The Garden Mixer: A Gardening Podcast

The Garden Mixer is a bi-weekly gardening podcast hosted by Marianne Willburn, garden author and columnist…

by Leslie Harris and Marianne Willburn

About The Garden Mixer: A Gardening Podcast

The Garden Mixer is a bi-weekly gardening podcast hosted by Marianne Willburn, garden author and columnist, and Leslie Harris, host of Into the Garden with Leslie. Each episode blends practical gardening advice for beginners, thoughtful insight for experienced gardeners, and plenty of humor, as Marianne and Leslie mix opinions, strategies, listener questions, expert guests, and the occasional cocktail. If you’re looking for a gardening podcast that’s honest, informative, and genuinely fun — not preachy or perfect — this is your place. 🌱 Gardening shouldn’t be boring. 📺 Full video episode

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Episodes

New episodes usually drop on Fridays.Latest 200 episodes in the feed

Nov 13, 2026 · 1 hr 0 min

Monty Don Has Help in the Garden; Shouldn't We All?

Two full-time gardeners. That was the detail that sent Marianne to her laptop for a full-on Rant on GardenRant (and here on her Plants Without Press Substack). Leslie, who spent years running a garden business, has a few thoughts of her own. This week they take on the dirty little secret of garden media: How much help are those who show their gardens off actually getting to make them look that way? Moreover, how…
Nov 6, 2026 · 22 min

Barrel: What Really Scares Experienced Gardeners (Barrel Aged One More Sip)

From landscape fabric and boxwood blight to copperhead snakes, even experienced gardeners have things that make their stomachs drop into their shoes! Marianne Willburn and Leslie Harris are normally brave and stalwart gardeners, but there are moments when they'd rather not look too closely for fear of confirming their worst suspicions. Halloween may be over, but in this Barrel Aged edition of One More Sip from…
Oct 30, 2026 · 59 min

What to Do With Fallen Branches: Dead Hedges & Habitat Nests

Every garden —even the smallest — produces dead things: the limbs that come down in a storm, the invasives you’ve finally pulled, the sticks that land in front of the door and sit there longer than you’d like. Sooner or later you have to decide what to do with them. Today, Leslie and Marianne go through the traditional options, from the bonfire to the chipper to the bags on the curb; but would rather make the case…
Oct 27, 2026 · 0 min

Meet The Garden Mixer: A Garden Podcast

Gardening shouldn't be boring! Join Leslie Harris and Marianne Willburn for lively conversations, strong opinions, cocktails and plenty of laughs. From favorite plants to garden triumphs and disasters, there's always something to stir up. New episodes every other week, with Barrel Aged One More Sip conversations in between. Follow The Garden Mixer and join the fun!
Oct 23, 2026 · 18 min

Barrel: Ugly Fall Clearance Plants (Barrel Aged One More Sip)

Gardeners love a challenge, and they also like a deal. So when those two factors come together on the death racks of your local nursery or big box, it’s really hard to say no. Should you? Today on One More Sip of The Garden Mixer, Leslie and Marianne find themselves at odds about the best way to handle your late-season plant hoarding tendencies. Welcome to a Barrel Aged episode of One More Sip. One More Sip is our…

Earlier episodes (195)

