Plantrama - plants, landscapes, & bringing nature indoors

Hear Ellen and C.L. discuss fertilizers for houseplants, the amazing avocado, and cranberries, wild and cultivated.

:30 True or False: You have to use special fertilizer for each type of indoor plant.

5:23 Eat/Drink/Grow: Avocados are AMAZING!

14:40 Love Letters and Questions: Do cranberries grow under water?

Learn about eating juniper berries, bodacious begonias, pots for orchids and keeping cats away from plants.

:30 What's For Dinner: Juniper berries

6:49 Eat/Drink/Grow: Growing Begonias

17:50 Insider Information: Do you need special orchid pots for your orchids?

20:40 Love Letters and Questions: Mark: My cat continues to want to climb my large monstera and dracanea plants!

Link to American Begonia Society: https://www.begonias.org/

In this episode Ellen and C.L. discuss the herb that gets no respect, parsley. We also talk about planning garden trips for the spring, what evergreens will grow in containers on a balcony, and providing supports for indoor plants.

:28 What's For Dinner: Parsley.

6:42 Eat/Drink/Grow: Plan a garden trip for next spring or summer.

13:55 Insider Information: Plant supports for indoor plants

22:36 Love Letters and Questions: Yolanda wrote to ask what evergreen she might plant in a large pot on an apartment balcony.

C.L. and Ellen explain that succulents are easy to propagate, and talk about why we should care about the life cycle of insects. The episode ends with a discussion about collecting rainwater for houseplants.

:30 Plant Noob: How to propagate succulents 9:41 Eat/Drink/Grow: Life cycle of most insects… 18:42 Love Letters and Questions: Paul writes: "A friend told me that I should be collecting rainwater for my houseplants. True?"

For better or worse, in this episode Ellen and C.L. are delving into Pumpkin Spice. We start talking about allspice, and then do a deep dive into the plants that produce the flavors in the most popular seasonal latte offered at local coffee shops.

:30 True or False: Allspice is a mix of several spices. 3:44 Eat/Drink/Grow: Where do real pumpkin spices come from? 22:32 Love Letters and Questions Megan writes to ask if dried herbs and spices can go bad.

Painted pumpkin faces in our illustration were done by our friend, artist and illustrator John Sullivan.

We're celebrating fall with autumnal beverages, talking about applying fertilizer in the fall, and discussing cleaning up houseplants when you bring them back indoors.

:31 True or False: Winter is a good time to fertilize gardens.

4:38 Eat/Drink/Grow: Fall Cocktails and other garden or plant-based beverages.

17:58 The Plant Noob: Cleaning up houseplants when you bring them back inside. Repotting now? Cut back? Fertilize? Insects?

26:24 Love Letters and Questions: Liz asks about the shownotes.

Kale-tini

For Two Cocktails

2 cups tightly packed kale

1 cup water

juice two limes

4 oz vodka or gin

1 Tbls agave syrup

The Process: Cut enough kale into pieces to fill a 2-cup measure. Cover these pieces with water and place in a food processor or blender. Puree for a minute.

Strain the solids out of the pureed kale with a fine sieve, pressing with a spatula to get as much juice from the leaves as possible.

Squeeze the limes and add the lime juice, vodka, and agave syrup. Mix well or shake in a mason jar to combine. Pour into glasses over ice. Garnish with a small kale leaf.

It's time to take stock of the vegetable garden and consider what thrived and which crops were a bust. Ellen and C.L. discuss why Ellen loves to forage for chestnuts, and how she cooks them, plus we answer a question about dandelion foliage in the lawn.

:35 What's For Dinner: Chestnuts!

8:02 Eat/Drink/Grow: Veggie Garden Wrap Up

22:35 Love Letters and Questions: Neil emails about the dandelions in his lawn.

Link to Ellen's recipe for chestnut soup.

Link to Ellen's recipe for chestnut mousse.

Hear what plant people mean when they talk about "the canopy," learn about a must-have book if you grow perennials, and find out what you can do in perennial gardens in the fall. Plus a look at what's growing in C.L.'s "bunny bin."

:40 Plant Noob: What is "the canopy?" 2:26 Insider Information: the "bunny bin" 5:54 Book Review: Herbaceous Perennial Plants – Fourth Edition by Allan Armitage 10:19 Eat/Drink/Grow: The perennial garden in autumn. 22:13 Love Letters and Questions: A shout out to Andree.

In this episode we talk about foraged silverberries, cherry tomatoes, saving seeds, and whether fall is the best time for planting. Ellen and C.L. end with a question from Jenna about possible uses for carrot tops.

:27 What's for dinner: Silverberry and Cherry Tomatoes 7:27 Eat/Drink/Grow: Saving Seeds. When to do so, how to save, pros and cons. 16:32 True or False: Fall is the best time for planting.

22:14 Love Letters and Questions From Jenna: using carrot tops.

Ellen and C.L. give you ideas for using all of that mint that has exploded in your gardens over the summer. We explain how to keep container plants through the winter without pot or plant death, and answer a listener's question about transplanting in the fall.

:42 What's For Dinner: What Can You Do With Mint? 7:43 Eat/Drink/Grow: Keeping Plants in Pots Through the Winter 19:47 Love Letters and Questions: Sandra emailed to ask if September is a good time to move shrubs.