Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Number on this final Saturday twenty twenty five eight hundred
eight two three eight two five five And by the way,
that'll be the same number in twenty twenty six. But
I can't believe it that this is the last Saturday
twenty twenty five. I am Ron Wilson, your personal yard boy,
talking about yardening. And uh, you know when we made
a studio change right before COVID happened to brand new studios. Yeah,
(00:26):
COVID happened, and then we didn't have any guests in
the show. And it's just it's difficult to get guests
into the studio for some reason, just the way this
way it's set up. But guess what, we're breaking the
ice this morning. I mean, and we really reached out
for that first and studio guest after all these years.
You know who I'm talking about. He's from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo. No, I'm not talking about Steve
(00:48):
Voltz because he wouldn't be up this early. He's the
only guy I know from the Cincinto Maybe there's other
two that have their own website. The website is Scottbeerline
dot com. Ladies and Gentlemen from the Cincinnati but ankle gardener,
Zoo Scott your line. Sit down, he's already got a
(01:08):
big head. Sit down. Good morning, Good morning. That was
quite something. You're quite something. Last time we had you
in the studio, we had the Three Geeks Tree Geeks,
and I think it was Chris Stone. Yeah, and I
don't think would run rothas.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
But of course your favorite of all of those times,
I know it was when Liz Jacobs was here. Oh god,
because all you did was stare across the room and
never really said too much. You bumbled, you just kind
of with We all did that, yeah, but I did
it more than everybody else. Yeah, Yeah, those are fun.
(01:50):
Those were good shows. Those were uh you know, and
I still I look at my emails. I save a
lot of stuff and I still have because you guys
we did that probably two or three times, and you
always had to bring your list of favorite trees from
different categories, and then we would go around and kind
of voice and argue and whatever for those particular trees.
(02:10):
I still have those lists out there. It's amazingly people
requested those after you guys were on. Really oh yeah,
you know, what were their top trees again? You know?
So yeah, yeah, probably can't remember what years. I can't.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You know, it would change state to day anyway, so.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
I know you can't remember the first one that Liz
was on there, No, No, I don't remember anything she said. Yeah,
I was kind of amazed. Scott beer and it's it's
buer line, uh, bur line, burr line or if you
look at beer line. But I've always called him Scott
beer line, and for a good reason, and for a
good reason because it's just easier to say.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Uh, and it kind of describes who I am.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
We enjoy it. It's me a cold one every now. Absolutely, Scott.
Your responsibilities at the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo. You
are manager of the Botanical Garden Outreach. What in the
heck does that mean? I wish I knew.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
I put together our our symposiums, first of alts that
we do three a year.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Right, and which seed about two hundred and twenty five
people actually, yeah, two fifty to two seventy five if
you want to really squeeze him in, and.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
You do, yeah, yeah, And they're always sold out, always,
almost always, almost always, almost always Yeah. Our Sustainable Urban
Landscape Symposium at March and then planned Trials Day in
August and Native Plant Symposium in the fall. Great programs.
We've brought in a virtual who's who of American horticulturists,
(03:40):
you know, doctor Armitage, who doctor Allan Armitage.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Doctor Allan Apple. Armitage has been a part of those. Yes,
were you down there that morning? He was shooting a
YouTube video or something at the rock Day is it
the Rockdale Garden? Yeah, yeah, that was really cool. Yeah,
it's kind of yeah, yeah, I couldn't get it to
work right and all.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Oh, yeah, that's right. He had technical issues and technical problems.
He had somebody on the phone that was helping him out,
you know.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
On my phone. Yeah, I think you had yours only
on yours and on mine, and yeah, we finally got
it taken care of, that's right. So yeah, well you
guys do a great job. And you took that over
when you came with the Cincinati Botanical Gardener Zoo.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Yeah fifteen years ago, now, yeah, twenty eleven kind of
was a vague idea of what my role would be,
and it morphed into it almost exactly what I think
Steve had in mind.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
You know, So they hired you and just said Scott,
we don't know what we want you to do, but.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Yeah, he was. Steve would get angry with me anytime
that I was out there with the string trimmer or whatever.
He's like, this is not what I hired you for.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
Or the kaboda with a plow on the front.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Oh right, those stories are legendary. Yeah, I've been taking
off snow removal. I'm not allowed to do it at all.
I've had two bad accidents.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I still remember laughing really hard when I heard about
got it and then stopping because they said, yeah, he
got hurt pretty bad. And then I went, uh, seriously,
They're like, yeah, he really got hurt. Well, I was like,
oh you know, now the hostile laughing. Then I started
laughing again. Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
I lived through it, and I get rassed about that
at work on a weekly you.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Know, just so folks know. Scott was lending a hand
pushing snow at the Cystati Potanical Garden zoo off the
walkways and with a plow in front of the koboda
and forgot that there was a raised man hole cover
in this one particular area and hit it at about.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Five miles an hour, which sounds very slow.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
But when you when you hit something that just stops you,
and you hit the windshield at five miles an hour,
you didn't have your seatbelt on.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
I did not.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
This was in the old days when we were careless
and reckless.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Oh my, but look where it looks where you are today.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, I think it made me better. Actually, it rearranged
my brain a little bit. And uh, you know, I
forgot a lot. Is it coming back to you? So
besides that, you do a I mean, obviously we see
each other a lot of other workshops and seminars, giving
talks and garden talks and things like that, giving classes,
(06:14):
you do a lot of writing. Yes, yeah, two columns
with Horticulture Magazine. One is an interview column. So again
I've through my contexts, through the zoo and through the industry.
I've been able to interview top names, you know, big
influencers in this world of horticulture, including one coming up
(06:38):
with Pete Aldolf, which is pretty cool. Nice. But that
column has been going on, you know, I wish I
could remember these things, probably for five years now. And
then the other column, favorite column is it, the Deep
Roots column at the end of the at the back
of the magazine. So sometimes mostly humor, but then other
(07:01):
times I'll get into something a little bit more deeper
and more emotional, but mostly humor, mostly humor, even though
deep emotional stuff is usually pretty funny.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
I was gonna say, that's humorous for Scott at least,
I hope. Yeah, that's the name. It's a horticultural speaker
and writer. Yeah, yeah, whatever else. So you know, those
symposiums aren't always going on at the SENSII Botanical Gardens.
So what do you do in between all that? That's
the hard part. Yeah, I'm always busy, Look like you're busy. Yeah,
(07:32):
I've become the general office boy, so I'm handle or yeah,
bring the coffees in and think.
Speaker 2 (07:38):
Yeah, usually they make me wear something pretty but.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Good.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
Uh yeah, coffee emails, a lot of a lot of emails, payroll,
general go in the break room and try to try
to make everybody laugh during the lunch, and so you
do a little stand up routine there lunch. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
They practice for when you're on the comedy club pretty much.
Yeah for when when I go on the road. Uh,
they actually applaud me in the break room when I
go oh no kidding.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Most times, not always, you know, but I'll walk in
and they'll break into applause. It's weird, it's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
You watch Matt is it Matt Riff No, I don't
know YouTube No from Ohio. Huh, he's got your sense
of humor stand up, Yeah, bad, bad sense you'll have.
You'll have to look at. That's why I like it.
Scott Beryline was us this morning. He is our special guest.
Gonna stick with us for the rest of the show.
We're gonna talk about, uh, we're gonna be taking your
calls obviously talking about some of the great things that's
(08:45):
the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and zoo has done over the
years and continues to and gets stronger and stronger all
the time, including their best of And I'm telling you what,
I don't care if you live in Cincinnati, Ohio, surrounding
states anywhere zones five, six, seven, eight. Their lists that
they have on their website are absolutely outstanding and very
(09:07):
helpful for homeowners. And of course the Cincinati Botanical Garden
is the same way. And we'll talk more about Scott
what those best are things that they're doing, what they've
been doing over the years and taking your calls at
eight hundred eight two three eight two five five Here
in the Garden with Ron Wilson ticking your calls at
eight hundred eight two three eight two five five in
(09:27):
studio Guests this morning, mister Scott Beerline from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo. Uh, if you're in our if
you live in our area, you know what that's all about. It.