Oct 16, 2026 Parking Lot Plants: Better Than You Think!
Parking lot plants. The ones growing between the cart return and the McDonald’s drive-through. The ones shaved into meatballs and meatloaf and shapes that can’t be easily defined in meat terms. The ones that ask for nothing more than hard pan, cigarette butts & exhaust fumes — and deliver anyway. These plants have a reputation problem. Not because they aren’t good plants, but because they’ve been used badly,…
Oct 9, 2026 Barrel: Our Biggest Gardening Mistakes, So Far (A Barrel Aged One More Sip)
In this latest Barrel-Aged episode of One More Sip of The Garden Mixer, Marianne and Leslie talk about all of their worst gardening boo-boos over the years. The format is interesting-- this is a LIVE Substack video that took place a year ago. They bring up mistakes that range from planting the wrong thing to just plain planting wrong and one story involves the explosion of a rear window. Who knew gardening could…
Oct 2, 2026 How to Build a Deer Fence when One Type Won't Do.
Last December, Leslie and Marianne talked deer fences on the podcast — and Marianne’s imminent enclosure and ironic freedom. Somewhere in the middle of that episode, Founding Mixer and friend Erin Schanen, The Impatient Gardener, decided she’d had enough. Not of the podcast. (uh, obvs!) Of the deer. So she did what any reasonable person does when pushed past the breaking point by a herd of four-legged garden…
Sep 25, 2026 Barrel: Garden Paths (Barrel Aged One More Sip)
What makes a good garden path? Gravel? Grass? Pavers? Wood chips? Flagstone? And why does something that looks gorgeous in one garden become a maintenance nightmare in another?In this Barrel Aged One More Sip, Leslie and Marianne head down the garden path—quite literally—to talk about the materials they’ve used, loved, regretted and sworn never to use again.Marianne is preparing to replace nearly 100 feet of…
Sep 18, 2026 Golden Hour in the Garden: Plants for Fall Color
With some surprise and not a little relief, the garden is hurtling towards late middle age by mid-September. The promise of spring and the relentless drive of summer have departed, and with them the cultural expectation that the garden needs to look good in a crop top and pretend that it’s still May. There are some big bonuses to late middle age. With lowered expectations now the norm for those around you who don’t…
Sep 11, 2026 Barrel: Putting Your Best Friend Plants in Storage (Barrel Aged One More Sip)
Gardeners in cold climates dabbling with tropical and subtropical plants in their summer gardens are about to come to a hard stop: First Frost. If you’re a gardener who loves these plants outside, but doesn’t particularly want them rubbing shoulders with you over the winter, you may be interested in which ones Marianne terms “Best Friends” in her last book, Tropical Plants and How To Love Them — plants that can be…
Sep 4, 2026 Garden Center Secrets: Just in Time for Fall!
It’s planting season once again for many of us in the Northern Hemisphere – which of course means buying season, and splurging season, and did-I-really-need-that-many-clearance-plants season. Need a strategy? Today we welcome Louisa Zimmermann Roberts, co-owner of Thanksgiving Farms in Frederick, Maryland who’s been watching the buying habits of customers for decades, and has more than a little insight on what you…
Aug 28, 2026 Barrel: 10 Things to STOP Doing in Your Garden (Barrel Aged One More Sip)
On this Barrel Aged and decanted episode of One More Sip of The Garden Mixer, Leslie and Marianne go full listicle and shelve the “Do!” for the “Better If You Don’t Do” on a range of issues in the garden — from design considerations, to maintenance considerations, to yes…psychological considerations. While gardening is a creative, subjective exercise, we can definitely make it harder on ourselves than it needs to…
Aug 21, 2026 Garden Travel: How to See a Garden Without Missing It.
Each year, millions of gardeners prowl the globe seeking ‘aha!’ moments that they can bring back to their own gardens at home. Are you one of them? Leslie has been visiting gardens abroad for decades, and over the last two years, Marianne has built a company dedicated to bringing great gardens to great groups of people. Together they’re heading to Normandy next week to see gardens such as Giverny , Jardins…
Aug 14, 2026 Barrel Aged: Should You Keep Bees?
This week, Leslie & Marianne dive into the sticky world of beekeeping as a gardener. Leslie is buzzing with questions (and incredibly bad puns) and mercilessly questions Marianne who kept bees for over 15 years and can’t let go of the possibility to do so again (just as soon as she gets her resident bear problem under control and/or moves out of her valley). Is she delusional or just in love? Whether you’re…
Aug 7, 2026 Drought & Heat Strategies with Carol Reese
In the heat of August, it’s not just gardeners that want to check out — it’s their plants. But there’s a lot plants can tell us about the conditions we’re all navigating, so it’s worth paying attention when the temperatures soar. To channel those thoughts, Leslie and Marianne welcome Carol Reese — horticulturist, writer, humorist, retired University of Tennessee extension specialist, and keeper of approximately…
Jul 31, 2026 Barrel Aged: Botanical Names- Why Do Gardeners Use Them
Botanical Names: Those complicated, two-part, dead language elements of tongue- torture that every gardener looking for a special plant will face at some point in their horticultural journey. Should you embrace the challenge, and feel vulnerable? Or dismiss the challenge and [possibly still] feel vulnerable? This week on One More Sip of The Garden Mixer, Leslie and Marianne discuss the third option — studying with…
Jul 24, 2026 Garden Ornaments: Can We Go Too Far?
Every gardener has a tchotchke threshold — the point at which a garden stops being a garden and starts being a yard sale with better plants. But where exactly is that line, and who gets to draw it? After decades of embracing, avoiding, judging, and occasionally defending their own questionable choices, Leslie and Marianne weigh in on the art of garden ornamentation — how to use it well, when to put the hedgehog…
Jul 17, 2026 Barrel Aged: Staking Floppy Perennials
It’s mid summer and if you haven’t been staking your floppiest floppers, the chance is you haven’t quite gotten away with it. Some plants stand tall on their own. Others need a little help. In this Barrel Aged One More Sip of The Garden MIxer Leslie Harris and Marianne Willburn tackle one of gardening's most practical—and most overlooked—skills: staking. They discuss which plants are worth staking, which ones are…
Jul 10, 2026 Our Biggest Gardening Mistakes, And What We Learned
Every gardener has them. The plant that ate the house, the catalog seduction that ended in tears, the tree you loved that didn’t love you. Regrets are how gardeners learn — or in Marianne’s case, how they beat themselves up while learning. Leslie chose the topic. Marianne suffered through it. Both of them had more material than an hour could possibly cover. Welcome to a guided tour through the taxonomy of gardening…
Jul 3, 2026 Barrel Aged: Deadheading, the Chelsea Chop & Other Garden Surgery
Deadheading, do we or don't we? The answer, as you expected, is complicated. And Leslie and Marianne want to dive into the nuance on this barrel aged edition of One More Sip. In fact they’re going to discuss a lot of heinous herbaceous amputations in the name of beauty, such as Chelsea chopping, tiered pruning, and post-pruning. Why does it work? And when doesn’t it? And do you really have the patience to snip 235…
Jun 26, 2026 Hydrangeas: What Every Gardener Should Know
America has a hydrangea problem. In the best possible way. They’re consistently among the best-selling flowering shrubs in the country, they colonize every garden center and big box supercenter from May to August, and, if you don’t have a deer problem, you’re likely to succumb to the latest plump, end-of-aisle offering every time you go out to buy some milk. Erin Schanen , The Impatient Gardener, and Founding…
Jun 11, 2026 Growing Alliums: What You Need to Know
Alliums are more than just big purple lollipops — though those are magnificent and need no apologies. This episode covers the full arc of the genus: from the early-season small species to the big June globes, through the alien-landed wonders of late spring and early summer, into the summer-blooming perennial types that changed how many gardeners think about late-season color. Whether or not Leslie and Marianne can…
May 29, 2026 Container Gardening Hacks Beyond “Thriller, Spiller, Filler”
HACK YOUR POTS: SMART PLANTS. PERFECT PLACEMENT It’s prime container gardening season, and everywhere gardeners are spending more than they should to achieve the dream of pots that stop people in their tracks and make their neighbors slightly jealous. But as anyone who has watched a lovingly assembled pot turn into a crispy disappointment knows — it’s not quite as simple as thriller, spiller, filler. (Those words.…
May 22, 2026 Hot Flashes in the Garden! (actually, microclimates)
Before “microclimates” became a gardening buzzword, Leslie and Marianne were already having hot flashes in the garden. 🔥🌿 In this vintage One More Sip episode of The Garden Mixer, we talk about: • hot vs cool pockets in the garden • why some plants fry in summer and freeze in spring • raised beds, slopes, walls, and heat traps • tropicals, hostas, wisteria heartbreak, and elephant ears • Thomas Jefferson’s…
May 15, 2026 High Impact, Low Effort Flowers
When the growing season is moving at breakneck speed, an easy win in the form of copious, gorgeous, hey-I-forgot-about-THOSE! flowers is not only cherished, but longed for. Even gardeners who insist on making things more difficult for themselves (ahem…Marianne?) can enjoy the guilty pleasure of high impact, low effort blooms that do a disproportional amount of the work, and make you look like you know what you’re…
May 1, 2026 The Big Fat Peony Episode
Flamboyant, sophisticated, blousy and beautiful - the peony tops the favorites chart of so many gardeners (and non-gardeners), that we had to devote a spring episode to them. They are delicate, but tough, and can live for up to a century -– so it makes sense to figure out what you want and where you want it before you plant one. Leslie & Marianne start that conversation with their favorites today, on The Garden…
Apr 17, 2026 Flowering Ground Covers: Beauty & Protection, or Future Regret?
Leslie and Marianne have ground to cover today. And possibly, so do you. Spring hits, everything wakes up and suddenly your garden looks like it’s got a bad case of bedhead. Bare spots and awkward tendrils abound. What can pull everything together and literally connect the dots? Our suggestion is a strategic toupee in the form of a good ground cover that also protects the soil, cools the roots, & pampers the…
Apr 3, 2026 Spring Garden Panic with Erin The Impatient Gardener
Just when you thought winter would never end, spring comes and clobbers you with seeds, weeds, and a list that just won’t quit. Cue the panic. There is a TON to do — so how do we prioritize what’s important, what’s inconvenient, and what’s seriously not getting touched for a couple months? Leslie and Marianne thought that the best person to tell them was friend and Founding Mixer Erin Schanen, The Impatient…
Mar 20, 2026 Do Gardeners Still Have a Voice? The Native Plant Debate
Absolute certainties make Marianne’s Spidey senses start to tingle; Leslie simply ignores absolutes and does her own thing. Which means Leslie would have been much more fun in high school. But where do they come down on the native/non-native debate? Bouncing off a recent article in GardenRant , where Marianne laid out the development of a powerful movement in US horticulture, the girls dig into the tension -- and…
Mar 6, 2026 Pruning 101: Moving Past the Panic
