8. While I write and sing mostly country or pop music, I LOVE to sing opera! Just ask my kids, they are ones with ear plugs.

9. In college I spent a summer taking out backpacking groups in the Appalachian Mountains, and two summers as the Nature Trail Lady at a summer camp.

10. I hope to write novels that involve a group of eclectic plant nerds who save the world.

So here’s the second part of this post – my pick of 7 super interesting gardeners who I’m hoping will participate and ‘bare it all’….and if you choose to participate, please remember to send your “Chosen 7″ a Tweet/Poke/email/or something to let them know they’ve been nominated!

1. Jan Bills of www.TWOwomenANDaHOE.com

2. Carri Stokes of http://readbetweenthelimes.blogspot.com/

3. Lisa Gustavson of www.getinthegarden.com

4.
Katie Elzer-Peters of http://thegardenofwords.wordpress.com/

5. Billy Goodnick of www.finegardening.com/blog (Billy, let me know if there is a better address!)

6. Fern Richardson of www.lifeonthebalcony.com

7. Susan Young of www.getinfrontcommunications.com

Friday, January 29, 2010







So much fun to see my
Coral Bark maple -Japanese maple 'Sango Kaku', Harry Lauder 's Walking Stick - Corylus avellana 'Contorta', and Witch hazel - Hamamelis Arnold's Promise in the snow. The colors and form are resplendent.

Sunday, January 24, 2010









“I prefer winter and fall, when you feel the bone structure in the landscape— the loneliness of it— the dead feeling of winter. Something waits beneath it— the whole story doesn’t show.”
-- Andrew Wyeth, American painter

Thursday, January 14, 2010

Upcoming Events That You Don't Want to Miss!




THE EXPO
The Seventh Annual Bloom ‘n’ Garden Expo, April 9th, 10th, and 11th, 2010, is Williamson County’s only Lawn and Garden Show. The Expo is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for a variety of plants and gardening products from hundreds of prominent vendors. Speakers and educational workshops are scheduled throughout the three-day event at the Ag Expo Park, in Franklin, TN -- located at 4215 Long Lane, off I-65 at Exit 61-Peytonsville Road.

EXPO HOURS
Friday & Saturday: 9AM - 7PM
Sunday: 11AM - 4PM

PRODUCED BY THE WCMGA
The mission of the Williamson County Master Gardeners Association, Inc is to enhance and improve the quality of life in our community through expanded horticultural educational opportunity and volunteerism. WCMGA, Inc is registered as a 501(c)3 non-profit organization and proceeds from the Bloom ‘n’ Garden Expo are used by WCMGA to fund horticultural projects. Online at WCMGA.net

Upcoming Events That You Don't Want to Miss!

PLANT - Professional Landscape Association of Nashville, Tennessee

WINTER SEMINAR APPLICATION

Thursday, Feb. 18th 2010, Cheekwood Botanical Gardens, Massey Hall

7:30 - 8:00 Vendor Set Up
8:00 - 8:30 Registration & Visit With Vendors
8:30 - 9:30 Landscaping in Drifts of One, Tony Avent, Owner, Plant Delights Nursery

9:30 -9:45 Break & Visit with Vendors

9:45 -10:45 Fantastic Hydrangeas, Old Favorites and Newcomers, Dr. Sandy Reed,
U.S. National Arboretum

10:45 -11:45 Water Wise Container Gardening, Rita Randolph, Owner, Randolph’s
Greenhouses, Jackson, TN
11:45 -12:45 Lunch & Visit with Vendors (Lunch is included as part of the registration fee)
12:45- 1:45 Perennials for Seasonal Interest- Winter, Spring, Summer or Fall, Tony Avent, Owner, Plant Delights Nursery, Juniper Level, NC

1:45- 2:00 Break & Visit with Vendors

2:00 – 3:00 Landscape Design Follies, Gary Menendez, UT Department of Landscape Architecture

3:30 – 4:00 Visit with Vendors, Door prizes and Closing

Winter Seminar 2010
Registration limited to 175 people (Friday Februarys 12th is the final day of pre registration).

Advance Registration Members ______ @ $75 Registration @ Door @ $100
Advance Registration Non-Members ______ @ $100 Registration @ Door @ $125

Name_____________________________Company___________________________________________

Additional Registration Names___________________________________________________________
(Please list all names so badges can be made…use back of sheet for additional name) Please print

Address______________________________________________________________________________

City ______________________________State___________________ Zip ________________________

Return to: PLANT Winter Seminar, P.O. Box 280496, Nashville, TN 37228 or call 615-244-3478 www.landscapenashville.org

Upcoming Events That You Don't Want to Miss!

Celebrating our 20th Year

The Shape of Things to Come

This year we celebrate our 20th year of bringing renowned international and national experts in antiques, gardening, the various fields of design, and art to Nashville, TN. The Show's three days are filled with educational experiences, great ideas, and of course, fabulous shopping opportunities. Since 1989, inspired by the fine design sense of one of the Show's advisers, Albert Hadley, Inc. of New York, the Show has grown in stature to become one of the Southeast's most anticipated yearly events.

The Antiques and Garden Show of Nashville is the largest show in the country that combines gardens and

antiques in one spectacular show. Since its founding, it has served as a prototype for major shows throughout the country. The Show reaches a broad audience from across the country and abroad: ardent antiques collectors, avid gardeners, those who follow the latest trends in interior design, and every

one who enjoys a breath of spring in the middle of winter. Attendees can purchase anything from plant materials to museum quality antiques from over 150 Antiques and Horticulture Dealers and attend lectures from world renowned gardeners and antiques dealers. Our National Advisory Committee Members include: Lisa Newsom, Albert Hadley, Bobby McAlpine and Alexa Hampton.

This year's featured lecturer's are Michael S. Smith, decorator to the White House; Her Grace, The Duchess of Northumberland, Jane Percy, gardener; and Ryan Gainey, our Entry Garden designer. Past lecturers include: HRH Prince Edward, Albert Hadley, HRH Princess Michael, Bunny Williams, Dominique Browning, Colin Cowie, Viscount David Linley, Leticia Baldridge, Stephen Lacey, Frances Mayes and Martha Stewart.


The Show benefits the Exchange Club Charities, Inc. (Child Abuse Prevention Programs) and Cheekwood Botanical Garden & Museum of Art. In the past nineteen years, over $4,500,000.00 has been raised by the Show for these charities.

2010 Antiques and Garden Show of Nashville

February 11 – 13, 2010
CLOSED ON SUNDAY
Nashville Convention Center

Upcoming events that you don't want to miss!







http://www.nashvillelawnandgardenshow.com
Artistic By Nature
The Horticultural Association of Tennessee will present the 21st Annual Nashville Lawn & Garden Show on Thursday, March 4 through Sunday, March 7, 2010 at the Tennessee State Fairgrounds. Tennessee's premier horticultural event, the Nashville Lawn & Garden Show attracts more than 22,000 people annually and is one of the largest gardening shows in the South.

Centerpiece of the Nashville Lawn & Garden Show is a naturalized presentation of more than 20 outstanding live gardens created by professional lanscape designers. Most of the gardens include water features, ranging from small fountains to large waterfalls, and elaborate structures such as rock walls, terraces, pergolas, and gazebos. A series of 20 free lectures is presented throughout the 4 day show by expert horticulturists and garden designers. The show also includes 250 exhibit booths of horticultural products, services, and equipment for show and sale; in 2008, vendors from 12 states participated in the event. The show's spectacular floral design gallery features the work of more than 25 of the best designers in the mid-south region.