It's fantastic. It's a phenomenal visit to go there. I mean,
folks do it on a weekly basis, monthly basis. Take
the kids. They all love it. As a matter of fact,
what this is, the Sensinati Botanical Garden and Zoo, even
though it's named the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden is
(09:50):
a huge botanical garden with some animals in it, and
you kind of have to look through all the botanical
to find the animals. As a matter of fact, they've
done such a great job with the botanicals setting it
up that they have more reproduction there from the wild
animals than anywhere else because it's like living at home.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Right, Yeah, good habitat.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
Good habitat. Yeah, I mean the whole nine yards. Yeah, Steve,
Folks who has been on our show on a regular basis,
takes credit for most of that. But we know it's
the folks, right, Yeah, it's there up to the.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Little people in the department that take care of the
place and make it look so great, right, and you know,
the golden finger is great. I have a picture of
him literally pointing to something with Kira there.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Well, you sent that to me, yeah, did I? Well,
I put a poster together with that on there, and
then I had a picture of Fiona and and Steve. Yeah,
and I forgot to bring it. Oh that's when I
introduced him at that at the at the the thing
coming up in February. Oh yeah, yeah, I had to
(10:54):
fill in for Joe Box. So I had this thing,
scram wan to put this thing together, and I forgot
to take it with me. Dang, But I had that
and I had a golden Boston. It was blowing in
the whole nine yards. It was pretty good anyway. Talking
with Scott beer Line, and of course Scott's in charge
of their botanical garden outreach and all their classes and
things like that. But it's amazing, how you know, looking
(11:15):
at the Sincinnati Botanical Garden Zoo, the things they have
added and changed over all these years from I've got
pictures when I was there at five years old front
of the bear cages. You know, there's still that hill there,
but no, what you guys have done to turn that
into a truly a botanical garden. And then the education
that comes out of those botanical gardens, out of a
(11:35):
botanical garden is phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
You know, it's it's got a synergy all its own,
you know, the combination of the animals and the botanical garden.
And then also kind of the renewal that this zoo
has been going through for the past fifteen years. And
basically it was we're the oldest, second oldest zoo in
the United States. All the infrastructure was kind of old
(11:59):
and krumbling, and Mark Fisher, or vice president of Sustainability
and Facilities, came in and started making everything very sustainable,
rebuilding a lot of the building, shuffling things around. We
hired an architect, Dean who you know, the process, it's
been kind of a mixed thing because anytime you have
(12:21):
a construction project, you lose some old horticulture, old gardens,
you lose old plants, tree might have to come down,
but then you've got a blank slate once the construction
is done, to come back in with the new gardens,
sometimes kind of representing Asia or Africa or wherever, but
(12:45):
also spaces just to do more of our trialing, so
our annuals, perennial shrubs, trees, putting in new plants using
old good ones that we know will work in places
where we need them to work, especially with shade trees
that are so important. But you know, it just all
(13:05):
that combined kind of happening together. More awareness at the
Zoo in general of the importance of a botanical garden.
It's led to some really good stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Core is and in course, I think the trial gardens,
which I think is interesting. I mean, you could always
go there, and I used to always tell folks this
was way back when, when you go to the Cincinnati
Botanical Gardens, and I say that all the time, it's
the Cincinnati Zoo and botanical garden. But I think the
botanical part should be first. But when you go there,
I always used to say, take your camera so you
(13:39):
can take pictures, and a notebook so you can write
down things. Well, you don't have to do that anymore
because you've got your cell phone, and everything's labeled, so
you can just take a picture of it with the
label and you got it. But you can go through
there and see so many great plants that you like,
and it's labeled and you can take a picture of it,
learn more about it, and of course if they go
to your website where you've done these trials. But you
think back, how you guys have just changed that alone
(14:02):
to make it more educational for folks to walk through
and subtly be able to know what all those plants are,
and then all of a sudden to create the colors
and the spectacular looks, and folks just look at it
like you just did this really nice garden. But in essence,
what it is, it's a trial garden that you guys
are doing to trial new annuals and perennials and things
(14:24):
like that. And there are all things that folks can
find at the garden centers and nurseries down the road.
Then you actually do the trials and then you actually
put the list together, and that's where folks can go
to your website at cincinnatizoo dot org and learn about
all these best of for how long ten years back?
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Oh well, I've been there fifteen years. We've been doing
it that whole time, and I believe to a lesser
degree with especially with the annuals trialing that that has
gone back to two thousand and two, believe it or not.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
Wow. Yeah, and even containers, Yeah, even things growing at containers.
So you find it. And I look back and I think,
to me, what really got the big jump start, and
maybe I'm wrong, was when you started planting all the tulips.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
That you know that is a big crowd pleaser, brings
in a lot of people. And when you have those
tulip displays, when those come out, you have to backfill
with something. What are you gonna do? You're gonna do
annuals because you know you're coming back in with tulips
the following year. So that's been just a beautiful process.
The tulips are so popular. And you know, before I
(15:34):
worked at the zoo, I like tulips. I didn't plant
any myself. But when you go there and you see
one hundred thousand tulips and that saturated color, especially for
evening or morning events when the back lighting is there,
that is simply breathtaking. It is just about as beautiful
(15:56):
a display as you can get.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
And in addition to one hundred thousand tulip bulbs that
you have, there are a million daffodils crocus bbs scattered
throughout the rest of the botanical garden, so that the
tulips and mass are are spectacular, But the whole Botanical
Garden has all kinds of spring flowering bulbs scattered everywhere.
They come back here after years. It's unbelievable. That's why
(16:21):
I was going to say, if you were within distance
of the driving distance, or if you're ever in Cincinnati,
you gotta put them on your bucket list. It's a
great place to go. We're gonna spend more time with
Scott beer Line after the break here in the Garden
with Ron Wilson Special guests. This morning in studio in
house is Scott Beerline from the Cincinnati Botanical Garden Zoo,
(16:41):
an absolutely wonderful website Cincinnati Zoo dot org. I just
wish they'd had that Cincinnati Botanical would be so nice,
and I do I you know, Christina and all whoever
did the marketing had the one printed ad that said
every April we turned into the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo.
You made my life. I'm gonna I've been saving this,
(17:03):
gonna put it in a frame and put it on
my office because that's been my whole thing all along.
And I get it because obviously the animals are cute.
Anybody relates to the the animals, Fiona and all that stuff.
So yeah, but but you know, it is the botanical garden.
And I always you guys Alway kid about pet folks
that come in and want to know where the botanical
gardens are.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Every now and then you get this question.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
It is a botanical garden.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
You are in it.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Look around. That's what you got.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
Talking with Scott beer Lyne, Cincinnati Botanical Gardens, Zoo and
of course we're taking your call. Scott's Uh, Scott knows
more than I do when it comes to horticulture. So
you know, we we got a couple people. You're going
to answer your questions. I get an eight hundred and
eight two three eight two five five. We were talking
earlier about the programs he put together in this best
of thing, which I think is absolutely outstanding in garden centers, landscapers.
(17:53):
Anybody can print that out. It's a great thing to
give to the to their customers as a reference. But
these are plants that you guys have looked at growing
through the year and then are evaluated by.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
Whom mostly well, it's it's pretty much the whole department.
