Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
In here. This is Let's Garden with Scott Berlin. I
am Scott, and I am joined today by two incredible horticulturists,
guys that can answer any question. I hope you call
with your questions because they can answer it like nobody else.
Can you know your your chance of getting a perfect
(00:20):
answer is one hundred.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Percent with these guys, no pressure.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Yeah, anybody else it's you know, the other guests I
bring on. It's in the upper nineties, but these guys
are one hundred percent. And I am I am glad
you're both here, Jim or I'm sorry, John Butcher, John Butcher,
Madison Tree Care and Landscape. How's it going, Scott, I
got no sleep last night. I We'll see how it goes.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We'll get you through it.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Yeah. I feel like I'm already sounding like a lunatic,
but that's probably normal anyway, normal normal, And I'm with
Steve Foltz, my boss, a director of horticulture at the
Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo. Good morning, morning, Scott, Good morning,
John morning, Steve, Good morning John boy. Yes, oh man,
(01:08):
memories of that so man, it has been a rainy
couple of days at my house at least. I got
well over three inches yesterday and it poured. It came
down hard. There was lightning that made me say things
I'm not proud of.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
It's been really good for the plants. The rain nice,
timely all summer, no real drought stress. April was probably
the only month this year where I felt any pressure.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Ironically, Yeah, crazy right. My lawn looks just the deepest green.
You know. I don't do anything all the weeds, yeah,
it basically yeah, yeah, all the other stuff, you know,
just it's a mixed bag. Man.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
I love your lawn.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Yeah, I'm trying to feed the pollinators with my lawn
seating Steve, how is your lawn we're looking? Oh it's green,
it's green. That's all our care. Then yeah, yeah, we'll
talk a little bit more about that. I've got a
point I want to make a little later in the show,
and it'll be an interesting point, I think. See ye
(02:13):
how that goes later on we will have a really
cool guest, Charlie Frank from the Cincinna Reds Foundation, will
be on. Every year they do a community makeover and
usually a challenge part of town and they fix up
ball fields and rec centers, and over the past what
(02:36):
eight years ten years now, the Zoo has been on
board helping him out along with other leaders in the
community and adding a horticultural component.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
Yeah, Charlie's one of my favorite people. He is just
a phenomenal human being and I can't wait to talk
to him today.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Yeah, I've only talked to him just a little bit,
but when I have and when I've heard him speak,
I agree with you. The impression is so good and
what the work they're doing is absolutely amazing. So looking
forward to that conversation for sure. Me I'll introduce myself.
I'm manager of Botanical Garden Outreach at this Insane Botanical
(03:15):
Garden and Zoo. Certified Arborist Ogia, Ohio Green Industry Association,
Landscape Technician, Award winning writer. I got a new award
just a few weeks ago, the silver silver medal from
gardencom International for one of my columns It could go Gold.
(03:36):
They had this weird thing where they give you a
silver medal first and then say, hey, come to the
dinner in Utah or something, you know, two months later
and see if you had a gold and that weekend.
I went one time. It was a lot of fun,
but every time it coincides with our planned Trials Day weekend,
(03:58):
so makes a difficult which.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Is I'm glad you're staying for the Plant Trials Day. Yeah,
since you run it.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Yeah that would here's the keys you guys.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Uh you know, was this a plea for you to
ask Steve to let you off on the radio?
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Is that what that was just happening to put him
on the spot. Yeah, yeah, no pressure, Steve, no pressure, No, no,
it was not. I there's nothing I would rather do
than be yet since any botanical garden or since a
zoo and potanical gardening, uh, whichever way you want to
say it. For Plant Trials Day, that's something I really
enjoy doing. In fact, we've got great speakers this year.
(04:37):
I wouldn't miss it for the world. Jeff Epping, Bree,
Arthur Carry and Mendez. A guy named Kevin Vaughan who
is a plant breeder from Oregon or Washington somewhere out
that way.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
And uh, he does some cool work. And I don't know,
you know, if he's a great speaker or not, but
I know his work is cool and I'm looking forward
to hearing his talk and hanging out with him a
little bit.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
You always put such interesting people together. It's always always
a wind.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, you know, it's it's a little bit of an
art form. It's getting the tried and true, the ones
you know who are going to be great, and then
taking a little bit of a gamble on others that
seem interesting that you haven't heard before. And every now
and then you know that technical guy that you know
isn't going to be a great speaker, but his information
(05:31):
is so good you got to get him in, so
you kind of balance it between those things and usually
it turns out pretty good.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
And for those of you who don't know, Scott runs
three symposiums at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden on horticulture,
ones on plant trials, another's the Native Plant Symposium, and
the third is Sustainable Plants and Landscapes. And these are
sold out for the last what seventeen, yeah, three or
(06:03):
four years at least yea And he brings people from
all over the country into the greater Cincinnati area, not
just to give a talk at the Zoo in front
of a highly respected group of professionals in the audience,
but it brings them to the Zoo to see a
little bit about what we do and how we do it,
and that has had such an impact in the industry
(06:27):
for the zoo. I can't thank Scott enough for putting
that together and being so creative with the speakers, and
just like you know, his program, he always has some
interesting speakers on so.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Dig into the well of past speakers to be guests
on this show quite often, so it's symbiotic for sure.
But I just want to say hello to all the
folks out there on Facebook with in the Garden that
Ron roethis ones and h again. We're looking for your
(07:03):
calls today eight hundred eight two three eight two five five.
Give us a shout with anything you want to ask us. Uh,
We're going to go ahead and take our first break,
and when we come back, we'll get into the National
Days of That's something we always start the day with
the show with. And uh yeah, National Days of why
(07:25):
because they're there. We'll be right back back. We're back.
I'm Scott, John's across from me, Steve is next to him,
and we are going to talk horticulture. But before we do,
we're going to roll through the National Days of for
the month of August, the week of whatever day this
(07:47):
is the eighth and the days this week? And why
do we do that? Because they're there? And again, how
would you run your life if you didn't know what
the national day of was when you got up in
the morning.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Yeah, good question.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
So what is it today? Well, well, we'll start with
the month. Oh and then yeah, I have a process here.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
What month is it?
Speaker 1 (08:12):
This is August?
Speaker 3 (08:13):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Wow? Can you believe that? I know? This year is
almost Well, it's more over than it's not, which blows
my mind. I'm still writing twenty twenty six on my checks,
as if I've written a check in the last two
years or so. But anyway, so August national month of
(08:35):
back to School month, National back to School Month, makes sense.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Makes sense.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
It is also International Peace Month, Happiness Happens Month, and
Wellness Month. And I keep thinking there is no coincidence here.
These all match up because it's back to school month.
Of course that's going to lead to peace, happiness and wellness.
Am I right?
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Your kids are back at school, everybody's feeling.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Return to order?
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Yeah, that's fair.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Sandwich Month National Sandwich Month, Romance Awareness Month, and then
Family followed by Family Fun Month, And I'm like, yeah,
first one and then the other Are we right? We
get it?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
What do Yeah that's fair. I was going to ask
what do we think Romance Awareness Month means? But you
answered it right there.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
Yeah, I guess. Yeah, it's open open to discussion, you know.
But you know, people can use their imagination. We don't
have to answer everything. We're horticultures. We're horticultures. Not Yeah,
why am I doing this? It's Crayon Collection Month and
then National Dog Month. And I think I mentioned this
last week, but it's so good I have to mention
(09:49):
it again. We had a dog eat a box of
crayons once and the next week was pure technicolor. I
examined month, hair Loss Awareness Month, and Water Quality Month.
That's the end of the month. Day months of for August.
