Nice haul. jrwbirds.
Wish I had taken pics of my Firebird after Ric and Holly's swamp. Now that was some organization getting all those plants in there.
You know you're a gardener when.........
we don't have organized swaps here, but we do have plant sales....I usually propogate some easy plants and fill in with some great plants that I can get whole sale - makes enough $$ to support my addiction
Picture of my sale area at a sale 2 years ago...have had to cut back due to health issues
Whoa, that's a lot of plants.
Editing for puncuation
This message was edited Nov 1, 2009 11:35 AM
half of the fun is seeing how many plants you can get into the car.....a couple years ago, I was shopping a favorite nursery in TN ....when I loading, a guy said that he'd give me a $20 bill if I got everything loaded.....well, I had an additional $20 to spend !!
pic of my car loaded for a plant sale....often, I put a 3rd layer of really short plants, too
Here's my small (Subaru Outback) all loaded on the way to Holly's Plant Swap in May. I need a bigger car---but I DO love my Subaru!
I did not have too many seedlings to shatre--as I had a horrible problem with ALL my seedlings this Spring. Threw out all my Tomato seedlings and everything else that got planted just never thrived. Weird!
Seems I was not the only one----
Gita
You know you're a gardener when you choose your car by how many plants it can hold and how easy it is to load and unload.
You know you're a gardener when one of your greater joys is "whipping the Latin" on someone when they downplay your knowledge......
When I retired several years ago, I decided I needed to change vehicles - I'd always driven Olds 88's and 98's - they just did not haul mulch, straw, flats and flats of plants....
pic of my raised bed on S side of house.....here's where I test the "hardy tropicals" Those bananas have been growing 7 years.....come back every year...musa basjoo
WOW! jrwbirds, I want to find the nurseries where you shop! Is that a load of Calanthes in the first photo?
You know you're a gardener when you're drooling over someone else's plant purchases :)
You know you're a gardener when your friends have to beg you to join them for a shoe sale, but you're the first one out the door to catch a great plant sale.
Lots of laughs here today, and lots of plants!! Holy cow jrw--that's a plant sale alright. Hmm, I just may have to put my banana in my (small) south bed next year and leave it.
ykyagw...you start contemplating asking hubby to move the whole driveway to the whole other side of the house, because its smack in the way of giving you a huge south facing bed to zone-push in.
But if he did, you'd then fall in love with ferns and moss that need to go on the north side of the house.
I think I'll actually plant the banana in a sunny spot, and mulch deep with leaves next year. Never mind what's for dinner today- I have my garden planned out a year in advance?!?
Now isn't that the truth, Sally!!! My garden obsession has far out paced my kitchen obsession!
rcn48 - no calanthes....you may be seeing the hardy chinese orchid - bletilla...I have the lavender and white ones growing very well. When we travel, I shop nurseries in the area - usually individually owned. We often go to Greenville SC and I have several favorites there.......Martins, Leichtenfelds, Raymonds in nearby Hendersonville, and just found another gem near Raymonds...Mary's. Often, I will ask "locals" where there is a good nursery....I usually look for someone who has short fingernails with dirt under them ...LOL
I have a couple of great ones in TN - Mary's in McMinnville (whsle and retail) and Gardens to go outside Knoxville on I-40.
YKYAGW....your GPS has more than 25 nursery locations stored.
I also give programs at these plant sales
That's a good one jrwbirds!
You know you're a gardener when you have to check your pockets for seeds before putting them in the laundry.
You know you're a gardener when you have a great hauler for a vehicle, but have to figure out how to add shelves to use verticle space, and take more stuff to the roundups.
and when there wasn't room left for luggage, etc....
Or when you have enough lawn furniture for people to gather and sit about every 10 feet (painted nice and maintained), but can't remember the last time you sat on any of it. (and had to search for a picture of some of it without loads of potted plants waiting to be planted!)
I got a zillion of em....
AND when you take pics of something ugly, stinky, and slimy as this to post - find out it is a "Stinkhorn" mushroom, and remember it!
You know you are a gardener when... perfect strangers stop by and ask to walk through your garden.
