Episode 3213

- [Narrator] On this "Volunteer Gardener," we'll tour a delightful home garden that begins at the curb, and continues all the way to the rear property line. Tammy Algood discovers this gardener had a vision 40 years ago, and made the dream a reality. You're going to be inspired. Troy Marden shares a group of magnificent flowering plants he started from seed in November. Gorgeous. And, Jeff Poppen demonstrates how to re-mineralize the soil for good yields. Join us. From these mature trees, to this season's pop of annual color, this gardener has planted it all.

- [Tammy] Don't you wish you lived next door to this garden? And it is a front yard garden here in Nashville at the home of Jeannine Briley. Jeannine, I wanna live next door to you.

- I would love that.

- This is so beautiful. Tell me what you've done here in your front yard.

- Thank you. Years ago, I decided that I could not mow the bank, and so I decided it would be a good place to plant a few flowers. And so, it grew into this over the years, which is, you know, that's a good thing and a bad thing, but it was fun to do this. It's been fun to do.

- It's gorgeous!

- [Jeannine] And my neighbors love it, and they come by, and if I'm working out here, we always have conversations, so I find out what's going on in the neighborhood, which is a good thing too.

- [Tammy] Absolutely.

- [Jeannine] And I've just got a variety of plants here.

- You do, and I think that's why it's so interesting, because it's a nice mixture of things. Let's talk about your yucca.

- [Jeannine] Isn't that gorgeous?

- I think that's the most beautiful thing ever.

- [Jeannine] I just love that. It's probably five or six years old now.

- [Tammy] Wow.

- [Jeannine] And it has bloomed just like that for all these years. I have three plants there, but only one has bloomed this year. I think it's because of the weather, maybe.

- Right.

- That cold spell that we had. But all in all, it's just a variety of things. I have herbs. This baptisia was gorgeous about two or three weeks ago.

- And it's huge.

- It's huge. It is huge. It has reseeded. I planted two plants here, and this is all reseed from the years.

- And you said that the birds have given you plenty of other plants that you did not count on.

- [Jeannine] The arum that's out in the front is very evenly spaced, and the birds planted every one of 'em from that wire up there. It was fun to watch that too, so.

- [Tammy] That's fun. What's your favorite part of this front garden?

- [Jeannine] Oh, I don't have a favorite. I think I just like all of it. And I love the spiraeas, when they start to bloom. And this is a little annual bed in here that I always try to do right in the middle so that it gives a little color. And it's just a fun little spot.

- [Tammy] And you said your granddaughter likes pink, so we've got some pink going on.

- [Jeannine] Yes, we've got pink. I have a seven-year-old granddaughter, and everything is pink and purple.

- Of course.

- Yes.

- Of course.

- Absolutely, absolutely.

- [Tammy] It's beautiful. Jeannine, you said that there were no trees on this property, but now it's covered in trees that you have planted.

- [Jeannine] Exactly. This maple, this Japanese maple, I planted several years ago, and it was maybe three, four feet tall at that time, and it's just grown, and just in the fall, it's absolutely stunning. It's just so beautiful. It's just, it's one of my favorite things, especially, this little garden I like, because I've got so many ferns. And the hellebores was beautiful earlier in the year. And I usually put some annuals in here to give me a little color. You gotta have a little color.

- You do.

- And so, this is one of my favorite places. And my friend from years ago heard that I was gardening. And I worked with him, and he said, would you like some rocks? And I said, well, of course I would like some rocks. So, I came home the next day, and he had all these rocks that are on the pathway lined up over there, very neatly. And then my son, Rob, came and laid them down for me. So, Rob did a good job, and so did the man who gave me the rocks to begin with.

- And it's beautiful!

- It's gorgeous. It's just, it's so natural.

- Yes.

- It's not formal at all. It's very relaxed, and very casual.

- Well, it just fits with everything that you've got going on here. And obviously, I love rocks anyway. I love the sound of water, and you've got bird baths, and you've got a fountain. Tell me about your fountain.

- That fountain was a gift from a friend. I have good friends.

- Yeah!

- [Jeannine] Gardening friends are great, and a few years ago, he had that commissioned by an artist in Clarksville who did that for us, and then he came and installed it for me. The birds absolutely love it. I'll see them perched on top of that little flowing water every once in a while, and they just have a little bath up there, and have a drink, and just fly off, and just come back later.

- [Tammy] They're happy.

- [Jeannine] They're happy birds, happy birds.

- [Tammy] Jeannine, you have so many nooks and crannies in your garden, and I want to transition. The front is not the only gem. You've got a backyard that is stunning.

- Well, I have a backyard that's big, and it seems big. It seems big. It seems the older I get, the bigger it gets.