This week is Twins' Day weekend. All right, that's right,
(10:13):
you are I've got twins. Yeah, yeah, you do have twins.
I'm married to a twin.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Wow, we're all kind of twin people.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Yeah, we should buy a lottery ticket obviously. Uh. It's
National Bargain Hunting Week and Hobo Week and kool A
Days Week. None of those really appealed to me all
that much.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
Hobo is a term that you don't really hear anymore.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
I don't know, I don't.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
I think you should be careful.
Speaker 4 (10:42):
You just get lumped in with you might get might
get kick off the radio for you.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
But that was speaking of romance. That was kind of
a romantic image, the hobo along the railroad tracks, sitting
there with a tin kettle with coffee and.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
The stick with a knapsack on the back of it.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
Exactly shoulder, telling stories of immense wisdom even though they
were hoboes.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
Apparently. I had an uncle that used to jump on
trains and a great great uncle and he would ride
all over the country and.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Yeah, fun to try one time, you know, to see
where you land. I'd probably wind up, you know, on
you know, some train that goes to a coal mine
or something.
Speaker 2 (11:23):
But don't do it over the plant trial days, he.
Speaker 1 (11:28):
Said, all right, finally to today, Saturday, August eighth, it's
National Happiness Day. So it's Happiness month and Happiness Day,
pickleball day. Yeah, I started pickleball, you do.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yeah, what's the appeal to that.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I've never really asked anybody why it's caught on so well.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I don't know why it's so big. But for me,
anything moving the body and moving your feet is good
for the brain. That for great for camaraderie, meeting people.
If you're just in a place in your life where
you're looking to established new relationships, I think it's a
great way.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
Because you've run out of all your old friends, You've.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Well, that happens often to me. I got to start
new every five years. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Uh, sneak some zucchini into your neighbor's porch day.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
That doesn't sound like sounds like you get good shot.
You could get in trouble.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Yeah, you could a good shot. Uh. You know, there's
your body lying next to a couple of zucchinis. You know,
not a pretty image. It tells a story. Yeah, it's
not a good story though.
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
It's national What a Burger Day. We don't have those
here in Cincinnati. I know they're more out West. I
believe never had one. Yeah, I mean neither National Dollar
Day commemorates the date that Congress unanimously chose the dollar
as the official unit for American money. Can you guys
remember in your lifetime at this point when the last
(12:55):
time Congress voted unanimously for anything.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I didn't know that was possible.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
I didn't either. I thought somebody had to raise hell
and you know, abstain or you know it just but
it's good. It's good that it happened at least one time.
Moki Day that is apparently a sweet, chewy Japanese rice cake.
Huh frozen Custer Day, Now that's something I know and love.
(13:23):
Global Sleep under the Stars night good for hoboes good. Yeah.
And CBD Day So CBD, as we know.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
Cures everything, everything everything Tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (13:35):
Sunday, August ninth, Book Lover's Day, Spirit of forty five Day,
which honors our Greatest Generation, VEEP Day, which recognizes the
day Vice President Gerald Ford took office when Nixon resigned,
and celebrates the US Presidential Succession Plan. Something to be
very proud of in this country is that we can
(13:56):
have leaders change over peacefully.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Passion Fruit Day and Rice Pudding Day. Rice pudding is
like my favorite thing in the world.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
That's a little horticulture passion fruit. Yes, you work horticulture
in do you like those plants? They're a little invasive?
Speaker 1 (14:15):
But Steve, this is yours rice pudding. No great reflection, Yeah,
what are you thinking of? Passion fruit vine? Right?
Speaker 3 (14:27):
Now, oh, if you saw one of our gardens, you
question whether you ever want a plant passion vine?
Speaker 1 (14:33):
But what is it about? One hundred feet of fence
line ate up and every shrub and tree along with it,
and we only put in one? Is that right? I
was wondering.
Speaker 2 (14:44):
The flower is the prettiest flowers they are. Yeah, it's edible.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
And the kids this time of year they come back
to school, you see the flower and the fruit.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
So it's it's worth the pain.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
But maybe not if you put it in a container,
will it spread.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
As long as that containers not in the ground. Uh yeah,
it'll it'll, it'll pop up.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
Someone was mentioning that they thought some of that along
that vine or that fence line started from seed, because
there's variation in the leaves and the flowers a little bit.
It's possible. Yeah, yeah, it's you know, it's like, uh,
what am I thinking? Pipe vine? If you've got a
place like on a tree line or out in the
back forty where you can put that in and let
(15:31):
it be what it wants to be, it's a great
plant if you're trying to put it in your little garden. Yeah,
good lot.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
I think you got to have a good, good container program.
If you're going to consider it for sure and pull
the fruit that way, you don't, Yeah, I didn't. I
didn't know the fruit would actually seed though. That's interesting.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Yeah, it's supposedly edible, but I've never caught it at
exactly the right time because it turns into like a
dry husk really fast.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
I've eaten it. It's like a pomegranate kind of thing.
You got to pick it apart, real lots of seeds.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
One of these years, I'll time it right. Monday, August tenth,
Lazy Day. I can get into that, especially on a Monday,
especially on a Monday when I didn't sleep at all
on Friday night. So you know, maybe on Saturday and
Sunday will be lazy days too. S'mor's Day, Connecticut Day,
and here's a good one. Shapewear Day, August tenth to
(16:27):
honor the history, evolution, and confidence boosting benefits of modern
foundation garments. Modern Foundational Garments founded in twenty seventeen. This
day highlights how far undergarments have come from the rigid
historical corsets to today's comfortable, breathable, and versatile body shaping pieces.
(16:51):
I know, I really enjoy my new corset much better
than the old kid.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
It looks good on you today.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, yeah, we we will return here in a few minutes.
When we do, we'll pick up on Tuesday, August eleventh,
finish out the National Days of and probably talk some horticulture.
Stay tuned. That's Garden with Scott Berlin, and I'm here
with Steve Foltz, my boss, greatest man ever, directory of
Horticulture at the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo, and John Butcher,
(17:25):
CEO of Madison Tree Care and Landscape here in Cincinnati. Again.
Good morning to you guys, and thanks for being here.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Good morning, thank you.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
Should I continue these days of or should we just
not do them?
Speaker 2 (17:37):
They're interesting?
Speaker 1 (17:38):
They are interesting? Yeah, okay, we'll continue. So Tuesday, August eleventh,
Sons and Daughters Day. Now you have a son, I do.
I have two sons, but you have sons and daughters daughter, Well,
enjoy that day that's on Tuesday. Round everybody up and
have a good family feast and all kinds of fun.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
I'm going to be an empty nester in another couple
of weeks. He's going away.
Speaker 1 (18:02):
Oh wow, even more reason for pickleball on some socializing.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
And to get together and have this little dinner.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
Yeah, yeah, very good. Yeah, congratulations on that. Thank you.
It's going to Ohio State, right, oh you. Okay. Tuesday's
also Presidential Joke Day, and it's like, what day isn't
a presidential joke day? I mean, going back a million years,
it's every day is a presidential joke day. If you
can't laugh at the president, who can you laugh at?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Good question?
Speaker 1 (18:33):
You know, so many steps up and says I want
to be president. Great. I hope you do a good job,
but I'm gonna laugh at you.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Some of them take it better than others.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
Yeah, Play in the sand Day could be fun. My
granddaughter has a nice little sandbox. Raspberry Day and Kinetic
Sand Day. I don't know what it is about Tuesday,
August eleventh and sand but two different sand days. I
didn't know what kinetic sand was.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
You do?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
You guys know it's some kind of toy.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
It's a pretty magnetic or something like.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
It celebrates the multiple squeezable sand that never dries out.
