Rhonda Fleming Hayes
@thegardenbuzz
I grow stuff and write about it. GARDEN FOR LIFE: Strategies for Easier, Greener, More Joyful Gardening as We Age, available now
Brag? Maybe. The print copy of the interview I gave to The Telegraph. As the British paper with the strongest gardening coverage I was told that was quite the accolade. And for an American gardener. I’ve read British papers ever since we lived there 30 years ago. So, yes, kind of a thrill for me. 🌱
Phlox ‘Jeana’ is very resistant to powdery mildew compared to other varieties. Butterflies love it. The bloom is more tightly clustered than common variety. I should plant more. 🌱
Delizz strawberries from my Greenstalk Vertical Planter. Smaller berries but tastier than the other everbearing variety I’m growing. 🌱🍓
This looks AI but I promise it’s not! I had some holes in the garden after harvesting cabbage (mixed emotions cuz it’s so beautiful but I also want to eat it) that needed filling. I usually grow my annuals from seed but these caught my eye and couldn’t resist. Rudbeckia ‘Sarah’ 🌱
Sweet Joe Pye Weed (Eutrochium purpureum) is the guy you want if your spot is too shady for regular Joe. The palest of pink to purple flowers attract bees and butterflies. And it’s tall! 🌱 This one of mine is over 6 ft. #nativeplants
Don’t forget to pit! I’ll never live down that one pie. Who else is picking sour cherries? 🌱🍒
Isn’t this coleus and lily bouquet beautiful? A birthday gift from a gardening friend. 🌱
Joni dog watching over the summer squash cathedral from her window seat. This is planted with a yellow variety called ‘Rise and Shine’. 🌱
The photo doesn’t capture just how nice this succulent combo glows with color. 🌱 Sedum, Lemon something? And Flapjacks kalanchoe.
My goal is to cover the bed surrounding my big glazed pot (full of Thumbelina zinnias) with this Creeping Thyme, ‘Caborn Wine and Roses. 🌱 grows in zones 4-10, blooms two-tone pink and wine. #livingmulch
The linden trees are blooming on our eponymous street. The scent was quite heavy yesterday but now the wind carries it further. 🌱
The variations of color that occur in the butterfly weed, Asclepias tuberosa, that self-seeds in my garden. 🌱 It’s not a color change as the flower matures, it’s evident from start to finish.
Lettuce and tomato! I have two pots at the front steps, ‘Akoya’ tomato and ‘Ruby Gem’ lettuce. Both are perfect for containers and small spaces. Akoya has small fruits that turn dark in color, with a high Brix content. Ruby Gem is a petite romaine with beautiful coloring in salads. 🌱
Butterfly weed and yarrow. I love hot pink and orange together. These are growing in a dry location along driveway where sprinklers don’t reach. But we have had regular rain. They also survive snow removal issues in that spot. Tough plants for tough times. 🌱
A great Father’s Day gift. Just saying. 🌱 Look for the link in my bio! Or at your local bookstore.
In my book, Garden for Life: Strategies for Easier, Greener, More Joyful Gardening as We Age, I talk about passing down your passion for plants to the next generation. My daughter in New Orleans is so proud of her brugmansia, and my son grows basil in the sunny windows of his Cleveland condo. 🌱
One of the raised beds in my kitchen garden. Three kinds of cabbage: Savoy, Red Express, and Conehead. Jalapeño, red bells, Poblano and Sweet Orange peppers. Scallions. Kentucky blue pole beans. Marigolds. Volunteer dill. The garden is a little late this year. All freshly weeded. 🌱
Water lily, ‘Colorado’ in my backyard pond. Beautiful foliage, vigorous growth along with gorgeous bloom. 🌱
Baby satsumas. Citrus took a beating in New Orleans with the freak snowstorm the year before. One year with little to no fruit. But we’re back! They’ll be ready to pick when we return in late fall. 🌱
Chaste tree blooming in New Orleans. So many bees and butterflies visiting it. 🌱
Poolside pots for absentee gardening. Nandina ‘Obsession’, portulaca ‘Mega pazazz’, and sweet potato vine, ‘Margarita’ are left for the New Orleans zone 9 summer with only drip watering while I’m gone. Relying on resilient plants vs fussy flowers, one strategy in my new book, Garden for Life. 🌱
Take a listen. I had the pleasure of talking with Maria Failla from Growing with Joy. 🌱https://growingjoywithmaria.com
Look what’s here! My book, Garden for Life: Strategies for Easier, Greener, More Joyful Gardening as We Age (Chelsea Green Publishing) is out next Tuesday, April 21. It’s mandatory to do this pic when you publish, lol. Never gets old. 🌱