A Way To Garden

A Way To Garden

'horticultural how-to and woo-woo'
the source of organic gardening inspiration
margaret roach, head gardener

Menu
  • podcast
  • Plants
    • annuals & perennials »
      • groundcovers
    • bulbs
    • trees & shrubs »
      • conifers
      • deciduous
    • vines
    • vegetables
    • tomatoes
    • herbs
    • fruit
    • houseplants
    • taxonomy 101
    • decoding botanical latin
  • recipes
    • soups
    • entrees
    • side dishes
    • salads
    • desserts
    • pickles & condiments
    • freezing & canning
    • baking
    • guest chefs
  • how-to
    • weeds
    • pests & diseases
    • shade gardening
    • container gardening
    • water gardening
    • garden prep
    • composting
    • organics
    • pruning
    • garden design
    • from seed »
      • seed starting
    • lawn care (organic)
    • garden faq’s
    • for beginners
  • nature
    • bird sh-t
    • frogboys
    • insects & worms
    • jack the demon cat
    • mushrooms & other fungi
  • about
    • margaret and her website
    • my public-radio podcast
    • my books
    • 2019 events
    • my email newsletter
    • my garden
    • horticultural ‘woo-woo’
    • sponsorship
    • resource links
  • Home
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • Instagram
    • Pintrest
    • Feed
    • Podcast
  • my books
  • 2019 garden events
  • when to start seed
  • webinars
  • monthly chores
  • garden faq’s
  • top-50
  • andre jordan doodles
  • slideshows
  • Garden Tools Co

giveaway: a way to garden turns 3 years old!

Tweet
Pin
Share
0 Shares

THIS WEEK MARKS THREE YEARS since I started A Way to Garden–which many of you think is actually Away to Garden, and an intentional double-entendre, because I’d just left the city for life in the garden when I began blogging. But no, I’m not that clever, at least not consciously. The blog is named for my 1998 book with a four-word title, and though you cannot tell that in the all-run-together url, the green masthead up top (adapted from the cover, see?) is proof. To celebrate, I’m offering a giveaway of two copies of that now-collectible volume that is the site’s namesake…if only you will answer this:

Have you bought my new book yet? (Tee hee. )

The actual question to enter the third-anniversary drawing:

What’s your favorite story or kind of story so far in your travels around my garden site?

(Not sure? Try the “Browse by Topic” List in the far-left narrow column on every page, which you can also access here if you prefer to browse by images. Or start with the “Best Of” top-50 page, or my latest offering, just compiled this week: Margaret’s Madcap Favorites (the ones I had fun doing or find myself referring back to or that just stick in my mind for who knows what reason).

So now tell us: What do you like best? The Andre doodles? Slideshows? Technique posts, like how to graft tomatoes? A recipe, a particular plant profile, an essay? Or what?

How to Enter

WINNERS WILL BE SELECTED at random using the tool at random [dot] org. Entries close at midnight Eastern on Thursday, March 10, with winners to be announced the next day. All you have to do to enter is comment below, saying what you like the most on this website.

Note: “A Way to Garden” (the book) goes for up to $200-plus on the used-book circuit; when I checked today, there wasn’t one available for under $65. So when I promised in the latest newsletter that we’d have a special celebration for this very big anniversary, I meant it. (What? You don’t subscribe to the free email newsletter?)

Thanks to all of you, old friends and new, for making A Way to Garden such a positive community. I look forward to another spring (summer, fall, and yes, even winter) together, and then some. First, though, don’t leave this page without putting your response in the comments: What about A Way to Garden (note: that’s four words, or one if it’s the url) makes you come back for more?

Related

Frog with headphones
Don’t Miss Out!

Get my award-winning podcast...

Listen on Apple Podcasts

...and my ribbiting free newsletter.

386 comments
March 4, 2011

comments

  1. Sharon says

    March 11, 2011 at 10:46 am

    I missed the deadline!!! Oh no!!!!!
    I love the ‘to do’ lists/chore lists
    I need to be reminded of stuff which is somewhat time sensitive [and I love the way they vary according to how a particular season is progressing in terms of weather
    will we ever find ground dry enough to work THIS spring???????

    Reply
  2. lynn says

    March 21, 2011 at 5:12 am

    how your cat, Jack, came into your life, destiny, i am into that!!!!

    Reply
  3. Sharon Weinmann says

    March 23, 2011 at 5:44 pm

    Greetings Margaret,

    I considered getting your newest book for my Nook, but it is too beautiful. I have purchased both for their beauty. Thank you so much. I have enjoyed your work for many years.

    Reply
    • Margaret says

      March 23, 2011 at 6:58 pm

      Thank you, Sharon, and welcome. How kind of you and how generous with your support and encouragement. Don’t be a stranger!

