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

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

‘Boxwood Basil’ from Burpee,

’Amazel Basil’ from Proven Winners, 

‘Everleaf Emerald Towers’ basil from PanAmerican Seed

'Purple Ruffles' Basil from Burpee

Holy Basil from Burpee

Dee's recipe for Thai Basil Eggplant

Ellen Zachos, the Backyard Forager

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 this episode with a lively discussion about chipmunks and other pesky animals in the garden.

For more information on Japanese maples, we recommend: 
Japanese Maples, the Complete Guide to Selection and Cultivation by Peter Gregory and J.D. Vertrees.  

(Some links may be affiliate links. We earn a tiny commission if you purchase something through those links.)

Email us at [email protected] with any questions or comments!

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 Hall, 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 and a Glass of Wine, by Elizabeth David.

And a favorite quote: “Long experience has taught me that people who do not like geraniums have something morally unsound about them. Sooner or later you will find them out; you will discover that they drink, or steal books, or speak sharply to cats. Never trust a man or a woman who is not passionately devoted to geraniums.” Beverley Nichols, Merry Hall  

(Some links are affiliate links. We may get a small commission if you make a purchase from one of those links.)

Email us at [email protected] if you have any questions or comments. We love to hear from listeners!

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 by Andrea Di Robilant,  Antique Roses of the South  by William C. Welch, and The Sustainable Rose Garden: A Reader in Rose Culture. 

The American Rose Society is a great organization to get involved in if you want to learn more about growing roses and connect with others who grow lots of roses.

To listen to find out about organic vs. non-organic gardening, we recommend an episode of Plantrama  with C.L. Fornari and Ellen Zachos.

For more information about Rose Rosette disease, check out Dee's blog post.
You can also read about David Austin roses on her blog.

If you'd like to reach us, you can email us at [email protected].

(Some links are affiliate links. If you click on them and make a purchase, we may get a tiny commission.)

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 Sparrow Nursery.  And peonies are edible! At least the flower petals are. The petals taste lovely fresh in salads, or lightly cooked and sweetened. Carol learned this when she read Flower Chronicles by Buckner Hollingsworth, published in 1958.  Shout out to our friend, Ellen Zachos, the Backyard Forager.

Vegetable: Tomato  - The Queens of the Garden.  There are whole books written on tomatoes, like Epic Tomatoes by Craig Lehoullier, that will blow your mind with all the varieties. A Proven Winners variety Dee and Carol are both trialing this year is Tempting Tomatoes™ Goodhearted™. Dee wrote in her book,  The 20-30 Something Garden Guide, about how to cage tomatoes and how to grow them. Carol wrote a chapter in her book, Homegrown and Handpicked, about tomato lessons from her dad. For more information on the tomatoes Dee is growing this year, check out her latest blog post, "Tomatoes I'm growing this summer"

Dirt:  The Chelsea Chop. This is the time of year to cut back late blooming perennials like asters, mums, and goldenrod to encourage more blooms and keep the plants somewhat in check. “Chelsea” refers to the big Chelsea Flower Show in London which takes place in late May. Carol calls this cutting back the Indy 500 Chop because it takes place in late May too. This year at the Chelsea Flower Show, they named  Sedum takesimense ‘Atlantis’, the 2019 plant of the year.  

(Some links may be affiliate links. At no additional cost to you, if you purchase anything from any of those links, we may receive a tiny commission.)

Email your questions to us at [email protected]!

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 have a good selection is Brushwood Nursery. Just browse their catalog online and you’ll find lots of clematis you never knew existed. 

Vegetables: Don't panic! Memorial Day but it is still not too late to plant a vegetable garden.  In Oklahoma, you don’t have much time though. Dee tries to have everything planted in her vegetable and ornamental gardens by June 6. However, with squash, and some other vegetables like green beans, you can do multiple plantings so those are ok. Also, pumpkins, you need to wait anyway. And Carol likes to wait until Memorial Day weekend to plant her summer vegetables including tomatoes and peppers. 

Dirt: Garden Thugs, or all the plants we’ve planted so you don’t have to!

Definition of aggressive vs. invasive. Keep in mind though that a plant can be invasive in one region of the country and not in another. Some plants are considered invasive meaning they can readily spread into natural areas and pose a threat to disrupting ecosystems there. ~ Illinois Extension Service. Aggressive plants are those that tend to self-sow all over or have roots, like mint, that run throughout the garden.