It’s that time of year when we put blade to wood and help our shrubs and trees to become the best versions of themselves. Pruning is a big job and many gardeners are right in the middle of it by the beginning of March. Some of us are excited by the challenge. Others are dreading the many decisions still in front of them. Leslie and Marianne aim to channel that excitement, alleviate any anxiety, and set you loose on…
Feb 20, 2026 The Dirt on Composting
Compost: it’s so misunderstood. Vilified by HOAs, and loved by gardeners, it’s been ignored, worshiped, blamed, blessed, and then quietly banished to the far corner of the yard. Yet this magical garden process keeps working anyway, taking our scraps, our weeds, our gardening mistakes, and even items that we should have cleaned out of the fridge last month and turning them back into organically rich soil. What are…
Feb 6, 2026 A New Year for American Gardeners with Rochelle Greayer
They’re BAAAAAAAK! Season II kicks off today — WELCOME if you’re new and welcome back if you’re not! Even Leslie and Marianne have been missing the weekly mix of seasonal relevance and irreverence — and a chance to raise a glass in support of our gardening audience all over the world who are dedicated to the proposition that gardening shouldn’t be boring. The Garden Mixer is bringing you one of those gardeners…
Dec 19, 2025 Gardening on Social Media: What's Real and What's Not with Amanda the Everhopeful Gardener
In the beginning, social media and gardening seemed meant for each other. After all, how better to teach than to show? But it does feel like we might have lost our way in the last few years. Now we’re pushed towards viral moments, not moments of true discovery. Now we watch sexy six packs selling six packs; and find ourselves navigating a manufactured reality that makes everyday gardeners feel inferior, not…
Dec 5, 2025 Deer Proof Your Garden: Where Deer Stop and Sanity Begins
Deer Damage. Few things crush a gardener’s spirit faster than to stroll outside and see that Bambi has invited himself for dinner. Coincidentally, few things crush Marianne’s spirit more than referring to these four-legged agents of the Devil in cute terms such as ‘Bambi’. What’s on their perfectly curated menu? Pretty much all of your favorite garden plants. Sprays, granular applications, and motion sensors can…
Nov 21, 2025 Garden Season Wrap Up with The Impatient Gardener #31
Promises, promises. We all make them at the beginning of each year. And — made desperate by the cold claws of winter — gardeners make even bigger ones at the beginning of each growing season. Today on The Garden Mixer, Leslie and Marianne take journalistic integrity to a new level and actually follow up with the promises made, the products they loved, and the season they foretold back in February when they hosted…
Nov 7, 2025 The Late Autumn Garden: Let's Put Some Lipstick on This Pig #30
Let’s be honest and dispense with the illusion of carefree, perfectly decaying, infinitely Instagrammable, late fall gardens. In reality, the leaves have blown off the trees, the decorative pumpkins are getting soft spots, and there’s a whole lot of flattened, crushed, eaten, and dejected going on where you had envisioned majestic seed heads, trusses of berries, and full-on fall splendor to welcome friends and…
Oct 31, 2025 #29 All About Bulbs. Plant Now, Thank Yourself Later
How better to take advantage of the experience, skill, and time of others than to buy and plant a plumped-up, pumped-up, ready-to-bloom-for-you bulb? Or maybe two hundred. When perennials need a couple years, shrubs insist on commitment, and trees require a selfless gift to future generations; bulbs are all about YOU — and it’s time to indulge. Granted, it’s the you of six months from now — but where else in life…
Oct 17, 2025 #28 The Great Transplantation: How to Divide and Transplant the Right Way
Cool air and warm soils mean that it’s a great time to divide and multiply the plants that you love, and Leslie and Marianne want to help you do it easily, efficiently, and with the least amount of plant pain as possible. What are they dividing in their gardens and how are they doing it? And why is it so good for the plants to rip them from happy homes just when they were thinking of taking a well-earned nap? For…
Oct 3, 2025 #27 The Cornwall Chronicles: Gardens in the Gulf Stream
Today, The Garden Mixer is highjacked by two jetlagged women drinking way too much coffee and trying to pull themselves together to adequately describe the many sights, tastes, and eureka moments of nine days visiting gardens in Cornwall and the Southwest of England. From new naturalism and earthworks at Wildside, to the breathtaking views across Tresco Island, to extraordinary fairy tale hotels, the girls discuss…
Sep 19, 2025 #26 The Great Migration: Plants in the House
September has snuck up on most of us and cold weather is right around the corner. Suddenly it’s time to walk through your garden and decide who’s making the travel team and who’s sitting out this season in the great hereafter. Can you set aside sentiment and choose the strongest and healthiest to make winter a joy instead of a chore? Do you know when to bring them in? (And what you can get away with?) From bathing…
Sep 5, 2025 #25 Autumn Blooms for Bees: Must Have Pollinators
Pumpkin spice may have snuck itself onto the shelves (and into Leslie’s cheesy introduction), but that doesn’t mean that the pollinating insects in your garden have stopped searching for pollen to store and nectar to sip. On today’s episode, Leslie and Marianne discuss some late blooming species you can grow to keep those pollinators healthy and gearing up for winter — and which will also make you smile as the…
Aug 22, 2025 #24 The Art of Editing Your Late Summer Garden
As a gardener, you are not just creative, you are a creative. Your job is to go out there and create your tail off. But the other job you must strive to do well is that of an editor, tightening the voice of your garden with strategic cuts that help it shine and become the garden you envisioned (even when those cuts seem counterintuitive). This means that cruel things are going to happen. Cruel, and perhaps unusual.…
Aug 8, 2025 #23 Fabulous Foliage plants for Summer
You’re tired. You’re hot. You’re yearning for autumn to set you free. But how your garden looks right now has everything to do with the choices you made in past planting seasons and a lot to do with foliage. Have you capitalized on the resilient summer foliage options that keep working when the lobelia has melted and the poppies are so over? This week on The Garden Mixer, Leslie and Marianne explore six of their…
Jul 25, 2025 #22 Ten Great Ornamental Grasses Episode
They’re deer resistant, drought resistant, and boredom-resistant — and they’re not without controversy. Ornamental grasses might be the magic texture your garden has been missing all these years. Whether you want to ‘blur and merge’ as per Grasses for Gardens and Landscapes author Neil Lucas, or ‘punch and soften’ as per the more violent of your two co-hosts, Marianne Willburn — using ornamental grasses…
Jul 11, 2025 #21 The Beach or Beans Episode
You’d like to go on vacation. Your family wants you to go on vacation. But you don’t know how to leave your garden. So you don’t go on vacation. Wrong answer. You NEED a vacation. You just need to prep your garden and make it Vacay-Ready. This week Leslie and Marianne dive into what it really takes to leave your garden without the guilt. From prepping your plants to prepping your mindset, they want to help you take…
Jun 27, 2025 #20 The Tools Episode
Welcome back! The girls are rested, refreshed, reenergized, and ready to tackle the overgrown gardens that await them with the tools they love this week. From can't-be-without pruners to surprising new finds, Leslie and Marianne dish the dirt on the implements that help them dig it. Are brand names important? What’s a seckie? How do you pronounce Okasune? And what on earth is Marianne’s problem with the…
Jun 20, 2025 #19 Interview with Marianne and Scott Beuerlein about Garden Rant (from the Archives)
Waaaayy back when this podcast was just Leslie doing Into the Garden with Leslie, Marianne was a frequent flyer even though she was just a guest at that time. In this episode, Marianne and Leslie team up with Scott Beuerlein to talk about their "Dear Gardener" correspondence on Garden Rant. Next week Leslie and Marianne, are back, tanned rested and ready for the summer garden and they will be talking about tools!
Jun 13, 2025 #18 The Garden Mixers' First Mix
This week we reach into the archives to bring you the first ever time Leslie interviewed Marianne on her podcast Into the Garden with Leslie. You can tell by the stilted convo and awkward silences that we didn't really hit it off, and we've been faking it ever since. Actually, we hit it off so well that as an apt preview of what was to come, we go completely off of whatever topic Leslie had planned and…
Jun 6, 2025 #17 The Doug Oster Episode
This week the girls mix dry humor and deep honesty with Doug Oster, Emmy award-winning garden broadcaster & author from Pittsburgh. This, unbeknownst to Marianne, makes him a Yinzer — and that does not mean he enjoys a Yingling from time to time. For years, on television, radio, newspapers and social media, Doug has been an outspoken champion for organic gardening, and for the passion and personality of…
May 23, 2025 #16 The Bikini Ready Episode
So. The garden is chaotic and you’ve either got guests coming, or you’re in danger of having an ever-so-mini breakdown each time you glance outside. How can you make it Bikini-Ready in a fairly short space of time? The answer: you can’t. But you can definitely make it look decent in a one-piece. This week, spurred on by one too many Ad-stagram promises to change your skin, hair, and body just in time for summer;…
May 16, 2025 #15 1/2 One More Sip: Our Listeners Are Smarter Than We Are
This week we decided to come clean and admit that, based on some of the amazingly detailed emails we’ve received since starting The Garden Mixer, our listeners are very much smarter than we are. We’re dipping into a few of these [surprisingly polite] messages to bring their plant picks, techniques, and general wisdom to everyone. Featured: Garden writer Kathy Purdy from Upstate New York, Paul Westervelt, Head…
May 9, 2025 #15 Linda Vater
This week, the girls welcome Linda Vater to the Mix and try to stay focused on important topics like Marianne’s new topiary snail. Linda Vater is a blogger, garden designer, stylist andlifestyle influencer with a penchant for grabbing shears and a gin and tonic and going after defenseless shrubs who don’t know how much they’re going to love their new look. She has gardened for decades in Oklahoma City and is…
May 2, 2025 #14 1/2 One More Sip: House Plant Vacation
This week we're mixing up indoor/outdoor lines with a #houseplantvacation . Do you allow your hard-working houseplants a little time off during the growing season to be the plants they were born to be? Just as we could all use a little time soaking up the sun, getting the drinks in, and feeling fresh air on our faces, our houseplants could too. What a shame that time outside doesn’t make us look years younger like…
Apr 24, 2025 #14 The Spring Hangover Episode
For those who begin to garden in May with the aid of a smoking credit card, an SUV, and a minion or two, very little goes wrong as the spring garden joyfully romps towards summer. But for those who started partying hard as early as February, the super-sized hangover is real. Where did the color go? Where did the time go? Why do I have a headache? The strength of spring is equaled only in its spectacular demise.…
Apr 17, 2025 #13 1/2 One More Sip: Should You Label Your Plants?
In One More Sip of the Garden Mixer, episode 13 1/2, Marianne and Leslie give you the lowdown on this burning garden question.
Apr 10, 2025 #13 The Yellow & Blue Episode