But Kira back runs the whole annual annuals trialing. Other
people do more on the perennials and things, but the
annuals trialing is our biggest one and the best example
to talk about. And you know, Kira and her team,
(18:29):
they do such a good job of getting all that
material out there and doing it. It's kind of amazing
because people think it looks so good. Oh this was
designed all winter long and figured out it doesn't work
that way. The plants come in. We have somewhere around
six hundred, seven hundred varieties, sixty thousand plants. They're grown
(18:51):
in a very fairly small greenhouse from plugs up to
four inch or six inch plants. And when those plants
are ready whenever that is, and that time frame in
the spring, that's when they get put on a cart
and hauled out into the gardens. And so the design
really takes place on the fly and she's matching up
(19:14):
you know, growing conditions, sunshape, all of that and matching
it with color combinations, and she pulls it out every year.
It's just an amazing process. Then as they're growing through
the season, we're looking at them and seeing what performs
well for our trialing. We tend to be on the
conservative side, where you know, we one year is probably
(19:39):
not enough for us to go and put it on
some lists somewhere. We may talk about it, we may
mention that it was really good this year, We're excited
to try it next year. But for our true best
of lists, those are ones that we know perform multiple years,
really well, very reliable. We want people to have success
when they look at our lists and put those plants
in their gardens.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Do old names continue to show up on new lists?
Absolutely good, So the old ones don't get tossed out.
If you're still performing with the new guys, you're still there. Yeah,
I mean Steve Foltz always has Mystic Dalua on there.
Al you can always count on Mystic Dalua.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Definitely. It's such a great what's your favorite mystic value? Yeah,
mine too, isn't it?
Speaker 1 (20:15):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (20:16):
I just love that plant. Come on, I've got our
list of the plants that that they're looking at for
our Best of list this year, right at the top
because it's an a word, angel Angelonia angel face white,
which has been out a million years. Unbelievable, you know,
great plant.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
I have noticed I don't know if you've noticed this
now in catalogs, signage suppliers are changing that to summer
sun dragon or snapdragon.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Yeah yeah, and it's tripping me up.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Well, you know what, I look back many years ago
when Angelonia first came on the market, no way knew
what Angelonia was, and there still a lot of folks don't.
And I always described it as it's it's kind of
like a snap dragon. Yeah, but it's tougher and more
durable and upright, and the colors are spectacular summer long,
all summer long. I mean, snaps are pretty tough. Yeah,
but I always referred to it as a snap dragon,
(21:10):
like annual. And I don't know if that's why there's
not because of me, but I'm just saying because it's
because of you. No, But I'm yeah, right, you know
is that because isn't a summer snapdragon? Know what they're
saying now?
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Yeah, yeah, it's it's actually no, I think about it,
you know, I get tripped up because it's a new
new word, you know, and I have to remember that now. Yeah,
but that is a great description of the plant, and
the way is the way you use it in the garden.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
It's tough. I remember the first time I planted angelonia
west side container plants always wilded down. I couldn't keep things,
you know, so I'm always holding nine yards. I put
Perilla mcgilla, remember that one. I always loved Perila mcguilla.
I put Liis Machia goldilocks on the bottom, and I
put Angelonia in there. I never I mean, I did
(22:00):
have to water, but not very often. It's a tough place.
Those were three plants that just.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Shined, you know.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
Yeah, unbelievable, especially the Angelonia. That was the first that
we really had started to see angelonia. And now today
they've got the uprights and smaller ones that kind of
weep over hanging baskets, so many, the whole series of angelonias.
But they're talking about sun and durable and they don't recede. No,
Some snaps used to come back. Snaps used to come
back from the roots, went back in the year in
(22:29):
a warmer year, in a warmer winter. Sometimes you'd have
that happen. But angelonia, I'm glad to see that on
the list. That's that's a tough plant. Yeah, what else
you're see it? You know, I can't get away from begonias.
And apparently this list was.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Put together by Kira in her group, so I only
saw it just a few weeks ago. But I mean,
i'm well, well well past my plants on up stage,
you know where I would have looked at pegunia and say, oh,
you know, that's so commonly used. But it's so commonly
(23:02):
used because it's so reliable and good, you're going to
have success with it in sun shade.
Speaker 1 (23:07):
All right, Now, I'm gonna have to ask you this.
Somebody says, how do I take care of my hibiscus?
I have to say what type of hibiscus is? Yes? Right,
so we're talking about pagonias. I'm talking the wax types,
and IM sure the old well some of the riggers.
I mean, Grandma used to take those inside as a houseplant.
You know, we always have that one or two. But
(23:27):
wax pegonias are the old stand by.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
Old standbys, but they've been coming up with new ones, right,
you know, bigger ones, the colors are more or less
the same. It's always red, rose or well sure or white,
you know, just the dark foliage types offsetting that that
white flower. I love that. H One of the new ones,
I say, pretty new just a few years now is
(23:51):
the Stone Stonehenge series, which are bigger than even the
whoppers and the bigs. And you know, when I think
of these things, I think of like those impossible spots
like dense shade, go ahead and put something in. But
also for big landscapes, put a mass of them together.
And you can do that, especially with the bigger types.
(24:13):
You know, just if you want to fill space with color,
there you go.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Sun or shade.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Really, I remember Toyota over on the oh Creek Road
Cooper Road. Yes, used to have those real long, beautiful
as we planted those, there was like two or three
thousand wax but yeah, full sun, bacon like crazy, and
they always looked spectacular. Yeah, and they don't need a
lot of water, nope, you know, they just just produce. Yeah.
(24:39):
Oh that's a nice one. Yeah, anything else stowed out
acoustic dalia.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Actually you brought up the riggers, the what is it
Solenia series and oh yeah, yellow really good value as
you mentioned. Yeah, there's some values on the list. We
had a bad year with Dalias in the beginning of
the year when it was so wet the weather was Yeah,
and then they came along after it tried out and
(25:06):
pointed it try out this summer. But Kira and her
crew are really excited about well Mystic Fantasy. So the
whole Mystic series is pretty good, right, you know, dark foliage,
beautiful flowers. And then they're looking at Venti Fireburst is
a good one. Venti Venti Fireburst Vente series. You have Fireburst.
Speaker 1 (25:28):
Yeah, you know, I think I've been in this business
a long time, longer a lot of people. But anyway,
thinking back when I was in high school in the
garden centers when you got annuals in and looking at
the garden centers today, when you walk in there and
you look at all those annuals that are out there,
and the perennials too, and the shrubs too, but you know,
perennials and annuals, your head just spins it.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
Yeah, it can be overwhelming, I think.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
And you have the proven winners, and you have the
all the different branded names that are out there, right, Yeah,
and then you see them all and they're marketed and wow,
it's just whoa your choices that they are phenomenal. And
that's where something like this comes in handy, Oh yeah,
because now you've got those on trial. In the trials,
(26:09):
you know, you treat them all the same, and whether
the weather's bad or the weather's good. And look how
those recovered. You're able to see that, even know they
look bad, the dale has came back. That's where your
trial gardens come in great because here they are all
are take a look, yeah, and this is how they're
going to perform in your backyard as well.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
It is really gratifying to walk through the zoo and
see people taking pictures of labels of the plants they like,
whether you know, across the gamut, annuals, perennials, whatever, trees
and trips, and know that we're having an influence, you know,
and especially with those the pamphlet series that we put
(26:48):
out which is online, to have horticulture professors send me
thirty of those please, you know, landscape companies can we
won't these in our trucks. It's it's really cool and
we put a lot of effort into those to make
sure that it's good information. It's not just you know,
(27:10):
flashing the pan type plants or or you know, just
whatever is hot. It's what's we've planted. We've grown in
pretty normal conditions, not doing anything you know, unusual. Soil
is pretty good in places mostly it is. That's not
a good job, and that's the key to gardening anyway,
you know, the homeowners and planter as happy as the
soil exactly got exactly. But we're not, you know, going
(27:34):
We're not acidifying soil to try to please you know, rhododendrons.
They're just not on our list, you know, except for
maybe one or two that do pretty well here. So yeah,
we're trying pretty hard, and I hope people take advantage
of that work.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
No matter where you live, you should come and check.
