Hello everyone,
Lately I haven't been doing anything but read. Even my time on the computer has been limited since I feel so crummy (or crumby??). Anyway I haven't forgotten those I promised
seeds and/or eggs to, I just haven't been up to preparing either. This experience has made me cut back extensively on gardening plans which kept getting bigger and bigger.
Much of this may be old news to some, but I thought I'd share some of what I've learned. My reading started out 2005 with Katharine White's
Onward and Upward in the Garden for the second or third time--though I haven't been in it for many years. (Actually I re-read Austen's
Pride and Prejudice first) There is a pb edition of White's book available, but I found mine at one of these 3 used book sources (these are just the ones I use, but check out the shipping charges since I've bought from some sources and the shipping prices were very much higher than necessary)
ABE Books Half.Com and of course Amazon.com
Once I got into the book, I had to check the ending--I'm a mystery fan who can't wait until the end. I guess it's cheating but I've never been good at tolerating suspense. Anyway, at the back of this book is a list of catalogs, many of which are no longer available and some of the ones that are listed are no longer top notch according to Garden Watchdog. But I ordered the free ones!
There is also a bibliography, most of which are not in print--but most are available at reasonable prices through one of the three sites above. Some are available but at museum or special collector's prices. Leaves me out!
Katharine White quotes often from Elizabeth Lawrence's books--but they were out of print when the paperback was printed. So I ordered several of her books since she is a "Southern" gardener.
One book I've browsed through talks at length about regional gardeners and says that most garden writers are from the Northeast, but that is never specified. I think that more and more it is necessary to at least specify
zone, if not "Northeastern", Northwestern, Southern, etc.
Now to
MARKET BULLETINS but not the bulletins for Labor or the Stock Market.
Gardening for Love: The Market Bulletins by Elizabeth Lawrence, 1904-1985, is a compilation of wonderful gardening stories and of the value of market bulletins and her correspondence with gardeners she "met" through them. She concentrates on the
Mississippi Market Bulletin and mentions several others in the afterword--always have to check that--but my home state of LA is neglected there. I remember as a pre-teen my father received the LA market bulletin which I enjoyed reading, but it was omitted. Soon discovered by reading the preface
next that the LA one stopped in 1966.
(I HAD read the introduction first, though and LA was not mentioned.)
LA on-line market bulletin So LA has resurrected its MB and the SC and MS ones are also fine. LA and SC are made available on the internet at least twice a month--but I haven't researched any other states. SC is the only one I read through and although many will send
seeds for a small price with an SASE, the
plants will not be shipped. CT was the only state at the time this was written not in the south that Miss Lawrence found at the time.
I highly recommend both books and the market bulletins for interesting reading for gardeners.
Check to see if your state is listed if you haven't already found Market Bulletins.
And thanks for all the entertaining and informative reading here.
Ann