- [Tammy] I understand. Let's go explore your backyard.

- [Jeannine] Okay, all right. That sounds good.

- Jeannine, you must love to garden with pots.

- I do, and as I have gotten older, it seems like I buy more pots. Everywhere I go, I look for pots.

- They're fun, aren't they?

- Yes they are, and it's estate sales, you can find good pots. I've found several of these at estate sales, and I just enjoy them. It's easier to do than having to bend over, and get down in the dirt.

- [Tammy] Right.

- [Jeannine] It's just so much easier.

- [Tammy] Well, you can move 'em where you need color.

- [Jeannine] Exactly, and I just love 'em, and just all kinds. You can actually put some little evergreens in some of them.

- Like this one?

- Mm-hmm. It's just a fun thing to do.

- I love pathways in a garden, and you've got lots of beautiful pathways.

- I do, I do.

- Because it gives you access to your garden.

- It does, but it also gives you some structure in your garden too.

- Absolutely.

- [Jeannine] And people can walk through, and admire what you have planted on either side of the pathway. It's good, I like them.

- [Tammy] And did you create all of these? I'm assuming this used to be a grassy yard.

- It was, and I did this so I wouldn't have to mow the grass, which was probably, well, obviously was a mistake.

- But that's okay, look at the joy. This is so much more fun than grass.

- Oh, absolutely.

- Isn't it?

- [Jeannine] It is. To me, gardening is very therapeutic. When you come out here, and you work in the dirt, and it just gives you a good sense of life, and what it's all about. It's just so much, it's just fun, too. It's just a great experience for anybody. Even if you don't like to garden, you can come and view somebody who has a good garden.

- [Tammy] Absolutely.

- [Jeannine] I'm thrilled when people do want to come see my garden.

- Well, and it's a good kind of tired at the end of the day.

- Absolutely, absolutely.

- You've bent stuff that you didn't know you could bend.

- Like my back today.

- So Jeannine, do you have a perfect spot back here? 'Cause you've got so many little vignettes. Do you have a spot that has been a challenge for you to garden, back here?

- [Jeannine] Well, actually the whole thing was a challenge, because it was just, I did little gardens. I did this one first, and then I did this garden. Then I put the pond in, and then it just kind of spreads out, you know, once it's, it was all little pieces. I didn't try to come and do it all at once. I did it in pieces.

- Right.

- [Jeannine] And that makes it a little more manageable as you're doing it. But, all of it has been pretty much a challenge.

- So this has been an ongoing, for how many years?

- Absolutely, probably close to 40 years. Yeah, it's about 40 years old, in that neighborhood.

- And when you first started, did you ever dream that it would grow into this? No, no, no. Over the years, it was a good weekend activity. I stayed busy, and at the end of the day, as you said, I'm tired. And it's just relaxing. It's just, it's been my therapy for many, many years.

- And obviously, it's treated you well.

- Well, thank you, thank you.

- [Tammy] And it has responded to your loving kindness, I believe.

- [Jeannine] It's my favorite place. I don't have one place that I like better than another. I can go sit in on that bench, and it looks so pretty from this way, and I can come up here, and it looks pretty from that way. So it's just, I don't have a favorite spot. It's got a lot of light in here. It's not a lot of sunlight, but there's a lot of light in here. So you can grow things that typically grow in a shade garden. And you've got things in spots where you can grow sun things. So, I've been very fortunate that I can do both.

- [Tammy] This is one plant.

- [Jeannine] Absolutely, it is.

- Unbelievable. Did you plant this as well, or was this already here as a gift?

- No, I planted this. This oak leaf hydrangea is probably 25, 30 years old. And I don't do too much to it. It just comes back like this every year. It's just gorgeous. It's one of my favorites out here.

- [Tammy] You know, sometimes when we mess with things, we mess 'em up.

- [Jeannine] We do, we do. I don't do anything to this. Occasionally, I'll take some dead pieces out of it, but other than that, I don't do anything to it. I haven't fed it anything special or anything. It just likes this spot.

- It obviously does.

- It found its home. So, and it's gonna stay here.

- It is quite stunning.

- Well, thank you.

- And it's huge.

- Yes, it is huge, it is huge. And it, you know, it blooms. I found that when the white things bloom out here, there's a lot of white blooming, and then it'll transition to yellow, and then it'll transition to purple, and then it just goes through the seasons. It's just, it's kind of fun to watch that.

- Just the little rainbow happening through your garden.

- Uh-huh, yes. The whites have been blooming lately.

- [Tammy] And you've got, obviously, birds that you love, and a frog that loves you.