This should be on the bucket list, Seriously, I'm not.
It's the greenest zoo in the world.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
It's easy to say that. I mean, sixty five percent
of our energy comes from the solar panels that we
have our parking lot. Uh. The whole place is is
green and shaded, uh and just packed with plants.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
You catch all the runoff water and big tasks. Below
there's the botanical guards that you don't even see, you know,
the parking lots and things like that. You don't even
know that they're there. No things that you do.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
It's just it captures the water and puts it in
Uh you know the water features right, zoo and right
some of our irrigation.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
And drinking phones. No, just kidding, just kidding. Right by
the way, they're not walking through the zoo and taking
pictures of those plants and their labels, are walking through
the botanical garden. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
fivey five. That's our number here in the garden with
Ron Wilson. Here in the garden with Ron Wilson again,
that toll free number, eight hundred eight two three eight
two five five talking about yardening. Uh. Scott Beer lines
(28:49):
in the house with us. He is from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo talking about some of their best stubs.
And we're taking your calls again at eight hundred eight
two three eight two five five. Don't forget our websites.
Ron Wilson Online dot Planner of the week this week
just for the fun of it. Missiletoe? What happened to missletoe?
How come you don't see missile lot and it's in
a lot of songs, but don't see it many homes anymore.
(29:11):
Got a nice little article there you can learn more
about it and probably why you don't see it as
much anymore. But check that out Rider's recipe. All right,
if you've started to get that throat cold, a little
bit cough, a little bit sore throat, she has the answer.
She has her uh reader's homemade cough syrup. And I'll
tell you right now, main ingredients lemon and raw honey,
(29:34):
works every time, every time. And we've got course some
segments on there from our past shows. So again, check
it out at Ron Wilson online dot com. Ron rothis
are certified arburst and amateur meteorologist sent me a text
a little while ago and said, don't forget to remind
everybody that the Facebook page is up and running this morning.
He has a chat going on there Ron Wilson online
(29:55):
dot com or in the garden with Ron Wilson. I'm
sorry that you can chat with the each other, including Ron,
so check that out. And it's his birthday, so be
sure and wish him a happy birthday as well. So
there you go, run Rock Happy twenty first birthday. Ron,
you think he's twenty, I bet he's more like twenty seven,
maybe twenty eight, twenty eight maybe something like that.
Speaker 2 (30:15):
Yeah, that's twenty eight with the maturity level of fourteen.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
Ron. Rothis that was Scott beer Line.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
That was not me, and he got me with a
good joke a couple of weeks ago. That was minor.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
Did you say, I still Do you see pictures of
him learning how to be a camel jockey? No?
Speaker 2 (30:34):
I have not seen this picture.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Oh yeah, Ron on a camel learning how to race
a camel.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
Oh that's scary. They're only like fifteen feet high.
Speaker 1 (30:43):
Well, he had a picture, was talk about scary. It
was both of just so you can see the camel's
face and Ron's.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
There's so many things we could say.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
And there you go, talking with Scott beer Line. Cincinnati. Yeah,
that's him. Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo or some know
it as the Zoo and Botanical Garden website Cincinnati zoo
dot org. Their best of lists, their top picks are
on there, and you can be sure and check those
out because they are absolutely wonderful reference lists for you.
If you're looking for a medium small shrub large tree,
(31:19):
whatever may be. These are things that they've tested in
their botanical garden and highly recommend them. And they do
this every year and update it all the time, so
be sure and check it out. You guys also got
into as the concern came with the butterflies, the pollinators,
the bees and all. Then you started focusing on pollinator
plants and pollinator gardens. I remember when you started doing
(31:41):
that shift over. You did that first garden where you
walked in the entrance to the right there had the
tanks and the recycling tanks and you planted all kinds
of pollinator plants in there and starting to bring the
focus around to that and man, has dad exploded for
you guys, and what you did about how you raise
did those pollinators with the kids and the cameras was outstanding.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
There's such a good story with that one of the
So that was a buzz troop and we were doing
pollinator guards before anybody even called them that. But that
was started by Deb Zurich who we had the volunteers
coming in, fourteen year olds ish that were volunteer in summer,
(32:24):
and you know, what would you do with them? What's
a cool project to do? And Deb Zurich, our manager
at the time, started buzz troop. Give them a camera,
send them out there, have them take pictures of pollinators
on plants. Start to kind of collect some of that data,
which plants did really good.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Log on a flower, take a picture of it.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Now, let me tell you a story that's really cool
about that, because there was a young teenage girl who
really took to that, really had got really interested in
insects and pilloneers. And she did that for two or
three years and then actually went into pre med at
(33:06):
Miami University. And but she came back for a summer
job with us as a seasonal help, you know, her
freshman sophomore year, and she still had that interest, you know,
that was there. And she was working at the Rockdale
Garden and she would do you know, normal garden tasks,
but also keep an eye on what's what's polonying what.
(33:29):
And she found that well, first of all, she found
on our scutull area in Canada, which is a a
what is it hoary skullcap terrible name. Discovered that a
certain bumblebee, northern golden bumblebee, which is maybe endangered, very
very rare, was visiting the gardens first of all, which
(33:51):
was unexpected, but then almost exclusively on that plant. You
know it was it would be on no other plant
in the and it would be on Scuttle area every time.
And you know that that's kind of cool citizen science.
She's put it out on the eye naturalists, and actually
I want to get her to do a blog on
(34:12):
that and get that out there. But it's those little
things you're learning with the pollinators. There's so it's such
a big world and just getting to know that there's
associations between this insect and that plant. You know, what
was that bumblebe feeding on when Scuttlar area wasn't in bloom?
Ready to go? What to do? You know, it's it's
(34:34):
really fascinating. I think we're only scratching the surface. I
don't know what is that we saw it on some Salvius.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
I mean, isn't that interesting? So what else does it do?
I mean we're obviously go somewhere else, right enjoy something else.
But yeah, that's cool, and I got the kids involved.
Of course. Now you've got your pollinator program, yes as well.
Let's take a break at the top of the hour.
We're going to talk more with Scott. We were lying.
He's going to stick with us for the rest of
the show. I will talk more with Scott with this
pollinator program, how you can get involved with that. More
(35:02):
of the best us and then I've got a well,
I got the little list here, Scott. We're gonna do
us the Lightning Round, Oh boy, with Scott beerline where
you get to tell us what you like the best
of two choices.
Speaker 2 (35:14):
Oh that's terrible.
Speaker 1 (35:15):
Oh no, this will be a good one. And uh
and uh and a whole lot more and taking your
calls all right. So, if you've got a question or
tip you'd like to share during all this conversation, we're
here for you. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
five five Here in the Garden with Ron Wilson
Number on this final Saturday twenty twenty five eight hundred
eight two three eight two five five And by the way,
that'll be the same number in twenty twenty six. But
I can't believe it that this is the last Saturday
twenty twenty five. I am Ron Wilson, your personal yard boy,
talking about yardening. And uh, you know when we made
a studio change right before COVID happened to brand new studios. Yeah,
(00:26):
COVID happened, and then we didn't have any guests in
the show. And it's just it's difficult to get guests
into the studio for some reason, just the way this
way it's set up. But guess what, we're breaking the
ice this morning. I mean, and we really reached out
for that first and studio guest after all these years.
You know who I'm talking about. He's from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo. No, I'm not talking about Steve
(00:48):
Voltz because he wouldn't be up this early. He's the
only guy I know from the Cincinto Maybe there's other
two that have their own website. The website is Scottbeerline
dot com. Ladies and Gentlemen from the Cincinnati but ankle gardener,
Zoo Scott your line. Sit down, he's already got a
(01:08):
big head. Sit down. Good morning, Good morning. That was
quite something. You're quite something. Last time we had you
in the studio, we had the Three Geeks Tree Geeks,
and I think it was Chris Stone. Yeah, and I
don't think would run rothas.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (01:30):
But of course your favorite of all of those times,
I know it was when Liz Jacobs was here. Oh god,
because all you did was stare across the room and
never really said too much. You bumbled, you just kind
of with We all did that, yeah, but I did
it more than everybody else. Yeah, Yeah, those are fun.
