Flower Power Garden Hour

Latest Episodes:

Flower Power Garden Hour 130: January To Do List Jan 12, 2022

Show notes

Here in northern California, it has been a cold and thankfully wet winter. As we are at the season midpoint, here is January's to do list.

Prune roses
Spray fruit trees – liquid copper, dormant oil
Clean up old fruit
Plant bare-root fruit trees, grapes, blueberries, asparagus
Hold off on pruning fruit trees
Plant: Bok choy, broccoli rabe, loose leaf lettuce, radishes, mustards
Order summer vegetable seeds
Add beneficial nematodes
Compost

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

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Flower Power Garden Hour 129: The history of holiday plants , with Matt Mattus Dec 23, 2021

Show notes

Have you ever wondered why during the holidays we bring mistletoe inside? What were some of the plants brought inside during Victorian times? In this episode, I talk to horticulturist Matt Mattus about the history of holiday plants and how to care for them. Matt has been gardening since the age of 9 on his family's historic 1910 Worchester, MA home. An expert in most aspects of gardening, he specializes in South African bulbs and alpine plants. Matt has been featured in Martha Stewart Living and Better Homes & Gardens, and is currently a contributor to Fine Gardening.

Mat can be found at:

Check out Matt's highly educational books – links to where they can be found are attached:

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

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Flower Power Garden Hour 128: Listener Q&A Dec 18, 2021

Show notes

This is a listener Q&A episode. Questions cover topics including:

Cactus – how to remove new growth
Fuyu persimmons -- this year's crop has seeds in the fruit, and in years past has not. Ideas why?
Plumeria – should it stay outside or bring inside during the cold weather
Poinsettias – they are not turning red, even though they are being kept in relative dark. Is there anything that can help them turn red?
Bereavement – how do I keep healthy? There are many different plants on this one

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 127: December To Do List Dec 11, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, I discuss December garden To-Do tasks. Winter is in full swing, and lots to do.

Pest mitigation – aphids, cabbage looper, nematodes
Plant bulbs
Plant vegetables -- asparagus, bok choy, kale, loose leaf lettuce, mustard, radishes
Move succulents out of potential rain
Smother weeds
Plant bareroots

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 126: Orchids, with Shawn Shumaker Nov 28, 2021

Show notes

Orchid grower Shawn Shumaker breaks down all the do's and dont's to successfully grow orchids inside your home… including the number one tip to get yours to rebloom. Plus -- is the ice cube watering method good or bad, what planting media should you use and what should be done to control pests. If you are looking to expand your collection, Shawn discusses other species that can be grown inside just as easily as Phalaenopsis.

You can follow Shawn at:

Instagram: @Shawn_shumaker

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 125: Listener Q&A Nov 13, 2021

Show notes

Listener Q&A episode. Topics include:

New growth on cactus – should it be removed, and if so…how?
Hydrangeas – when to cut and how
Lemons – why are they cracking?
Musa basjoo – recommendations for transitioning into fall/winter
Maple tree – recommendations to improve growing conditions

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 124: November To Do List Nov 10, 2021

Show notes

In this episode, I discuss November garden To-Do tasks. There is actually quite a lot as we transition fully into the colder and wetter months of the year.

Continue clean up – pull out dead plants; remove lead, vegetable and fruit debris
Plant bulbs – chill tulips or buy Darwin varieties
Divide grasses, agapanthus, etc
Plant vegetables: Fava beans, bok choy, broccoli, celery, swiss chard, garlic, kale, kohlrabi, leaf lettuce, mustard, onions, radish, shallot, spinach
Plant cover crops: Fava beans, red clover
Move succulents out of potential rain
Bring plumerias inside
Plants non-frost sensitive perennials
Plant sweet peas (plants or seeds)
Plant CA native seeds
Turn off irrigation
Controls winter weeds (like oxalis)

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 123: Growing Succulents, with Gianluca Bacci, Part 2 Oct 31, 2021

Show notes

Want to grow your succulents to perfection? Want to venture into growing more difficult ones? Or how about just not wanting to kill them? Then this episode is for you. Gianluca Bacci -- expert succulent grower -- joins me to discuss soils, watering, Lithops, Welwitschia and more.

Gianluca can be followed at:

Instagram: @marinsect_gianluca

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 122: Growing Succulents, with Gianluca Bacci, Part 1 Oct 31, 2021

Show notes

Gianluca can be followed at:

Instagram: @marinsect_gianluca

To ask questions for future shows, submit them at:

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email Marlene at marlenetheplantlady@gmail.com

Find Marlene over on YouTube, Instagram and Facebook

Flower Power Garden Hour 121: Dr. Cassandra Quave, The Plant Hunter: A Scientist's Quest for Nature's Next Medicines Oct 18, 2021

Show notes

Dr. Cassandra Quave is a botanist extraordinaire. I was fortunate to chat about her early life, career path, and her new book "The Plant Hunter: A Scientist's Quest for Nature's Next Medicines."

Book Description:

In The Plant Hunter, Dr. Quave weaves together science, botany, and memoir to tell us the extraordinary story of her own journey. Traveling by canoe, ATV, mule, airboat, and on foot, she has conducted field research in the flooded forests of the remote Amazon, the murky swamps of southern Florida, the rolling hills of central Italy, isolated mountaintops in Albania and Kosovo, and volcanic isles arising out of the Mediterranean — all in search of natural compounds, long-known to traditional healers, that could help save us all from the looming crisis of untreatable superbugs. And as a person born with multiple congenital defects of her skeletal system, she's done it all with just one leg. Filled with grit, tragedy, triumph, awe, and scientific discovery, her story illuminates how the path forward for medical discovery may be found in nature's oldest remedies.

"The Plant Hunter: A Scientist's Quest for Nature's Next Medicines" can be found at penguinrandomhouse.com

Cassandra can be followed at:

Instagram: @quavesthnobot

Twitter: @QuaveEthnobot

Podcast: foodiepharmacology.podbean.com

Website: cassandraquave.com

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