So yeah, I think it's something kids can play with
and absorb, you know, possibly germs and chemicals. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
Raspberries or horticulture. That's another yeah, yeah, and so good, delicious,
pretty easy to grow, pretty easy to grow.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
Yeah. Wednesday, August twelfth Middle child Day. I think middle
childs have it pretty I was the oldest and that's
like no good that. I would never recommend anybody to
have an oldest child at all. Oh yeah, well okay,
(19:53):
and it doesn't work good. But the middle kid sneaks,
spy and of course, Steve, you're the baby. I'm the youngest,
and they they don't even know where you are, what
you're doing, and don't care. They're just like they've been
broken down by all the older kids. You better believe it.
That is so true.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
I think you need older brothers like mine before you
make your comment about a middle kid sneaking by.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Ooh ooh, that sounds loaded. It is. And Wednesday is
also Julianne Fries Day. Thursday August thirteenth. It's an expensive
day of day. It is prosecco day and filet mignon day,
So save up and then do Thursday August thirteenth, Right,
(20:39):
it's a filet mignon and little prosecco. Yeah, it's the
best day I've heard so far. Yeah, sure you can
argue with that.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
I'll let you have my prosecco.
Speaker 1 (20:48):
Oh that's right, you're not You're not drinking now I
have Yeah. Okay, that's right.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
You drink wine, but not prosecco. Right, it's a little
too sweet.
Speaker 1 (20:57):
Yeah, it is pretty sweet. And some people the bubbles
don't agree with them. So I can drink anything you
can and do I will. That might be a fair deal. Finally,
now rounding it up, Friday, August fourteenth, Cream Sickle Day
and Navajo Code Talker's Day. And I think the story
(21:20):
of the Navajo code doctors was pretty darn cool. Do
you are you familiar?
Speaker 3 (21:26):
Now?
Speaker 2 (21:26):
I don't know about this.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Oh well, these were Navajo tribe folks during World War
Two in the army and when the Army needed to
communicate across radio, and they knew that it could be
heard by the Japanese. I think this is almost always
in the Pacific. It might have been in the Atlantic theater. Also,
(21:50):
these Navajo would just talk back and forth in Navajo
and there was no way either Japan or anybody in
Japan or Germany We're gonna know what language it was
or have a translate, you know, a handy translator for
Navajo in Germany. Yeah, really cool one. The story is
(22:10):
really neat. If you have a chance to look it
up sometime, you ow to do it, all right. Finally
to horticulture. You guys, ready, ready, ready, it's time for
We need a drum roll or something. Time for it, Danny,
do you have a drum roll? Oh? Man, bad timing.
The computer is rebooting. Maybe next time. Anyway, it is
(22:32):
time for favorite plants right now. And uh, I'll start
it just to break the ice a little bit. It's
not fair to make a guest start it, although I've
done that in the past. Let's see here, I'm going
to mention a weird one. Uh. And it's not even
the greatest garden plant ever, but I just love it
because the flower is so cool. Companion lastrum americanam and
(22:56):
I don't even know the common name for it, but
it's sort of a weedy thing that looks kind of
like that bachelor's button that goes alongside the road, and
it has sort of a compania like flower that's just
a little bit more complex and really really cool. Great
blue collar too, so that's kind of out of the blue.
I don't recommend anybody growing unless you have a weedy
(23:17):
spot is a native. You know, you can fit it
into a very natural garden fairly well. But I planted
it once and every now and then it seeds from
way back and I just let it grow because I
really do do like it.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
John, You know, this is a tree that's been around forever,
but I just don't seem used that much. Pecan trees,
I think make a great treat to work into your landscape,
and they're not sold often, and it's something a little
different and it'll give us some diversity in the landscape.
But we have a couple huge ones on Madison Trees property,
Oh do you Oh, they're just fantastic trees. And they
(23:54):
don't produce the seed anymore either, so we don't have
to clean that mess up, although I would be happy
to clean up a bunch of pecans right around it.
Speaker 1 (24:02):
Excellent, And that's that hard to open, yeah, compared to
like a walnut.
Speaker 2 (24:06):
And so if you could grow that, have a great
tree and end up with an edible fruit that came
out of it too, I think it just those are
kind of those extra winds that you get out of a.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
Of course people don't know this, but it's actually a hickory.
It's in that genus.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
It is in the hickory family.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So, and I think it's native to Ohio. Carria, Illinois
insist just barely. I think I think there's at least
one county in Ohio that Lucy Brown calls it native to. Yeah,
there may be more than one, but I'm pretty positive
there's at least one because we used them at the
and the Grove Thousand Trees Grove at Ohio State when
I was in school there.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
Okay, so we've got we just put a grove in, yeah,
at the Winton Hills, at the Winton.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Hills Tree School. We'll be talking about at eight o'clock, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
With Charlie Frank, which will be a great conversation and
what a neat idea that was. We'll bring it back
up at that time. See what's what's rocking your world
right now? You're gonna get You're gonna be shocked by this. Okay,
sun sugar tomato.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Ah, the little kind of yellowish orange cherry tomato. Yeah that,
like you said, we picked you know, a lot of
them every day now in our garden.
Speaker 1 (25:17):
And I'm not much of a vegetable gardener.
Speaker 3 (25:19):
I've got my zucchini and my you know, the sun
bas the staples.
Speaker 1 (25:23):
But man, the goods.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
You pulled sun sugar tomatoes and you get that margetties
ranch dressing. There's nothing better than snacking on that in
the afternoon.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Uh yeah, nothing like you just going out in the
garden picking a tomato that's still hot in the sun.
It's got a little dirt on it, and you just
pop in your mouth and eat it, and it's it's.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
The best, not much better, not much better than that.
How big is this variety? Like a normal cherry tomato size?
It's not the tiny little ones.
Speaker 3 (25:53):
No, no, just cherry tomato. And uh but it is sweet,
oh and easy to grow. I can eat, can grow it,
so it mustn't be easy.
Speaker 1 (26:03):
I'm going to chime in here with a very common plant.
But it's rocking it right now. It looks so good
out there, Poskia. You know, it's sort of a poor
man's lavender. You know, we can actually grow it in
our hot, humid, heavy clay soils around here and much
of the United States. New varieties out there that kind
(26:25):
of bring it down the size a little bit. So
if it's in the garden a little better and less
likely to flop over. But you know that just if
you have a hot sunny spot and you need some
silvery blue, you can't beat peroskia.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
And you don't have to do much to take care
of them right there. You put them in and just
get a little bit of water to get them started,
and they're good to.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Go pretty much it.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Yeah, yeah, you do have to pinch your nose when
you cut them back in the fall. That's the only thing.
Speaker 1 (26:56):
I kind of like the smell too.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Maybe maybe your senses are dulled in your this point
in your career.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
There's no reason they wouldn't be so john you, so
you just knock mine what is yours? So I have
a chance to hit back.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
It wasn't a knock, It was just a combat. My
employees regularly are like they're cutting back the Russian stage,
you know. Oh yeah, you know it's seems so obvious
and so out there, but the hydrde of peniculatas are
just amazing this time of year, and there's just nothing
with better color and a show.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (27:37):
You know that you got to be careful with certain neighborhoods.
The deer will munch on them, and you may need
to put a little protection up to get them started
and big enough to get over the brows line, or
or just in spots where the deer aren't so prevalent,
but they the color that they produce in the length
of time is unparalleled. For there's a couple close, but
(27:57):
that's just such a good plant.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
I was thinking about it the other day. I was
driving somewhere and there were a bunch of them out there,
you know, and mostly in commercial landscapes you see them
a lot, and well you see them everywhere now, but
I was thinking, you know, it's pretty much the perfect
landscape shrub. You know, it's tough as nails, it's showy
as can be in the summertime, and you know it's
(28:21):
it's going to perform for you.
