Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Reflections from the Garden Bloggers Conference in Atlanta

I recently attended the national Garden Bloggers Conference in Atlanta. The conference was held in the beautiful Grand Hyatt Hotel in the Buckhead section of Atlanta. The conference was attended by 125 people from 25 states and Canada. The attendees included landscape designers, master gardeners, botanists, journalists and bloggers. Although I felt a bit out of my league, it was great being in the presence of some of the "stars" of the blogosphere and gardening world. It was interesting to hear their stories and to learn how they have become successful bloggers.

Some of the sessions included: "Blogging with the Stars: Snapshots of Four Successful Blogs"; "The Business of Blogging"; "A Botanist Walks into a Bar: How to Turn any Topic into a Lively (and Sharable) Story"; and "Photography and Online Branding: Accomplish the Seemingly Impossible". The highlight (at least for me) of the conference was the keynote address by Dan Hinkley. Dan is a plantsman, horticulturist and garden writer. He discussed the many fascinating facets of his career which includes collecting rare plants from around the world, creation of  Heronswood Gardens and Nursery, and the ongoing development of Windcliff, his current garden which he and his partner have created on a bluff overlooking the Puget Sound in Washington state.

I returned from the conference with a renewed interest in gardening and in blogging. I hope I can incorporate some of the things I learned from the conference into my little amateur gardening blog.

To learn more about Dan Hinkley's amazing garden:

http://www.danielhinkley.com/

http://www.themarthablog.com/2013/08/more-of-windcliff-dan-hinkleys-amazing-garden-in-indianola-washington.html


Friday, September 20, 2013

A Look Back at the Summer of 2013

The summer gardening seasoning is coming to an end in the Bluegrass. The days are getting shorter and the evenings are getting cooler. The first weeks of summer were very wet here which was good for the hydrangeas and other water loving plants....not so good for the daylilies. The rain also contributed to a bumper crop of weeds. It was a battle to keep the weeds out of the flower beds. Unfortunately, the weeds were victorious!

Here's a review of the 2013 garden:












Sunday, September 15, 2013

Garden Center Celebrates 100 Years

Walnut Ridge Garden Center, located in Jeffersonville, Indiana, celebrated it's 100 year anniversary on September 14th. It has been owned by members of the Julius family since 1913. It is my favorite garden center/nursery in the Louisville area. They have a very knowledgeable staff who are always extremely helpful.

This old Ford was parked in front of the building yesterday during the celebration. The sign reads: "Walnut Ridge's First Customer's Car. Due to circumstances beyond their control, they personally could not be with us today."

Wednesday, August 28, 2013

A Visit to Paradise

I recently visited my hometown in the beautiful Cumberland Mountains of Kentucky to attend a class reunion. I was reminded once again of the magnificent scenery and the friendliness of the people who live in this part of the Bluegrass state. I beheld a glorious morning rainbow at Cumberland Falls. The falls was still somewhat muddy as a result of heavy rainfall this summer, but it was still a stunning sight to behold.

Look closely to see the rainbow

DuPont Lodge at Cumberland Falls State Resort Park
The view of the river below the falls



The river from the terrace at DuPont Lodge
Edward M. Gatliff Memorial Bridge at Cumberland Falls
 If you've never been to Cumberland Falls, I encourage you to visit sometime. You might even be lucky enough to see a moonbow if the moon is full and conditions are right. For more information:
Cumberland Falls State Resort Park


Thursday, August 22, 2013

Life is Good

Living the good life of retirement!
The Weekend Gardener is now a man of leisure. I officially retired  at the end of July. As a retirement gift, my nephew and his wife gave me a tee shirt that says "Life is Good".  I have decided to adopt this philosophy and make it my motto during retirement.

I am truly enjoying the "good life" of retirement. Hopefully, some of the many projects I have planned for retirement will come to fruition, but if not....Hey, life is good!

My colleagues gave me a couple of retirement gifts for the garden. One is a beautiful garden blessing and the other is a cardinal bird  metal sculpture.

Thanks for thinking of me guys!. These pieces will have a special place in the Weekend Gardener's garden, and I will remember you fondly whenever I see them.


A Garden Blessing


My Cardinal Bird

Monday, August 5, 2013

A Visitor to the Garden

There is a cute little "critter" who has been making an appearance in the yard. Last night, this little baby rabbit was hopping around on the patio having a great time. I'm sure there must be more from where he/she came from. I just hope they don't feast too heartily on the hostas and other plants!


Monday, July 22, 2013

A Rainy Summer in the Bluegrass

It has been an extremely wet spring and summer in Kentucky. It has been difficult to keep the yard mowed, the weeds pulled and the flowers deadheaded. The hydrangeas have thrived with all the rain, but some of the other plants, especially the daylilies, haven't done so well. I just hope we don't have a drought in August and September.

 Here are some pictures taken throughout the summer:









Sunday, December 23, 2012

Happy Holidays from the Weekend Gardener

Due to last summer's heat wave and other excuses, I didn't do many postings to my blog in 2012. I will try to do better in 2013. Here's a holiday video I created. Be sure to turn up your sound. Happy Gardening in 2013.



Monday, June 4, 2012

Back for a New Gardening Season

Well, after over a year of not posting to my blog, I decided it was time to update what's going on in the garden. It's been an usually warm spring in Kentucky. We've also had a lot of rain. As a result, flowers in the garden are blooming earlier than usual. And, it seems the weeds are much healthier this year! I'm having difficulty keeping up with all the weeding that needs to be done.

Hydrangeas in bloom
Blooming now in the garden: Asiatic lilies, calla lilies, hydrangeas, daylilies, hostas.
Another view of the hydrangeas
Asiatic lilies

Daylilies and ferns

Wednesday, June 22, 2011

Garden Ablaze with Color

We've had a lot of rain and storms the past few days which has made it difficult to do gardening chores such as weeding and mulching. However, the flowers seem to be loving the rain and hot weather. The daylilies, purple coneflowers and azaleas are pretty much at their peak right now.