James Barela is a graphic designer by day, potter, artist, and gardener by night and all the spaces in between. James lives and works in Austin, Texas, where he runs his business Baetanical. At Baetanical you can find as he puts it, “…the Best in Botanical Curiosity”—pieces of plant inspired art, and unique, hand-thrown ceramic containers.
This is a special episode in which I’m broadcasting a cross over episode from my second podcast, Orange Blaze: A Florida Trail Podcast. My guests for the episode are Heather Housekeeper and Scott Weis, 2019 Florida Trail thru-hikers. Heather is a certified herbalist and Scott is a musician, and together they have hiked several trails throughout the eastern US, cultivating their deep love for plants and the outdoors. Be sure to check out the show notes to read their trail journals, purchase Heather’s edible and medicinal guidebooks for the trails she’s hiked, and learn a bit about the biodiversity Florida has to offer.
Today’s episode features Don and Debora Young, founders of the Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area. Don and Debora have been spreading the word about this amazing remnant prairie in east Fort Worth for several decades and when oil and gas exploration activity came to Fort Worth, they wanted to do something to protect this special place. Thus, Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area was formed. Through the years the group has put together a decade of Prairie Fests as well as other outings for groups to get to know Tandy Hills and the unique flora and fauna that reside in this urban prairie landscape.
My parents grew up in the area but it wasn’t until 2010 that I really became familiar with the park and the treasures residing within it. As an avid reader of Don’s Prairie Notes newsletter, I keep tabs on the goings on of the park every month. I knew that I wanted to showcase Tandy Hills and get a bit more insight into the park and Don and Debora were the perfect people to speak with to shed light on the history of the park and just what it means to them.
Be sure to check out the shownotes below to find out how to visit Tandy Hills and how you can support Friends of Tandy Hills Natural Area!
Writer and gardener Nancy Lawson takes gardening for wildlife to the next level. After first encountering her book via my library system’s digital lending services, I have since fallen for the way Nancy writes about wildlife and their interactions in our garden and in our lives. She frequently touches on points that create those ‘aha’ moments and you wonder why you hadn’t been thinking that way from the start. The episode is packed full of great ideas and ways to re-think your approach to gardening for wildlife.
One of my favorite episodes has been with the owners of The Common Milkweed Nursery, “a 3.5 acre nature preserve, wildlife haven, native plant farm, and land lab in North Central Ohio.” Jennifer and Steve are a wealth of knowledge when it comes to native plants of their region and getting a glimpse of that knowledge comes out in this episode! If you enjoy the wonder of what Mother Nature has to offer, this episode is for you!
Imagine taking an interest in all things lepidoptera to a whole new level—from curious naturalist to field guide author. That’s what my guest for this episode, Erin Gettler, did in 2017 with her book Bird Watcher’s Digest Butterflies Backyard Guide. In this episode from season 2, Erin and I chat about the work involved in creating a field guide from the research involved to the fascinating tidbits of information she learned while writing the book. There’s a lot packed into the episode—do check out the book if you’d like to delve more into the world of butterflies in your own backyard!
Kicking off the second episode of the Summer Encore Series is a chat with Mark Sanders of Ninth Ward Nursery. We talk about the organic start to his nursery and how he works to fill niches that are needed in the New Orleans area, including interior-scaping and plant maintenance.
Below is an update from Mark with insight into changes from when we chatted in December 2017:
Since December 2017:
+ I ended up selling the ol’ trailer. At first I thought about making it a plant shop on wheels (too logistically troublesome), then I thought about turning it into a greenhouse (too mildewy), and I thought about turning into an office (too… unnecessary). Then it dawned on me: the space that the trailer is taking up is space that isn’t making money for the nursery. By selling it and putting bamboo in its place, I effectively had more room for plants that would turn a profit. Plus, the trailer was pretty trashy to begin with.
+ I’ve moved more into tropical plants. Succulents have been hot for a while, as have air plants. I’ve expanded my selection to include not only bamboo, but also interesting and rare aroids — the group of plants that includes exotic large-leaved species like philodendrons and monsteras.
+ I’ve gotten out of the pop-up game. For a couple years, I would set up a table in front of friends’ coffee shops or galleries, and sell a few dozen plants while talking up customers. It was more of a PR initiative than anything else — a way to make a few small sales, but more importantly, to pass out business cards and generate buzz for my monthly plant sales at the nursery. As of this spring, I backed off entirely on pop-ups due to how busy the nursery has become. Word-of-mouth has been phenomenal for business, as has the fact that Ninth Ward Nursery is now the top hit in Google searches for “bamboo” and “New Orleans.”
+ I’ve been traveling to other farms in order to learn more about the bamboo business. It’s a weird world, and it’s important to be around men and women who share a passion for this plant and who have faced the same challenges I do as a nurseryman who specializes in bamboo. I toured bamboo farms in Vietnam, south Florida and Oregon, and have plans to visit even more in the coming months.
You can see more press coverage about Mark and the nursery here
I’m kicking off a Summer Encore Series from Seasons 1-3 with episodes you may not have heard or dug through the archives to listen to.
First off is an episode about Urban Forestry and Ecology with a knitting twist as I talk to Leigh Martin. It’s one of my first episodes and I was still working out kinks so you’ll get a few meows at the beginning from my cat Leo, too!
