Monday, July 06, 2026

Monday Thoughts: “Sometimes I forget the garden is me — wild, tender, unruly, and always capable of blooming again.” ~ K.L. Ember

“Sometimes I forget the garden is me — wild, tender, unruly, and always capable of blooming again.”

 ~ K.L. Ember

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Saturday, July 04, 2026

GardenDC Podcast Episode 293: In Defense of Okra

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with Chris Smith*, executive director of the Utopian Seed Project, all about Okra. The plant profile is on American Elderberry 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 "Moonlight and Wildflowers" from Christy Page of GreenPrints.

*You can order Chris Smith's book The Whole Okra at https://amzn.to/4wp4sLe
This link is to our Amazon affiliate account and we may earn a few pennies from these sales, 
but it wil not impact your purchase price.

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 88: Seed Swaps and Exchanges with Ira Wallace

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2022/01/gardendc-podcast-episode-88-seed-swaps.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 68: Summer Vegetables

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/07/gardendc-podcast-episode-68-summer.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 277: Revolutionary Tomato Growing

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2026/03/gardendc-podcast-episode-277.html

Show Notes will be posted after 7/15/2026.


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

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*You can order Chris Smith's book The Whole Okra at https://amzn.to/4wp4sLe
This link is to our Amazon affiliate account and we may earn a few pennies from these sales, 
but it wil not impact your purchase price.
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Friday, July 03, 2026

Fenton Friday: Hot Enough for Ya?

Last weekend, we had good soaking rains. Then the week started off hot, but that was nothing compared to the heat wave that has since set. We are experiencing record temps. It is 100 F as I write this.

Before the worst of the heat arrived, we weeded and spread wood chips on the inner and front paths of the plot. Next week, we may get the wood chips along the side and back paths. 

I planted the "seed potatoes" of Potato 'Purple Majesty' in a potato grow bag. They had all already sprouted, but I hope they survive the transfer.

The African Marigold 'Lanna Lace' has one flower, and the 'Citrine' Tomato is surprisingly continuing to produce more fruit -- most tomatoes slow down pt pause in this heat stress.
 
The Okra 'Puerto Rico Everblush' and Squash 'Thriller' seedlings all tripled in size. The Heirloom Pole Beans 'Rich Purple Pod' are up and almost 18 inches tall after just one week.

I harvested three Blackberries, all of which have bird damage. Not really worth eating, but I figured it was best to remove them to direct the plant's energy into ripening the green berries still on the plant.

I cut more Dahlia flowers and was able to snip a few early Lisianthus blooms to put in bud vases.

In the pollinator garden strip, the dwarf Sunflower is blooming along with the Borage (see photo at top). The Marigolds are also flowering well in this heat. 

I'm watering every other day. I may need to increase to daily unless we get a good storm over this holiday weekend.

Next week, I still need to get the Pepper seedlings in and plant the Cosmos seeds. The Nasturtium seeds never came up, so we will look at replacing those.

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).

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Wednesday, July 01, 2026

Love-in-a-Mist Plant Profile

Love-in-a-Mist Plant Profile

Love-in-a-Mist (Nigella spp.) is an annual flower with beautiful blue, pink, or white blooms and fine, fennel-like foliage. The seed pods are quite striking as well.

It is native to southern Europe and northern Africa. It is hardy to USDA Zones 2 to 11. It is surprisingly deer-resistant.

It is a pretty cut-flower specimen in a vase whether in its flower or seed stages. It also dries well for an ever-lasting bouquet.

Love-in-a-Mist grows from 1 to 2 feet tall and it does best in full sun. It prefers well-draining, rich soils. It grows in the cool-seasons of spring and fall and will peter out in the heat of summer. So get the seeds started as soon as the soil can be worked in early spring.

Once established, it will self-sow and pops up in sidewalk cracks and the edges of plantings. You can pull and transplant these seedlings quite easily. You should also thin the self-sown seedlings to prevent over-crowding. Deadhead the seedpods, if you don’t want to let it self-sow.

It is an old-fashioned favorite and does well in mixed borders and cottage gardens as well as in containers.

Love-in-a-Mist: You Can Grow That!

 

The video was produced by Washington Gardener Magazine.

Audio, Video, Photos, and Text by Kathy Jentz

Editing by Koree Perry

 

➤ If you enjoy this video, please give it a thumbs up and subscribe to our Youtube channel (thank you!)