      Reply
  4. Gayla T says

    October 17, 2011 at 2:34 am

    You are a cruel woman! I found this link at the bottom of your dear departed’s poem. which by the way I loved and have lived. I am sooo excited to see you are giving this wonderful book away and yes, I’ve already been online looking for it and found it at the exact prices you have quoted here. And only then do I realize that the deadline was last March, before I found you. I would like to have a bit of an lin line temper tantrum but of course I won’t rish being banned for life from this wonderful site. And yes, I did buy your book but Christmas is coming and I am thinking of my dear daughter-in-law who needs a good book. She’s a teacher and I think she is getting burned out. Ot, is could just be that she lives with my son. LOL That is only to be undertaken by a strong woman. About the Way to Garden, I’ll just keep looking at out local library sale. I have read their copy so I know how much I like it. We are to get out first big freeze here on Wed. night so it will be a busy few days getting things in or covered but I’m afraid that at 27 degrees cover might not be enough. Just so everyone will continue to love you, it would be a kindness to remove that contest and not torture old ladies. God Bless you and your garden.

    Reply
  5. Barbara says

    August 5, 2012 at 9:22 am

    I grew carrots for the first time this year after reading your post, and following your guest. He was certainly correct about his advise of planting radish seeds, and carrot seeds together. I harvested the radishes, then the carrots at a later time, and they are awesome. I also followed you when you were the editor when Martha was away from her magazine. I did buy your second book, and would love to read your first one. I am also a Guidance Counselor at a middle school, and used your second book as my book talk for the year. My students love to hear about gardening adventures, and I am able to share career counseling as a way to find the things you love to pursue, and reach for those goals. Margaret you are one example I use often as someone who had a career, and gained valuable skills, and moved towards another career which I believe satisfied your personal goal of self fulfillment. You have inspired me, as well as my students to reach for what you want to be, and follow that dream. Thanks,

    Reply
  6. Barb says

    August 5, 2012 at 2:38 pm

    I have a book “Carrots Love Tomatoes” it’s all about companion gardening

    Reply
  7. Anne says

    January 1, 2013 at 8:08 am

    It was a pleasure to meet you in Greenville NY when you gave your talk at the library – Gardening 365 Day a Year. Could not imagine this title, but you gave me a new way of looking at everything during the entire year; by planting certain plants that would give interesting structure while covered with snow:-)

    Your news letter is always informative but after reading/looking at it – I am left with a sense of ‘peace’ – Thank you!

    Reply
    • margaret says

      January 1, 2013 at 11:26 am

      Hi, Anne, and so nice to hear from you! Glad the talk made a lasting impression; I love giving it. Happy New Year and all the best to you.

      Reply
  8. Diane says

    January 1, 2013 at 1:15 pm

    I love and trust your wonderful articles. Thank you for being so reliable, entertaining and ‘down-to-earth’ (ha ha). Happy New Year and Happy 3rd Anniversary.

    Reply
« Older Comments

leave a reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

JOIN US ON FACEBOOK

facebook-1

Podcast: Soups, Soups & More Soups

I’VE FOLLOWED a vegetarian diet for decades, but it wasn’t until just a few years ago that I mastered a really good vegetable soup. Now I’m learning variations on vegetable-based soups, plus ones with beans and even ideas for mushroom soups, too–all thanks to Alexandra Stafford and these recipes. (Stream it below, read the transcript or subscribe free.)

https://robinhoodradioondemand.com/podcast-player/6211/vegetable-soup-ideas-with-ali-stafford-november-5-a-way-to-garden-with-margaret-roach.mp3

Margaret Recommends

My picks of garden gear, books, and mulch, mulch more, all things I use myself. (Disclosure: includes affiliate links.)

AFFILIATE DISCLOSURE

As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.

RECENT FAVORITES

  • david lebovitz's french onion soup (from 'my paris kitchen')
  • top garden tools, for gifts (or for you), with ken druse
  • 'the way through the woods: of mushrooms and mourning,' with long litt woon
  • in a time of bird decline, counting and feeding them, with emma greig of feederwatch
  • spice it up! flavorful new cookbooks, with alexandra stafford
  • talking pests, with clemson entomologist j.c. chong
  • growing and blooming clivia, with longwood's alan petravich
  • winter squash-coconut milk soup with garam masala
  • pumpkin custard: holiday pie, minus the crust
  • must read: 'late migrations,' with margaret renkl

awaytogarden

mad gardener, nature addict, award-winning writer & podcaster, rural resident, corporate dropout, creator of awaytogarden dot com and matching book.