When the spring erupts in tones of yellow, lemon, gold, and that weird orangey-mustard that you’re not sure you love, it’s time to bring on the blue. Leslie Harris and Marianne Willburn have suggestions for how to achieve that in your garden, and dip briefly into the controversy surrounding the [almost] universally loved daffodil. From blue bells in the woods to blue spells when you're pulling out Vinca minor by…
Apr 3, 2025 #12 1/2 One More Sip: Gardening Clickbait
Welcome to One More Sip (of The Garden Mixer) …a short form 15-minute episode for in-between weeks where Leslie & Marianne try — so far, successfully — to discuss one random topic that deserves some attention. But not necessarily agreement. This week we're talking gardening click-bait . The good, the bad, and the what-the-actual-hell? There have always been hucksters, shysters, snake oil salesmen, and…
Mar 27, 2025 #12 The Brie Arthur Episode
It's a wild mix of topics this week on The Garden Mixer. Along with their guest, author and speaker Brie Arthur, Leslie and Marianne talk plant propagation, foodscaping, blooming shrubs, maintenance-hungry perennials, and lifechanging illness. Turns out Brie is not just an expert on making baby plants, but can also share a thing or two about physically & mentally dealing with tick borne disease when your life…
Mar 20, 2025 #11 1/2 One More Sip: Poisonous Plants Freak Out
Much like days when you intend to start tomato seeds and end up digging the outline for the new pond, our bi-weekly conversations mix up topics, plants , and guests, and keep us on our toes. We love that mix, but this week, we're experimenting with One More Sip -- a short form episode for in-between weeks that deals with one topic only. At least that's what Marianne promised. This week we're talking…
Mar 13, 2025 #11 The Dixter Pruning Download Episode
How much can you learn about pruning when your loppers are older than most Influencers? It turns out, quite a lot when you’re taught by the right people. This week, Leslie grills Marianne on her recent trip to the UK and the Great Dixter Symposium where pruning was on the menu (along with some incredible food thanks to Claire Rooney @thelayeredcook Now's the time to get into the garden and prune, and the girls…
Feb 27, 2025 #10 The Impatient Seeds Episode with Erin Schanen
We’re clinking glasses this week with Erin Schanen, YouTube’s Impatient Gardener , and we’re not asking her about her tomatoes. That’s right, who needs to eat when June is a feast for the eyes? We’ll be interrogating Erin on the flower seeds she practically starts in her sleep, the ones that need a little more attention, and the favorites she would never be without. First, there are a couple topics the girls want…
Feb 13, 2025 #9 The Cheeky Seeds Episode
After an ill-advised foray into AI generated humor, the girls toast another conversation with a large glass of Cheeky Red and an expensively-bittered Old Fashioned, and turn their attentions to getting organized in the face of seed starting chaos, adding some healthy crunch to your winter sandwiches, and painlessly and trendily composting when you don’t have chickens, time, or balcony space for a questionable pile…
Jan 30, 2025 #8 The Boxwood and Cigarettes Episode
This week the girls mix inappropriate metaphors with vague certainties, and come up with yet another episode to amuse and inform their eight listeners. Without an ounce of humility, Leslie jumps out of the gate with nonsense about a distillery (possibly illegal) where she condenses her vast garden experience into enviable, crystal-clear drops of purity…and assumes Marianne does likewise. Marianne reminds her that…
Jan 16, 2025 #7 The Chicken Soup Episode
Chickens in broth and chickens in gardens are under the penetrating Garden Mixer gaze this week as Leslie Harris & Marianne Willburn move past their respective Christmas viruses and valiantly into the new year. Suffering her way through a strong cup of homemade broth while Leslie goes back to the red wine, Marianne makes a case for why chickens have made sense for her soil, plants, and kitchen for the last 22…
Jan 2, 2025 #6 The Big [Old] Book Episode
Leslie Harris and Marianne Willburn mix old books, new coats, and the usual laughs in the first episode of 2025. In response to a listener’s request, Leslie is forced to indulge Marianne’s book recommendations for the winter months; and adds a surprising number of titles herself – pondering the secret sauce that makes a book capture her otherwise 8-minute attention span. True to her nerd identity, Marianne delivers…
Dec 19, 2024 #5 The Downsized Episode
In this episode of the newly logo'd and newly music'd The Garden Mixer, Marianne tries her hand at interviewing Leslie -- posing transparently self-serving questions about Leslie's transition to a tiny garden in order to make herself feel better about the future. In her (self-described) "penetrating and 60 Minutes-esque style", Marianne is after information that all gardeners secretly wonder about in…
Nov 28, 2024 #4 The Beuerlein on Bulbs Episode: Part II
This week on The Garden Mixer, Leslie Harris, Marianne Willburn, and their guest, Scott Beuerlein from The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens, continue to wrestle over the big topic of bulbs for the benefit of listeners who still have bags of obligation awaiting them in the garage. Big ones, little ones, early ones and late ones are discussed on their merits and – as Marianne is involved – their possible…
Nov 21, 2024 #3 The Beuerlein on Bulbs Episode: Part I
In this week’s episode of The Garden Mixer, Leslie Harris & Marianne Willburn stir up a spirited two-part discussion about all things bulb with their inaugural guest, Scott Beuerlein of The Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Gardens, Horticulture Magazine, and GardenRant. Whether you’re going for naturalistic layers or the hypnotizing effect of thousands en masse , there’s more than one way to make the most of what…
Nov 7, 2024 #2 The Berries, Bananas and Books Episode
On this episode we talk about the premeditated murder of some large Abyssinian bananas, how Leslie is meh on winter berries, peonies (Leslie protests the look of singles, Marianne protests Leslie's color choices), a good thing to do with excess cherry tomatoes (an alternative from leaving them in unlocked cars). We do several "Book Moments". Who are we kidding... only Marianne has book moments while Leslie…
Oct 24, 2024 #1 The Inarguably Inaugural Episode
Marianne and Leslie are ready to start stirring things up in their inaugural podcast episode of The Garden Mixer. Jumping into the fray of native plant zealotry, they cool down a little with normal topics such as perennials with great fall color, only to argue about botanical name pronunciation while offering botanical Latin sources for those who need to see the words they're attempting to say. It promises to…
Oct 10, 2024 Marianne Willburn Joins the Podcast Formerly Known As...
Topics include: What should we name this new enterprise of doing this podcast together? Don't worry, we quickly get into garden things such as... What's blooming in the fall garden right now? What plants are worthy of our winter indoor space and how do we get them ready to join us? Can we improve the sound on this podcast so it doesn't sound like Leslie's sitting in the bottom of the barrel?…
Sep 25, 2024 Karl Gercens of Longwood and Garden Travel
If you like gardening, you can't not enjoy traveling to see gardens. The inspiration that you can get from any scene, pattern, color scheme or even a simple plant pairing is so great to take home. Karl Gercens of Longwood Gardens has been to see THOUSANDS of gardens over many years and he tells us his secrets of when to go, how to prepare (hint: that may not be a thing) and how to enjoy a good garden trip.
Sep 17, 2024 With Marianne Willburn Mid September 2024
Well, we go over my Instagram saga, but you can FF through that if you want! By the way, I am back on now, @LeslieHarrisLulu and hope you follow me. Marianne and I discuss "de-browning" the garden, plant pronunciation, the chop and drop method of composting, arthritic hands, and other gardening nuggets for you.
Sep 5, 2024 Marianne Willburn on Native Plants
Marianne and I touch on my (too) quick visit to her garden, gardening with spouses, how to make instant and free improvements to the garden, but mostly we go down a bit of a rabbit hole in terms of native plant zealotry. Is there too much judgement on this subject? Will you judge us for even wondering if there is? :) Come enter the fray and see what you think.
Aug 25, 2024 Heather Andrews, Garden Thoughtfully
Heather and I met at a speaking gig in North Carolina last fall. Her mantra is Garden Thoughtfully. What a coincidence because my presentation at that Master Gardeners symposium was called Thoughtful Gardening. We are on the same page in terms of gardening with both beauty and habitat in mind.
Aug 1, 2024 Marianne Willburn on Drought and Heat in the Garden
Did you feel the dog days of summer WAY earlier than you usually do? Marianne Willburn and I talk about climate change in the garden and some good strategies to learn from what your plants are experiencing, without succumbing to the doom and gloom that generally accompanies the topic.
Jul 14, 2024 Scott Beuerlein on Horticulture Magazine Interviews
Podcasters often host interesting experts in the field on which they love to talk. This episode is no different, but because the expert, Scott Beuerlein, Director of Horticultural Outreach at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, does a monthly column interviewing all kinds of interesting people in horticulture, you are going to get a bigger bang for your buck. Scott and I talk about a lot of the different…
Jun 24, 2024 Marianne Willburn, Unpacking the English Garden Tour
Marianne and I are home from our travels and in this episode we talk about the very successful first garden tour put together by Marianne and Andrea Gasper. So many fabulous English Gardens-- Rousham, Kiftsgate, Wisley, Blenheim, Waterperry, and that's just the half of it.
Jun 21, 2024 Back From Travels Quick Episode
After a month away, I would like to re-introduce myself as the not serious and American garden Podcaster, Leslie Harris. I'll catch you up on how my garden fared with not much attention for over 30 days; what worked well in terms of planning for leaving it, and what didn't work as well.
May 17, 2024 Marianne Willburn England Garden Tour Preview
Summer is coming and so are vacations. How do we prepare our gardens to get along without us? Marianne Willburn and I discuss tips and tricks on this topic and we also preview the fabulous garden tour in England that she and Andrea Gaspar have organized and I am attending!
Apr 30, 2024 Madeline Hooper and Garden Fit
What's the most important gardening tool? Your body, silly, which, if you are like me, isn't quite the same as it used to be. Is there a resource where you can learn about how to improve and maintain this tool? Yes, and it's the PBS show called Garden Fit. Can you have sneak peaks at other people's fabulous gardens at the same time? Oh yes, you can. Listen to Madeline Hooper tell us about this fabulous combination…
Apr 24, 2024 The Spring Garden with Marianne Willburn
Hydrangea pruning, bulbs (tulips... are they worth it? of course), transplanting polygonatum, tchotchkes in the garden (MA thinks no, Les likes a bit of whimsy), and quite a long side path of Magnolia discussion. Oh, and the MOST important spring "chore"? Pretty easy: Look. Every. Day.
Apr 5, 2024 Katie Dubow and New Superstar Plants
A DOZEN plants of the week here, as Katie Dubow of the Garden Media Group and I discuss their favorite new plants. And listeners, I DID write a blog post with links, but now my website is down. :( Still a great podcast episode and you can link to the new plants right here!
Mar 23, 2024 Marianne Willburn Garden Tour HERE, 119
Just trying to make it clear that because Marianne toured my garden I didn't take very long. The plant of the week is a weeping Salix and I throw you a few early spring seasonal tips just in case you thought I was totally selfish.