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~ Podcast: GardenDC


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

~ Spider Flowers (Cleome): https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2023/10/spider-flowers-cleome-hassleriana-plant.html

~ Celosia: https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2022/11/celosia-plant-profile.html

~ Brazilian Verbana: https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2022/10/brazilian-verbena-plant-profile.html

~ Blue Mist Shrub: https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2025/09/blue-mist-shrub-caryopteris-plant.html

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Monday, June 29, 2026

Monday Thoughts: “I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars, / And the pismire is equally perfect, and a grain of sand, and the egg of the wren, / And the tree-toad is a chef-d'oeuvre for the highest, / And the running blackberry would adorn the parlors of heaven.” ~ Walt Whitman

“I believe a leaf of grass is no less than the journey-work of the stars, / And the pismire is equally perfect, and a grain of sand, and the egg of the wren, / And the tree-toad is a chef-d'oeuvre for the highest, / And the running blackberry would adorn the parlors of heaven.” ~ Walt Whitman

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Saturday, June 27, 2026

GardenDC Podcast Episode 292: Hydrangea Tips and Tricks

In this episode of GardenDC: The Podcast about Mid-Atlantic Gardening, we talk with garden writer, speaker, and radio host C. L. Fornari* about Hydrangea Tips and Tricks. The plant profile is on Cornflower 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 "Benjy and the Bees" from Christy Page of GreenPrints.

*You can order C. L. Fornari's book Hydrangea Happiness at https://amzn.to/4f9rJKr
This link is to our Amazon affiliate account and we may earn a few pennies from these sales, 
but it wil not impact your purchase price.

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 279: How and When to Prune Hydrangeas

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2026/03/gardendc-podcast-episode-279-how-and.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 142: Hydrangea Care and Pruning

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2023/03/gardendc-podcast-episode-142-hydrangea.html

~ GardenDC Podcast Episode 60: Hydrangea Varieties with Andrew Bunting

https://washingtongardener.blogspot.com/2021/05/gardendc-podcast-episode-60-hydrangeas.html

Show Notes will be posted after 7/5/2026.

This episode is archived at: https://open.spotify.com/episode/41ItA0vT18kl4oQhdIRFuC?si=xjuJc6x5RqmguQQI1wgTLw
 

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!
*You can order C. L. Fornari's book Hydrangea Happiness at https://amzn.to/4f9rJKr
This link is to our Amazon affiliate account and we may earn a few pennies from these sales, 
but it wil not impact your purchase price.
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Friday, June 26, 2026

Fenton Friday: Cilantro = Coriander


I cut the last of the bolted Cilantro to dry and save the seeds (aka Coriander). A few plot gardeners asked about it when they saw me cutting the stalks. They hadn't made the connection that Cilantro seeds are the same herb Coriander that they purchase at the grocery store, so I shared a few stalks with them.

Hidden by the Cilantro were a few stalks of bolted Lettuces and a bolted Radish (pictured above). I'll let these all go to seed and collect them as well for planting this fall and sharing at our Seed Exchanges this winter.

In the place of the Cilantro, I planted two Basil plants -- 'Lemon' and 'Monteverde' (a trial plant from PanAmerican Seed) along with a row of 'Treviso' Basil seeds (an All-America Selections winner). Both the 'Treviso' and 'Monteverde' are new disease-resistant kinds.

Next to the Basil are the Tomatoes. We added 'Fourth of July' Tomato to the two other tomato plants we'd already planted there along with a new African Marigold 'Lanna Lace' that I was sent to try out from PanAmerican Seed. We top-dressed around the Tomatoes with a aged horse manure and coffee compost mix that I was gifted by EarthBrew Compost.

I plucked one ripe tomato off the 'Citrine' Tomato plant. I would have left it on for the interns to taste next week, but thunderstorms are in the forecast tonight and I thought it might get knocked off and then rot on the ground before their next visit. There are more ripening now (see pic above) for them to hopefully sample soon. 
 
We thinned the Okra 'Puerto Rico Everblush' seedlings and 'Thriller' Squash seedlings. They are all growing very quickly!

I harvested the Romaine Lettuce from a container I had it growing in and planted 'Rich Purple Pod' Heirloom Pole Beans and stuck a tomato cage in it for them to climb on. My hopes are that by growing them in the the tall container the ravenous bunnies do not get the bean seedlings before they get a chance to grow up.

In another container, I planted a 'Fairytale' Eggplant seedling and put a cover cloth over it to protect it from the awful flea beetles.

Next to the Blackberries, I put in a new Mouse Melon plant (aka Mexican Sour Gherkin) that I had bought at a local nursery to replace the one I lost to the harsh winter. It can use the berry bushes and a nearby trellis to grow up and clamber over -- especially now that the berries are not very productive right now.

In the pollinator garden strip, a dwarf Sunflower seedling is blooming as is the Mountain Mint and Borage. The Zinnias are really starting to take off. 

I cut more Dahlia flowers, watered, and weeded a bit more today.

Next week, I need to get the Pepper seedlings in and plant the Cosmos seeds.  

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).

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