Instagram post 2190297402408409324_444552553 Snow day. To be followed by a snow night. #awaytogarden #wavehillchairs
Instagram post 2177779417009402040_444552553 No matter that it was 11F and 17F on mornings this week; my lifelong companions and I are all tucked in, each in our respective offseason spots. Three giant pots of #cliviaminiata that are actually pieces of my long-gone grandmother’s original plant from many, many decades ago, love the offseason bright cold of the mudroom, and get no water till around the new year or so. They need a chill (under 50 but above 35) for about 40 days to trigger timely bloom in late winter/early spring (without it they will bloom whenever, later, like June or even summer). The #alocasia reacts to the cold of the mudroom by shutting down and going dormant and leafless, and then I’ll let it sleep till late winter, when I give it a drink to see if it awakens. That one sleeps and wakes on its own timetable because I do not have a proper spot for it (ideally warm, like 60 or 65 at least, and humid and bright...no can do the humid part here). We have been together probably 10 years anyhow, despite my shortcomings as a #plantparent . #alocasiaamazonica #clivias #houseplantsofinstagram #houseplants #awaytogarden
Instagram post 2172580656557749859_444552553 Gardener: “I raked all the leaves!” Nature: “Oh, really?” (Cue sound of demonic laughter from on high.)
Instagram post 2170506606641504178_444552553 I wanna tell you how it’s gonna be You’re gonna give your love to me I wanna love you night and day You know my love will not fade away Not fade away Nope. Not this #cotinus leaf’s fiery hot love at least. Like the 1957 #buddyholly song I first heard by #therollingstones in 1964, it keeps going. #awaytogarden #fallfoliage2019 #cotinusgrace #notfadeaway
Instagram post 2168987273989949378_444552553 “Jack Frost nipping at your, er, geraniums...” And here it comes.
Instagram post 2166837817953503284_444552553 Constant companions: If you want to keep good company all winter, grow some good keepers. My house is stuffed with piles of #cucurbita awaiting their time in the oven or soup kettle. Each one is a character, distinctive. On one chair in the mudroom two close cousins in #cucurbitamoschata — the horse collar-shaped one called ‘Tromboncino’ or ‘Tromboncino Rampicante’ snuggles with some ‘Butternut.’ The ‘Tromboncino’ are better eaten green and small as #zucchini but I can’t resist their eventual mad size and shape, big enough to wear around your neck. I use their meat for enriching vegetable stock; the ‘Butternut’ are far more rich and delicious. Seed respectively from sandhillpreservation.com #sandhillpreservationcenter and @turtle_tree_seed (whose ‘Butternut,’ selected for “lastingness” for decades, will keep and keep into next spring or more). #wintersquash #awaytogarden #goodkeeper #cucurbitaceae
Instagram post 2162565040882902064_444552553 Furry fall friend: I look forward to crossing paths with this woolly caterpillar of the #giantleopardmoth this time of year, when its fiery intersegmental bands and plush coat seem to be just the right autumn-into-winter look. Miraculously this tiny animal will overwinter in a woodpile or in the leaf litter, even here in the North, building up a concentration of antifreeze (glycerol I think?) in its cells before the worst weather begins to avoid disaster. (Reminds me of the super-hardy #woodfrog who does similarly. Such heroes.) Swipe to see a beat-up pic of the adult moth, tattered with scales missing at its wing margins, but still dramatic. Unlike various spine-covered caterpillars that can sting you, this one’s hairs (or setae) won’t, but he will roll up tight if touched, in self-defense. I am in awe of such complex strategies of survival, I am. #mothsofinstagram #caterpillars #awaytogarden #hypercompescribonia #hypercompe
Instagram post 2161992098629435854_444552553 Beans are life. I mean, not only do I live on them daily (as I have as a vegetarian for 40+ years) but each one is a seed, a living embryo, a distinct and gorgeous little DNA miracle. I have been inspired by the hashtag #31daysofbeans by @lukasvolger lately, loving watching someone unknown to me (um, who shares my oatmeal thing too apparently...also see his #28daysofoatmeal) dish up the #phaseolus. We both admire bean ambassador Steve Sando @rancho_gordo and this photo might be my fave bean of all that I “met” via Steve years back, big and flat and chestnutty ‘Christmas Lima.’ My advice: don’t wait till Dec. 25 to dig in.
Load More...

SEARCH ANY TOPIC

Welcome! I’m Margaret Roach, a leading garden writer for 25 years—at ‘Martha Stewart Living,’ ‘Newsday,’ and in three books. I host a public-radio podcast; I also lecture, plus hold tours at my 2.3-acre Hudson Valley (NY) Zone 5B garden, and always say no to chemicals and yes to great plants.

  • © 2008-2019, Margaret Roach Inc.

  • contact
  • sponsorship
  • privacy policy
  • terms of use
built by WebDevStudios; design by Kenneth B Smith