Mar 10, 2024 Erin Schanen and the Philly Trends
Each year, the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society comes out with a list of trends that we should be on the lookout for in the gardening world. Erin the impatient Gardner and I break down this list and go through all 10 points, offering opinions, critiques, and support for some wonderful gardening ideas. You may be interested to know that halfway through our interview, there's a knock at the zoom door, and Marianne…
Feb 24, 2024 Linda Vater, 116
Linda Vater of Potager Blog and I discuss her new Garden Journal, hellebores are the plant of the week, rose pruning tips.
Feb 9, 2024 Susan Harris of Garden Rant, 115
Susan and I talk about GardenRant.com because of course that's a great blog of which she is a founding member, but we also touch on her hometown of Greenbelt, Maryland, her website of Good Garden Videos , and, of course, hula hooping, which is part of every good garden conversation.
Jan 28, 2024 SPECIAL EPISODE How to Run a Gardening Business, 114
Jennifer Rauschmayer of Edible Landscape Design of Plano, Texas and I talk about the ins and outs of running a business doing what you love: gardening. From getting your first paperwork done, finding clients, cultivating client and crew relationships, subcontracting, how and what to bill-- we cover it all in this long conversation. Back to regularly scheduled NOT business for the next episode, but we hope someone…
Jan 18, 2024 Carrie and Dale Spoonmore, 113
The Spoonmores created a gardening app called From Seed to Spoon, but more recently they have married AI and gardening with the latest app, called Grow Bot. Listen to the fascinating story of how they started out gardening for themselves, but have become app creators who are helping all gardeners with their wonderful ideas.
Dec 19, 2023 Marianne Willburn and Winter Gardening, 111
Winter gardening... How could you? Why should you? Because you love it, basically, and there is no reason to not love it in winter if you have the right gear, attitude and projects. Marianne tells us her tips and tricks-- there is no reason not to get into it!
Dec 1, 2023 Marta McDowell, Gardening Can Be Murder, 110
Poisonous plants, sharp tools, noxious chemicals (hopefully not in YOUR shed) and a place to compost the body-- gardens are perfect places for murder. Marta McDowell has compiled the tools, motive, detectives and authors in her latest book Gardening Can Be Murder , and you could be surprised how many laughs we have over this deadly topic.
Nov 18, 2023 Jarema Osofsky and Moon Gardens, 109
What do you think of when you hear the term moon garden? White flowers can set a good scene, and summer nights filled with scents are enticing, but there are so many more good ideas to consider. Listen to my interview with Jarema Osofsky, who wrote a book on the topic!
Nov 4, 2023 Tiffany Garner of Quick and Dirty Gardens 108
What's better than quick and good (and maybe sometimes a bit soil infused) garden tips from someone who just seems like they would be a good garden pal? Nothing, and I found out for sure that she would be. Tiffany of @QuickandDirtyGardens is knowledgeable, fun, and a great teacher about garden basics and foraging for mushrooms. Get in on this fun conversation!
Oct 21, 2023 Kathy Jentz and Groundcovers, 107
Kathy Jentz of Garden DC has written another book: Groundcover Revolution: How to use sustainable, low-maintenance, low-water groundcovers to replace your turf - 40 alternative choices for: - No Mowing. - No fertilizing. - No pesticides. - No problem!
Oct 17, 2023 Jenny Rose Carey, 105
Author of "The Ultimate Flower Gardener's Guide" and "Glorious Shade", Jenny Rose Carey is a fount of information on how to grow. In her 4.5 acre garden north of Philadelphia, called North View, Jenny has shade, sun, dry gardens-- even a stumpery! Come into Jenny's garden and learn some good tips and information.
Oct 17, 2023 Laura Boissonault, 106
Laura Boissonault of How's it Growing and I have a good old garden chat about her New Jersey creation, complete with green house.
Sep 9, 2023 We did it! We moved! 104
So brief because you know how moving is… But I just wanted to say hello and I'll be back in two weeks' time with a more normal episode. Back to unpacking!
Aug 26, 2023 Chris McLaughlin of "The Good Garden" 103
How about a book that gives you a plethora of suggestions on how to garden sustainably or regeneratively? Chris presents a wide range of ideas in her book "The Good Garden" but no mandates and no guilt about the choices you have as you care for your land.
Aug 12, 2023 Page Dickey and Sister Sue Ann
Two interviews about new gardens! Here are edited versions of Episodes 62 and 14, which were very helpful for me to re-visit with my impending move!
Jul 29, 2023 Jennifer McDonald of Garden Girls, and Celebrating 100 Episodes...
...even though it appears that this is the 101st and counting is not my strong suit. Listen to Jen describe her booming business in Houston Texas (but willing to expand!) that sets up clients with ready to go raised beds for veg, herbs and pollinators.
Jul 15, 2023 Garden Ranters Marianne Willburn and Scott Beuerlein, 99
Garden Writers, Ranters, Speakers and friends, Marianne and Scott join me to talk about garden travel (past AND future) and the correspondence that they treat us with on the blog Garden Rant. I named this episode as #99 because somewhere along the line I must have lost count-- seems like it may instead be the big 1-0-0!
Jul 1, 2023 Gardening Gays, 98
I chat with Kevin Graham and Dragan Kurbalija about their farm in King George's County, Virginia. More news on my move-- we have found a place and it is tiny! How do you curate a ton of plants and containers?
Jun 17, 2023 Nick McCullough, 97
I interview Nick McCullough, horticulturist, nurseryman, designer, speaker and author, about his new book, written with his wife Allison and Teresa Woodard. Titled American Roots, the book explores some of the best of our gardens, and gardeners, right here in America. After last week's announcement of us moving away from this garden, I begin to talk about HOW I will choose plants to take or leave and the process of…
Jun 10, 2023 Special Announcement Episode 96
In this very short episode (laryngitis!) I have a special announcement about my garden.
May 27, 2023 On Garden Wedding Planning with Robin Stafford, 95
Binx and Andrew announced their engagement in March of 2022, and the great day is June 10, 2023. If you had over a year to make your garden look amazing for a wedding, how would you do it? Listen to my conversation with Robin Stafford-- tips, tricks and timing!
May 20, 2023 Doug Tallamy on "Nature's Best Hope" for young readers; Zizia aurea, 94
"Nature's Best Hope" was the first Doug Tallamy book I read, and although it points out some dire facts such as mass extinction, it does give hope to the situation of each property owner all over the world being able to help remedy the current insect and bird loss. Now it has been re-written for children, who have more time to truly be nature's best hope --although Dr. Tallamy points out that we can't wait for them…
May 6, 2023 Garden Marcus, the Clover, 93
Marcus Bridgewater, known as Garden Marcus, author of "How to Grow: Nurture Your Garden, Nurture Yourself" talks about his book and how positivity and balance can help us to be better people and gardeners. The Plant of the Week is the common clover, which is colonizing all over my lawn these days. Also included: what is happening in the early May garden.
Apr 22, 2023 Brie the Plant Lady and Her New Native Garden, the Chokeberry, 92
Brie Arthur is a horticulturist, author, speaker and now an Air BNB hostess! She has created the Carolina Garden House in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, outside of Raleigh. I talk to her about her new, almost completely native garden, which is next-door to her longtime personal garden. The Plant of the Week is the Aronia melanocarpa or chokeberry, and I give tips on daffodils.
Apr 8, 2023 Kate Daly of the Monarch Messengers and Forget Me Not, 91
Probably everybody's favorite butterfly is the Monarch, and Kate Daly has formed a group of Instagrammers who are teaching us what we all can do to help this wonder of nature. She and I discuss how to help out and also talk about the flower farm she is starting down in Alabama. The Plant of the Week is the Myosotis sylvestris and you will hear Scott Beuelein and Marianne Willburn talk about their writing…
Mar 25, 2023 Jenny Williams of the Laundry Garden, Special Historic Garden Week Addendum, 90
I chat with Jenny Williams, who gardens in northern Wales ( @thelaundrygarden ). Jenny and I chat about the origins and development of her garden, and the challenges and joys of having it open to the public via Instagram, UK Open Days, and the Retreat accommodation . The Plant of the Week is the Bougainvillea (I know; incongruous, but I visited Jamaica), and The Play List talks about what is going on the in garden…
Mar 11, 2023 Matt Berry of Dos Amigos Landscaping and Electric Equipment, 89
Besides the soul sucking noise of mowers and blowers in your neighborhood, are you aware that the internal combustion engines that make these machines run contribute more than their fair share of pollutants to our air? Matt Berry of Dos Amigos Landscaping is doing something about it. Every time a piece of equipment needs to be replaced, Dos Amigos is adding another electric battery powered tool to their arsenal.…
Feb 25, 2023 Seth Pearsoll of the Philadelphia Flower Show, the Crocus 88
The Philadelphia Flower Show and the Pennsylvania Horticultural Society pre-date the Chelsea Flower show and the Royal Horticultural Society. If that weren't impressive enough, the money raised because of this important event goes to community service efforts all over the state of Pennsylvania. Seth Pearsoll, the Creative Director of the show, fills us in on the history and behind the scenes information on…
Feb 11, 2023 Amanda the Ever Hopeful Gardener on Compost Tea, etc, 87
We all garden a little bit differently and I love to check in on Amanda the Ever Hopeful Gardener on Instagram to see what she's up to because she's always trying something new. In this episode we discuss compost tea and why you may or may not want to go to the trouble to make some. We also have a regular old garden chat about just about anything that occurs to us. In addition, I summarize four gardening…
Jan 28, 2023 Richard Hawke and Perennial Trials at the Chicago Botanic Garden, 86
This is a long one, but worth it in terms of information gleaned about some of the best perennials you can choose. Richard Hawke runs the famous evaluations at the Chicago Botanic Garden and in this episode he talks about the evaluations and what they mean and how they can help any gardener to know WHICH darned plant to choose. We talk about the process and then I insist that we go over the ones that I was…
Jan 4, 2023 Sustainability Tips from 8 Different Gardeners, 85
I asked some of my favorite gardeners to share sustainable practices that they employ in their gardens. We get contributions from Linda Vater, Erin Schanen, Julie Hart (Nanny Noo), Amanda the Everhopeful Gardener, Emma Biggs, Marianne Willburn, Bunny Williams and Tasha Greer about what they do (or don't do) in their gardens to make our earth a bit happier. 
Dec 17, 2022 Susan Nock of Thistle Containers all about Christmas 84
Looking for last minute Christmas decoration ideas for your containers and front door? Susan Nock of Thistle Containers gives us those goods plus ideas for inside, and maybe grander ideas for future decoration ideas if this year is a busy one for you. The Plant of the Week is an incongruous choice, but you will understand why I chose it once I explain. What to do in your garden right now is a compact list-- less is…
Dec 3, 2022 Ben Raskin on Woodchips, Illicium, 83