(01:50):
Those were good shows. Those were uh you know, and
I still I look at my emails. I save a
lot of stuff and I still have because you guys
we did that probably two or three times, and you
always had to bring your list of favorite trees from
different categories, and then we would go around and kind
of voice and argue and whatever for those particular trees.
(02:10):
I still have those lists out there. It's amazingly people
requested those after you guys were on. Really oh yeah,
you know, what were their top trees again? You know?
So yeah, yeah, probably can't remember what years. I can't.
Speaker 2 (02:21):
You know, it would change state to day anyway, so.
Speaker 1 (02:24):
I know you can't remember the first one that Liz
was on there, No, No, I don't remember anything she said. Yeah,
I was kind of amazed. Scott beer and it's it's
buer line, uh, bur line, burr line or if you
look at beer line. But I've always called him Scott
beer line, and for a good reason, and for a
good reason because it's just easier to say.
Speaker 2 (02:48):
Uh, and it kind of describes who I am.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
We enjoy it. It's me a cold one every now. Absolutely, Scott.
Your responsibilities at the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo. You
are manager of the Botanical Garden Outreach. What in the
heck does that mean? I wish I knew.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
I put together our our symposiums, first of alts that
we do three a year.
Speaker 1 (03:10):
Right, and which seed about two hundred and twenty five
people actually, yeah, two fifty to two seventy five if
you want to really squeeze him in, and.
Speaker 2 (03:18):
You do, yeah, yeah, And they're always sold out, always,
almost always, almost always, almost always Yeah. Our Sustainable Urban
Landscape Symposium at March and then planned Trials Day in
August and Native Plant Symposium in the fall. Great programs.
We've brought in a virtual who's who of American horticulturists,
(03:40):
you know, doctor Armitage, who doctor Allan Armitage.
Speaker 1 (03:44):
Doctor Allan Apple. Armitage has been a part of those. Yes,
were you down there that morning? He was shooting a
YouTube video or something at the rock Day is it
the Rockdale Garden? Yeah, yeah, that was really cool. Yeah,
it's kind of yeah, yeah, I couldn't get it to
work right and all.
Speaker 2 (04:00):
Oh, yeah, that's right. He had technical issues and technical problems.
He had somebody on the phone that was helping him out,
you know.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
On my phone. Yeah, I think you had yours only
on yours and on mine, and yeah, we finally got
it taken care of, that's right. So yeah, well you
guys do a great job. And you took that over
when you came with the Cincinati Botanical Gardener Zoo.
Speaker 2 (04:18):
Yeah fifteen years ago, now, yeah, twenty eleven kind of
was a vague idea of what my role would be,
and it morphed into it almost exactly what I think
Steve had in mind.
Speaker 1 (04:31):
You know, So they hired you and just said Scott,
we don't know what we want you to do, but.
Speaker 2 (04:36):
Yeah, he was. Steve would get angry with me anytime
that I was out there with the string trimmer or whatever.
He's like, this is not what I hired you for.
Speaker 1 (04:44):
Or the kaboda with a plow on the front.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Oh right, those stories are legendary. Yeah, I've been taking
off snow removal. I'm not allowed to do it at all.
I've had two bad accidents.
Speaker 1 (04:56):
I still remember laughing really hard when I heard about
got it and then stopping because they said, yeah, he
got hurt pretty bad. And then I went, uh, seriously,
They're like, yeah, he really got hurt. Well, I was like,
oh you know, now the hostile laughing. Then I started
laughing again. Oh yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (05:12):
I lived through it, and I get rassed about that
at work on a weekly you.
Speaker 1 (05:17):
Know, just so folks know. Scott was lending a hand
pushing snow at the Cystati Potanical Garden zoo off the
walkways and with a plow in front of the koboda
and forgot that there was a raised man hole cover
in this one particular area and hit it at about.
Speaker 2 (05:33):
Five miles an hour, which sounds very slow.
Speaker 1 (05:36):
But when you when you hit something that just stops you,
and you hit the windshield at five miles an hour,
you didn't have your seatbelt on.
Speaker 2 (05:43):
I did not.
Speaker 1 (05:44):
You know.
Speaker 2 (05:44):
This was in the old days when we were careless
and reckless.
Speaker 1 (05:49):
Oh my, but look where it looks where you are today.
Speaker 2 (05:52):
Yeah, I think it made me better. Actually, it rearranged
my brain a little bit. And uh, you know, I
forgot a lot. Is it coming back to you? So
besides that, you do a I mean, obviously we see
each other a lot of other workshops and seminars, giving
talks and garden talks and things like that, giving classes,
(06:14):
you do a lot of writing. Yes, yeah, two columns
with Horticulture Magazine. One is an interview column. So again
I've through my contexts, through the zoo and through the industry.
I've been able to interview top names, you know, big
influencers in this world of horticulture, including one coming up
(06:38):
with Pete Aldolf, which is pretty cool. Nice. But that
column has been going on, you know, I wish I
could remember these things, probably for five years now. And
then the other column, favorite column is it, the Deep
Roots column at the end of the at the back
of the magazine. So sometimes mostly humor, but then other
(07:01):
times I'll get into something a little bit more deeper
and more emotional, but mostly humor, mostly humor, even though
deep emotional stuff is usually pretty funny.
Speaker 1 (07:10):
I was gonna say, that's humorous for Scott at least,
I hope. Yeah, that's the name. It's a horticultural speaker
and writer. Yeah, yeah, whatever else. So you know, those
symposiums aren't always going on at the SENSII Botanical Gardens.
So what do you do in between all that? That's
the hard part. Yeah, I'm always busy, Look like you're busy. Yeah,
(07:32):
I've become the general office boy, so I'm handle or yeah,
bring the coffees in and think.
Speaker 2 (07:38):
Yeah, usually they make me wear something pretty but.
Speaker 1 (07:43):
Good.
Speaker 2 (07:45):
Uh yeah, coffee emails, a lot of a lot of emails, payroll,
general go in the break room and try to try
to make everybody laugh during the lunch, and so you
do a little stand up routine there lunch. Yeah.
Speaker 1 (08:04):
They practice for when you're on the comedy club pretty much.
Yeah for when when I go on the road. Uh,
they actually applaud me in the break room when I
go oh no kidding.
Speaker 2 (08:16):
Most times, not always, you know, but I'll walk in
and they'll break into applause. It's weird, it's hilarious.
Speaker 1 (08:24):
You watch Matt is it Matt Riff No, I don't
know YouTube No from Ohio. Huh, he's got your sense
of humor stand up, Yeah, bad, bad sense you'll have.
You'll have to look at. That's why I like it.
Scott Beryline was us this morning. He is our special guest.
Gonna stick with us for the rest of the show.
We're gonna talk about, uh, we're gonna be taking your
calls obviously talking about some of the great things that's
(08:45):
the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and zoo has done over the
years and continues to and gets stronger and stronger all
the time, including their best of And I'm telling you what,
I don't care if you live in Cincinnati, Ohio, surrounding
states anywhere zones five, six, seven, eight. Their lists that
they have on their website are absolutely outstanding and very
(09:07):
helpful for homeowners. And of course the Cincinati Botanical Garden
is the same way. And we'll talk more about Scott
what those best are things that they're doing, what they've
been doing over the years and taking your calls at
eight hundred eight two three eight two five five Here
in the Garden with Ron Wilson ticking your calls at
eight hundred eight two three eight two five five in
(09:27):
studio Guests this morning, mister Scott Beerline from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo. Uh, if you're in our if
you live in our area, you know what that's all about. It.