Speaker 2 (28:24):
And you can be the worst pruner in the world
and whack it back over the winter and it almost
doesn't matter where you cut it, and the thing just
comes back happier than ever the next season. It's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
And you know, I was thinking also about this when
I started at the zoo, and you know, about fifteen
sixteen years ago, now, there was what tard Diva and
PG and not a whole lot more. And now there
are probably hundreds of varieties and they just get you know, better, smaller, better,
(28:56):
more floriferous. Whatever you want, you can now find it
in a hydrange of penniculata.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
The big thing is if, especially with the tree formed ones,
is finding one that you know, getting it so when
the balloom comes they don't just completely flop over. Right,
that's the one of the tough parts of that plant.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
That's a great one. I don't know how you can
knock him on that one, Scott.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
I can't, ye you can.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
You commoner there it is.
Speaker 2 (29:23):
It's not native.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
You took an easy, easy approach. Yeah, you know what,
when we come back, Steve, we'll come back to you
for another plant. Always fun to do the favorite plants
right now, so we'll keep doing them. We'll be back
in just a couple of minutes. I am with the illustrious,
the brilliant, the unquestionably greatest in the world horticulturists, except
(29:48):
for like the other guests, I routinely have uh John
Butcher from Madison Tree cair and Landscape here in Cincinnati
say hello, hey. And Steve Fold's my boss, director of
horticulture at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, And we
just got an award again from the Perennial plan Association
(30:12):
for our communication, community and education outreach. Yeah, it's pretty cool.
It's very cool. They just keep coming in. We just
keep doing the work and we'll keep getting it done.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
You got to do cool stuff over there. That's why
you're earning it, right.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
But we don't do it for the awards. We never
have it. Just you do what's right and you do
it as the best you can, and maybe the awards come,
maybe they don't. It's nice when they do, but the
satisfaction of doing the job right is what matters the most.
Speaker 2 (30:47):
Couldn't agree more.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
Yeah, So, Steve, it's your turn. What is one of
your favorite plants? Right now? All right, since John's here,
I have to go scarlet oak. Of all the oaks.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
Well, I do like white oak, but scarlet you get
that great, brilliant scarlet fall color. It can't be beat.
You don't see as many planted, but if you look
at some of the older trees around the greater Cincinnati area,
there's more scarlet oak out there than you think.
Speaker 1 (31:18):
It's a tough, adaptable tree. You know, people say, oh,
two things about oaks people say that I disagree with vehemently, vehemently.
One is they don't get good fall color wrong, especially
with scarlet oak, but any almost all the others. Still
it's a little bit more muted than say a red maple,
but it comes later and it's oaks always look great
(31:43):
in the fall to me. And the other thing is
that oaks grow slow, and I disagree with that too.
I know, you know, we planted this scarlet oak at
the night Hunter's exhibit in what was that probably twenty twelve,
and that's a big tree now.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
So it's one rate next to the carousel that took off. Yeah,
we we've been getting scarlet oak and a container and
you know, so you avoid that, you know, root shock
and digging, and that's changed everything for me as far
as trusting an oak for transplanting a good point.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
Container growth is good, and you got to take certain
precautions with with container plants, and definitely still manage the
roots and make sure your root f at the right height.
There's there's but overall, I agree with Steve, it's just
takes out so much of the transplant shock when it's
done well, yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
And it's It makes planting a larger tree more accessible
to almost everybody. You know, if you're going to get
a two inch BMB, you better have an F two fifty.
You know. If you get a twenty gallon a plant,
you can put throat in your trunk and wrap a
flag on it. Definitely wrap the tree up so it's
(33:02):
not blowing in the wind. But you know, a regular
homeowner with just a car can find a way to
get it home. Or you just called John, Yeah, John,
plant this tree for me.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
Happy to help always. I will say on the scarlet oaks,
it's really easy to lump them into just the red
oak category, right because they are in the red oak family,
and you know, you've got shoe mart oak and the
scarlet oak and the red oak northern red. You know,
so there's all these things that are similar, but there
are some when you really analyze that, there are some
real differences that you can point out with the scarlet oaks,
(33:33):
which may be really difficult when it's a eighty foot
tall tree and you don't have the leaves right in
front of you and it's not and it's striking fall
color form you really have to have an eye for
it to be able to pick that one out.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
Yep. I'm going to go on a little bit of
a rant here on my next plant though it's really
a group of plants. It's conventional plants, old school nursery, stock,
garden center staple. Uh. You know, just came back from
a week at the Perennial Plant Association and it was wonderful.
(34:06):
It was great, a lot of focus on new naturalism,
which I do like a lot when, especially when it's
done really well.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (34:14):
But we followed that nearly a full week of that,
and then we went to ball Flora their their their
display gardens in West Chicago, and it was just such
like a relief to see a real showy good old
school plants, annuals, perennials. Some of it mixed in with
(34:37):
the new perennial stuff or new native stuff and worked great.
But we can't throw the what is it the baby
out with the bathwater. I think when some of with
some of these things that seemed to be the forward,
the future of horticulture, and uh, you know, I want
to draw particular attention to one bed that I saw
(35:00):
where they have sort of these concrete bunker containers. That
sounds terrible, but they're beautiful, you know, cement containers sort
of embedded in the side of a hill. And those
were filled with annuals, bright, colorful, really well matched, really
(35:20):
well designed, and surrounded completely by sparrobolis on the ground.
And it was a really cool look. And you know,
I think we're going to wrap up favorite plants. Did
you guys have a bunch you wanted to fit always have,
always have plants to talk. Well, maybe we'll do one
more round when we get back. You're listening, Let's go,
(35:42):
Let's garden with Scott Borough. Let's Scott with Gardening Berline
and uh, you know, want to tell you that the
podcasts are available. If you miss the show, you can
catch them later. You can live stream available on fifty
two stations around the country, only the very best stations.
We will be back in just a couple of minutes.
In here. This is Let's Garden with Scott Berlin. I
am Scott, and I am joined today by two incredible horticulturists,
guys that can answer any question. I hope you call
with your questions because they can answer it like nobody else.
Can you know your your chance of getting a perfect
(00:20):
answer is one hundred.
Speaker 2 (00:21):
Percent with these guys, no pressure.
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Yeah, anybody else it's you know, the other guests I
bring on. It's in the upper nineties, but these guys
are one hundred percent. And I am I am glad
you're both here, Jim or I'm sorry, John Butcher, John Butcher,
Madison Tree Care and Landscape. How's it going, Scott, I
got no sleep last night. I We'll see how it goes.
Speaker 2 (00:45):
We'll get you through it.
Speaker 1 (00:46):
Yeah. I feel like I'm already sounding like a lunatic,
but that's probably normal anyway, normal normal, And I'm with
Steve Foltz, my boss, a director of horticulture at the
Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo. Good morning, morning, Scott, Good morning,
John morning, Steve, Good morning John boy. Yes, oh man,
(01:08):
memories of that so man, it has been a rainy
couple of days at my house at least. I got
well over three inches yesterday and it poured. It came
down hard. There was lightning that made me say things
I'm not proud of.
Speaker 2 (01:27):
It's been really good for the plants. The rain nice,
timely all summer, no real drought stress. April was probably
the only month this year where I felt any pressure.
Speaker 1 (01:35):
Ironically, Yeah, crazy right. My lawn looks just the deepest green.
You know. I don't do anything all the weeds, yeah,
it basically yeah, yeah, all the other stuff, you know,
just it's a mixed bag. Man.
