Spring Fling memories and anticipation
Gulf Coast penstemon ( Penstemon tenuis)
One year ago this week, thirty-seven garden bloggers from across the U.S. were converging on Austin for a first national meet-up we dubbed Garden Bloggers Spring Fling.
‘Bath’s Pink’ dianthus ( Dianthus gratianopolitans ‘Bath’s Pink’)
The first guest I met was Carol of May Dreams Gardens, whose wish to see “all those gardens of the Austin garden bloggers” had helped inspire the event. Click here for my impressions of Carol and pictures from Rock Rose Jenny’s stunning early-April garden.
‘Marilyn’s Choice’ abutilon
The cool, sunny, agreeable weather we’ve enjoyed this week is remarkably similar to the weather during last year’s Spring Fling, which surprises me considering how volatile central Texas weather can be. It reminds me of the pleasant weekend spent mostly outdoors at various gardens around town, showing visitors what Austin is like and finding that we all had so much in common we couldn’t stop talking for one minute. What a blast!
Silver Mediterranean fan palm ( Chamaerops humilis var.’cerifera’)
Fast-forward one year, and it’s the garden bloggers in Chicago who are working around the clock (well, I hope they’re getting some sleep) to plan Chicago Spring Fling 2009. It’s scheduled for the last weekend in May, and as the garden tours and social events are finalized my anticipation is growing.
Mexican buckeye ( Ungnadia speciosa)
I look forward to reconnecting with friends made last year in Austin, and to meeting new bloggers from across the nation. Here’s the Chicago Fling guest list so far—about 40 social-minded garden bloggers. Some of the names I know; others I don’t yet. I sure hope I have time to meet everyone, and please let there be name tags to aid memory-challenged people like myself.
Squid agave ( Agave bracteosa)
If you’re a garden blogger, are you going to be there this year?
Enough fantasizing about good times to come. Back to work, but first let me show you the growing ‘Macho Mocha’ mangave flower stalk…
…up close and personal.
And another.
Happy April!
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Nice photos Pam. I won’t be going this year to the Garden Bloggers Spring Fling- Emmylou will be calling my name. Have a great one!!
Love the closeups of macho man.
Emmylou as in Harris? Have fun! —Pam
I’m planning to be there this year…reading all the great reports last year made me finagle to make it happen. I’m so looking forward to meeting everyone face to face!
I’m looking forward to meeting you, Leslie. So glad to have a representative from California this year. —Pam
Your abutilon is fabulous. I fear I lost mine during all the snow storms. Not terribly familiar with their hardiness here in Seattle.
I’m not very familiar with them either, Melanthia, though they seem to be the hot new plant in Austin. —Pam
It’s hard to believe it’s already been a year, yet it’s hard to believe it’s been only year, so much has happened. It was so wonderful to meet everyone, and it was great to visit your old garden. The Austin bloggers set a high standard of hospitality. I’m really looking forward to seeing you again, and reconnecting with the bloggers from last year and the new bloggers who will be attending for the first time.
Me too, MMD. Thanks for helping to bring Spring Fling to Chicago this year. —Pam
It sounds like a great event. I only started blogging this past summer and have been stunned by how large and friendly the garden blogging community is. Besides touring gardens, what exactly goes on at a spring fling?
By the way, I checked out the photos of Jenny’s garden from your post last year. What a stunner!
Besides touring gardens, it’s mostly socializing and networking. Last year we had a couple of blogging talks also, led by Carol of May Dreams and Kathy of Cold Climate Gardening. I don’t know what the Chicago folks are planning exactly, but I’m sure it will be great. Check out their site for more info. Hope to see you there, Susan. —Pam
Hi Pam, I was just thinking about it being this coming weekend too, remembering the excitement/fear of meeting all the people who had been so nice on the blogs, especially you. This time it is all excitement without the fear, unless getting lost on a train counts. It will be wonderful. This time you can relax and just be a participant instead of the driving force behind the event. It will be great to see you and the others and new friends too.
Frances
At least we’ll all be lost on the trains together, Frances. 😉 And yes, I’m definitely looking forward to being an enthusiastic participant this year instead of an organizer, rewarding as that was. —Pam
Such good memories Pam! I was remembering Austin this morning. Some of my favorite memories were the conversations we had at meals, in cars and walking around the gardens! One garden host even served a snack for us during his open house! I still marvel that his fantastic garden also sported a chicken house! It will be good to renew friendships and meet new folks in Chicago. It’s a wonderful city and the gardens I’ve seen there are delightful. I love seeing your new plantings! gail
The snacks were provided by James David and Gary Peese during the tour of their incredible garden. That was really nice of them, wasn’t it? I look forward to Flinging with you in Chicago, Gail. —Pam
I’m planning to go and am really getting excited. What a tradition you’ve started! The photos from Jenny’s yard are incredible. (You introduced me to her blog recently when discussing my agave.) I love gardens like that that are so indicative of place.
The Squid Agave is a new one to me. It almost looks more like a yucca. Love the close ups of your mangave.
You’d love the squid agave, Jean. It likes part shade and good drainage, and I’ve already gotten one pup off mine, which I’ve planted elsewhere. I just love those tentacles.
Looking forward to meeting you in Chicago! —Pam
Yep, I’m planning to be there. I’m looking forward to seeing everyone again and meeting new participants who didn’t attend in Austin. One year ago… wow, where did the time go?