- [Jeannine] Yes, I have frogs this year. I think I have two. I've seen two back there this year. They're just, I just love the sound of the frog. It's another one of those therapy things.

- I love it, and this garden is just a favorite of mine. And I know my husband always says, when I do these garden tours, okay, what's this gonna cost me? Because I come home with all of these ideas. But you have so many beautiful ideas, Jeannine, that you have inspired me to go home and do some more planting.

- [Jeannine] Oh, well I'm always inspired when I go to someone else's garden. I'll come home with an idea from someone else's garden, and try to put it into this garden, as well. So, it's a two-way street. You know, you can always find something new you want to do.

- Absolutely, you are a treasure.

- Oh, thank you.

- Thank you so much for letting us come, and explore, and sharing your beautiful garden and home with us, and just your love of nature, and gardening is inspiring.

- Well, thank you. It's been my pleasure to have you here.

- Gloxinias are a plant that are not very widely available anymore, but I remember them from childhood, at a greenhouse where they used to grow them as potted plants, potted flowering plants. And this winter, I was on Facebook one day, and looking in a gardening group, and a lady had offered some seeds for sale. And so I contacted her, and she sent me a couple of little packets in the mail. And what you see are those resulting plants. So, gloxinias are related to African violets. They're in the same plant family as African violets, and they grow very similarly. But you can see some of the differences are that they have much bigger leaves, and they also have much, much bigger flowers than African violets do. So anyway, the seeds arrived in the mail, I sowed them in November, under grow lights, and in a few weeks, they germinated tiny little dust-like seeds, and little bitty seedlings. And so here we are, about 4 1/2 months later at the end of March, roughly 18 weeks, from a dust-like seed to these magnificent flowering plants that you're looking at now. They've just been growing under these grow lights. There are two tubes on here. They're LED grow lights, full range color spectrum, so cool and warm light. And the stand, I actually bought on Amazon pretty inexpensively for the whole setup. So they like it kind of warm and humid, bright but indirect light, or under LED or fluorescent bulbs like this, obviously, they really like. I water them from the bottom. You can see that each plant has its own little saucer underneath it. I water them with warm water, warm to the touch. Not just lukewarm, but actually warm to the touch. I have fertilized them at half strength about every other time I water. And for the first several months of their lives, watering them about once a week was enough. But it's an interesting phenomenon when a plant like this comes into flower, how much more water they use, because the surface area when those flowers open is so much larger than just the green leaves on the plant. So they're using two to three times as much water now. I water two to three times a week rather than just once a week. And anyway, they've, like I said, about 18 weeks old, some of the earliest blooming ones have been in bloom about three or four weeks now, and are just beginning to go over the edge. And I'll deadhead some of those, and they'll send up some more buds. When these are finished flowering, they actually form a tuber underground. They'll go dormant. You leave them dry for about three months, and they'll begin to sprout again. And at that point, you start watering them, they'll come back, and in three to four months, they'll flower for you again. So the seed is not always easy to find, because gloxinias have kind of fallen out of favor, as plants do. They come and go in popularity. But I did look online, and was able to find a couple of sources. So if you do a Google search, you may find some. You can check Etsy, you can check eBay. And then on Facebook or Instagram, look for some of the groups that are dedicated to African violets, and gloxinias, and their relatives. And gardeners are always willing to share, so you may be able to find some sources there, also. The seeds are tiny and dust-like, and the seedlings are very, very small when they first germinate, but they grow quickly, and I transplanted them directly from their seedling tray into these 4 1/2 inch pots, and that's where they're still blooming today. This pot actually is just a pot full of six leftover seedlings. So you can see there's a white one blooming, a red one, and some others getting ready to start here. I didn't have room under the grow lights for all of these, and these were kind of the runts of the litter, so I just put them all in one pot. They're still growing and blooming. And if I find any that I really like, I have several red ones, and several white ones. But if there's another one that blooms in here that's different or unique to what I already have, I will save that little tuber as it matures, and keep it as well. So if you're looking for a fun flowering plant that you can grow in just a few months, maybe during the gray days of winter, why not give gloxinias a try?