Speaker 2 (01:50):
I love your lawn.
Speaker 1 (01:51):
Yeah, I'm trying to feed the pollinators with my lawn
seating Steve, how is your lawn we're looking? Oh it's green,
it's green. That's all our care. Then yeah, yeah, we'll
talk a little bit more about that. I've got a
point I want to make a little later in the show,
and it'll be an interesting point, I think. See ye
(02:13):
how that goes later on we will have a really
cool guest, Charlie Frank from the Cincinna Reds Foundation, will
be on. Every year they do a community makeover and
usually a challenge part of town and they fix up
ball fields and rec centers, and over the past what
(02:36):
eight years ten years now, the Zoo has been on
board helping him out along with other leaders in the
community and adding a horticultural component.
Speaker 3 (02:46):
Yeah, Charlie's one of my favorite people. He is just
a phenomenal human being and I can't wait to talk
to him today.
Speaker 1 (02:53):
Yeah, I've only talked to him just a little bit,
but when I have and when I've heard him speak,
I agree with you. The impression is so good and
what the work they're doing is absolutely amazing. So looking
forward to that conversation for sure. Me I'll introduce myself.
I'm manager of Botanical Garden Outreach at this Insane Botanical
(03:15):
Garden and Zoo. Certified Arborist Ogia, Ohio Green Industry Association,
Landscape Technician, Award winning writer. I got a new award
just a few weeks ago, the silver silver medal from
gardencom International for one of my columns It could go Gold.
(03:36):
They had this weird thing where they give you a
silver medal first and then say, hey, come to the
dinner in Utah or something, you know, two months later
and see if you had a gold and that weekend.
I went one time. It was a lot of fun,
but every time it coincides with our planned Trials Day weekend,
(03:58):
so makes a difficult which.
Speaker 3 (04:01):
Is I'm glad you're staying for the Plant Trials Day. Yeah,
since you run it.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Yeah that would here's the keys you guys.
Speaker 2 (04:10):
Uh you know, was this a plea for you to
ask Steve to let you off on the radio?
Speaker 4 (04:15):
Is that what that was just happening to put him
on the spot. Yeah, yeah, no pressure, Steve, no pressure, No, no,
it was not. I there's nothing I would rather do
than be yet since any botanical garden or since a
zoo and potanical gardening, uh, whichever way you want to
say it. For Plant Trials Day, that's something I really
enjoy doing. In fact, we've got great speakers this year.
(04:37):
I wouldn't miss it for the world. Jeff Epping, Bree,
Arthur Carry and Mendez. A guy named Kevin Vaughan who
is a plant breeder from Oregon or Washington somewhere out
that way.
Speaker 1 (04:53):
And uh, he does some cool work. And I don't know,
you know, if he's a great speaker or not, but
I know his work is cool and I'm looking forward
to hearing his talk and hanging out with him a
little bit.
Speaker 2 (05:06):
You always put such interesting people together. It's always always
a wind.
Speaker 1 (05:10):
Yeah, you know, it's it's a little bit of an
art form. It's getting the tried and true, the ones
you know who are going to be great, and then
taking a little bit of a gamble on others that
seem interesting that you haven't heard before. And every now
and then you know that technical guy that you know
isn't going to be a great speaker, but his information
(05:31):
is so good you got to get him in, so
you kind of balance it between those things and usually
it turns out pretty good.
Speaker 3 (05:38):
And for those of you who don't know, Scott runs
three symposiums at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden on horticulture,
ones on plant trials, another's the Native Plant Symposium, and
the third is Sustainable Plants and Landscapes. And these are
sold out for the last what seventeen, yeah, three or
(06:03):
four years at least yea And he brings people from
all over the country into the greater Cincinnati area, not
just to give a talk at the Zoo in front
of a highly respected group of professionals in the audience,
but it brings them to the Zoo to see a
little bit about what we do and how we do it,
and that has had such an impact in the industry
(06:27):
for the zoo. I can't thank Scott enough for putting
that together and being so creative with the speakers, and
just like you know, his program, he always has some
interesting speakers on so.
Speaker 1 (06:41):
Dig into the well of past speakers to be guests
on this show quite often, so it's symbiotic for sure.
But I just want to say hello to all the
folks out there on Facebook with in the Garden that
Ron roethis ones and h again. We're looking for your
(07:03):
calls today eight hundred eight two three eight two five five.
Give us a shout with anything you want to ask us. Uh,
We're going to go ahead and take our first break,
and when we come back, we'll get into the National
Days of That's something we always start the day with
the show with. And uh yeah, National Days of why
(07:25):
because they're there. We'll be right back back. We're back.
I'm Scott, John's across from me, Steve is next to him,
and we are going to talk horticulture. But before we do,
we're going to roll through the National Days of for
the month of August, the week of whatever day this
(07:47):
is the eighth and the days this week? And why
do we do that? Because they're there? And again, how
would you run your life if you didn't know what
the national day of was when you got up in
the morning.
Speaker 2 (08:03):
Yeah, good question.
Speaker 1 (08:05):
So what is it today? Well, well, we'll start with
the month. Oh and then yeah, I have a process here.
Speaker 2 (08:11):
What month is it?
Speaker 1 (08:12):
This is August?
Speaker 3 (08:13):
Oh?
Speaker 1 (08:13):
Wow? Can you believe that? I know? This year is
almost Well, it's more over than it's not, which blows
my mind. I'm still writing twenty twenty six on my checks,
as if I've written a check in the last two
years or so. But anyway, so August national month of
(08:35):
back to School month, National back to School Month, makes sense.
Speaker 2 (08:39):
Makes sense.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
It is also International Peace Month, Happiness Happens Month, and
Wellness Month. And I keep thinking there is no coincidence here.
These all match up because it's back to school month.
Of course that's going to lead to peace, happiness and wellness.
Am I right?
Speaker 2 (09:00):
Your kids are back at school, everybody's feeling.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
Return to order?
Speaker 2 (09:04):
Yeah, that's fair.
Speaker 1 (09:06):
Sandwich Month National Sandwich Month, Romance Awareness Month, and then
Family followed by Family Fun Month, And I'm like, yeah,
first one and then the other Are we right? We
get it?
Speaker 2 (09:20):
What do Yeah that's fair. I was going to ask
what do we think Romance Awareness Month means? But you
answered it right there.
Speaker 1 (09:27):
Yeah, I guess. Yeah, it's open open to discussion, you know.
But you know, people can use their imagination. We don't
have to answer everything. We're horticultures. We're horticultures. Not Yeah,
why am I doing this? It's Crayon Collection Month and
then National Dog Month. And I think I mentioned this
last week, but it's so good I have to mention
(09:49):
it again. We had a dog eat a box of
crayons once and the next week was pure technicolor. I
examined month, hair Loss Awareness Month, and Water Quality Month.
That's the end of the month. Day months of for August.
This week is Twins' Day weekend. All right, that's right,
(10:13):
you are I've got twins. Yeah, yeah, you do have twins.
I'm married to a twin.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
Wow, we're all kind of twin people.
Speaker 1 (10:21):
Yeah, we should buy a lottery ticket obviously. Uh. It's
National Bargain Hunting Week and Hobo Week and kool A
Days Week. None of those really appealed to me all
that much.
Speaker 2 (10:36):
Hobo is a term that you don't really hear anymore.
Speaker 1 (10:38):
I don't know, I don't.
Speaker 2 (10:41):
I think you should be careful.
Speaker 4 (10:42):
You just get lumped in with you might get might
get kick off the radio for you.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
But that was speaking of romance. That was kind of
a romantic image, the hobo along the railroad tracks, sitting
there with a tin kettle with coffee and.