It flew by, didn’t it? I’m so glad you’re attending again this year, Carol. See you there! —Pam
Hey, love the pictures. What are the light requirements for the Abutalon and the Squid Agave. Those look
promising for my garden.
In Austin, morning sun works for both. The squid agave may take afternoon sun as well, but the abutilon, I’ve heard, will fry if it doesn’t have some shade. —Pam
Pam, I am coming up to Chicago to meet all the Garden Bloggers. I can’t wait to meet you. I hated that I didn’t get to Austin. It just wasn’t in the cards last year. I still drool over the Austin garden contingents gardens via blogs. Wish I could have met all the other bloggers too. I hope to meet everyone that goes to Chicago.
It’ll be wonderful to meet you at last, Lisa. I’m glad you can make it this year! —Pam
I can’t wait to see your pics from the Chicago Spring Fling. I can’t get enough of looking at how other people garden and I love getting the design ideas. I’m also going to seek out a radsunny Knockout for myself. Love your blog, Pam!
Thanks a million, Becky. I agree that reading garden blogs is a great way to get some design ideas or find new plants to try. —Pam
I love the rooster near the Mexican buckeye, and am looking forward to the fling. I agree with you–name tags are a must. And I hope they have both the real name and the blogger name because I don’t know those for everyone. And large print would be good, too! 🙂 (Seriously.)
Ha–large print! I hear you, Monica. (Even without a hearing aid, just yet.) I look forward to meeting you in person in Chicago. —Pam
I have P. tenuis too and just love it! Beautiful photos.
It’s a pretty penstemon, isn’t it? So delicate seeming, yet tough as nails. —Pam
Great photos. You have always been one of my most elevated teachers on the fantastic garden closeup. You’re so good at it. You know I’m gonna be at the Spring Fling. I truly can’t wait to meet all of the people I don’t yet know, and to see all of my friends I met last year.~~Dee
Wow, thanks for the high praise, Dee. I always feel that I have so much to learn about taking photos myself. But here’s what I’ve learned so far about close-ups, none of which is revelatory if you ever read about photography: shoot in the golden light of sunrise or sunset or on cloudy days, get low, get close, brace your camera against something steady (or use a tripod), take several shots from different angles, discard most of your images, and crop tightly the ones you keep. See you at Spring Fling! —Pam
LOVE the squid agave! Keep those agaves coming!
Brenda
Oh, you’ve become an agave lover too, Brenda. Isn’t the squid great? Have you ever seen the octopus agave (A. vilmoriniana)? It’s cold-tender in Austin, so I haven’t tried it, but it’s so cool-looking. —Pam
Dee, I just had to report back on my quest for the radsunny Knockout … I went to my local Tulsa Whole Foods, and they did indeed have a huge display of Knockout roses in the front, dozens, but all pink or red. I stood there a few minutes feeling more and more dejected, and then I saw it! ONE. ON the end of a row almost out of view. I snatched that thing up so fast! I can’t tell you (but you probably know what I mean) the absolute euphoria at finding it! I asked the employee if they would be getting more in, and she said no. I then went to my local ‘nice’ nursery, and they had Knockouts but zero yellows. I feel like I have a real find and I was giddy all the way home. 🙂
I’m glad you found it, Becky. I went to my favorite nursery to ask for ‘Radsunny’ too, but they didn’t have it. Whole Foods came through for me. —Pam
I mean Pam! Sorry! Right before I started typing I read Dee’s comment. I do know your name. 🙂
No problem. I’ve done that before too. 🙂 —Pam
Thanks, Pam, for the Chicago update! Appreciated!
You’re welcome, Kathryn. —Pam
Thanks for the great memories of last year along with your beautiful photos, Pam.
I’m sorry I will miss the Chicago Spring Fling 2009, but I will enjoy reading about it on everyone’s blogs.
I’m sorry too that you can’t make it this year, Dawn. —Pam
Thank you for starting this wonderful tradition Pam. We’re looking forward to meeting everyone in Chicago. We’re working very hard, doing our best (yes, without much sleep!) to make sure the 2nd Spring Fling is a memorable, enjoyable, bonding experience for everyone who attends.
A few of us on the organizing committee got a chance to be downtown yesterday. We visited Club Quarters Hotel, scouted out reception sites, and visited Millenium Park and the Lurie, where only crocuses and scilla are blooming at the moment. It will be fun to see it again in late May.
I enjoyed your post with “preview” pics of the Club Quarters and other locales that we’ll see in May. Thanks again for all your hard work! —Pam
I had a wonderful time at last year’s Fling, even though I was one of the newest to blogging and hadn’t been reading other blogs for long. I am so glad you encouraged me to come! This year will be great because there will be so many old friends to visit with, as well as new friends to make!
It was fun to carpool with you last year, Cindy, and I’m glad I’ll be seeing you again in Chicago. —Pam
It’s really cool that quite a contingent of bloggers who did not go to Austin will be in Chicago. I do regret that I didn’t see as much of Austin as I wanted to, and glad I am making a longer visit this time.
You must come back sometime, Elizabeth, for a proper tour. As for the new bloggers attending Chicago, that’s one of the results I’d hoped for and expected with a new location each year. —Pam