- Hope springs eternal in the garden. This garden has just been plowed and composted, not planted yet. Over the winter, we've been adding minerals. If you wanna have really good tasting vegetables, have the best tomatoes on your block, you wanna make sure that your plants have everything in the soil that they need to taste good, to grow good, and to be healthy for themselves, and for you. To ensure that the minerals are present, we have to add them. Oftentimes, soils lack minerals. Lime is the most common rock dust that we use on our farms and gardens. It's ground up limestone is available from lime quarries. Lime supplies calcium, which is a necessary nutrient for plants, but it also raises the pH of the soil. In Tennessee, our soils tend to become acidic from lots of hard rains, washing the lime to lower layers of the soil. Farmers frequently put on 1,000 or 2,000 pounds of lime per acre, every few years, to raise the soil pH. There are two types of lime, dolomitic lime, and high calcium lime. So if your soils are sticky, and you leave footprints after you go outta the garden, you probably have a high magnesium lime. A lot of our soils around here have too much magnesium. In this case, we want to use a high calcium lime. The lime quarries out in Crab Orchard have a high calcium lime. It's marketed as Franklin lime. On the other hand, if you lack magnesium, you oughta use a dolomitic lime. This is lime that has magnesium carbonate, besides the calcium carbonate. Many of the rocks in Tennessee are limestone. Old farmers oftentimes had lime kilns on their farms where they would burn the limestone rocks so that they could crush it up, and spread it on their fields. Lime is that important in agriculture, so don't forget to lime your soils. Calcium is also found in the rock appetite. There's a big quarry of it south of Nashville and Columbia, and this product is mined and marketed as Tennessee Brown Sugar, and it has 35% phosphorus, and a lot of calcium in it too. The commercial fertilizers that they make are made by taking this ground up rock, and adding sulfuric acid, or phosphoric acid to it to make super phosphate, or triple phosphate, which is the phosphate that we find in in 10-10-10, and other commercial fertilizers. The way organic gardeners like to farm, though, is we put on just the ground rock. Now, a lot of the phosphorus in here is unavailable. It's not available to the plants, it's not water soluble. Very little of it is. We count on the soil microbes to make the phosphate available when the plant needs it. When the sun shines on a plant leaf, and the plant wilts, the plant has to suck up water. Organic gardeners want that water to be just pure water. Now, if the soil is flushed full of this water soluble phosphorus, the plant can't help but take it up. Same thing with nitrogen or potassium. Thus, the plant is being fertilized by human intelligence. What happens when we put this on our soils, the soil microbes in an organic garden will then take this in. It'll either poop it out, or it'll be part of their dead bodies. A third type of phosphate is called colloidal clay phosphate. This comes from Florida, and it's left over from the mining operation where some of the clay has a lot of phosphorus in it. It usually has about 18% phosphate, but because of the clay, it seems to be more readily available. It works a little quicker than these other rock phosphates do. As you can see, the clay phosphate is a little finer ground. Potassium is another mineral that we need to make sure is present in the soils. The potassium, again, that I'm gonna want will be from natural rock deposits. This is a nice rock. It's nice, it's granite. This rock has a lot of these sparkly things in it, which are silica. Silica plays a real important part in agriculture. This rock is ground up, and makes what we call granite meal. The granite meal has about 7% potassium trace elements, and is widely available in Georgia, where the parent rock material is granite. Can you see all the shiny, sparkly things in there? That's silica. If we want to put 500 pounds of our rock dust per acre, then we take 25 pounds, and put it on about 2,000 square feet, which is about 20 feet wide by a 100 feet long. I can fling it out about 10 feet on either side of me, as I walk along the garden about 100 feet. I try to fling it fairly evenly. And it's not important to get it real exact. The tillage, and earthworms, and all the other soil life that's moving stuff around will get the granite, or whatever it is we're spreading, and move it around to the rest of the land. Another great source of potassium and trace elements is green sand. It looks just like sand that's green. It comes from a marine deposit up in New Jersey. Another place that we can get potassium is wood ashes. When we burn wood, we have these ashes left over that have a lot of pot ash. That's potassium. There's also all of the elements that the tree roots bring up in the wood ashes. We wanna put it on very lightly, because it's caustic. They make lye out of wood ashes, so we sprinkle it on very thinly. We use a silica product in biodynamics. This is ground up quartz crystals that we bury in a cow horn over the summer months. And then we take a small amount of this and stir it for an hour, and sprinkle it on our fields to help get the silica force active. Silica is very important in farming. Silica is the polar opposite of calcium. Silica is hard and sharp. Calcium is very soft, and it's white. And we don't put these two types of rock dust on at the same time. Maybe we'll put lime on one year, or the rock phosphate, but in another year, we might put the granite, or the green sand. So, we alternate these two things so that we don't sort of short out the system like you would if you put a positive and negative together. Rocks have energy. Ancient cultures have always had rock circles, and rock towers, and many home gardeners have rocks around their ornamental beds. We wanna ensure that the minerals are present, so that the microbes have something to work on to feed our plants, and make our soils and plants happy.

- [Narrator] For inspiring garden tours, growing tips, and garden projects, visit our website at volunteergardener.org, and find us on these platforms.