Cary, NC — We’ve made some adjustments to our Fall Planting Guide for 2013 to reflect the cooler, rainier weather we’ve had in Cary this year. Get out your gardening gloves for a compendium of flowers, vegetables, shrubs and ground covers for your Fall garden. Read more
Cary, NC – With all the wacky weather this spring and summer, it’s time to plan now to reseed your lawn this autumn. Read more
Story by Lindsey Chester. Photo by Thomas Ormston.
Cary, NC – Spring planting season is almost to a close as the weather heats up in the Triangle. That said, it is an excellent time to take stock of your yard and current landscape and think about making some hardscape improvements. Read more
Story by Lindsey Chester. Photos by Lindsey Chester and Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC – As we head into the summer months here in the Triangle, it is good to consider plants that like it hot and don’t need much water. These drought tolerant plants can keep your gardening lively during the hottest months of summer. Read more
Photo by Katja Schulz.
Cary, NC – As a transplant from New Jersey (relocated Yankee, anyone?), it has taken me a while (15 years and counting) to learn about the best plants for my Zone 7 yard. I’ve learned the hard way not to fight Mother Nature, but instead to embrace plants native to North Carolina. Read more
Story and photos by Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC – On Monday, I had the pleasure of visiting the Culinary Farm at SAS Campus. This gem-of-a-garden supplies fresh vegetables and fruit for Herons, An and the SAS cafeterias.
I had heard about the farm at SAS a while back. Two years ago, the effort got a full-time Culinary farmer. Her name is Maggie Lawrence and she gave me the full tour on a bright morning.
“This is a culinary farm,” Maggie told me. “Everything we grow is for the table.” The farm supplies fresh-picked, organically grown vegetables and fruits to The Umstead Hotel, Herons and An Restaurant. The farm also supplies produce to the employee cafeterias at SAS and The Umstead.
“This is a late-spring garden,” Maggie told me. She’s growing broccoli, fennel, lots of lettuce, turnips, beets, peas and a whole lot more.
I saw cilantro blossoms and red vein sorrel; comfy, tarragon and chervil; opal basil and red Russian kale.
Maggie showed me red bok choi, Napa cabbage and rainbow chard. She has blueberry and blackberry shrubs just getting started with hopes to produce fruit in a couple of years. She even has a small stand of asparagus for future production.
The culinary farm also includes plants like Salvia and butterfly bush, grown not for the table but to attract pollinators like wild honey bees and butterflies.
Looking toward summer, Maggie plans to grown different varieties of tomatoes, cucumbers, carrots, peppers, sweet potatoes and other hot weather crops. She even grows produce for the Hotel bar, including mint and the aforementioned opal basil. “I’ve been consulting with a mixologist,” she explained.
The plot I saw was one of two on the SAS campus. Maggie and her co-worker Ariel Greenwood plant, pick and cultivate it all themselves.
As a guy who loves gardening, it was heaven. But all too soon, we all had to get back to work. Maybe I’ll get invited to visit again.
Story and photos by Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC – The cool, damp weather that has settled on Cary this Spring continued for Herbfest 2013. But the chilly wind did not dampen spirits at Page-Walker for the most successful and interesting celebration of culinary gardening yet. Read more
Story by Lindsey Chester. Photo by Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC – Next Saturday, May 4, 2013, the Friends of Page-Walker host their 4th annual Herbfest celebration. See the historic Page-Walker garden in full bloom, learn about local plants and herbs, sample foods, browse for gifts and garden items and much more.
The Friends have planned a pre-Herbfest reception for Friday, May 3, 2013 at the Page-Walker Arts and History Center (7:00 PM). The kickoff event stars local celebrity food and garden writers Debbie Moose and Carol Stein, co-authors of The (Raleigh) News & Observer’s monthly column, The Tasteful Garden.
Debbie and Carol will talk about how to cook what you grow and grow what you like to eat. Guests will have an opportunity to meet the writers at a wine and hors d’oeuvres reception and book signing following the program.
If you know the Tasteful Garden column, you know Debbie and Carol like to cook with vegetables and herbs they grow here in their Triangle garden.
Debbie is currently on a tour for her latest book, Buttermilk:A Savor The South Cookbook, published by the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She did a book signing appearance recently at La Farm Bakery here in Cary and will visit Charleston, SC.
