Agave Addicts Anonymous: I have a succulent problem
August 18, 2010
Hello, my name is Pam…
I spotted this T-shirt at the Great Outdoors Nursery‘s gift shop. Perfect, eh?
No, I didn’t buy it. I saved my money for plants I shouldn’t have bought at this time of year. (Come on, autumn!) I also took a lot of pictures so that I could give you a tour of this excellent independent nursery located just south of downtown Austin. Coming soon…
All material © 2006-2010 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
I know quite a few people who need this shirt (including myself). Just checked out The Great Outdoors website and it looks like a cool place. Can’t wait for the tour.
It’s a great tee. I may have to back and get one. —Pam
OMG….I NEED one of these T-shirts! It throws me every time you talk about this place, The Great Outdoors. It reminds me of a big box store in Phoenix by a similar name. Maybe the Great Indoors?
I know, it’s not a great name, is it? But it’s definitely worth a visit if/when you come to Austin. —Pam
This is too funny! However, I think we should invent a whole line of shirts. How about these:
” Caution: This gardener is stuck on Agaves”
“Agaves: Growing anything else is just pointless…
and the worst (best?)…. “My garden is just Yucca without Succulents”
I probably need to go to bed now before I think of any more of these. David Tropical Texana/Houston
Creating a line of agave-focused clothing could be a thorny business, David, but I bet we’re sharp enough to do it! I am certain there would be a spike in sales as soon as people saw your clever slogans. My favorite is the second one. For a crasser version, how about Life Sucks Without Succulents? —Pam
It was worth stopping in just to read David’s comment. He was on a roll, but I agree with his last little funny, it was the best. Now if I could only think of an illustration to go with it, but maybe the words say it all. Thanks David for making the morning HAPPY.
David WAS on a roll—such a great comment. I just know that Annie in Austin will stop by and add a few more. She’s not an agave lover, but she loves word play. —Pam
If I lived where these plants thrived I would have to be initiated into the club.
You’re already in this club, Lisa, what with your cactus portraits and love of spiky plants. —Pam
HA ha ha! But you don’t need the t-shirt anyway, cuz EVERYONE knows you have a succulent problem!!! I really want to go to the sale – not sure I have the time – should I MAKE the time? What’s left now?
Tsk, tsk, Diana. What a question. Yes, you always make time for a good plant sale. On the other hand, I came home with quite a lot, and now I have to wait until it’s cool enough to plant. Crazed to plant and rearrange a few things, I made the mistake of moving a Knock Out rose and planting a couple of little things the other day. Now I’m having to get out there and water twice a day and use umbrellas to shade them. —Pam
I love The Great Outdoors. It really is my favorite nursery. I do, however, wish they would NOT play that loud music! It really annoys me when I’m having an otherwise peaceful nursery experience.
That Dave in Houston is FUNNY! I like him.
My absolute favorite is still Barton Springs Nursery, but TGO and the Natural Gardener are close runners-up. Funny, but I’ve never noticed the music at TGO. Guess I get too focused on plants and become oblivious to all else. —Pam
Ha, I love it. The world needs more gardening themed t-shirts.
Yes, it does! We’re an under-served market. —Pam
Ha ha…maybe Abq should import some Austin Agaveseros, to add some spice to overcome too much Yankee Horticulture. (that mindset is into “pointless plants”) And David / Tropical Texana should be in advertising or corporate branding with that creativity – powerful, catchy slogans! Thanks for cheering me up.
Seriously, I’d buy one of his shirts. But does Albuquerque really need schooling on the joys of gardening with agaves?! —Pam
Hello. Do I need this t-shirt or WHAT? 17 different kinds of agaves in my tiny garden, PLUS aloes, PLUS echeverias and sedums – and now food. I have crossed the line into some crazy thing!
XOXOIvette!
Crazy beautiful! Keep it up, Germi. —Pam
It’s hard to resist a good plant no matter what time of year. If you could see my driveway/nursery. Looking forward to the post. gail
You too, Gail? We’re too eager for our zones, aren’t we? Come on, Fall! —Pam
Hello Pam,
My hand is raised up high….I am totally addicted to succulents, especially agave. I would love a shirt like this. I look forward to your next post 🙂
PS. Thank you very much for your kind comments on my latest posts.
Noelle
There are a lot of us in Agave Addicts Anonymous, aren’t there? I’ll have the post about the nursery up on Saturday. —Pam
Hi Pam- saw your tweet & tried to think up a pun while out watering but think my brain is fried. On Monday could only remember botanical names – lost the regular ones… 3 hours after M of Zanthan Gardens went home I finally came up with “Barbados Cherry” Duh!
All I got for Succulent T-shirt: picture of Whale with Whale’s Tongue Agave replacing water spout and slogan ‘Thar She grows!’
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
I LOVE IT! That would be so perfect, Annie. (Knew you’d come up with something good.) —Pam
Or the classic, “Is that an agave in your pocket, or are you just happy to see me?”
Look what you’ve started, Pam. Can’t wait to see what you bought!
No agaves this time. Can you believe it? Because there was a good sale going on, I picked up a number of filler plants for some of my new beds. I did get a few succulents for my daughter’s new washtub planter. —Pam
Love that shirt and all the other ideas! Look forward to your pictures, may need to make a trip there soon.
After reading your blog a few weeks it’s clear that we simply..must..have..an..agave.. Now!
Have already planned a spot for it.
Yes, you need one! And one will lead to another, and another, and another. They’re like chips; you can’t have just one. —Pam
Cute shirt. And, spending time at Great Outdoors, could get a person hooked, for sure. Looking forward to your ‘tour’.
I’m forcing myself to stay out of garden centers. I ran into Home Depot for some brackets for a shelf, and ended up with some Turk’s Cap. Not exactly planting friendly weather out there, right now.
Have a great weekend. Stay cool.
You are wiser than I, staying out of nurseries right now. It IS too hot to plant, so most of my purchases are having to wait out August and maybe September in the shade of a live oak. I just couldn’t resist! —Pam
Q: What did the agave say when the gardener clipped off its spines?
A: Nothing,it was just dis-a-pointed.
I want someone to make these T-shirts. Really!
David /Tropical Texana:-)
P.S. I didn’t know we had such clever wordplayers out there, but it makes perfect sense. Garden bloggers probably love words as much as plants!
Yep, garden bloggers do seem to love word play. I would love to see someone make these shirts too. And maybe some tote bags… —Pam
Ok, I just thought of one more. This is it. I promise. (Plus I need to go water all my pooooor plants. It’s rained almost zilch in the last 3 1/2 weeks.)
Q: Why did the agave and the yucca argue with the basketball coach when they joined the team?
A: Because they both wanted to play “point” guard.
Now could some creative soul please make our T-shirts? I’m still laughing about the ‘Thar she Grows’ comment from Noelle which,incidentally, was probably the highpoint(lowpoint?) in pun humor.
But Pam using 3 puns in one comment line broke the Pun-O-Meter in the shortest time. Ouch! 🙂
David/Tropical Texana
Chuckle…groan. You’re on overdrive, David. To give credit where due, Annie in Austin was the one who came up with Thar She Grows. It’s a great image, isn’t it? —Pam
Pam,
I should have posted the link to this story a month ago when it ran, knowing your obsession with agaves. I hope you enjoy it. It was really fun to write, and hard to keep taking notes because I was so distracted by all these specimens I had never seen.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/fea/lifetravel/stories/DN-nhg_agave_0715gd.ART.State.Edition1.4eb1ff1.html
Great article, Curtis. Thanks for sharing it. His big ‘Whale’s Tongue’ agave could be the twin of mine! —Pam