Check your states invasive plant list and do not plant those plants listed in your garden

Oklahoma Invasive Plant List

Indiana Invasive Plant List

Email questions to [email protected]

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 Book: Secrets of the Famous Year-Round Mulch Method and How to Have a Green Thumb Without an Aching Back: A New Method of Mulch Gardening.)

Flower: Salvia, both perennial and annul. Commonly called sages. Where to begin?  Dee and Carol grow quite a few between their two gardens including:

S. farinacea, ‘Victoria Blue’ ‘Evolution,’ 

S. nemerosa,’Cardonna,’ ‘Rose Marvel,’ ‘Blue Marvel’ (new for 2019) and ‘Blue Hill,’ 

S. guaranitica 'Black and Blue,’ 

S. viridis, clary sage, 

Salvia officinalis (culinary sage)’ 'Purpurascens' is a purple variety, 'Icterina' is the yellow variegated one, 'Tricolor' is the white variegated one. 

Salvia pratensis ‘Madeline’ - White and Purple blooms

Salvia x sylvestris ‘May Night’ - Dee doesn’t like this one. Carol grows it because it has “May” in it.

Salvia leucantha, Mexican bush sage

Salvia pratensis ‘Sweet Petite’ Fashionista series

Salvia elegans 'Golden Delicious' Really pretty!

Salvia greggii 'Wendy's Wish' - Hard to find!

Sages are in the plant family Lamiaceae, the mint family or dead nettle family

Perennial salvias generally have one big burst of bloom in mid-late spring. Get them to bloom again but cutting them back hard after their first bloom.

Annual salvias should be dead-headed regularly to keep them blooming. Dee cuts ‘Victoria’ salvia way back once it starts to look ratty.  

Veggie: Corn, including Sweet, Popcorn (Glass Gem), Strawberry Popcorn, Field Corn, and Decorative Corn

The story of Glass Gem Corn and its Oklahoma roots!

So many varieties of Sweet Corn to choose from:  All-American Selections would be a good place to start. The varieties listed there have been tested so it is a good source of info and you can avoid the hype of marketing. Carol grew 'Sweet American Dream' sweet corn last year and will be growing it again.

Burpee also has corn for container gardeners called ‘On Deck’. Don’t expect to grow enough corn to freeze it for the winter but it is fun to grow in a container.

Corn is basically a large grass so some gardeners like to grow it for the height and fall decorations. It’s good in the back of a border, for example. There are even varieties with variegated foliage like ‘Field of Dreams’ from Select Seeds. 

Dirt: Who’s the best garden sage from the past? A gardener you can refer back to over and over again when you are seeking good old-fashioned know-how and garden sentiment. 

We can think of several…

Elizabeth Lawrence  

J.I. Rodale (organic gardening)  

Liberty Hyde Bailey

Cassandra Danz, Mrs. Greenthumbs

Thomas Jefferson

Ruth Stout, sister of Rex Stout

Dr. Griffith Buck

“There is a place in every childhood, an enchanted place where colors are brighter, the air softer, and the morning more fragrant than ever again.” ― Elizabeth Lawrence

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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. (Same family, different names.)

We are reminded of this quote:
“Bees do have a smell, you know, and if they don't they should, for their feet are dusted with spices from a million flowers.” Ray Bradbury 

Some of our favorite daisy and daisy-type flowers include:

Leucanthemum × superbum (Shasta Daisies) ‘Banana Cream’ and ‘Becky,’ 

Leucanthemum vulgare (oxeye daisy), 

Erigeron annuus (Eastern daisy fleabane)   

Matricaria recutita (Chamomile)  

This week's vegetable is summer squash, including varieties like Crookneck and Cue Ball. Carol wrote in her second book, Homegrown and Handpicked, about how to get rid of extra summer squash, especially when it grows too big to eat.

Our dirt this week is another great book,  Queen Spotting by Hilary Kearney.    Girl Next Door Honey is Hilary’s Instagram account.

(Some links are affiliate links. If you click on them and make a purchase, we may receive a small compensation.)

Support the show

On Instagram:  Carol: Indygardener, Dee: RedDirtRamblings, Our podcast: TheGardenangelists.
On Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.

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 Facebook: The Gardenangelists' Garden Club.
On YouTube.