This week on We Dig Plants, Carmen Devito and Alice Marcus Krieg are getting into the spirit of Halloween with Sheryl Humphrey, author of The Haunted Garden: Death and Transfiguration in the Folklore of Plants. Hear how Sheryls home herb garden sparked her interest in the legends surrounding plants. Hear about the many mythologies that involve mortals and deities turning into plants or trees. How do stories regarding plants and death differ in Eastern and Western traditions? Hear how certain legends attribute the growth of staple foods to human sacrifice! How do genetically modified foods tie in with these plant transformation myths? Find out all of this and more on this weeks edition of We Dig Plants! This program has been sponsored by Regional Access. Music has been provided by Jack Inslee. The mythologies of plant transformations- theyre so pervasive in all cultures and times- up until contemporary times. This is just a sampling of some of the more notable ones. [8:40] -- Sheryl Humphrey on We Dig Plants

Episode 116: The Haunted Garden

We Dig Plants® brings the Culture to Horticulture. Examining our human interaction with plants via authors, industry professionals, historians, plants people, cooks, gardeners & artists and combining our 20 plus years of designing gardens, we delve into the magic, power and influence of plants within a global context and share that charm with international listeners.

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On our season finale, host Carmen Devito visits Zone 1 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes Alaska, and also revisits Zone 13, which includes Puerto Rico.

First, we hear from Peter Johnson and Rusty Foreaker, agronomists with Alaska's Department of Natural Resources Division of Agriculture. After the break, we're joined by Dr. Grizelle González, Project Leader of the Research and Development Unit at the International Institute of Tropical Forestry in Puerto Rico.

Episode 212: Zone Envy – Zone 1

This month on We Dig Plants, hosts Alice Marcus Krieg and Carmen Devito visit Zone 2 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes Fairbanks, Alaska, where our first guest Cyndie Warbelow is a gardener.

After the break, we're joined by Marta McDowell, author of The World of Laura Ingalls Wilder: The Frontier Landscapes That Inspired the Little House Books.

Episode 211: Zone Envy – Zone 2

This month on We Dig Plants, hosts Alice Marcus Krieg and Carmen Devito visit Zone 3 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes parts of Alaska.

Joining them on the line is Jeff Lowenfels, the author of a trilogy of award winning books on plants and soil, and the longest running garden columnist in North America.

Episode 210: Zone Envy – Zone 3

This month on We Dig Plants, hosts Alice Marcus Krieg and Carmen Devito visit Zone 4 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes the Wisconsin prairie.

A pioneer in the native plant industry and recognized internationally as an expert in native plant community ecology, Neil Diboll has guided the growth of Prairie Nursery for 30 years. He has dedicated his life to the propagation of native plants and their promotion as uniquely beautiful, ecologically beneficial and sustainable solutions for landscapes and gardens. In 2013 Neil was the recipient of the Great American Gardeners Award from the American Horticultural Society.

Episode 209: Zone Envy – Zone 4

This month on We Dig Plants, hosts Alice Marcus Krieg and Carmen Devito visit Zone 5 of the USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map, which includes parts of both Nebraska and Iowa.

Del and Alice Hemsath are members of Nebraska's Soil Sisters and Misters Garden Club, which promotes education of the general public about the importance of outside activities for health, supports community projects, and provides education for youth and adults.

Kelly Norris is an award-winning author and plantsman from Iowa and the first director of horticulture at the Greater Des Moines Botanical Garden, a newly revitalized public garden in Des Moines, Iowa.

Episode 116: The Haunted Garden

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