It's fantastic. It's a phenomenal visit to go there. I mean,
folks do it on a weekly basis, monthly basis. Take
the kids. They all love it. As a matter of fact,
what this is, the Sensinati Botanical Garden and Zoo, even
though it's named the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden is
(09:50):
a huge botanical garden with some animals in it, and
you kind of have to look through all the botanical
to find the animals. As a matter of fact, they've
done such a great job with the botanicals setting it
up that they have more reproduction there from the wild
animals than anywhere else because it's like living at home.
Speaker 2 (10:07):
Right, Yeah, good habitat.
Speaker 1 (10:10):
Good habitat. Yeah, I mean the whole nine yards. Yeah, Steve,
Folks who has been on our show on a regular basis,
takes credit for most of that. But we know it's
the folks, right, Yeah, it's there up to the.
Speaker 2 (10:22):
Little people in the department that take care of the
place and make it look so great, right, and you know,
the golden finger is great. I have a picture of
him literally pointing to something with Kira there.
Speaker 1 (10:34):
Well, you sent that to me, yeah, did I? Well,
I put a poster together with that on there, and
then I had a picture of Fiona and and Steve. Yeah,
and I forgot to bring it. Oh that's when I
introduced him at that at the at the the thing
coming up in February. Oh yeah, yeah, I had to
(10:54):
fill in for Joe Box. So I had this thing,
scram wan to put this thing together, and I forgot
to take it with me. Dang, But I had that
and I had a golden Boston. It was blowing in
the whole nine yards. It was pretty good anyway. Talking
with Scott beer Line, and of course Scott's in charge
of their botanical garden outreach and all their classes and
things like that. But it's amazing, how you know, looking
(11:15):
at the Sincinnati Botanical Garden Zoo, the things they have
added and changed over all these years from I've got
pictures when I was there at five years old front
of the bear cages. You know, there's still that hill there,
but no, what you guys have done to turn that
into a truly a botanical garden. And then the education
that comes out of those botanical gardens, out of a
(11:35):
botanical garden is phenomenal.
Speaker 2 (11:38):
You know, it's it's got a synergy all its own,
you know, the combination of the animals and the botanical garden.
And then also kind of the renewal that this zoo
has been going through for the past fifteen years. And
basically it was we're the oldest, second oldest zoo in
the United States. All the infrastructure was kind of old
(11:59):
and krumbling, and Mark Fisher, or vice president of Sustainability
and Facilities, came in and started making everything very sustainable,
rebuilding a lot of the building, shuffling things around. We
hired an architect, Dean who you know, the process, it's
been kind of a mixed thing because anytime you have
(12:21):
a construction project, you lose some old horticulture, old gardens,
you lose old plants, tree might have to come down,
but then you've got a blank slate once the construction
is done, to come back in with the new gardens,
sometimes kind of representing Asia or Africa or wherever, but
(12:45):
also spaces just to do more of our trialing, so
our annuals, perennial shrubs, trees, putting in new plants using
old good ones that we know will work in places
where we need them to work, especially with shade trees
that are so important. But you know, it just all
(13:05):
that combined kind of happening together. More awareness at the
Zoo in general of the importance of a botanical garden.
It's led to some really good stuff.
Speaker 1 (13:18):
Core is and in course, I think the trial gardens,
which I think is interesting. I mean, you could always
go there, and I used to always tell folks this
was way back when, when you go to the Cincinnati
Botanical Gardens, and I say that all the time, it's
the Cincinnati Zoo and botanical garden. But I think the
botanical part should be first. But when you go there,
I always used to say, take your camera so you
(13:39):
can take pictures, and a notebook so you can write
down things. Well, you don't have to do that anymore
because you've got your cell phone, and everything's labeled, so
you can just take a picture of it with the
label and you got it. But you can go through
there and see so many great plants that you like,
and it's labeled and you can take a picture of it,
learn more about it, and of course if they go
to your website where you've done these trials. But you
think back, how you guys have just changed that alone
(14:02):
to make it more educational for folks to walk through
and subtly be able to know what all those plants are,
and then all of a sudden to create the colors
and the spectacular looks, and folks just look at it
like you just did this really nice garden. But in essence,
what it is, it's a trial garden that you guys
are doing to trial new annuals and perennials and things
(14:24):
like that. And there are all things that folks can
find at the garden centers and nurseries down the road.
Then you actually do the trials and then you actually
put the list together, and that's where folks can go
to your website at cincinnatizoo dot org and learn about
all these best of for how long ten years back?
Speaker 2 (14:43):
Oh well, I've been there fifteen years. We've been doing
it that whole time, and I believe to a lesser
degree with especially with the annuals trialing that that has
gone back to two thousand and two, believe it or not.
Speaker 1 (14:57):
Wow. Yeah, and even containers, Yeah, even things growing at containers.
So you find it. And I look back and I think,
to me, what really got the big jump start, and
maybe I'm wrong, was when you started planting all the tulips.
Speaker 2 (15:11):
That you know that is a big crowd pleaser, brings
in a lot of people. And when you have those
tulip displays, when those come out, you have to backfill
with something. What are you gonna do? You're gonna do
annuals because you know you're coming back in with tulips
the following year. So that's been just a beautiful process.
The tulips are so popular. And you know, before I
(15:34):
worked at the zoo, I like tulips. I didn't plant
any myself. But when you go there and you see
one hundred thousand tulips and that saturated color, especially for
evening or morning events when the back lighting is there,
that is simply breathtaking. It is just about as beautiful
(15:56):
a display as you can get.
Speaker 1 (15:57):
And in addition to one hundred thousand tulip bulbs that
you have, there are a million daffodils crocus bbs scattered
throughout the rest of the botanical garden, so that the
tulips and mass are are spectacular, But the whole Botanical
Garden has all kinds of spring flowering bulbs scattered everywhere.
They come back here after years. It's unbelievable. That's why
(16:21):
I was going to say, if you were within distance
of the driving distance, or if you're ever in Cincinnati,
you gotta put them on your bucket list. It's a
great place to go. We're gonna spend more time with
Scott beer Line after the break here in the Garden
with Ron Wilson Special guests. This morning in studio in
house is Scott Beerline from the Cincinnati Botanical Garden Zoo,
(16:41):
an absolutely wonderful website Cincinnati Zoo dot org. I just
wish they'd had that Cincinnati Botanical would be so nice,
and I do I you know, Christina and all whoever
did the marketing had the one printed ad that said
every April we turned into the Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo.
You made my life. I'm gonna I've been saving this,
(17:03):
gonna put it in a frame and put it on
my office because that's been my whole thing all along.
And I get it because obviously the animals are cute.
Anybody relates to the the animals, Fiona and all that stuff.
So yeah, but but you know, it is the botanical garden.
And I always you guys Alway kid about pet folks
that come in and want to know where the botanical
gardens are.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
Every now and then you get this question.
Speaker 1 (17:25):
It is a botanical garden.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
You are in it.
Speaker 1 (17:29):
Look around. That's what you got.
Speaker 2 (17:31):
Uh.
Speaker 1 (17:31):
Talking with Scott beer Lyne, Cincinnati Botanical Gardens, Zoo and
of course we're taking your call. Scott's Uh, Scott knows
more than I do when it comes to horticulture. So
you know, we we got a couple people. You're going
to answer your questions. I get an eight hundred and
eight two three eight two five five. We were talking
earlier about the programs he put together in this best
of thing, which I think is absolutely outstanding in garden centers, landscapers.
(17:53):
Anybody can print that out. It's a great thing to
give to the to their customers as a reference. But
these are plants that you guys have looked at growing
through the year and then are evaluated by.
Speaker 2 (18:05):
Whom mostly well, it's it's pretty much the whole department.