I asked Debbie what attendees can expect during the evening. “Carol and I tend not to plan too strongly. We have been writing the column for about 8 years together.” She adds, “Carol knows more about gardening and I know more about food trends.”
Debbie and Carol will bring food with them to be sampled at the event. Debbie is debating whether to choose deviled eggs from one cookbook or some potato salad featured in another. Whatever she brings, you be rest assured it will be fresh, using herbs she grows in containers. Like many suburbanites, Debbie’s garden has limited sunny patches suitable for a larger plot.
Growing some types of vegetables can be a challenge in the Piedmont with our acidic soil (thanks Pine trees!) and clay base. I asked Carol Stein “Can you grow a decent tomato here?” Carol said its a question she gets often.
“The answer is yes. But many tomato varieties are subject to soil borne diseases. Tomatoes prefer alkaline soils, with organic compost mixed in. In the garden, they require frequent weeding and for that reason I prefer to grow tomatoes in large containers. My favorite variety is Sun Gold grape tomatoes. They’re prolific, have the sweetest flavor ever, and easy to grow in larger containers.”
The two will no doubt get questions like that one and many others from eager Cary gardeners.
Carol’s 5 tips creating a successful garden:
Debbie mentioned they will talk about growing conditions here in the Piedmont – what plants like it here, but can also look good in your landscape, and what are edible. Maybe a recipe or two will be thrown in at the end, like they do in their weekly column.
The festival continues to grow, adding new vendors and additional food options each year. The date is always the first Saturday in May, falling conveniently before Mother’s Day allowing for purchases of last minute gifts for Mom (or Dad).
Festival-goers will have many opportunities to find out all they need to know about starting an herb garden by touring the Page Educational Garden, including a close-up look at the historic 1850’s Page smokehouse.
In addition, they will have a chance to watch herb cooking demonstrations and stroll through booths selling a wide variety of herbs, crafts and garden products.
The popular Suzanne Tilton, a.k.a. the Butterfly Lady returns to Herbfest this year as a crowd favorite. Her live butterfly releases are scheduled for 11:30 AM and 2:30 PM.
New to this year’s Herbfest is the Friends’ collaboration with the Cary Creative Center From 10:00 AM – 1:00 PM, volunteers from the Center will provide reuse materials and guidance for children to make a fun garden craft. The Cary Creative Center is connecting people with the arts and environment to promote reuse as a way to achieve waste reduction in our community landfills.
Guests also won’t want to miss the silent auction for a chance to win herb and garden-related items, including a garden book and beautiful butterfly/herb photographs.
“We’re so pleased that Herbfest has become a community tradition that brings so many people to historic downtown Cary,” said Friends’ President, Brent Miller. “I know that folks won’t want to miss the special program with Debbie Moose and Carol
Stein on Friday evening, and of course the fantastic vendors, garden tours, children’s activities, food and fun on Saturday.”
Herbfest 2013
presented by the Friends of Page-Walker Hotel
Sat May 4, 2013
9am-3pm
rain or shine
Page- Walker Arts & History Center
119 Ambassador Loop
Cary, NC
Cost: Free
Activities throughout the day, booths with items for purchase.
Pre-festival event “The Tasteful Garden”
Friday May 3, 7:00pm
Authors Carol Stein and Debbie Moose will speak about gardening and cooking.
Attendees can meet the authors during a wine and cheese reception.
Tickets for the pre-festival evening program on May 3 are $20.00 each and can be purchased at the Cary Arts Center box office, online at eTix.com or by phone at 1-800-514-3849. A limited number of tickets are available to this event and a sellout is anticipated.
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The Gardening Column on CaryCitizen is sponsored by Garden Supply Company on Old Apex Rd. in Cary, NC.
Story by Lindsey Chester. Photos by Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC – The soil is finally starting to get warm here in the Piedmont. Time to plant flowers for the summer. Read more
Story by Lindsey Chester. Photo by Hal Goodtree.
Cary, NC- Finally Spring is here, but the ground is still not warm enough to accept plants. Gardeners can satisfy that urge to plant by purchasing smaller specimens and placing them in ornamental containers that also offer flexibility with placement throughout the garden. Read more