Coming soon: "Six plants I can't live without" blogathon
Steve Bender, Southern Living‘s senior garden writer and blogger, asked nine other garden bloggers, including me, to post on Monday about the six plants they can’t live without.
It’s a crazy exercise because, let’s be real, gardeners are unstoppable and can adjust to a new climate or growing conditions by leaving old favorites behind and learning to love new plants. I did just that when I moved 1,300 miles (2,000 km) from Raleigh, North Carolina, to Austin in 1994, embracing a new plant palette that made sense for my adopted home. I’d argue that there are no plants you can’t live without, so long as you have some other plants to grow.
It’s also crazy because, hyperbole aside, who can pick only six plants they really love? My extensive list of favorites can be figured out by anyone who’s followed my recent move from my old garden to the new one. What did I dig up and move with me? Yeah, those are my favorites.
But I’m happy to play along with the six-plants meme because Steve asked nicely, and if the Grumpy Gardener asks nicely, you want to say yes.
If you’d like to know which six plants ten garden bloggers across the U.S. choose as their favorites, please visit again on Monday, April 20. Until then, have a great weekend out in the garden with your own favorites!
All material © 2006-2009 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
I look forward to seeing what you post on Monday. I, too, having moved around the country as well as overseas…adapt to the plant palette you have.
It wouldn’t take much of a guess to know which one was top on the list in Austin. It reminds me of a stupid question someone once asked of a gardener who owned pets. If you had to give one up which one would it be. Really!!
Cool — well, we know the Whale’s tongue is at the top of the list. Hmmmm… Guess I will have to come back to see on Monday – have fun whittling down that list!
I had a hard time with the Deserted Island 5 Plants meme. There are just so many great plants, no matter where the garden, that it’s hard to choose, as different plants have different functions in the garden. One might be great for scent, another for fantastic foliage, another for long bloom time. Good luck narrowing down the choices. I agree with Diana’s prediction about the Whale’s Tongue ending up somewhere on that list.
Whales Tongue would be at the top of my list! I will check in to see what data is gathered.
Brenda
Pam, I know you’re up to this! People always say, “How can you force me to choose between two great plants? That’s like asking to choose between two children.” I say that’s not so hard. Choose the child that will send the most money home.
I’m on it, Grumpy! It’ll be my list-for-a-day, because I reserve the right to change my mind and remake my list again the next day…and the day after that…and the day after that. —Pam
Both of your gardens prove how joyfully you’ve embraced the Plant Palette that made sense for your adopted home of Austin, Pam – it will be fun to see how you winnow that down to only six plants that you can’t live without. And if Whale’s Tongue isn’t in there you have really been leading us down the garden path for the last 3+ years ;-]
I’ve found out that it’s possible to exist without tulips or lilacs, but for me it’s more _accepting_ the ones that make sense, rather than _embracing_ them.
Regarding Grumpy Steve’s comment above: I doubt that a gardener who thinks of the plants as children would “choose the child that will send the most money home”; it seems more likely that type of gardener would choose the child/plant that needs them the most.
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
I don’t know about choosing children (makes me think of the heartbreaking movie Sophie’s Choice), but where plants are concerned, I tend to choose the ones that need me the least. I like easy-care plants. That’s why I’m so drawn to natives and xeric plants. —Pam
I know just what you are saying Pam. It is like someone asking which pet is your favorite. Geez… not an easy question to answer. I will look forward to your post and those others too.
I’ve made my list for the blogathon about 10 times already. That’s 60 different plants! Okay, I’ll shall somehow limit myself to only six. See ya Monday! 🙂
Cameron
I’ve been trying to figure out what my six would be! I love too many to narrow it to six. I look forward to reading your Monday post! gail
So I should favor the child who needs me most? Doesn’t that penalize self-sufficiency? Hey, what about my needs? How can I keep taking fabulous vacations all over the world if my needy kid can’t keep himself busy for a measly 3 weeks a year? He has an iPhone, iPod, laptop, high-def TV, play station, Netflix, and a debit card. What more could he want?
Pam, I’m eager to see your choices. I don’t even want to start thinking about my own 6 favorites, I’d go nuts! Good Luck!
hehe, good luck…I’d have to give it some serious thought. Thank you for the “fav” vote…I’m such a dork Pam that I don’t know what that means…I mean in the way of what I’m supposed to do, other than trip over myself to say thank you:) Can’t wait to spend some time with you in Chicago! Whoohoo! I hope you have a fabulous weekend. I just finished the Master Naturalist Class…this minute and am getting ready to put up my solitary bee habitats! whew. Loved the rain today…I think the drought may be subsiding…
Ooooohhhh, Pam, what is that fuzzy leaf in the first photo? Very teasing… if that whale’s tongue isn’t on your list Monday I’ll be wrong about you. Six plants… at first I didn’t give it much thought… then in trying to narrow it down I realized what I had gotten myself into. Look forward to seeing you Monday.
Meems @ Hoe and Shovel
The fuzzy leaf in the top photo is a lamb’s ear, Meems. You’ll have to check in on Monday to see if that plant appears in my list of favorites. 😉 I look forward to seeing what you chose too. —Pam
Hi Pam, a difficult assignment. That Grumpy Gardener has laid down the gauntlet. Interesting to see how everyone handles it.
Frances
I’ll definitely be by on Monday. At my APLD (Association of Professional Landscape Designers) district’s January meeting, the attendees were asked to submit their five most favorite and five least favorite plants. In the two weeks between when we submitted them and then met to review them, almost everyone wanted to make changes! So I know what you mean about the difficulty of narrowing it down.
So what were your five faves, Susan? I am also curious about your least five. Did you post about them? —Pam