But Kira back runs the whole annual annuals trialing. Other
people do more on the perennials and things, but the
annuals trialing is our biggest one and the best example
to talk about. And you know, Kira and her team,
(18:29):
they do such a good job of getting all that
material out there and doing it. It's kind of amazing
because people think it looks so good. Oh this was
designed all winter long and figured out it doesn't work
that way. The plants come in. We have somewhere around
six hundred, seven hundred varieties, sixty thousand plants. They're grown
(18:51):
in a very fairly small greenhouse from plugs up to
four inch or six inch plants. And when those plants
are ready whenever that is, and that time frame in
the spring, that's when they get put on a cart
and hauled out into the gardens. And so the design
really takes place on the fly and she's matching up
(19:14):
you know, growing conditions, sunshape, all of that and matching
it with color combinations, and she pulls it out every year.
It's just an amazing process. Then as they're growing through
the season, we're looking at them and seeing what performs
well for our trialing. We tend to be on the
conservative side, where you know, we one year is probably
(19:39):
not enough for us to go and put it on
some lists somewhere. We may talk about it, we may
mention that it was really good this year, We're excited
to try it next year. But for our true best
of lists, those are ones that we know perform multiple years,
really well, very reliable. We want people to have success
when they look at our lists and put those plants
in their gardens.
Speaker 1 (19:58):
Do old names continue to show up on new lists?
Absolutely good, So the old ones don't get tossed out.
If you're still performing with the new guys, you're still there. Yeah,
I mean Steve Foltz always has Mystic Dalua on there.
Al you can always count on Mystic Dalua.
Speaker 2 (20:11):
Definitely. It's such a great what's your favorite mystic value? Yeah,
mine too, isn't it?
Speaker 1 (20:15):
Yeah?
Speaker 2 (20:16):
I just love that plant. Come on, I've got our
list of the plants that that they're looking at for
our Best of list this year, right at the top
because it's an a word, angel Angelonia angel face white,
which has been out a million years. Unbelievable, you know,
great plant.
Speaker 1 (20:34):
I have noticed I don't know if you've noticed this
now in catalogs, signage suppliers are changing that to summer
sun dragon or snapdragon.
Speaker 2 (20:46):
Yeah yeah, and it's tripping me up.
Speaker 1 (20:49):
Well, you know what, I look back many years ago
when Angelonia first came on the market, no way knew
what Angelonia was, and there still a lot of folks don't.
And I always described it as it's it's kind of
like a snap dragon. Yeah, but it's tougher and more
durable and upright, and the colors are spectacular summer long,
all summer long. I mean, snaps are pretty tough. Yeah,
but I always referred to it as a snap dragon,
(21:10):
like annual. And I don't know if that's why there's
not because of me, but I'm just saying because it's
because of you. No, But I'm yeah, right, you know
is that because isn't a summer snapdragon? Know what they're
saying now?
Speaker 2 (21:24):
Yeah, yeah, it's it's actually no, I think about it,
you know, I get tripped up because it's a new
new word, you know, and I have to remember that now. Yeah,
but that is a great description of the plant, and
the way is the way you use it in the garden.
Speaker 1 (21:39):
It's tough. I remember the first time I planted angelonia
west side container plants always wilded down. I couldn't keep things,
you know, so I'm always holding nine yards. I put
Perilla mcgilla, remember that one. I always loved Perila mcguilla.
I put Liis Machia goldilocks on the bottom, and I
put Angelonia in there. I never I mean, I did
(22:00):
have to water, but not very often. It's a tough place.
Those were three plants that just.
Speaker 2 (22:05):
Shined, you know.
Speaker 1 (22:06):
Yeah, unbelievable, especially the Angelonia. That was the first that
we really had started to see angelonia. And now today
they've got the uprights and smaller ones that kind of
weep over hanging baskets, so many, the whole series of angelonias.
But they're talking about sun and durable and they don't recede. No,
Some snaps used to come back. Snaps used to come
back from the roots, went back in the year in
(22:29):
a warmer year, in a warmer winter. Sometimes you'd have
that happen. But angelonia, I'm glad to see that on
the list. That's that's a tough plant. Yeah, what else
you're see it? You know, I can't get away from begonias.
And apparently this list was.
Speaker 2 (22:42):
Put together by Kira in her group, so I only
saw it just a few weeks ago. But I mean,
i'm well, well well past my plants on up stage,
you know where I would have looked at pegunia and say, oh,
you know, that's so commonly used. But it's so commonly
(23:02):
used because it's so reliable and good, you're going to
have success with it in sun shade.
Speaker 1 (23:07):
All right, Now, I'm gonna have to ask you this.
Somebody says, how do I take care of my hibiscus?
I have to say what type of hibiscus is? Yes? Right,
so we're talking about pagonias. I'm talking the wax types,
and IM sure the old well some of the riggers.
I mean, Grandma used to take those inside as a houseplant.
You know, we always have that one or two. But
(23:27):
wax pegonias are the old stand by.
Speaker 2 (23:30):
Old standbys, but they've been coming up with new ones, right,
you know, bigger ones, the colors are more or less
the same. It's always red, rose or well sure or white,
you know, just the dark foliage types offsetting that that
white flower. I love that. H One of the new ones,
I say, pretty new just a few years now is
(23:51):
the Stone Stonehenge series, which are bigger than even the
whoppers and the bigs. And you know, when I think
of these things, I think of like those impossible spots
like dense shade, go ahead and put something in. But
also for big landscapes, put a mass of them together.
And you can do that, especially with the bigger types.
(24:13):
You know, just if you want to fill space with color,
there you go.
Speaker 1 (24:17):
Sun or shade.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (24:18):
Really, I remember Toyota over on the oh Creek Road
Cooper Road. Yes, used to have those real long, beautiful
as we planted those, there was like two or three
thousand wax but yeah, full sun, bacon like crazy, and
they always looked spectacular. Yeah, and they don't need a
lot of water, nope, you know, they just just produce. Yeah.
(24:39):
Oh that's a nice one. Yeah, anything else stowed out
acoustic dalia.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
Actually you brought up the riggers, the what is it
Solenia series and oh yeah, yellow really good value as
you mentioned. Yeah, there's some values on the list. We
had a bad year with Dalias in the beginning of
the year when it was so wet the weather was Yeah,
and then they came along after it tried out and
(25:06):
pointed it try out this summer. But Kira and her
crew are really excited about well Mystic Fantasy. So the
whole Mystic series is pretty good, right, you know, dark foliage,
beautiful flowers. And then they're looking at Venti Fireburst is
a good one. Venti Venti Fireburst Vente series. You have Fireburst.
Speaker 1 (25:28):
Yeah, you know, I think I've been in this business
a long time, longer a lot of people. But anyway,
thinking back when I was in high school in the
garden centers when you got annuals in and looking at
the garden centers today, when you walk in there and
you look at all those annuals that are out there,
and the perennials too, and the shrubs too, but you know,
perennials and annuals, your head just spins it.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
Yeah, it can be overwhelming, I think.
Speaker 1 (25:49):
And you have the proven winners, and you have the
all the different branded names that are out there, right, Yeah,
and then you see them all and they're marketed and wow,
it's just whoa your choices that they are phenomenal. And
that's where something like this comes in handy, Oh yeah,
because now you've got those on trial. In the trials,
(26:09):
you know, you treat them all the same, and whether
the weather's bad or the weather's good. And look how
those recovered. You're able to see that, even know they
look bad, the dale has came back. That's where your
trial gardens come in great because here they are all
are take a look, yeah, and this is how they're
going to perform in your backyard as well.