Speaker 2 (10:56):
The stick with a knapsack on the back of it.
Speaker 1 (10:59):
Exactly shoulder, telling stories of immense wisdom even though they
were hoboes.
Speaker 2 (11:05):
Apparently. I had an uncle that used to jump on
trains and a great great uncle and he would ride
all over the country and.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Yeah, fun to try one time, you know, to see
where you land. I'd probably wind up, you know, on
you know, some train that goes to a coal mine
or something.
Speaker 2 (11:23):
But don't do it over the plant trial days, he.
Speaker 1 (11:28):
Said, all right, finally to today, Saturday, August eighth, it's
National Happiness Day. So it's Happiness month and Happiness Day,
pickleball day. Yeah, I started pickleball, you do.
Speaker 2 (11:42):
Yeah, what's the appeal to that.
Speaker 1 (11:44):
I've never really asked anybody why it's caught on so well.
Speaker 2 (11:47):
I don't know why it's so big. But for me,
anything moving the body and moving your feet is good
for the brain. That for great for camaraderie, meeting people.
If you're just in a place in your life where
you're looking to established new relationships, I think it's a
great way.
Speaker 1 (12:02):
Because you've run out of all your old friends, You've.
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Well, that happens often to me. I got to start
new every five years. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (12:10):
Uh, sneak some zucchini into your neighbor's porch day.
Speaker 2 (12:15):
That doesn't sound like sounds like you get good shot.
You could get in trouble.
Speaker 1 (12:20):
Yeah, you could a good shot. Uh. You know, there's
your body lying next to a couple of zucchinis. You know,
not a pretty image. It tells a story. Yeah, it's
not a good story though.
Speaker 3 (12:33):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (12:33):
It's national What a Burger Day. We don't have those
here in Cincinnati. I know they're more out West. I
believe never had one. Yeah, I mean neither National Dollar
Day commemorates the date that Congress unanimously chose the dollar
as the official unit for American money. Can you guys
remember in your lifetime at this point when the last
(12:55):
time Congress voted unanimously for anything.
Speaker 2 (12:58):
I didn't know that was possible.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
I didn't either. I thought somebody had to raise hell
and you know, abstain or you know it just but
it's good. It's good that it happened at least one time.
Moki Day that is apparently a sweet, chewy Japanese rice cake.
Huh frozen Custer Day, Now that's something I know and love.
(13:23):
Global Sleep under the Stars night good for hoboes good. Yeah.
And CBD Day So CBD, as we know.
Speaker 2 (13:31):
Cures everything, everything everything Tomorrow.
Speaker 1 (13:35):
Sunday, August ninth, Book Lover's Day, Spirit of forty five Day,
which honors our Greatest Generation, VEEP Day, which recognizes the
day Vice President Gerald Ford took office when Nixon resigned,
and celebrates the US Presidential Succession Plan. Something to be
very proud of in this country is that we can
(13:56):
have leaders change over peacefully.
Speaker 2 (14:00):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (14:02):
Passion Fruit Day and Rice Pudding Day. Rice pudding is
like my favorite thing in the world.
Speaker 2 (14:08):
That's a little horticulture passion fruit. Yes, you work horticulture
in do you like those plants? They're a little invasive?
Speaker 1 (14:15):
But Steve, this is yours rice pudding. No great reflection, Yeah,
what are you thinking of? Passion fruit vine? Right?
Speaker 3 (14:27):
Now, oh, if you saw one of our gardens, you
question whether you ever want a plant passion vine?
Speaker 1 (14:33):
But what is it about? One hundred feet of fence
line ate up and every shrub and tree along with it,
and we only put in one? Is that right? I
was wondering.
Speaker 2 (14:44):
The flower is the prettiest flowers they are. Yeah, it's edible.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
And the kids this time of year they come back
to school, you see the flower and the fruit.
Speaker 1 (14:54):
So it's it's worth the pain.
Speaker 2 (14:57):
But maybe not if you put it in a container,
will it spread.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
As long as that containers not in the ground. Uh yeah,
it'll it'll, it'll pop up.
Speaker 1 (15:09):
Someone was mentioning that they thought some of that along
that vine or that fence line started from seed, because
there's variation in the leaves and the flowers a little bit.
It's possible. Yeah, yeah, it's you know, it's like, uh,
what am I thinking? Pipe vine? If you've got a
place like on a tree line or out in the
back forty where you can put that in and let
(15:31):
it be what it wants to be, it's a great
plant if you're trying to put it in your little garden. Yeah,
good lot.
Speaker 2 (15:39):
I think you got to have a good, good container program.
If you're going to consider it for sure and pull
the fruit that way, you don't, Yeah, I didn't. I
didn't know the fruit would actually seed though. That's interesting.
Speaker 1 (15:50):
Yeah, it's supposedly edible, but I've never caught it at
exactly the right time because it turns into like a
dry husk really fast.
Speaker 2 (15:58):
I've eaten it. It's like a pomegranate kind of thing.
You got to pick it apart, real lots of seeds.
Speaker 1 (16:04):
One of these years, I'll time it right. Monday, August tenth,
Lazy Day. I can get into that, especially on a Monday,
especially on a Monday when I didn't sleep at all
on Friday night. So you know, maybe on Saturday and
Sunday will be lazy days too. S'mor's Day, Connecticut Day,
and here's a good one. Shapewear Day, August tenth to
(16:27):
honor the history, evolution, and confidence boosting benefits of modern
foundation garments. Modern Foundational Garments founded in twenty seventeen. This
day highlights how far undergarments have come from the rigid
historical corsets to today's comfortable, breathable, and versatile body shaping pieces.
(16:51):
I know, I really enjoy my new corset much better
than the old kid.
Speaker 2 (16:58):
It looks good on you today.
Speaker 1 (17:00):
Yeah, yeah, we we will return here in a few minutes.
When we do, we'll pick up on Tuesday, August eleventh,
finish out the National Days of and probably talk some horticulture.
Stay tuned. That's Garden with Scott Berlin, and I'm here
with Steve Foltz, my boss, greatest man ever, directory of
Horticulture at the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo, and John Butcher,
(17:25):
CEO of Madison Tree Care and Landscape here in Cincinnati. Again.
Good morning to you guys, and thanks for being here.
Speaker 2 (17:32):
Good morning, thank you.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
Should I continue these days of or should we just
not do them?
Speaker 2 (17:37):
They're interesting?
Speaker 1 (17:38):
They are interesting? Yeah, okay, we'll continue. So Tuesday, August eleventh,
Sons and Daughters Day. Now you have a son, I do.
I have two sons, but you have sons and daughters daughter, Well,
enjoy that day that's on Tuesday. Round everybody up and
have a good family feast and all kinds of fun.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
I'm going to be an empty nester in another couple
of weeks. He's going away.
Speaker 1 (18:02):
Oh wow, even more reason for pickleball on some socializing.
Speaker 2 (18:06):
And to get together and have this little dinner.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
Yeah, yeah, very good. Yeah, congratulations on that. Thank you.
It's going to Ohio State, right, oh you. Okay. Tuesday's
also Presidential Joke Day, and it's like, what day isn't
a presidential joke day? I mean, going back a million years,
it's every day is a presidential joke day. If you
can't laugh at the president, who can you laugh at?
Speaker 2 (18:32):
Good question?
Speaker 1 (18:33):
You know, so many steps up and says I want
to be president. Great. I hope you do a good job,
but I'm gonna laugh at you.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
Some of them take it better than others.
