I am GardenComm by Kathy Jentz

by Kathy Jentz 

I have been a member of GardenComm (formerly GWA) for over a decade now. In that time, I have gotten so much for my membership — from making life-long friends to access to world-class gardens. I have hired fellow members and been hired by others in turn. As with all things in life, what you get out of it is directly related to what you put into it. I am a strong believer that there is an abundance of opportunity out there and we have just scratched the surface.

We are trying to get the word out that the organization is for everyone in the garden media world — garden book authors, podcasters, photographers, radio hosts, bloggers, public relations professionals, newspaper columnists, speakers, etc. If you communicate about gardening, you should join up (or renew if you let your membership lapse in the past)! Feel free to use me as your referral!!!

This video was shot and edited by Alexa Silverberg at the Smithsonian-USBG Orchid Exhibit.   

I am GardenComm. 

Meet the Author

Kathy Jentz is editor and publisher of Washington Gardener Magazine (http://www.WashingtonGardener.com). Her mission is to turn black thumbs green. A life-long gardener, Kathy believes that growing plants should be stress-free and enjoyable. Her philosophy is inspiration over perspiration. 

 

 

 

Finding Community in Gardening

by Teresa Speight

If you garden, scouting your greenspace for that near perfect spot for your special plant to thrive can be difficult. Having a passion for beautiful gardens, plants, garden books and…well, all things garden or garden related can sometimes make finding your place in a community difficult. When you want to write, teach, or just share your vision of gardening so that it reaches the masses, you want to find the most practical place to do so. As I asked around, it was recommended that I join The Association of Garden Writers, currently known as GardenComm.  

When my children were much younger, I took Master Gardener classes. I also acted as parent liaison for a butterfly garden at the elementary school and was known as the worm lady of Fredericksburg, Virginia. As one of the founding farmers at the Eitt CSA in Stafford County, I was picking bugs off of the crops, laying news print from the Freelance Star, and devouring the knowledge of growing organic vegetables and plants. I remember saving my money to buy Dr. Dirr’s Manual of Woody Ornamentals. As a part-time stay at home mom who just happened to garden part-time, it was a huge expense. The excitement of having the book in hand to read the words and identify ornamental plant material was epic. I was so thrilled to acquire this book for my growing library. The little girl whose dad said she could not get dirty in the garden ‘because I was a girl’, had been unleashed. I was learning Latin words and enjoying it.  I also gave back to my community by volunteering as a Central Rappahannock Master Gardener. 

Fast forward to a different life outside of Fredericksburg, I wanted to reach out to people who could only imagine gardening. I decided to start blogging as a way to share gardening, garden travels, and finding the beauty that surrounds us naturally. When I reflected on how much I gardened, read about gardening, visited garden centers, attended talks, and spoke with other like-minded people, I realized that my experiences, in my voice, just might be unique. So I wrote, traveled, spoke and shared in my own voice and it continues to be quite freeing. The opportunity to network with like-minded passionate plants people has opened up a whole new world for me. I look at the authors on my bookshelf and I realize that I am in GREAT company (including Dr.Dirr) as a garden communicator. I am even considering writing a book. Why? I have been inspired by this awesome community and feel I just might have something to say. 

If you want to be YOU-nique in this wonderful word of horticulture, networking, and experience opportunities otherwise unheard of, GardenComm just might be what you are looking for. The sense of belonging, the camaraderie, the genuine support found in this garden of communicators is amazing. As with any organization, what you put into it can make the organization what you want it to be. I can proudly say…I am GARDENCOMM!

Meet the Author

A Native Washingtonian, garden communicator Teresa Speight has found a niche sharing the beauty of this earth via her blog https://www.cottageinthecourt.com, speaking engagements, Garden Experiences, and civic involvement. Former Sr. Gardener for the City of Fredericksburg, Virginia, Owner – Cottage In The Court Landscape Maintenance -specializing in Estate Gardens, Vice President/Communications Director of the Capitol Hill Garden Club as well as Region II Director for Gardencomm, finding and creating unique interpretations of all things beautiful is her passion.  

 

 

 

 

For the Love of Gardening

by Jerol Anderson

I joined GardenComm because plants are my very best friends. It’s a thrill to plant a seed or little plant and watch it become a gorgeous smile-provoking bloom or vine or bush. I used to call them my babies. But, of course, now I have real babies and they have babies that I enjoy learning to know. So that parallel is not so easy to make when I know the real thing.  

I enjoy being alone a lot and a person who is alone a lot sometimes has a propensity toward a little depression. If I am feeling too alone, I turn to my garden in summer or my greenhouse in winter or just pop into a garden center for the earthy scent and the fresh air created by my friends. Even an hour or so of getting lost in a world of plants in the winter can truly get the endorphins flowing for me.  

The only anger I feel while gardening is when I work up to it in order to remove a prolific weed that is choking out some pretty little plant. And then the anger is really artificial just so I can muster the physical strength to pull out the big guy or the stamina to keep at the pulling project until it’s finished.  

I have friends and relatives, who don’t appreciate or share in my love, love, love of a garden. One friend actually has artificial flowers in the pots in front of her house during the gardening months. I can forgive them but I’m still learning not to talk about horticulture when I am around them. Someone very special to me, who had a negative bent toward flowers, stood with me one summer afternoon as we gazed from my deck across the zillions of perennials blooming. Her comment was, “Look at that cute little bird perched there.” It was a clay bird that adorned the birdbath. I’ve learned to force a closed mouth smile and nod.  

It’s also fun to laugh about my obsession with the garden. I mean even in the winter when I can’t get to sleep at night it’s not sheep I’m counting, it’s my garden for spring I’m planning and scrutinizing. ‘Who’ can live in the proximity of ‘whom’ and be a true asset to the eye candy I’m creating for myself. And, it is for myself. Friends come over to share my garden and tell me I should sign up to be on a garden tour with others in the area. And have strangers gaping at and touching my babies??? Oops, I mean specimens.  

My obsession is as an escape. A place to go to forget everything else in the world, almost like meditation. But as a novelist it’s also fun to create characters who actually don’t like people – even their own children – as they worship the perfect rose or hydrangea. A good example is in the third novel of my Jessica Tyson Mystery Series, EMMA’S GARDEN. Or, at the other end of the spectrum, there are other characters in THE QUEEN ANNE FOX and A LAKE KOSHKONONG TALE, who truly find peace in the beauty of the natural flora and fauna of God’s creation. I am GardenComm. 

 Meet the Author

When not writing, Jerol shares her time with her husband, ‘The Critique King’, two lovely daughters and their families (yes, grandchildren), another stepdaughter and stepson and their families (yes, grandchildren), and a bird named Tonto. She has Bachelor’s Degree in Creative Writing and Biology. Also enough credits for the Chemisty Degree, but a triple major wasn’t allowed. All those science years are of yet another lifetime. They come in handy when crafting a mystery chocked with medical and forensic info. Visit her on her blog www.jerolanderson.com or on Face Book.