GardenDC Podcast Episode 281: The Healing Power of The Gardener

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with filmmaker Dabney Day, about her new movie The Gardener. The plant profile is on English Daisies and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on "Playing with Frost" from Christy Page of GreenPrints.

BTW, YOU can become a listener supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! 

See how at: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/subscribe

If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 202: Documenting Gardens

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2024/07/gardendc-podcast-episode-202.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 211: Gardening Meets Hollywood

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2024/09/gardendc-podcast-episode-211-gardening.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 137: Into the Heart of the Garden with Maria Rodale

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2023/02/gardendc-podcast-episode-137-into-heart.html

Show Notes will be posted after 4/21/2026.

This episode is sponsored by the FONA Garden Fair & Plant Sale:

Celebrate spring at the U.S. National Arboretum! Shop from thousands of plants, get expert gardening advice, browse from 25+ local vendors, and enjoy free family activities.

FONA members get early access to the Plant Sale tent from 9 AM to 11 AM. Whether you’re looking for herbs for your apartment balcony or shade-loving perennials for your yard, the Plant Sale tent has great options at great prices. Make a donation of any amount to become a FONA member.

This event is hosted by Friends of the National Arboretum and raises funds to support FONA’s work celebrating the science, beauty, and community impact of the National Arboretum. Register for the Garden Fair & Plant Sale  to let FONA know you’re coming and to receive important event updates.

This episode is archived at: 

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We welcome your questions and comments! You can leave a voice mail message for us at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/message Note that we may use these messages on a future episode.

And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!

Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz

Music: Let the Sunshine by James Mulvany

PIN THIS FOR LATER!

Fenton Friday: Strawberries and Asparagus

This week was another weather rollercoaster with a good, soaking rain on Sunday and then near freezing temps mid-week.

I planted three 'Seascape' Strawberry plants that came from my brother's garden. They are a day-neutral, ever-bearing variety and already have some flowers on them. My old Strawberry patch there had petered out and while planting these three, I found one of my old strawberry rocks buried there. It still looks great!

I dug up a patch of Lesser Celandine. The same cursed patch that keeps creeping back into my plot! I know this came in with a pot of "strawberry plants" from a garden club plant exchange. Be cautious of gifted plants -- especially if you don't know the gardener or the state of their garden!

We had a compost delivery, so I spread a bucketfull around the newly planted Strawberries and another one around the Peas.

The Kale, Peas, Lettuce, and other seedlings are doing fine.

I harvested a few more Aspargus spears (pictured above) and weeded a bit.

I cut out the old Blackberry canes -- leaving just the few that are already leafing out. 

The Garlic is growing fast and the Dahlia bed is starting to show signs of life.

In the pollinator strip, soon we will need to thin the seedlings for both the California Poppies and a Wildflower Mix. I also need to cut back the stems of the perennial plants in there and weed a bit there, too.

Next week, I will see if we are ready to start seeds of some warm-season crops -- depending on what the weather report looks like for mid-April and beyond.

What are you growing and harvesting in your garden this week?

About Fenton Friday: Every Friday during the growing season, I'll be giving you an update on my community garden plot at the Fenton Street Community Garden just across the street from my house in zone 7 Mid-Atlantic MD/DC border. I'm plot #16. It is a 10 ft x 20 ft space and this is our 15th year in the garden. (It opened in May 2011.) See past posts about our edible garden by putting "Fenton"  into the Search box above (at the top, left on this blog).

Barren Strawberry Plant Profile

Barren Strawberry Plant Profile

Barren Strawberry (Waldsteinia fragarioides formerly known as Geum fragarioides and  Dalibarda fragarioides) is a perennial that is native to the Eastern United States. It is also known as the Appalachian barren strawberry. It is a member of the Rose family. It is related to the nonnative Siberian barren strawberry (Waldsteinia ternata).

It has pretty yellow flowers that bloom in spring. The inedible fruits develop shortly afterward – hence its common name of “barren” strawberry.

Barren Strawberry prefers to grow in part- to full-sun. It tolerates a wide range of soil conditions.

Barren Strawberry is hardy to USDA Zones 3 to 7. It is found naturally in forests and along stream banks.

It spreads by underground rhizomes into a dense, low mat and it can be used as a groundcover. Unlike many other natives, it is evergreen. The foliage turns a pretty bronze in winter.

It is pollinated by a variety of small bees and it is deer-resistant.

Barren Strawberry can be grown from seed, but it is much easier to propagate it by division.

Barren Strawberry: You Can Grow That!

 

The video was produced by Washington Gardener Magazine.

Audio, Video, Photos, and Text by Kathy Jentz

Editing by Aicha Bangoura

Additional images from Wikimedia Commons.

 

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If you liked this video, we think you will like these other Plant Profiles:

~ Sundrop Plant Profile

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2026/03/sundrops-plant-profile.html

~ Amur Adonis  Plant Profile

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2024/03/amur-adonis-plant-profile.html

~ Winter Aconite Plant Profile  

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2022/02/winter-aconite-plant-profile.html

 PIN THIS FOR LATER!