What if all mulch were free? What if the trees and branches that are chewed up every time an arborist works in your neighborhood could be distributed on your garden beds (you have to do that part) or added to your compost pile, or simply kept on your property to break down to become a seed and potting medium? That is what wood chips can do for you-- they aren't just for lining your paths or the bottom of your…
Nov 19, 2022 Bill Quade of the Biltmore, Hedychium coronarium, 82
I get to talk to a guy who's been gardening at America's largest home, the Biltmore, for decades and he is now the Head Horticulturist there. Bill Quade gives us the ins and outs of what it's like to garden at a Frederick Law Olmsted home creation and keep it true to its original intent. The Plant of the Week is the Hedychium coronarium, and we talk about Monarch butterflies, bulb planting and…
Nov 5, 2022 Joseph Tychonievich, the Sugar Maple, 81
Author and Speaker Joseph Tychonievich gives us a glimpse into the many presentations that he gives nationally, including topics such as Plant Breeding, Plant Pollinators and Why They Matter, and Dealing with Your Hosta Addiction. Author of four books including his latest, a comic book guide on how to grow tomatoes, Joseph makes his elevated understanding of horticulture and plant biology accessible to all. Other…
Oct 22, 2022 Botanic Garden of the Piedmont and Six Great Fall Plants, 80
Besides an interesting conversation with Consi Palmer and Carol Carter, who explain what it's like to start up a botanic garden, and besides talking about six great fall plants because I simply was not able to choose a Plant of the Week, I am all over the map on this episode. Here's a little list of what I talked about... changing out beds, working with your landscapers to improve issues like excessive…
Oct 8, 2022 Steph Green, the Aster, 79
Both the New England Aster and the Chinese Tartarian Aster are making merry in my garden right now, so those are our Plants of the Week. I chat with Steph Green of Contained Creations who has begun an exciting new website that can have us all re-creating and enjoying her magical container combinations. Other topics include expert input on the question of Asclepius curavassica from Doug Tallamy and some science…
Sep 24, 2022 Marian Boswall on Sustainable Gardening, 78
Marian Boswall is a UK Landscape Architect and Horticulturist who believes that sustainable gardening ideas add to the beauty of gardens. In this episode we discuss her ethos and how it came through in her book, 'Sustainable Gardening' via projects and ideas that every gardener can carry out. The Plant of the Week is the Blue Mist flower, or Conoclinium coelestinum, and I talk about how to divide…
Sep 10, 2022 Madeline Hooper and Jeff Hughes of Garden Fit, 77
We all get aches and pains occasionally, but Madeline Hooper has found out a bit of magic-- we don't have to. She enlisted Personal Trainer Jeff Hughes to help her out, and the results have been pain free gardening for her, and an entire PBS television series for all of us. Garden Fit takes us to lots of different gardens and gardeners, showing us plants, design, beautiful spaces, and 'fixes' for…
Aug 27, 2022 Bunny Williams, Hostas, 76
Bunny Williams and I chat about her garden, new favorite plants and her birdhouse meadow, and also her new line of garden furniture, called Treillage after her former store. The Plant of the Week is the Hosta, which is polite enough to have the same common and botanical name. Various other topics include wood chips, leaving pulled weeds (hidden) in your beds, and Sir David Attenborough's 'A Life on our…
Aug 13, 2022 Erin the Impatient Gardener, Allium 'Millenium', 75
Besides talking about various goings on in my early August garden, I chat with Erin Schanen, the Impatient Gardener, about her hopes and dreams for her summer, but this was recorded back before the peonies bloomed! The Plant of the Week is the perennial Allium, particularly 'Millenium'. 
Jul 30, 2022 On Little Limes, Pond Scum and Deer Control, 74
No guest this week, just little me answering some questions and sharing some experiential wisdom on deer control. I bought a new toy: a pond vacuum, so we dig a little into that scum. Follow up on No Mow May and the use of Round Up too. The Plant of the Week is the Hydrangea paniculate 'Little Lime' and I have a big announcement for you in this episode!
Jul 23, 2022 Brad Johnson of Garden Evolution; more on Jumping Worms and a look at Round Up, 73
Geum was first runner up for Plant of the Week, but since that's more of a spring plant, I went with the Madagascar Vinca. Brad Johnson and I discuss Geum, his DIY green house, using Round Up responsibly and his favorite tool, a step edger. I follow up on Jumping Worms and coming back from 3 weeks away from the garden. 
Jul 16, 2022 Roxana of Soil and Margaritas, Tomatoes, Garden Predictions, 72
This week Roxana Snediker of Soil and Margaritas Instagram and YouTube fame joins us for a general discussion of her gardening in general, but we accidentally did a deep dive into tomatoes so I made that the plant of the week. At the beginning of this episode I am traveling home after 3 weeks and wondering what my garden will look like upon my arrival. I follow up at the end of the show by telling you what I found…
Jul 8, 2022 Favorite Plant Combinations of Favorite Guests, Episode 71
What happens when you ask some great gardeners what their fave plant combos are? You get some great ideas! Listen as Kelly Lehman, Lizzie Rose, Steph Green, Jenks Farmer, Marianne Willburn, Serome Hamlin and Linda Vater tell us what they think goes together well and why!
Jun 18, 2022 The Great Dixter Round Up with Marianne Wilbur, 70
Possibly the very first plant that Marianne Wilbur and I drooled over when we first got to Great Dixter for the May Symposium was the Persicaria 'Purple Fantasy' so it is appropriate that Persicaria is our Plant of the Week. Marianne and I chat about our week together with Fergus Garrett and the gang at Great Dixter, and why immersing ourselves into the experience was so good for our gardens and for our…
Jun 11, 2022 Tasha Greer on Weed Free Gardening and the Geranium, 69
Weeds are inevitable, so don't get excited that I indulged in outrageous hype for the title of this episode. But if you garden with with weeds (and if you garden, you have weeds) intelligently, you may pick up some information on how, why and when to control them. Tasha Greer's new book, "Weed Free Gardening" may sound too good to be true, but the subtitle "A Comprehensive and Organic Approach to Weed…
Jun 4, 2022 Maria Failla of Bloom and Grow Radio, the Mountain Laurel
Maria Failla, the voice of Bloom and Grow Radio, has written a book called Growing Joy. She and I discuss the positive aspects about growing and that when you help a plant to live, you are really helping yourself with time in reflection and nature, all the while not being near a screen. Our Plant of the Week is the Kalmia latifolia, or Mountain Laurel, and I deal with questions on native bog plants, amending soil,…
May 28, 2022 Janice Groves of Jay's Garden Journal, the Rose, 67
Our Plant of the Week is the Rose, which is far far too big a topic to do well, so instead I offer some of my growing hacks. It's not that I grow them well, it's just that I have figured out how to enjoy them well without growing them perfectly well. Janice Groves of Jay's Garden Journal got my attention because of sheet mulching, but our talk rambled all over her sun baked, cheerful garden. Garden…
May 21, 2022 John Robinson, The Columbine, Oak Tree information, 67
John Robinson is the neighbor and listener who answered my plea for help with the podcast, and in this episode I talk to him about his small but amazingly diverse garden. He is a champion of sustainable gardening and is very knowledgeable about natives. Plus, he handy enough to have designed and built his own chicken coop. Our Plant of the Week is the Aquilegia vulgaris, or columbine, and I talk about Peony Bud…
May 14, 2022 Marianne Willburn on Great Dixter, the Fringe Tree, 65
If you did your homework assignment, this is good follow up information on the gardens of Great Dixter and the symposium that Marianne Willburn and I will be attending next week! Not only do we talk about the gardening opportunity, but we also touch on the idea of saying yes to something it would have been far easier to say no to. The plant of the week is the Fringe Tree, and I also talk about No Mow May, getting…
May 7, 2022 Renée Clermont of Second Nature Designs, the Peony, How to Transplant a Rose, 64
Renée Clermont of Second Nature Designs in Martha's Vineyards talks design, containers, weather, and running a business up in a summer paradise. The Plant of the Week is the Peony, and I talk about roses, including tips on taming and transplanting them on this episode. 
Apr 30, 2022 Cathy Corlett on Rain Gardens and More, the Bearded Iris, 63
Our plant of the week is having its spring moment and sticking its beard, or tongue, out at everyone in the prettiest way. In trying to get a better definition of a rain garden, Landscape Architect and I went down the garden path on that, plus Interpretive Gardens and Trauma informed Gardens. Lots of good listener questions are answered, including two on how to deal with invasive plants. 
Apr 23, 2022 Page Dickey, Azaleas, Late Mulching Tips
Page Dickey, author of Uprooted and many other garden books, talks to me about her new garden and the elements of design and nature that molded a very different space from her long time Duck Hill garden. Azaleas are hogging all the bandwidth in my garden right now so they are the plant of the week. I talk about deadheading bulb flowers, late season mulching and recalcitrant Hydrangea macrophylla in The Play List.
Apr 16, 2022 Clare Foster of House & Garden UK, Amelanchier canadensis, mulch around trees 61
Clare Foster is a garden writer and editor who gardens in the UK. We chat about several of her books and gardening in general. The Plant of the Week is the Serviceberry (Amerlanchier canadensis), and various other garden topics such as mulch around trees and seed sowing are under discussion too. In this episode I ask my listeners if they might know of someone who can help me out with this podcast-- marketing,…
Apr 9, 2022 Claus Dalby on Containers in the Garden, the Tulip, Garden Consulting 60
Claus Dalby of Denmark comes Into the Garden with Leslie about his latest book, which is his first book in English. "Containers in the Garden" gives the total lowdown on Dalby's famous aesthetic. Leslie chose one of his favorites flowers, the tulip, as her Plant of the Week and besides talking about all the things that she did not get done in the garden this week, she explains the consulting part of her…
Apr 2, 2022 59: Kathy Jentz of Garden DC Podcast, Bloodroot, Camellia Pruning Tips
The Plant of the Week is Bloodroot, or Sanguinaria canadensis. I chat with podcaster (GardenDC) and magazine editor (Washington Gardener Magazine) about the new book she has co-authored with Teri Speight called 'The Urban Garden'. There is follow up information on last week's Plant of the Week, the Virginia Blue Bell, and I talk about how I will, in theory, if it warms up, prune my Camellias this…
Mar 26, 2022 58: Best New Plants of 2022
Diane Blazek of the National Garden Bureau and All America Selections walks us through some of the best new plants of 2022. Tips on cold frames, rejuvenation pruning of shrubs, and bringing indoor plants back outside. The Plant of the Week is Mertensia virginica, the Virginia Bluebell. 
Mar 19, 2022 57:Linda Vater, Hyacinth, Camellia tips
Linda Vater of Potager Blog joins me to talk about her new book, "The Elegant and Edible Garden". Before I herald the beautiful spring bulb the Hyacinth, I defame the alien invasive tree that is looking deceptive beautiful this time of year, and that is the Callary Pear. There are tips about growing Camellias, including the difference between the Camellia sasanqua and the Camellia japonica. Do snow damage…
Mar 12, 2022 56: Stephanie Rose of Garden Therapy, Winter Aconite, Pruning Climbing Roses
