Not tonight deer

Early in the morning we see this family making their rounds.

Back when I had a garden nursery there was a product called Not Tonight Deer. It was supposed to keep the deer away from garden plants. Hah. It didn't work of course and we took it off the shelves, but I still think the name is pretty catchy. Watch out for products that claim to do the impossible.

A new year in Brentwood for Meadowlake Gardeners

Last year on Meadowlake Gardener blog , photos of plants and styles within our neighborhood gave us a pictoral record of a year in Meadowlake/Iroquois neighborhood, Brentwood, Tennessee.



Remember the sweet little bird that came after the rain? I thought it was a Baltimore Oriole. One frigid day when I was curled up in my favorite chair, reading Joe Allen's book 'Enjoying Nature About Us'  I learned that this bird is a Towhee. This towhee landed in our birdbath the day after TN May 2010 flood and has made our garden a permanent home for it's new family since then. If you also have a towhee in your garden, you can post a comment to let the rest of us know about it. You might be helping bird conservancy efforts to locate different species.



*Don't forget to put water out for the birds in WINTER too. They will appreciate it!!! Did you know that we are extremely lucky to have so many bluebirds in our neighborhood? Our mature trees and open spaces between our gardens provide a perfect home for these beautiful creatures. Do you have bluebirds? Tell us about that.

 This year, our neighborhood blog will be an interactive place for posting local garden tips. Emma (below) is our spokesperson. Any comment you have can be directed to Emma. She is a terrific listener and is quite knowlegeable about everything outdoors.

Look forward to local gardening sources, sales and inspiration for the new year here in Brentwood / Nashville area. Comments are welcome from all of you.

Comfort Food from the garden

Just before Christmas one of my clients asked if she could grow a nutmeg tree here in TN garden. (Not wanting to be too negative about it with an answer that I might later regret, I said I would look into it.)

After all, just because a plant is best suited elsewhere for climate or humidity concerns doesn't mean that it CAN'T grow here.  There was a gentleman in Clarksville who consistently proved me wrong in this regard. His name was Jimmy Glenn. Jimmy Glenn spent years and years growing trees in his garden that were indigenous to Asia, Australia and many other climes and was successful at it. Mind you, he had a great deal of patience and it was a passion for him.

 In other words, if you have money burning holes in your pockets, (for a greenhouse, for example) an inventive and experimental streak to try unusual things, and have lots of time on your hands, yes, you might be able to grow a nutmeg tree right here in Tennessee. For the rest of us, nutmeg can be found at the local grocery.

It is true. I grate nutmeg on just about everything I cook. It's fragrance permeates the air and that usually means comfort food is on the way.