Speaker 1 (18:42):
Yeah, Play in the sand Day could be fun. My
granddaughter has a nice little sandbox. Raspberry Day and Kinetic
Sand Day. I don't know what it is about Tuesday,
August eleventh and sand but two different sand days. I
didn't know what kinetic sand was.
Speaker 2 (19:03):
You do?
Speaker 1 (19:03):
You guys know it's some kind of toy.
Speaker 2 (19:06):
It's a pretty magnetic or something like.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
It celebrates the multiple squeezable sand that never dries out.
So yeah, I think it's something kids can play with
and absorb, you know, possibly germs and chemicals. I don't know.
Speaker 2 (19:26):
Raspberries or horticulture. That's another yeah, yeah, and so good, delicious,
pretty easy to grow, pretty easy to grow.
Speaker 1 (19:33):
Yeah. Wednesday, August twelfth Middle child Day. I think middle
childs have it pretty I was the oldest and that's
like no good that. I would never recommend anybody to
have an oldest child at all. Oh yeah, well okay,
(19:53):
and it doesn't work good. But the middle kid sneaks,
spy and of course, Steve, you're the baby. I'm the youngest,
and they they don't even know where you are, what
you're doing, and don't care. They're just like they've been
broken down by all the older kids. You better believe it.
That is so true.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
I think you need older brothers like mine before you
make your comment about a middle kid sneaking by.
Speaker 1 (20:17):
Ooh ooh, that sounds loaded. It is. And Wednesday is
also Julianne Fries Day. Thursday August thirteenth. It's an expensive
day of day. It is prosecco day and filet mignon day,
So save up and then do Thursday August thirteenth, Right,
(20:39):
it's a filet mignon and little prosecco. Yeah, it's the
best day I've heard so far. Yeah, sure you can
argue with that.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
I'll let you have my prosecco.
Speaker 1 (20:48):
Oh that's right, you're not You're not drinking now I
have Yeah. Okay, that's right.
Speaker 2 (20:54):
You drink wine, but not prosecco. Right, it's a little
too sweet.
Speaker 1 (20:57):
Yeah, it is pretty sweet. And some people the bubbles
don't agree with them. So I can drink anything you
can and do I will. That might be a fair deal. Finally,
now rounding it up, Friday, August fourteenth, Cream Sickle Day
and Navajo Code Talker's Day. And I think the story
(21:20):
of the Navajo code doctors was pretty darn cool. Do
you are you familiar?
Speaker 3 (21:26):
Now?
Speaker 2 (21:26):
I don't know about this.
Speaker 1 (21:27):
Oh well, these were Navajo tribe folks during World War
Two in the army and when the Army needed to
communicate across radio, and they knew that it could be
heard by the Japanese. I think this is almost always
in the Pacific. It might have been in the Atlantic theater. Also,
(21:50):
these Navajo would just talk back and forth in Navajo
and there was no way either Japan or anybody in
Japan or Germany We're gonna know what language it was
or have a translate, you know, a handy translator for
Navajo in Germany. Yeah, really cool one. The story is
(22:10):
really neat. If you have a chance to look it
up sometime, you ow to do it, all right. Finally
to horticulture. You guys, ready, ready, ready, it's time for
We need a drum roll or something. Time for it, Danny,
do you have a drum roll? Oh? Man, bad timing.
The computer is rebooting. Maybe next time. Anyway, it is
(22:32):
time for favorite plants right now. And uh, I'll start
it just to break the ice a little bit. It's
not fair to make a guest start it, although I've
done that in the past. Let's see here, I'm going
to mention a weird one. Uh. And it's not even
the greatest garden plant ever, but I just love it
because the flower is so cool. Companion lastrum americanam and
(22:56):
I don't even know the common name for it, but
it's sort of a weedy thing that looks kind of
like that bachelor's button that goes alongside the road, and
it has sort of a compania like flower that's just
a little bit more complex and really really cool. Great
blue collar too, so that's kind of out of the blue.
I don't recommend anybody growing unless you have a weedy
(23:17):
spot is a native. You know, you can fit it
into a very natural garden fairly well. But I planted
it once and every now and then it seeds from
way back and I just let it grow because I
really do do like it.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
John, You know, this is a tree that's been around forever,
but I just don't seem used that much. Pecan trees,
I think make a great treat to work into your landscape,
and they're not sold often, and it's something a little
different and it'll give us some diversity in the landscape.
But we have a couple huge ones on Madison Trees property,
Oh do you Oh, they're just fantastic trees. And they
(23:54):
don't produce the seed anymore either, so we don't have
to clean that mess up, although I would be happy
to clean up a bunch of pecans right around it.
Speaker 1 (24:02):
Excellent, And that's that hard to open, yeah, compared to
like a walnut.
Speaker 2 (24:06):
And so if you could grow that, have a great
tree and end up with an edible fruit that came
out of it too, I think it just those are
kind of those extra winds that you get out of a.
Speaker 1 (24:15):
Of course people don't know this, but it's actually a hickory.
It's in that genus.
Speaker 2 (24:19):
It is in the hickory family.
Speaker 1 (24:20):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (24:21):
So, and I think it's native to Ohio. Carria, Illinois
insist just barely. I think I think there's at least
one county in Ohio that Lucy Brown calls it native to. Yeah,
there may be more than one, but I'm pretty positive
there's at least one because we used them at the
and the Grove Thousand Trees Grove at Ohio State when
I was in school there.
Speaker 1 (24:41):
Okay, so we've got we just put a grove in, yeah,
at the Winton Hills, at the Winton.
Speaker 3 (24:48):
Hills Tree School. We'll be talking about at eight o'clock, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:51):
With Charlie Frank, which will be a great conversation and
what a neat idea that was. We'll bring it back
up at that time. See what's what's rocking your world
right now? You're gonna get You're gonna be shocked by this. Okay,
sun sugar tomato.
Speaker 3 (25:05):
Ah, the little kind of yellowish orange cherry tomato. Yeah that,
like you said, we picked you know, a lot of
them every day now in our garden.
Speaker 1 (25:17):
And I'm not much of a vegetable gardener.
Speaker 3 (25:19):
I've got my zucchini and my you know, the sun
bas the staples.
Speaker 1 (25:23):
But man, the goods.
Speaker 3 (25:25):
You pulled sun sugar tomatoes and you get that margetties
ranch dressing. There's nothing better than snacking on that in
the afternoon.
Speaker 1 (25:33):
Uh yeah, nothing like you just going out in the
garden picking a tomato that's still hot in the sun.
It's got a little dirt on it, and you just
pop in your mouth and eat it, and it's it's.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
The best, not much better, not much better than that.
How big is this variety? Like a normal cherry tomato size?
It's not the tiny little ones.
Speaker 3 (25:53):
No, no, just cherry tomato. And uh but it is sweet,
oh and easy to grow. I can eat, can grow it,
so it mustn't be easy.
Speaker 1 (26:03):
I'm going to chime in here with a very common plant.
But it's rocking it right now. It looks so good
out there, Poskia. You know, it's sort of a poor
man's lavender. You know, we can actually grow it in
our hot, humid, heavy clay soils around here and much
of the United States. New varieties out there that kind
(26:25):
of bring it down the size a little bit. So
if it's in the garden a little better and less
likely to flop over. But you know that just if
you have a hot sunny spot and you need some
silvery blue, you can't beat peroskia.
Speaker 2 (26:43):
And you don't have to do much to take care
of them right there. You put them in and just
get a little bit of water to get them started,
and they're good to.
Speaker 1 (26:50):
Go pretty much it.
Speaker 2 (26:51):
Yeah, yeah, you do have to pinch your nose when
you cut them back in the fall. That's the only thing.