You know you're a gardener when you read this thread and recognize yourself in every post. :) LOL
Alwaysweeding, Those are great ones. I too had to make shelves in our van for the last swap. Then again, I did bring a 60 gallon fish tank and the wooded cabinet it stands on as well as two hugh wooden plant pedestals!! Suitcases would have had to go on the roof!
Too true about all of the lovely sitting areas we have that never get used for anything but storage. We talk about lots of ours in our "Garden Objects" threads. You might enjoy those.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/989901/
Here's one that never got sat in this year.
So true AlwaysWeeding..." loads of potted plants waiting to be planted!" I have a 2-seater iron bistro set sorta similar to your table and chair (white - still needs painting). It wasn't up for enjoying all summer long due to the high amount of clutter from constantly changing garden projects. I referred to it as my "potting station" where plenty of potting, trimming, dividing and soil mixing took place.
You know you're a gardener when using the leaf blower in the autumn to gather fallen leaves, and you give the trunk and the inside of your car a "once-over" to finally clean all dried plant debris and dirt from transporting home new garden aquisitions all summer long.
Alwaysweeding, we "funghi" gardeners in the MidAtlantic are so fond of our slimy 'shrooms that we even give them their own threads.
http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/861175/
Wandasflowers, Oh, so very very true, and ditto for those of us who knock on the doors of perfect strangers to ask about a plant in their garden. (or worse, to offer some advice)
Ticker, yes I think we should make one of those little picture books from this thread and sell it at gardening events or bookstores to raise $ to buy more seeds, plants and bulbs to beautify the world.
You know you're a gardener when every one of your winter coats and jackets, no matter how dressy, has a pair of Atlas Gloves stuffed in the pockets. I just gave up and ordered some black ones this year!
Cheer, GUILTY Here!! LOL I met a very nice man in my developement that way. We swapped daffs. I also made one of my very best friends when she wandered into my garden one day with a big bowl of cherry tomatoes asking for a piece of one of my Asters.
You know you're a gardener when you'd rather spend time with your fellow gardeners than all of your other friends!
Cheer, Why bother cleaning the trunk? or the back seat? OK, I do sweep the manure out of the back of my pickup!!!
LOL, ROFLMBO
You know you're a gardener when the Starbucks lady give you back your $3 for an iced coffee and says, Oh no, that one's on us. You don't HAVE to buy a coffee everyday, the grinds are supposed to be free!
You know you're a gardener when you stop to chat with anyone you see doing something in their garden.
...when you contemplate midnight raids on the neighbors to correct their gardening errors (my neighbor who piles fresh grass clippings up on his tree trunks. They scream Save me!)
...when the Super Bowl is a 'great chance' to go out and steal bags of leaves. while They are all inside and distracted. (yup, did that)
You know SHE'S a gardener when you ask about the name of a bush, and later find she has given you a bag with the name, and a cutting !!
You know you are a gardener when you------
Start picking off dead leaves while you are looking at plants in a store-----OR!
When you are at a friends house--in their sun room, or whatever--and you are cleaning up their plants and picking off dried foliage while you are chatting away....
I did that today--and it made me think I should post it here today......
She even got up and brought her trash can up to me---and we kept on chatting.....
You know you're a gardener when you see a pile of fresh branch cuttings and bagged leave, etc., waiting at the side of the road for trash pickup, and you try to mentally identify what it was that they cut down and contemplate if the cuttings are fresh enough to root if you jump out of the car and snag them really quick!
Sally, Those are both great opportunities to augment your compost material!
Gita, I've deadheaded many a friends' plant. I've even asked for pruners to do their roses!
Cheer, Now that's one I've never considered doing. Hmmm.
You know you're a gardener when you take your leaf vac/shreader out into the street, while your neighbors are at work, so you can vacumn up their leaf piles before the township comes by to get them.
gosh - these are great .......
YKYAG when you ALWAYS have bypass pruners, gloves, plastic baggies, bigger bags, and old shoes in your vehicle.
part of the back yard....still too much grass
YKYAG when your husband insists that you must keep enough lawn to justify the JD lawn tractor and wagon.
When as many (or more) people know you by your online gardening name or "the plant lady/guy" than know you by name.
when you quit being known as the dog or cat rescue person and are now the plant rescue contact. (Sure, I can take them into work and people will take them...)
What was your real name again? :) LOL Oh plant rescuer!!!