Speaker 2 (26:26):
It is really gratifying to walk through the zoo and
see people taking pictures of labels of the plants they like,
whether you know, across the gamut, annuals, perennials, whatever, trees
and trips, and know that we're having an influence, you know,
and especially with those the pamphlet series that we put
(26:48):
out which is online, to have horticulture professors send me
thirty of those please, you know, landscape companies can we
won't these in our trucks. It's it's really cool and
we put a lot of effort into those to make
sure that it's good information. It's not just you know,
(27:10):
flashing the pan type plants or or you know, just
whatever is hot. It's what's we've planted. We've grown in
pretty normal conditions, not doing anything you know, unusual. Soil
is pretty good in places mostly it is. That's not
a good job, and that's the key to gardening anyway,
you know, the homeowners and planter as happy as the
soil exactly got exactly. But we're not, you know, going
(27:34):
We're not acidifying soil to try to please you know, rhododendrons.
They're just not on our list, you know, except for
maybe one or two that do pretty well here. So yeah,
we're trying pretty hard, and I hope people take advantage
of that work.
Speaker 1 (27:48):
No matter where you live, you should come and check.
This should be on the bucket list, Seriously, I'm not.
It's the greenest zoo in the world.
Speaker 2 (27:55):
It's easy to say that. I mean, sixty five percent
of our energy comes from the solar panels that we
have our parking lot. Uh. The whole place is is
green and shaded, uh and just packed with plants.
Speaker 1 (28:08):
You catch all the runoff water and big tasks. Below
there's the botanical guards that you don't even see, you know,
the parking lots and things like that. You don't even
know that they're there. No things that you do.
Speaker 2 (28:17):
It's just it captures the water and puts it in
Uh you know the water features right, zoo and right
some of our irrigation.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
And drinking phones. No, just kidding, just kidding. Right by
the way, they're not walking through the zoo and taking
pictures of those plants and their labels, are walking through
the botanical garden. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
fivey five. That's our number here in the garden with
Ron Wilson. Here in the garden with Ron Wilson again,
that toll free number, eight hundred eight two three eight
two five five talking about yardening. Uh. Scott Beer lines
(28:49):
in the house with us. He is from the Cincinnati
Botanical Garden and Zoo talking about some of their best stubs.
And we're taking your calls again at eight hundred eight
two three eight two five five. Don't forget our websites.
Ron Wilson Online dot Planner of the week this week
just for the fun of it. Missiletoe? What happened to missletoe?
How come you don't see missile lot and it's in
a lot of songs, but don't see it many homes anymore.
(29:11):
Got a nice little article there you can learn more
about it and probably why you don't see it as
much anymore. But check that out Rider's recipe. All right,
if you've started to get that throat cold, a little
bit cough, a little bit sore throat, she has the answer.
She has her uh reader's homemade cough syrup. And I'll
tell you right now, main ingredients lemon and raw honey,
(29:34):
works every time, every time. And we've got course some
segments on there from our past shows. So again, check
it out at Ron Wilson online dot com. Ron rothis
are certified arburst and amateur meteorologist sent me a text
a little while ago and said, don't forget to remind
everybody that the Facebook page is up and running this morning.
He has a chat going on there Ron Wilson online
(29:55):
dot com or in the garden with Ron Wilson. I'm
sorry that you can chat with the each other, including Ron,
so check that out. And it's his birthday, so be
sure and wish him a happy birthday as well. So
there you go, run Rock Happy twenty first birthday. Ron,
you think he's twenty, I bet he's more like twenty seven,
maybe twenty eight, twenty eight maybe something like that.
Speaker 2 (30:15):
Yeah, that's twenty eight with the maturity level of fourteen.
Speaker 1 (30:22):
Ron. Rothis that was Scott beer Line.
Speaker 2 (30:23):
That was not me, and he got me with a
good joke a couple of weeks ago. That was minor.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
Did you say, I still Do you see pictures of
him learning how to be a camel jockey? No?
Speaker 2 (30:34):
I have not seen this picture.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
Oh yeah, Ron on a camel learning how to race
a camel.
Speaker 2 (30:39):
Oh that's scary. They're only like fifteen feet high.
Speaker 1 (30:43):
Well, he had a picture, was talk about scary. It
was both of just so you can see the camel's
face and Ron's.
Speaker 2 (30:53):
There's so many things we could say.
Speaker 1 (30:56):
And there you go, talking with Scott beer Line. Cincinnati. Yeah,
that's him. Cincinnati Botanical Garden and Zoo or some know
it as the Zoo and Botanical Garden website Cincinnati zoo
dot org. Their best of lists, their top picks are
on there, and you can be sure and check those
out because they are absolutely wonderful reference lists for you.
If you're looking for a medium small shrub large tree,
(31:19):
whatever may be. These are things that they've tested in
their botanical garden and highly recommend them. And they do
this every year and update it all the time, so
be sure and check it out. You guys also got
into as the concern came with the butterflies, the pollinators,
the bees and all. Then you started focusing on pollinator
plants and pollinator gardens. I remember when you started doing
(31:41):
that shift over. You did that first garden where you
walked in the entrance to the right there had the
tanks and the recycling tanks and you planted all kinds
of pollinator plants in there and starting to bring the
focus around to that and man, has dad exploded for
you guys, and what you did about how you raise
did those pollinators with the kids and the cameras was outstanding.
Speaker 2 (32:04):
There's such a good story with that one of the
So that was a buzz troop and we were doing
pollinator guards before anybody even called them that. But that
was started by Deb Zurich who we had the volunteers
coming in, fourteen year olds ish that were volunteer in summer,
(32:24):
and you know, what would you do with them? What's
a cool project to do? And Deb Zurich, our manager
at the time, started buzz troop. Give them a camera,
send them out there, have them take pictures of pollinators
on plants. Start to kind of collect some of that data,
which plants did really good.
Speaker 1 (32:42):
Log on a flower, take a picture of it.
Speaker 2 (32:44):
Now, let me tell you a story that's really cool
about that, because there was a young teenage girl who
really took to that, really had got really interested in
insects and pilloneers. And she did that for two or
three years and then actually went into pre med at
(33:06):
Miami University. And but she came back for a summer
job with us as a seasonal help, you know, her
freshman sophomore year, and she still had that interest, you know,
that was there. And she was working at the Rockdale
Garden and she would do you know, normal garden tasks,
but also keep an eye on what's what's polonying what.
(33:29):
And she found that well, first of all, she found
on our scutull area in Canada, which is a a
what is it hoary skullcap terrible name. Discovered that a
certain bumblebee, northern golden bumblebee, which is maybe endangered, very
very rare, was visiting the gardens first of all, which
(33:51):
was unexpected, but then almost exclusively on that plant. You
know it was it would be on no other plant
in the and it would be on Scuttle area every time.
And you know that that's kind of cool citizen science.
She's put it out on the eye naturalists, and actually
I want to get her to do a blog on
(34:12):
that and get that out there. But it's those little
things you're learning with the pollinators. There's so it's such
a big world and just getting to know that there's
associations between this insect and that plant. You know, what
was that bumblebe feeding on when Scuttlar area wasn't in bloom?
Ready to go? What to do? You know, it's it's
(34:34):
really fascinating. I think we're only scratching the surface. I
don't know what is that we saw it on some Salvius.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
I mean, isn't that interesting? So what else does it do?
I mean we're obviously go somewhere else, right enjoy something else.
But yeah, that's cool, and I got the kids involved.
Of course. Now you've got your pollinator program, yes as well.
Let's take a break at the top of the hour.
We're going to talk more with Scott. We were lying.
He's going to stick with us for the rest of
the show. I will talk more with Scott with this
pollinator program, how you can get involved with that. More
(35:02):
of the best us and then I've got a well,
I got the little list here, Scott. We're gonna do
us the Lightning Round, Oh boy, with Scott beerline where
you get to tell us what you like the best
of two choices.
Speaker 2 (35:14):
Oh that's terrible.
Speaker 1 (35:15):
Oh no, this will be a good one. And uh
and uh and a whole lot more and taking your
calls all right. So, if you've got a question or
tip you'd like to share during all this conversation, we're
here for you. Eight hundred eight two three eight two
five five Here in the Garden with Ron Wilson
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