Stephanie Rose is a prolific gardening author, and in this episode we discuss her 11th book, "The Regenerative Garden". The Plant of the Week is the Eranthis hyemalis, or Winter Aconite, and although I threw 'pruning climbing roses' into the title, there are lots of additional hands on seasonal gardening tips in this episode, such as cutting back liriope, dethatching your lawn, how to plant and prune…
Mar 5, 2022 55: Raffaele Di Lallo, Clivia, Boxwood pruning
This week's Plant of the Week is a house plant for most, in honor of our guest, Author of "House Plant Warrior" Raffaele Di Lallo. Lots of questions from listeners this week (REAL listeners) spring clean up in the garden and more-- tips on Boxwood pruning too. 
Feb 26, 2022 54: Karl Gercens of Longwood Gardens; Edgeworthia Chrysantha
The Plant of the Week is the Paper Bush, an early spring bloomer, and Karl Gercens talks with us about Longwood Gardens, where he is the Manager of the West Conservatory, which is the only conservatory at the moment. Gardening tips about spring clean up in the garden, and forcing daffodils, and a couple of my garden fails. 
Feb 25, 2022 Interview with Tanya Anderson of Lovely Greens
This is the video version of the interview of Episode 53. Tanya Anderson of Lovely Greens discusses her new book, A Woman's Garden . 
Feb 19, 2022 53: Tanya Anderson of Lovely Greens; Stinking Hellebore; Boxwood pruning
Tanya Anderson of Lovely Greens has written a book about crafting with plants. She features her soap making and 7 other woman gardeners and the way they use their plants to do more. I talk a little about a plant I don't know, the Hepatica, and a bit more about one I do know, Helleborus foetidus. The Play List includes the basics of boxwood pruning. 
Feb 12, 2022 52: The Snow Drop, Emma Biggs on Vegetable Gardening with Kids, Pruning Hydrangea arborescens
A year of Into the Garden with Leslie! That went fast...  This week I celebrate the early tiny Snow Drop (Galanthus) that is blooming in my garden.  Emma Biggs, who wrote Gardening with Emma: Grow and Have Fun joins me and we discuss her garden, gardening in a small space in Toronto, and her book written at age 15 to get kids into gardening. I finish my Hyrdrangea pruning series with tips on Hydrangea…
Feb 5, 2022 51: The Orchid, Serome Hamlin's Enchanted Gardens, How to Prune an Oak Leaf Hydrangea
I couldn't resist paying homage to an outdoor plant that made me so happy while I was hanging out all smug in Horticultural zone 10 for a few weeks, but I will be happy to get back to my zone 7B indoor orchids. Serome Hamlin tells us all about his miniature Enchanted (but not Fairy!) Gardens (8:45) and after chatting about the evils of Nandina and the virtues of the native (to Virginia and other SE states)…
Jan 29, 2022 50: Golden Alexander, Amanda the Ever Hopeful Gardener, Pruning Hydrangea paniculata
Because this is the FIFTIETH episode of Into the Garden with Leslie we celebrate by choosing the Golden Alexander as the Plant of the Week. Amanda the Ever Hopeful Gardener talks to us about compost (6:40) and we go on to the NEXT type of Hydrangea, the paniculata type, (45:16) with pruning tips. Remember-- you never have to prune! 
Jan 22, 2022 49: The Ficus, Julie Hart of Tasmania, Pruning Macrophylla Hydrangeas
I had no idea that the Ficus incorporates so many different type of plant (including epiphytes) and is even the name for a type of sea snail found near Singapore. But in the episode I concentrate on plants-- house plants mostly. I have a chat with the delightful Nanny Noo (Julie Hart) of Launceston, Tasmania and before going into the normal gardening topic of pruning Hydrangea macrophylla (which you don't even…
Jan 15, 2022 48: Live Oak, Kelly Lehman, Start of Winter Pruning Tips
This week I choose a huge plant that is right outside of our Florida rental as the Plant of the Week (2:18) and it is the Live Oak. Kelly Lehman and I chat about her flower farm, social media success and hydrangea pruning tips (6:30) and in The Play List I start what will be a series of winter pruning tips that I love to employ in cold weather. 
Jan 8, 2022 47: The Crinum, Jenks Farmer, Oasis
This week is all about a plant I hadn't known much about until I heard from Jenks Farmer (Augustus Jenkins Farmer III) and heard about his book, titled Crinum: Unearthing the History and Cultivation of the World's Biggest Bulb. The Crinum is also the Plant of the Week, and on the Play List I talk about getting the heavy snow off of your evergreens (sometime you don't have time to be gentle) and I go…
Jan 1, 2022 46: 2021 Guests with 2022 Garden Goals
A baker's dozen of my best guests, including a special one from Launceston, Tassie, who my listeners haven't even been acquainted with, tell us what they are up to in 2022. Kelly D. Norris , Jenny Sioux Hopkins , Christy Wilhelmi , Brie Arthur , Andy Brand , Bunny Williams , Scott Beuerlein , Dean Norton , Marianne Willburn , Lizzie Fox , Erin Schanen , Steph Green and Julie Hart , aka Nanny Noo, will…
Dec 25, 2021 45: Lots of Christmas Plants and Dogs in the Garden with Sister Kim, who is a Dog Trainer!
Merry Christmas to all! This week I explore 4 plants that are commonly in people's homes this time of year, including my favorite type of tree, the Frasier fir. My sister Kim of Canine Connection in Alexandria teaches about how to enjoy our new Covid pups, and all dogs, in the garden. And in terms of listening, it's to your family this holiday season, and all that they may have to offer you. 
Dec 18, 2021 44: Amaryllis, Ellen Zachos of The Backyard Forager, bulbs in pots
Besides learning that the Amaryllis is actually, in most cases a Hippeastrum, you will hear my rationalization for enjoying those bulbs without trying to get them to re-bloom the next year. I chat with Ellen Zachos about foraging for food (and cocktail enhancements!) in your own backyard: why you would even want to do this, and how to do it safely. Tips about planting spring bulbs in pots and thoughts on cleaning…
Dec 11, 2021 43: Magnolia macrophylla, Tim Schipper of ColorBlends Bulbs, Bulb planting tips
Tim Schipper , owner and founder of ColorBlends gives us the low down on bulbs-- what the 'blends' are, ideas on how to keep them coming back or not to worry if they don't and planting times. ColorBlends is my favorite bulb source and I just love how you get a brown scaly golf ball in fall and it becomes a magical flower a few short months later. The Plant of the Week is the Big Leafed Magnolia,…
Dec 4, 2021 42: Winterberry, Carolyn Mullet of CarexTours
Plant of the Week is the Winterberry or Ilex verticillata, and I chat with Carolyn Mullet of CarexTours, which gets interested American gardeners to the most amazing European gardens! My head cold brings several sections of this episode down a half octave or so, but I still enjoyed making it! 
Nov 27, 2021 41: Red Twig Dogwood, Steph Green on Christmas Containers, Pruning Tips
Steph Green of Contained Creations of Richmond helps us to figure out how to wow with Holiday Containers. Lots of great tips, whether you tend toward glitz or nature. The Cornus sericea, or Red Twig Dogwood, is the Plant of the Week and I talk about choices on fall clean up in your garden, rejuvenation pruning vs winter snips, and The Play List feature Johnny Mathis, with me accompanying (don't fret, it's…
Nov 20, 2021 40: The Arizona Cypress, Anthony Bellomo, Compost vs Fertilizer
In this episode, I give a fox update, answer questions about trugs and indoor plants (don't laugh! I knew the answer!), and interview Landscape Architect Anthony Bellomo of Millbrook, NY about his pivot to open the lovely Orangerie garden store and his garden at Clove Brook Farm . I also give you some ideas garnered from Christie Wilhelmi's YouTube about Fertilizer vs Compost .
Nov 13, 2021 39: Fall Fiesta Sugar Maple, Erin the Impatient Gardener, planting a tree and more
I highly recommend you get your fall fiesta from the native Acer saccharum instead of that other colorful thing that is taking over our native forests: Burning Bush or Eonymus alatus. Erin Schanen the Impatient Gardener and I talk about most anything and everything, including her new naturalistic garden. And I take you through some basics of perennials division, planting a tree, and what to do with compost (not…
Nov 6, 2021 37: Ajania pacifica, Sister Sue Ann on bulbs, moving peonies and more
After a scintillating fox update (if you follow me on Instagram, you know that's a thing) I choose the Silver and Gold, or Ajania pacifica as the Plant of the Week. Sister Sue and I delve deep into how to plant bulbs, and maybe what bulbs to plant, and I deal with questions on Vinca minor, moving peonies and what to do in the garden this week. Shout out to the Home Grown National Park-- $20 for 20 million…
Oct 30, 2021 36: Oak Leaf Hydrangea, Lizzie Fox of the Rose Press Garden, Brooklyn Bridge Park
The color that most Oak Leaf Hydrangea leaves turn this time of year reminds me of a fine red wine sipped by the fire, so that means it has to be the Plant of the Week. You are going to be charmed by Lizzie Fox , a young woman in Norwich, England, who is turning seed shopping a shiny, beautiful and new direction, and other details include pruning hydrangeas, watering chores (at this time of year? maybe...) and the…
Oct 23, 2021 35: Japanese and native American Anemones, Christy Wilhelmi, more on compost!
Because we haven't featured a native Plant of the Week for a while, and because I could not ignore the Honorine Jobert in my yard, we double dip with both the Japanese anemone and the Anemone virginiana, which, although it isn't blooming now like our Asian friend, blooms in spring and is pretty too! Christy Wilhelmi and I flit around the garden topics, touching down on compost, no dig gardening, managing…
Oct 16, 2021 34: Marianne Wilburn on bring plants in for the winter, the Rex Begonia, and the soil knife
This week the author of Tropical Plants and How to Love Them , Marianne Wilburn , takes us through steps on what plants we may want to over winter, and how to make them happy. This is Marianne's second visit because she is so fun to chat with! The Plant of the Week is the Rex Begonia, and I also talk about some trees I have planted recently, more on composting, and one of my favorite tools, the soil knife. 
Oct 9, 2021 33: The Chrysanthemum, fall gardening thoughts with Sister Sue Ann, and thoughts on noisy blowers
This week we get all pumpkin spicy autumnal with the mum as our POW, some dried hydrangea and dahlias cutting tips, and a long chat with sister Sue Ann about what is happening in her garden, mine, and others of which we are jealous. Timely information about bringing indoor plants back in NOW is a great preview for next week's visit with Marianne Wilburn. 
Oct 2, 2021 33: Asian Jumping Worms, Zinnias, and Gregory Britt
Gregory Britt, "That Nice Guy Who Creates Epic Floral Artistry" joins me for a wandering (literally, as I chase him around the studio with my lame microphone and we battle traffic noise) chat about flowers, gardening, and house plants. I have collected good basic (read: for idiots like me) info on the Asian Jumping Worm and the classic Zinnia is the Plant of the Week!
Sep 25, 2021 32: The Pansy; Fall Containers with Steph Green of Contained Creations; Rusty Gear
Following up on the very successful Episode 32 with Steph Green of Contained Creations, we explore fall containers with her (7:35) after getting you primed for filling them with the Plant of the Week, the Pansy! Special live concert with Rusty Gear (41:42) is a bonus!
Sep 18, 2021 31: Marianne Willburn of American Gardener Magazine, and the Begonia grandis
This week, writer and gardener Marianne Willburn joined me on the pod. She is a monthly columnist for the American Gardener Magazine , as well as a writer for Garden Rant . You can also find her personal blogs here . We talk about all things plant marketing, plant sharing, even the native vs. nonnative debate and the oh-so-controversial Lawn. You can also read MY blog here ! I publish a post to go along with each…
