I love the title of this book. It lends itself to all sorts of vocal inflections, from “arch” to “zoned out”. And it’s tough to abbreviate, meaning that when it is spoken of around the office it often comes out really fast, as in: “SoYouWannaBeAGardenDesigner.” That, or every word is pronounced carefully, distinctly, with perfect enunciation.

But the title is purely a bonus. I’ve never personally felt the urge to be a garden designer, but I was thoroughly impressed by this book. Love Albrecht Howard’s writing is so clear, friendly, and informative — I felt that I could apply her excellent advice to any creative or business venture and  have a better chance of success. Ms. Howard manages that difficult combination of being encouraging, tactful, and practical. She does not pretend that it will be easy, but she makes you believe that even the hard stuff is important, and that you can make it through the hard stuff, and do it well.

Here’s the table of contents. She even has chapters on leaving the business, and how to deal with self-doubt. I don’t think I have any friends who aspire to be garden designers, but the minute I discover that ambition, I already know exactly what to get them.

1. The Journey from Gardener to Designer

2. Turning Your Passion into Your Profession

3. Beyond Horticulture 101

4. The Green Industry: A Greener Shade of Green

5. Pathways, Walls, and Fences

6. Patios, Decks, and Other Living Spaces

7. Water Features

8. Spas, Pools, and Poolscaping

9. Irrigation, Drainage, and Lighting

10. Occupational Hazards: Lions and Tigers and Bears, Oh My!

11. Defining Your Business and Getting Your Name Out There

12. Basics of Running a Small Business

13. Working with Nurseries and Other Suppliers

14. Working with Subcontractors

15. Now You Have a Client! The Design Process

16. Construction: Where the Shovel Meets the Load

17. When Things Go Wrong

18. The Business Grows

19. But Am I Any Good?

20. Exiting Gracefully

A Final Word of Encouragement

Thanks to all who participated in our macro photography contest. It was such a pleasure looking through all the wonderful pictures that were submitted, and while many of you commented that you “really needed some help”, I think you’re selling yourselves short.

Here are the photos taken by our three finalists:

Elephant Ear by Ron Perry

Anemone by Shannon Currey

Hellebores by Margit Kristiansen

Congratulations to all!

For those of you who want another chance, our first giveaway was so successful that we’ve decided to do another one. Stay tuned for the announcement on this blog in the next day or two.

Spring is a lovely season, full of flowers and briskness and things growing. My only beef with spring is that it goes by way too fast. Nascar has nothing on spring. I’ve scarcely had a chance to see that the plum tree in my backyard is budding:

When WHAM!! It is in full flower and starting to drop petals like faux snow.

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I was whiling away some time on our Twitter feed a few days ago when I came across a conversation between Annie’s Annuals and Fern from Life on the Balcony. Fern had written a “tulips vs poppies” post (referred to by Annie’s Annuals as a “smackdown”), and was wondering what other plants could square off with each other. One thing let to another, and then Gardenfix mentioned that it could be an Olympic event, and then… Well.

The Plantolympics, of course.

Commentator 1: “Welcome to the Plantolympics, folks, we’re in for a spectacular display of skill and foliage here.”

Commentator 2: “That’s right! Top plant athletes from all over the world have converged on this field to compete for a medal in sports like Curling for Vines, Best Display of Shade Foliage, and Leaf Dancing.”

C1: “Not to mention the Quadrathlon. This is a really tough event undertaken only by the sturdiest plants — in order to qualify they have to look good through all four seasons of the year!

C2: “Let’s go right to the Shade event now, where Hosta and Heuchera are neck and neck! Hosta was thought to have an advantage due to its ability to brighten dark spots with neon green foliage, but Heuchera have put on a tough fight with bright new cultivars, and Hosta still has to get through the Slug Resistance event. Hosta’s trainer has talked about Hosta’s struggles with slugs before — it’s still recovering from an injury at the last Plantolympics.”

C1: “Yes, slugs are bad news, and Heuchera might have an advantage there. But let’s move on to the Leaf Dancing event. Now, Quaking Aspen has won this event for the past 600,000 years, but this year there are some gorgeous Silver-Leaf Linden that are really pushing the boundaries of the sport of Leaf Dancing! It remains to be seen if Quaking Aspen will rise to the challenge and make this year its 600,001st win.”

C2: “Breaking news, folks!  Poppies have won the Flower Quadrathlon! The crowd is going wild!”

C1: “Very exciting news for Poppies!  Love-in-a-Mist gets the silver medal! They make a handsome pair standing there on the podium. An excellent combination!”

C2: “Well, that’s it for today’s events. Tune in tomorrow for the Most Pernicious Weed event! Kudzu and Garlic Mustard will go head-to-head!”

C1: “Mmmm, garlic mustard.”

C2: “Shhh! We’re still on the air!”

I love houseplants. Particularly the long draping ones that hang over bookshelves. I love the way houseplants can make a room feel more fresh and interesting, and add a nice touch of green.

Recently, I’ve been struggling to keep my plants alive and happy. My problems are threefold — here they come!

Rubber monsters add a touch of the wild to your domestic plant.

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February in Portland. Often really rainy, though dryer than January. Everything is on the edge of exploding in March.

A few bulbs are starting to come up. (I think these are my fritillaries! But maybe I’m delusional! My veins are all crossed in excitement!)

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People everywhere are starting seeds these days, and over the course of the next few weeks, I’m going to be starting some seeds too. Hooray for seed starting season! Over the weekend I sorted through my seed collection to asses what I need to buy, what I should toss, and what I can keep.

You know how you’re supposed to throw away your spices every once in a while, because they don’t last forever? (Yeah, I don’t know anybody who does that either.) Seeds are the same way — they don’t last forever, and it’s really, really hard for me to accept that and move on.

Here are my seeds (do not be distracted by the butter dish, pineapple, and cake in the background.)

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Last year at this time, I had fond dreams of growing sweet peas that would climb up the railings of my front porch and fill the air with sweet scents. I would have a chair on the porch, of course, and sit there with a cup of hot lemon tea on warm spring mornings. Everything would be perfect.*

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Last year’s CENTS show was pretty slow due to a giant snow storm that prevented a lot of people from attending. This year there were only a few flurries, and much more traffic at the show!

Willoway Nurseries had a neat booth that included a lookout platform, where you could see out over the top of the whole show. (The picture only shows about a quarter of the show.)

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This year I’ll be helping to staff the booth at the Columbus CENTS show. CENTS, as you can see from the logo, is the “Central Environmental Nursery Trade Show”, but it’s better to say “CENTS” because a) it’s shorter, and b) people who aren’t in the know do a double take. “The what show?”

Of course, my favorite show name, hands down, is the PANTS show. The Penn Atlantic Nursery Trade Show. How can you not get a kick out of saying “I’ll be attending the PANTS show?” The only way it could be better is if it offered short courses, like CENTS does. Then you could attend a short course at the PANTS show, and all would be bliss.

Juvenile musings aside, I’ve never worked this show before, and am excited to find out if West coast shows differ from East coast shows. Plus, I’ve been informed that Jenni’s Ice Cream is not to be missed, and it’s right near by. There is nothing like ice cream in January.

Come visit us, January 25-27, in booth 2004-2006. See you there!