Read about my garden in Country Gardens magazine
My garden is featured in a national gardening magazine, and I’m pretty excited about it! Grab the summer 2019 issue of Country Gardens (not just country gardens, y’all), turn to page 66, and you’ll find my article “Plant for Drought, Plan for Rain.” It’s about how I designed my garden to deal with two common challenges for gardeners in Central Texas: too much rain and not enough.
Dance with the one that brung you. That old Southern saying is, to my mind, the perfect analogy for smart gardening in challenging climates anywhere, but especially here in Austin, where “soil-cracking droughts end in gully-washer rains.” The 8-page spread talks about water-saving design strategies I used, as well as the payoffs. I also profile 11 striking, hard-working plants in my garden.
During production of the story, which began in October 2017, I got to work again with talented photographer Ryann Ford and her right-hand man, Sean Johnson.
I always enjoy teaming up with these hard-working but lighthearted pros on a garden shoot; we’ve also done East Austin Succulents and a San Antonio garden. But it’s kind of astonishing when it’s my own.
Here’s the cover of the summer issue. Now you can find it and speed-read it in line at the grocery store. Even better, buy it and enjoy the whole issue!
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Digging Deeper
Come learn about gardening and design at Garden Spark! I organize in-person talks by inspiring designers, landscape architects, authors, and gardeners a few times a year in Austin. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance; simply click this link and ask to be added. Season 8 kicks off in fall 2024. Stay tuned for more info!
All material © 2024 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Love this, Pam. I hope the gardening season ahead is “normal” — whatever that might be.
Normal will be hot as Hades – ha! – but that’s all part of the seasonality here. Thanks for the good wishes!
That is so awesome Pam!! Your garden is amazing and such an inspiration. I’m grabbing an issue.
Aw, thanks, Karin. Happy reading!
Congrats Pam! I’ll look for the issue.
I hope you enjoy the issue, Kris! Btw, there’s also an article about a community garden (an alley, actually) in Boise, so two waterwise western gardens are represented.
Congratulations. That is wonderful. I will look for the magazine when I go to the store!
Thanks, Cindee!
Yay! I will look for this at the store.
Happy reading, Loree!
How wonderful to have a Texas garden represented in a national magazine! I do subscribe to a couple of garden magazines but I do it mainly for the pretty photos and to see the different offerings for sale (an English magazine) of items not available here in the U.S. Most gardening articles have no relation with gardening in areas of Texas. I am in Houston. I don’t understand why there is not an acknowledged gardening scene here. Maybe there are not enough gardeners here? I must admit I hardly ever see signs of true gardening in the front yards in my neighborhood and around. Just the typical grass, foundation shrubs, trees. When Spring rolls around and everyone runs to the nurseries, you see some flowers. But then the heat and humidity set in and they are gone. I wish we had the gardening scene you in Austin have! I enjoy your blog. I really like the TV show, Central Texas Gardener – I really, really wish we in Houston had something similar! Actually, I know there is interest here. There is a FB page for Houston Gardening. The majority of what I see, though, are newbies to the scene, mainly interested in veggie growing. As summer progresses, the posts drop off. It’s discouraging for new veggie growers to have put so much into their gardens only to have the heat and humidity encourage every fungus, bacteria and bug to attack every thing you have! I feel sorry for the newbies I see posting in Spring who say they are new to gardening and are from ‘up north’ and ask what grows here. I only hope they don’t give up when the first strong wave of Summer hits.
It has been amazing to see the growth of your garden over the years. You have done so much with it. It is lovely!
Thank you, Lara. We are fortunate here in Austin to have such a vibrant gardening scene. But I feel sure in a city the size of Houston that there are tons of avid gardeners there too. You just need to find them. Maybe ask around at good independent nurseries for local gardening clubs or talks. Or organize your own meetups and ask if they’ll publicize it on their online newsletter. Join the new Houston Botanic Garden and attend their educational events. On FB, follow Ravenscourt Landscaping & Design LLC in Houston; they blog about garden design and may know of local garden events. Good luck!
I’m looking forward to reading it too! You know I’m all about crossroads gardening with our 33 inches of rain as we straddle the 100th meridian — the geographers demarcation of wet and dry USA. Our rainy season is putting on quite a show for now — new daylily blooms to see every day!
Crossroads gardening is a good way of putting it, Tom. And 100th Meridian would be a great blog name for an Austin gardener! (hint) Enjoy those daylilies. Mine are just starting.
Well, phooey, I just pulled Country Gardens from the shelf at the store, and it is an old issue that was supposed to be removed and replaced a week ago. I’ll keep an eye out for the newer issue.
It’s in the summer issue, Laura. 🙂