Sep 11, 2021 30: Peggy Cornett of the Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants and Snow on the Mountain
I visited Peggy Cornett, and lots of cicadas, hence the ambient noise, at The Thomas Jefferson Center for Historic Plants at Tufton Farm, about two miles from Monticello. We chat about plants that Jefferson grew or otherwise historic plants, including the interesting annual Euphorbia marginata, or Snow on the Mountain. Since that sounds like a country song, it is, but from Australia, where it doesn't snow all…
Sep 4, 2021 29: Coleus, Dean Norton of Mount Vernon
This week I visit Dean Norton, Director of Horticulture at George Washington's Mount Vernon (@ 5:47) and recommend Andrea Wulf's 'Founding Gardeners' in The Play List. The Plant of the Week really has nothing at all to do with the General, I cannot tell a lie, but it is a versatile and useful plant that I am propagating the heck out of these days, in order to improve my garden once the dog days…
Aug 28, 2021 28: Dahlias, Beverly Lacey of Blue Heron Farms, late season pruning and Mosquitos
The Dahlia is the showy strumpet of the late season border, and she is a high maintenance diva that is so attractive she is worth all of the effort. We learn the ins and outs of growing the Dahlia from spring planting to lifting and dividing. Did you know that there are 17 different flower forms? Other topics include English Ivy and how I loathe it, late season pruning on low and crazy branches, and a podcast named…
Aug 21, 2021 Week 27: The August Garden with Scott Beuerlein and my mother-in-law's border
Traveling Garden Correspondent Leslie Harris is in hot and humid Hilton Head, South Carolina, picking apart why her mother-in-law's garden looks so darned good right now. Garden writer Scott Beuerlein of Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, Horticulture Magazine and Garden Rant fame joins me on some other August ideas. Fall is coming, but let us indulge in a bit of self-pity, day dreaming, and plagiarism while…
Aug 14, 2021 26: Great Blue Lobelia, Bunny Williams Paul Tukey and Organic Lawns
I follow through on last week's threat of choosing the plant species named after a venereal disease as the Plant of the Week (Lobelia siphilitica) and Bunny Williams and I chat about gardens, garden design, HER garden, which is spectacular, and her garden book, On Garden Style at 5:55. The Play List includes info on spider mites, flagging annuals, and the possibility of an organic lawn. 
Aug 7, 2021 25: White Pine, Andy Brand of the Coastal Main Botanical Gardens, Rusty Gear
When in Maine... you go see the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens and chat with Andy Brand (5:17) about how wonderful they are! The Plant of the Week is a the state flower of Maine, but here's the catch: it's not a flower. The Play List includes some timely veg transplant and seed starting information, none of which I will take advantage of, but you can! And Rusty Gear, who provides my into music, has…
Jul 31, 2021 24: Mountain Mint, Brie the Plant Lady
Mountain Mint is a total winner-- edible native deer resistant pollinator that performs as well in sun as in shade. And edible ornamentals are the expertise of Brie the Plant Lady, who tells us all about foodscaping at 5:48. The Play List (25:12) talks about tomato pruning, the difference between purslane and spurge, and the Temptations, and I,  Wish it Would Rain.
Jul 24, 2021 23: Phlox, Garden Party Gardening with Sue Ann
The Plant of the week is another native, and a classic stalwart in the summer border, the Phlox paniculata. I chat with sister Sue Ann  at 5:34 about how to get your garden ready to party, and give you a few garden chores in The Play List at 26:18, and I recommend 99% Invisible, which is a captivating podcast based on design, architecture, culture and history. 
Jul 17, 2021 22: Echinacea, Container =Gardening with Steph Green, and Pesky Bunnies, Tree of Heaven and Stilt Grass
The Plant of the Week is the coneflower-- a great American native that blooms for months in summer. We chat with Steph Green of Contained Creations (7:13) about having gorgeous containers, and turn to pests in the garden (32:45) and whatever can we do about bunnies and Japanese beetles? 
Jul 10, 2021 21: The Gardening Podcast Summary
Plant of the Week is Persicaria (00:40); good info from recent gardening podcasts such at ticks from Tom Christopher's Growing Greener (5:02), Nature and Gardening from Margaret Roach's A Way to Garden (9:49); and the Joe Gardener Show's discussion National Gardening Association's Annual Survey (14:18). I also touch on why we use Latin in gardening and some timely gardening tips. Into the…
Jul 3, 2021 20: Monarda, Gardenerd Tip of the Week and how to properly water your plants
Icky things (a worm and a snake) I posted on Instagram; Plant of the Week is Monarda, and the interview (at 7:21 is with Christy Wilhelmi of Gardenerd Tip of the Week podcast and website. Christy is a California small space organic gardening guru! The Play List (26:15) includes questions on ivy on trees, Magnolia leaves, and lots of information on proper watering techniques. And what to listen to? Christy's…
Jun 26, 2021 19: Lavender, Chickens, and how to deal with Mosquitos
We have the famous Chicken Lady, Lisa Steele of Fresh Eggs Daily, to try to talk me into having them in the garden. The Plant of the Week is Lavender and there are tips on nasty garden things like poison ivy and mosquitos in The Play List Time Stamps: 0:00 Intro and Plant of Week/5:08 interview/22:29 The Play List
Jun 19, 2021 18: Virginia Sweetspire, Hardscaping, and a VA Anthem!
Today, I sit down with Matt Berry of Dos Amigos Landscaping to learn more about hardscaping. The playlist includes a VA anthem and food for flowers!  Time Stamps:  0:00 Intro / 2:49 Plant of the Week /5:09 Guest / 23:03 Playlist
Jun 12, 2021 17: Longleaf Pine, Chris Jones, and a Plant Pod!
This week, I chat with Chris Jones, assistant grounds superintendent at Pinehurst Resort, about landscaping and the longleaf pine! Timestamps Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 2:10 / Guest 4:29 / Playlist 19:56 Notes: Cicadas: https://www.washingtonpost.com/science/interactive/2021/cicadas-lifecycle-brood-x/ My article: https://www.finegardening.com/article/how-to-prune-garden-perennials-in-summer 
Jun 5, 2021 16: Verbena, Cut Flowers with Jenny, and Gardenerds!
This week, Jenny Hopkins of Big Arms Farm clues me in on the cut-flower farm operation, with tips for the flower-loving home gardener as well! Time Stamps Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 4:32 / Guest 7:04 / Playlist 23:55
May 29, 2021 15: Oaks, Doug Tallamy, and a Webinar!
This week, I sit down with Doug Tallamy—entomologist, author, and the oak tree's biggest advocate! Time Stamps: Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 3:35 / Guest 5:25 / Playlist 23:59
May 22, 2021 14: Tender Annuals, My Sister Sue Ann 2.0, and "The Ugly Bug Ball"
This week, I talk tender annuals and my lovely sister Sue Ann joins me to discuss container planting.  Time Stamps: Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 2:40 / Guest 6:30 / Playlist 24:20 
May 15, 2021 13: Okra, Diane Burns, and "Vegetables"
In keeping with our veggie theme, our plant of the week is okra! Diane Burns, head gardener at Pippin Hill Farm and Vineyards, joins us to discuss the ins and outs of vegetable gardening. Tune in for a yummy Beach Boys track.  Timestamps: Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 3:40 / Guest 5:38 / Playlist 7:21
May 8, 2021 12: Pinxterbloom Azalea, My Garden, and Audible Recs!
Our plant of the week is pinxterbloom, an azalea native to Eastern North America. This week, the tables have turned: my friend Susan Terwilliger interviews me about my garden! Tune in for some garden-friendly audible recs.  Timestamps: Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 4:47 / Interview 6:40 / Playlist 21:50
May 1, 2021 11: Fringe Tree, My Sister Sue Ann, and "Surrey with the Fringe"
My little sister Sue Ann Kane joins me to talk about starting a garden from scratch. Our plant of the week is the fringe tree: what song could be more fitting than "Surrey with the Fringe (tree) on Top"? Timestamps:  Intro 0:00 / Plant of the Week 2:26 / Guest 4:54 / Playlist 20:08
Apr 24, 2021 10: Camassia, Rod and Maggie Walker, and "Poison Ivy"
The plant of the week is the Pacific NW native, Camassia! I’m joined by Rod and Maggie Walker from Blue Ridge PRISM. Need something to listen to while playing in your garden? I recommend “Poison Ivy” by The Coasters. 0:00 intro / 2:43 plant of the week / 5:32 interview / 22:00 playlist
Apr 17, 2021 09: Boxwoods, Michael Abbott, and Chasing Cars
The plant of the week is the boxwood! Today we are talking with Michael Abbott of Bartlett Tree Experts. When I look at my garden this time of year I'm reminded of a line of a song, Chasing Cars.  0:00 intro & corrections / 3:05 plant of the week / 6:15 interview / 25:26 playlist
Apr 10, 2021 08: Tulip Poplars, Jason LaRose, and How to Shop for Plants
The plant of the week is the tulip poplar. This week's interview is with arborist Jason LaRose from Queen City Silviculture. The Play List includes what to shop for and Vivaldi's Spring. Corrections 3:21 / Plant of the week 4:19 / Interview 6:25 / Play List 20:42
Apr 10, 2021 07: Twin Leaf, Peggy Cornett, and Haydn String Quartets
The Plant of the Week is the Twin Leaf or Jeffersonia diphylla. This week's interview is with Curator of Plants at Monticello Peggy Cornett. The Play List includes what to do in your garden this week and what Jefferson would have listened to: Haydn’s String Quartets. https://www.monticello.org/ http://www.missouribotanicalgarden.org/PlantFinder/PlantFinderDetails.aspx?kempercode=a409…
Apr 10, 2021 06: Canadian Hemlock, Kelly D. Norris, and Perennial Division
The plants of the week are the Hemlock and the River Birch (both natives). This week's interview is with Horticulturist Kelly D. Norris about his latest book New Naturalism. The Play List talks about early perennial division and Tom Christopher’s podcast Growing Greener
Apr 10, 2021 05: Dogwoods, Historic Garden Week, and Mulch
The Plant of the Week is the State Flower AND tree of Virginia. This week's interview is with two of the three chairs of Albemarle’s part of the state-wide Historic Garden Week . The Playlist includes mulch information and American singer and songwriter Rusty Gear
Apr 10, 2021 04: The Paperbush, Anne Blackwell Thompson, and Pruning Your Roses
Plant of the Week is Edgeworthia chrysantha , update on Historic Garden Week prep, interview with Anne Blackwell Thompson of Blackwell Botanicals on display at Quirk Gallery , and The Playlist includes winter annual weeks and Margaret Roach’s Podcast A Way to Garden .
Apr 10, 2021 03: Daffodils, Piedmont Master Gardeners, and Nathan Colberg
The Plant of the Week is a spring fave, the daffodil. This week's interview promotes the Virtual Spring Lecture Series provided for free by Piedmont Master Gardeners. The Playlist talks about what to do in your garden this week and promotes a local musician.
Apr 10, 2021 02: Native Plants, Carol Carter, and Hydrangea Pruning Basics
This week’s Plant of the Week is the Ilex verticillata, or Winterberry. Carol Carter talks to us about Native Plants and their importance in nature and in our gardening. The Playlist includes information about bulb fertilization, soil compaction and a quick list of Hydrangea pruning basics. This week's listening recommendation is the Gardeners’ Question Time Podcast produced by the BBC.

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The Garden Mixer: A Gardening Podcast

About The Garden Mixer: A Gardening Podcast

Episodes

Monty Don Has Help in the Garden; Shouldn't We All?

Barrel: What Really Scares Experienced Gardeners (Barrel Aged One More Sip)

What to Do With Fallen Branches: Dead Hedges & Habitat Nests

Meet The Garden Mixer: A Garden Podcast

Barrel: Ugly Fall Clearance Plants (Barrel Aged One More Sip)

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