Sharing

For the past several years, now, I have driven past the gardens of Angie Bennett, and craned my neck to get a better peak at it. From the road, I could tell that a Master Gardener lived there, as an abundance of colors reached my eye. Finally, earlier this summer, I decided to do something about my sore neck, and get a better view.

So, after a phone call, I spent one evening touring Angie’s gardens. Angie, and her husband Russell, live on a large piece of farm land, with about an acre of it devoted solely to Angie’s flowers. And if it grows in Georgia, you can pretty much bet that Angie grows it in her own garden.

I was dazzled by her beautiful daylilies, endless colorful lantana, and especially the breathtaking blue garden, where she grows an assortment of blue flowers.

Angie first started to really garden when she and her family moved into their current home. Her love of gardening, though, first came to her through her grandmother, who had a strong passion for all things gardening. As Angie’s love of gardening grew, so did her own garden.

Her first garden bed was situated around the house, itself, but as the years passed by, the garden grew, as did her knowledge.

When I asked Angie what advice she had for beginning gardeners, she told me that she keeps a gardening book. In this book, she keeps pictures of plants, flowers, and flower beds in it, pictures that she takes from magazines, such as Southern Living, and other gardening magazines. This book becomes a personal reference list to her. Angie also keeps a gardening journal, in which she records such information as who gave her a specific plant, what plant grew well, what plant did not, and why each lived or died. Along with this, Angie labels each bed, and records what is in each one.

One of the biggest challenges that Angie has faced as a gardener the past few years is the drought, and what has come with it. Not only has our lack of water made it more difficult to grow flowers and vegetables, but Angie has also battled the bugs that come with it. Fortunately, Angie has at her disposal simply that, disposal, or cow manure. She uses plenty of manure to fertilize her garden beds, as was evident to me. Angie’s flowers were some of the biggest and most colorful I had seen in some time. Good soil preparation is important in middle Georgia, and Angie has worked hard in this area, one wheelbarrow at a time.

When speaking to her, Angie told me something that rang true to my ears. “True gardeners share, whether it be information or plants.” How true! I not only learned a lot from Angie’s experience she shared with me, but I left with some of those beautiful daylilies I mentioned earlier.

So, when you drive past a beautiful garden, don’t be afraid to call upon them for a visit. As Angie said, “True gardeners share.” Enjoy!