Monday Thoughts: "It’s spring again. I can hear the birds sing again. See the flowers start to bud. See young people fall in love. " ~ Lou Rawls

"It’s spring again. I can hear the birds sing again. See the flowers start to bud. See young people fall in love. " ~ Lou Rawls

GardenDC Podcast Episode 280: Design Inspiration from Public Gardens

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with landscape designer Teresa Watkins, about visiting public gardens for design inspiration. The plant profile is on Barren Strawberry and we share what's going on in the garden as well as some upcoming local gardening events in the What's New segment. We close out with the Last Word on "How to Prune Blueberry Bushes" from Christy Page of GreenPrints.

BTW, YOU can become a listener supporter for as little as $0.99 per month! 

See how at: https://creators.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/subscribe

If you liked this episode, you may also enjoy listening to:

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 167: Flinging with the Garden Tourist

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2023/09/gardendc-podcast-episode-167-flinging.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 78: Dumbarton Oaks

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/10/gardendc-podcast-episode-78-dumbarton.html

~ GardenDC Episode 32: Garden Tours

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2020/10/gardendc-podcast-episode-32-garden.html

Show Notes will be posted after 4/15/2026.

This episode is archived at: 

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The GardenDC podcast is also available on -

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We welcome your questions and comments! You can leave a voice mail message for us at: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/gardendc/message Note that we may use these messages on a future episode.

And be sure to leave us a 5-star review on your favorite podcast platform plus share us on social media with #GardenDC, so other gardeners can find us too!

Episode Credits:
Host and Producer: Kathy Jentz

Music: Let the Sunshine by James Mulvany

PIN THIS FOR LATER!

Teresa Watkins at Sudeley Castle, UK

Fenton Friday: Bulletin Board Refresh

Bulletin Board AFTER

Bullletin Board BEFORE

This week was another weather rollercoaster with windy, sunny days and cool, wet days -- and a few more days 80+ degrees!

The interns and I updated the shared Bulletin Board (shown above). It is shocking how fast the colors fade from the sun. We'll see how long this one remains bright and colorful.

We thinned the Kale seedlings. I saw some of the Peas are emerging and the row of Deer Tongue Lettuce seedlings are up. However, the Oakleaf Lettuce and Crisphead Lettuce 'Queen of Crunch' were not germinating, so we replaced them with 'Bloomsdale' Spinach and Arugula seeds today.

I harvested a few Aspargus spears and can see several more are popping up.

The Blackberry canes are leafing out and the Garlic is growing fast.

The Dahlia bed is looking pretty dead -- I'm not sure if the harsh winter actually did kill them all -- but I'll give them until late May to show signs up life before I give up on them. 

In the pollinator strip, seedlings are up for both the California Poppies and a Wildflower Mix continue to grow. The Mountain Mint is filling in there fast. I'm wondering if in a few years it will be ALL Mountain Mint there. That is not a bad thing, but I do like having some annual color and other perennial herbs and flowers there.

Next week, I hope to see the Radish seedlings up and I know the Carrots will take a few more weeks. I think this may be it for the cool-season crops as with the very warm temperatures we are having already, we may switch to warm-seasons sooner than normal.

What are you growing and harvesting in your garden this week?

About Fenton Friday: Every Friday during the growing season, I'll be giving you an update on my community garden plot at the Fenton Street Community Garden just across the street from my house in zone 7 Mid-Atlantic MD/DC border. I'm plot #16. It is a 10 ft x 20 ft space and this is our 15th year in the garden. (It opened in May 2011.) See past posts about our edible garden by putting "Fenton"  into the Search box above (at the top, left on this blog).

April 2026 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine: Foxgloves, Ovenbirds, Orchid Show, and much more…

The April 2026 issue of Washington Gardener Magazine is posted and archived online at:

 https://issuu.com/washingtongardener/docs/washington_gardener_magazine_april_2026

Inside this issue:

·         Fabulous Foxgloves
·         Tips for Garden Furniture Care
·         The Elusive Azalea Sphinx Moth
·         The Connective Power of Orchids
·         Ovenbirds Popping Up in Your Garden
·         What is it like to be a Judge at the Philly Flower Show?
·         Garden Book Reviews
·         Fibermaxxing Starts in the Garden
·         A New Trailing Tomato
·         The Elusive Azalea Sphinx Moth
·         What We Learned at Rooting DC 2026
·         Meet Alex Mudry-Till, Cut-Flower Farmer

·         and much more…

Note that any submissions, event listings, and advertisements for the May 2026 issue are due by April 15.

 >>  Subscribe to Washington Gardener Magazine today to have the monthly publication sent to your inbox as a PDF several days before it is available online. You can use the PayPal (credit card) online order form here: https://www.washingtongardener.com/index_files/subscribe.htm