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brandon7_gw

The East Tennessee Spring Plant Swap was a Huge Success!

brandon7 TN_zone7
15 years ago

We had an awesome swap. The weather was beautiful, the food was great, the locations terrific, and there was lots of plants I had never even heard of before. I think we had around 40 this time. We also learned all the details about conserving rainwater with homemade rain barrels.

Thank you tnshadylady for letting us use your home and yard!

I'm worn out from planting all the stuff I got, but wish I could do it all over again! You guys/gals are just super!

Comments (24)

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    oops....locations = location

  • TnShadyLady
    15 years ago

    I agree, it was an awesome swap! Thank you to everyone that came. You all are the greatest folks!I hope everyone had as fun as I did.

  • Amazindirt (7a TN)
    15 years ago

    GREAT SWAP!!

    I'm SOOOOO glad we postponed it by a day. Gave me time to pot up a bunch more stuff, and the weather was simply perfect. And Nat's yard is the perfect place for it. Yay us! :-)

  • zinniasareok
    15 years ago

    Thanks to all of you, and nice meeting you. I didn't have much to trade, but you were generous with your plants. I just got in from the yard; I spent the whole afternoon and evening planting stuff. I enjoyed looking at all the plants; it was an educational experience just to see all the varieties that grow here.

    Maybe I'll see some of you at that rain barrel-making workshop in June

  • madmouser
    15 years ago

    That was a great swap. I got some great plants. Thank you all!

  • zinniasareok
    15 years ago

    Can someone post the email address of the lady who did the rain barrel presentation? I didn't get one of her cards.

    I want to get on the list for the June 14 workshop. I catch small amounts of rainwater in buckets all the time for my plants (a habit left over from the years in the Southwest desert), so I am ready to make the next step to larger amounts of rainwater.

  • madmouser
    15 years ago

    You can reach her at her Knox County Office
    parci.gibson@knoxcounty.org
    More information on rain barrels in Knox County and where to get them at the link below.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Water barrel info

  • Amazindirt (7a TN)
    15 years ago

    Hey Zinnia --

    Thanks again for those strawberry pots! If you ever want some more hostas, I think I still owe you a couple. Just ask!

  • cannahavana
    15 years ago

    I had great time too. It was good to see old friends and make potential new ones! The food was great and so was the rain barrel demo. Marianndretti followed me home and raided my garden after she raided Nats, LOL! It's always fun and entertaining to have Marianne with us. :) We were thinking about serving popcorn while we watch her pack her truck with her loot.

    Now on to the MTPS! Yikes, its approaching fast and I need to dig!

    Rebecca

  • zinniasareok
    15 years ago

    Are many of you driving all the way to Nashville for the MTPS? Is it just huge, or what?

    Leanne

  • Amazindirt (7a TN)
    15 years ago

    Heck Leanne, now that the MTPS swap site has been moved it's gonna be a SHORT drive. Several of us used to drive about 5 hours to get there -- now it'll only be about 3! ;-)

    It's not a **huge** swap, but it's a lot of fun. :-)

  • bigorangevol
    15 years ago

    It was freakin huge that spring of '06! :-(

    I hope that we have between 100-150 and that will huge enough for me!!!

    But then again you never know, we may have a lot more than that show up when you consider the possible Lucas Holman (aka. Daylily Kid) groupie factor. I just hope all the screaming teen-age girls don't throw their underwear at him while he's trying to give his lecture. :-)

  • alotgreener
    15 years ago

    I'm glad it went well and I'm sorry I missed it!

  • Amazindirt (7a TN)
    15 years ago

    Ya, keep in mind that I've never been to the spring swaps -- only the fall ones!

  • mari5us
    15 years ago

    The Knoxville swap was a blast!! My neighbor Jan came up with me , it was her first swap and she is hooked!! She said my "plant swapin friends" were the nicest people she had ever met. I think she'll be back, lol.
    Cheryl -- thank you for hosting us again and on such short notice too !!! Ohh and for digging in your garden for me-- I just love the lime green spiderwort with the electric blue flowers!! Your gardens are very beautiful, it was a pleasure just to be in them. Thank you.
    Canna, whoops- we never made it to your compost pile did we?? wink,wink ;)
    Ione, I'm bringing more hosta to the MTPS and between now and then I'm going to look for more of the orange marmalade
    hosta.
    I enjoyed seeing all my friends again!! Thank you all for a wonderful day !!!
    Marianndretti

  • TnShadyLady
    15 years ago

    Marianne - - You don't know how happy I was to have an ID on that beautiful but aggressive groundcover. After reading about Ranunculus "Popcorn", I see that it might be the perfect thing for me to relocate to under one of my Maples that desperately needs a groundcover that can handle full shade.

    I had looked through numerous gardening books hoping to ID my Ranunculus, and I was so afraid that someone from the swap would going to tell me it was a weed (cause it sure grows like one!). But it will be beautiful in a place where it can run rampant and I don't have to worry about it overpowering my other plants.

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Cheryl, that stuff IS a weed! It's in lots of yards and fields around here. It's kind of pretty but, like dandelions, it can keep you from having that pure green monoculture yard that many people seek. If you grow a big patch of it, you and your neighbors are almost certain to have it in your yards.

    If you want more, come over to the farm with a shovel and a semi truck. I'll put you to work. Oh, and I could help you find other pretty "groundcovers" too. (-:

  • TnShadyLady
    15 years ago

    You know, that's what I suspected. I think I'll just yank it out (and probably yank it out for years to come).

    And we are not seekers of a pure green monoculture yard. I just try to keep from having bare spots and thorny weeds. But I don't want to introduce a new thug to the yard. I do not believe that I ever planted this stuff and suspect that it was a hitchhiker on some other plant given to me.

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    Wait!!!!! Does that mean you're not going to come over and weed my field let me share my plants with you?

  • bigorangevol
    15 years ago

    Doc the spring of '06 was the swap where we had over 400 show up. Jan, Jim and I lost several years off our lives that day.

    Brandon where are the pictures???

  • brandon7 TN_zone7
    Original Author
    15 years ago

    A few people, including Laura, took pics which might get put onto the website later. I never bring my camera because I'm too busy getting plants to people.

  • madmouser
    15 years ago

    Coming momentarily. Kept forgetting to get my camera out of the car.

  • tngreenthumb
    15 years ago

    bigorangevol:"I just hope all the screaming teen-age girls don't throw their underwear at him while he's trying to give his lecture. :-)"

    OK. Now I'm worried.

    I'm worried that WILL happen and I'll have my camera out and going and Chris Hanson will step out from behind a tree and ask me to "Have a seat over there."

  • bigorangevol
    15 years ago

    Sick!

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