Thursday, March 12, 2015

nashville lawn & garden show

we went to the nashville lawn & garden show sunday, and i must confess that it wasn't quite what i expected.  i guess i expected a version of the lowe's garden center on steroids.  really, just wall to wall baby plants for sale.  while there were a few booths selling plants, it was more the selling of everything garden related or even remotely garden related.  i still found a few things to buy, and it was probably good that there weren't lots more things to buy as i was slightly broke.  thank goodness for payday this friday!  my birthday is next week and i plan on treating myself at the real lowe's garden center.  but on to the show . . . 

i have mentioned before that i am not so great with indoor lighting, but this place was very well lit.  i turned up my iso, gave it my best shot, and came home with a few nice photos to share.

i was most successful with the orchids and hellebores, so that is mostly what you shall see.  orchids are so exotic and stunning.  do any of you keep them as indoor plants?  maybe one of these days i will try.

one room was completely dedicated to spectacular floral displays.  i suppose i should have taken photos of an entire masterpiece, but i was more enamored with little spots of beauty in each.

apple core.  tell me more.  who's your friend?  ;)

hellebores, on the other hand, have a more earthy "girl next door" beauty to them.  by the way, if you're looking for a great hellebore article go HERE.

my main quest at this event was to acquire a pair of pawpaw trees.  g found out last summer at cedar's of lebanon state park jr. ranger camp that the zebra swallowtail lays its eggs on the pawpaw tree.  i had heard that these trees were being given away at the nashville lawn and garden show and wanted them muchly.  and greedily, i wanted two as two are necessary for cross pollination purposes.  

happy day!  i ended up with four pawpaw trees (two for a friend) along with a shumard oak and a white swamp oak.  all indigenous to tennessee and all free.  i think i mentioned this earlier in the week, but it's just so darn exciting!

we will be planting our little trees this saturday at 10:00 am as part of the tennessee environmental council's 50K tree day.  the goal is to plant 50 thousand trees in the state of tennessee in one hour.  isn't that amazing and awesome?!  i confess, i teared up a bit when the woman told me about it as she handed me my baby trees.  plants are just so important and beautiful and special.

so, moving past my sappiness.  i brought home two red hot pokers . . . 

two red surprise lillies . . . 

and a black stocking.  g chose a tiny little mulberry bush.  when he showed it to our friend, she asked him if he'd been around it yet and was met with a blank stare.  i suppose they are no longer teaching nursery rhymes in school what with common core and all.

linking up with mammasaurus and "how does your garden grow?"

p.s. whiel at the show, i found out that the herb society of nashville is having its annual herb sale at the tennessee state fairgrounds on april 18th.  there will be rare and not so rare varieties of annual and perennial herbs as well as heirloom vegetables.  see you there?

4 comments:

  1. Gorgeous flower photos! You chose very striking flowers for your garden!
    Good on G for choosing a mulberry bush.. I think they are an underappreciated fruit. :)

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  2. Oh my I would have loved it there! 50 thousand trees in the state of tennessee in one hour? That's a mind blowing amount and I love the ambitiousness of it. Lovely shots Doris, and orchids are something we can only grow indoors over here. I inherited some a couple of years ago and kept them alive for a good year before the curse of she-who-forgets-to-water struck!
    Thanks for joining in again sausage! x

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  3. We bought a Mulberry tree last year but couldn't plant it until the pigs were out of the field. When we lost our dog on New Year's Eve we buried her under the newly planted Mulberry tree (which will be fenced off from the pigs soon) and she can play "Round the Mulberry Bush" when-ever she wants.

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  4. I used to go to the lawn and garden sow all the time. I would be eager to buy and plant, but it was just too soon in the mid-south. I ended up buying various tools and garden ornaments to satisfy my gardening urge. In fact, one of those purchases---nearly 20 years ago now---remains my favorite tool. It's called the "soil scoop." At the time, you could only find it at the lawn and garden show. About the orchids: I've been given them as gifts several times over the years. I found that the only way I truly enjoyed them was mixed in with other house plants---not planted together, just pots placed together. I do not like the "legginess" of them and the foliage isn't particularly attractive.

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