Speaker 1 (26:56):
I kind of like the smell too.
Speaker 2 (27:00):
Maybe maybe your senses are dulled in your this point
in your career.
Speaker 1 (27:03):
There's no reason they wouldn't be so john you, so
you just knock mine what is yours? So I have
a chance to hit back.
Speaker 2 (27:15):
It wasn't a knock, It was just a combat. My
employees regularly are like they're cutting back the Russian stage,
you know. Oh yeah, you know it's seems so obvious
and so out there, but the hydrde of peniculatas are
just amazing this time of year, and there's just nothing
with better color and a show.
Speaker 3 (27:36):
Uh.
Speaker 2 (27:37):
You know that you got to be careful with certain neighborhoods.
The deer will munch on them, and you may need
to put a little protection up to get them started
and big enough to get over the brows line, or
or just in spots where the deer aren't so prevalent,
but they the color that they produce in the length
of time is unparalleled. For there's a couple close, but
(27:57):
that's just such a good plant.
Speaker 1 (27:59):
I was thinking about it the other day. I was
driving somewhere and there were a bunch of them out there,
you know, and mostly in commercial landscapes you see them
a lot, and well you see them everywhere now, but
I was thinking, you know, it's pretty much the perfect
landscape shrub. You know, it's tough as nails, it's showy
as can be in the summertime, and you know it's
(28:21):
it's going to perform for you.
Speaker 2 (28:24):
And you can be the worst pruner in the world
and whack it back over the winter and it almost
doesn't matter where you cut it, and the thing just
comes back happier than ever the next season. It's unbelievable.
Speaker 1 (28:34):
And you know, I was thinking also about this when
I started at the zoo, and you know, about fifteen
sixteen years ago, now, there was what tard Diva and
PG and not a whole lot more. And now there
are probably hundreds of varieties and they just get you know, better, smaller, better,
(28:56):
more floriferous. Whatever you want, you can now find it
in a hydrange of penniculata.
Speaker 2 (29:02):
The big thing is if, especially with the tree formed ones,
is finding one that you know, getting it so when
the balloom comes they don't just completely flop over. Right,
that's the one of the tough parts of that plant.
Speaker 1 (29:13):
That's a great one. I don't know how you can
knock him on that one, Scott.
Speaker 2 (29:16):
I can't, ye you can.
Speaker 1 (29:20):
You commoner there it is.
Speaker 2 (29:23):
It's not native.
Speaker 1 (29:24):
You took an easy, easy approach. Yeah, you know what,
when we come back, Steve, we'll come back to you
for another plant. Always fun to do the favorite plants
right now, so we'll keep doing them. We'll be back
in just a couple of minutes. I am with the illustrious,
the brilliant, the unquestionably greatest in the world horticulturists, except
(29:48):
for like the other guests, I routinely have uh John
Butcher from Madison Tree cair and Landscape here in Cincinnati
say hello, hey. And Steve Fold's my boss, director of
horticulture at the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden, And we
just got an award again from the Perennial plan Association
(30:12):
for our communication, community and education outreach. Yeah, it's pretty cool.
It's very cool. They just keep coming in. We just
keep doing the work and we'll keep getting it done.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
You got to do cool stuff over there. That's why
you're earning it, right.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
But we don't do it for the awards. We never
have it. Just you do what's right and you do
it as the best you can, and maybe the awards come,
maybe they don't. It's nice when they do, but the
satisfaction of doing the job right is what matters the most.
Speaker 2 (30:47):
Couldn't agree more.
Speaker 1 (30:48):
Yeah, So, Steve, it's your turn. What is one of
your favorite plants? Right now? All right, since John's here,
I have to go scarlet oak. Of all the oaks.
Speaker 3 (30:59):
Well, I do like white oak, but scarlet you get
that great, brilliant scarlet fall color. It can't be beat.
You don't see as many planted, but if you look
at some of the older trees around the greater Cincinnati area,
there's more scarlet oak out there than you think.
Speaker 1 (31:18):
It's a tough, adaptable tree. You know, people say, oh,
two things about oaks people say that I disagree with vehemently, vehemently.
One is they don't get good fall color wrong, especially
with scarlet oak, but any almost all the others. Still
it's a little bit more muted than say a red maple,
but it comes later and it's oaks always look great
(31:43):
in the fall to me. And the other thing is
that oaks grow slow, and I disagree with that too.
I know, you know, we planted this scarlet oak at
the night Hunter's exhibit in what was that probably twenty twelve,
and that's a big tree now.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
So it's one rate next to the carousel that took off. Yeah,
we we've been getting scarlet oak and a container and
you know, so you avoid that, you know, root shock
and digging, and that's changed everything for me as far
as trusting an oak for transplanting a good point.
Speaker 2 (32:24):
Container growth is good, and you got to take certain
precautions with with container plants, and definitely still manage the
roots and make sure your root f at the right height.
There's there's but overall, I agree with Steve, it's just
takes out so much of the transplant shock when it's
done well, yeah.
Speaker 1 (32:41):
And it's It makes planting a larger tree more accessible
to almost everybody. You know, if you're going to get
a two inch BMB, you better have an F two fifty.
You know. If you get a twenty gallon a plant,
you can put throat in your trunk and wrap a
flag on it. Definitely wrap the tree up so it's
(33:02):
not blowing in the wind. But you know, a regular
homeowner with just a car can find a way to
get it home. Or you just called John, Yeah, John,
plant this tree for me.
Speaker 2 (33:12):
Happy to help always. I will say on the scarlet oaks,
it's really easy to lump them into just the red
oak category, right because they are in the red oak family,
and you know, you've got shoe mart oak and the
scarlet oak and the red oak northern red. You know,
so there's all these things that are similar, but there
are some when you really analyze that, there are some
real differences that you can point out with the scarlet oaks,
(33:33):
which may be really difficult when it's a eighty foot
tall tree and you don't have the leaves right in
front of you and it's not and it's striking fall
color form you really have to have an eye for
it to be able to pick that one out.
Speaker 1 (33:45):
Yep. I'm going to go on a little bit of
a rant here on my next plant though it's really
a group of plants. It's conventional plants, old school nursery, stock,
garden center staple. Uh. You know, just came back from
a week at the Perennial Plant Association and it was wonderful.
(34:06):
It was great, a lot of focus on new naturalism,
which I do like a lot when, especially when it's
done really well.
Speaker 3 (34:14):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (34:14):
But we followed that nearly a full week of that,
and then we went to ball Flora their their their
display gardens in West Chicago, and it was just such
like a relief to see a real showy good old
school plants, annuals, perennials. Some of it mixed in with
(34:37):
the new perennial stuff or new native stuff and worked great.
But we can't throw the what is it the baby
out with the bathwater. I think when some of with
some of these things that seemed to be the forward,
the future of horticulture, and uh, you know, I want
to draw particular attention to one bed that I saw
(35:00):
where they have sort of these concrete bunker containers. That
sounds terrible, but they're beautiful, you know, cement containers sort
of embedded in the side of a hill. And those
were filled with annuals, bright, colorful, really well matched, really
(35:20):
well designed, and surrounded completely by sparrobolis on the ground.
And it was a really cool look. And you know,
I think we're going to wrap up favorite plants. Did
you guys have a bunch you wanted to fit always have,
always have plants to talk. Well, maybe we'll do one
more round when we get back. You're listening, Let's go,
(35:42):
Let's garden with Scott Borough. Let's Scott with Gardening Berline
and uh, you know, want to tell you that the
podcasts are available. If you miss the show, you can
catch them later. You can live stream available on fifty
two stations around the country, only the very best stations.
We will be back in just a couple of minutes.
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