Organic Gardening Legend John Dromgoole
The Horticulturati
wears a lot of hats. Sun hats mostly, but also figurative ones: founder of the , former host of the long-running garden call-in radio show Gardening Naturally on Newsradio KLBJ, regular TV presenter on PBS’ and KXAN’s ; the list goes on. On this episode, your hosts (both former employees of the Natural Gardener), sit down with John to hear his story, from his early adventures in Laredo (exporting bell bottoms into Mexico and booking one of ZZ Top’s first shows) to his long career in Austin as a media personality and nurseryman. An early proponent of organic gardening, John discusses...
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Seeds of Food Sovereignty with the Cooperative Gardens Commission
The Horticulturati
In this episode, we talk about seed sharing and food justice with Hayden Kesterson and DJ Needelman from the . The CGC is an international grassroots collective of volunteers working to increase community food production, resource-sharing, and food sovereignty. Founded in 2020 in response to the Covid pandemic, one of the CGC’s main projects is seed distribution: sourcing commercial seed companies’ surplus inventory and distributing shipments of seeds to a network of hundreds of “seed hubs'' around the US and Canada, which in turn share the seeds with local communities. One of these hubs...
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Spring Announcements and new podcast feeds
The Horticulturati
New developments are afoot here at Horticulturati HQ! More episodes of this podcast are on the way. In the meantime, you will find Colleen's radio show, Horticulture Hangover, on a separate podcast feed. Please subscribe to Hangover to get your weekly dose gardening advice: Leah will also be releasing Season 2 of her other podcast, Hothouse. It's all about climate change and climate anxiety! Please subscribe to Hothouse: As always, if you want to support us (and get every podcast we release on a single feed), join our !
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Horticulture Hangover from December 16, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Horticulture Hangover from Dec 9, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Horticulture Hangover from November 25, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Horticulture Hangover from November 18, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Horticulture Hangover from November 11, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Horticulture Hangover from November 4, 2023
The Horticulturati
Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast, also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
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Veggies and Fruit- Horticulture Hangover from February 3, 2024
The Horticulturati
What can we plant in the vegetable garden now? How should I fertilize my fruit trees? Get the answers for Central Texas now! Colleen Dieter, co-host of the Horticulturati podcast also hosts the Horticulture Hangover Radio Show, a call-in (or text-in) show for gardening questions. Tune in to Horticulture Hangover live on Saturdays at 8-9 am CST: 99.7 AM and 590 FM. ATXgardens.com
info_outlineOn this episode, we’re sinking our toes into St. Augustine grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum), icon of the Texas lawn from Hank Hill’s house to the State Capitol grounds. Millions of acres of prime farmland and front yards are dedicated to this non-edible crop. St. Augustine is so ubiquitous in our landscape it’s almost invisible. But what paradoxes are hiding in plain sight? This coastal pioneer species, which grows on all continents except Antarctica, would seem to be an evolutionary success story. Why is it so plagued with weeds, diseases and pests? Its seeds likely floated on ocean currents to take root across the globe. Yet in its modern form, it can’t be grown from seed at all. And despite being a host plant for numerous pollinators in its native range, it offers very little ecological value in manicured lawns. Why won’t it grow under trees? WHAT IS IT FOR? Listen in for our totally unbiased opinions.
First up, a special announcement! Colleen is writing a book about seed saving!
Mentioned in this episode:
“St. Augustine” by Richard L. Duble, Turfgrass Specialist, Texas Cooperative Extension; Diploids and triploids; “The biology of Stenotaphrum secundatum” by The Australian Government Department of Health; Houston Grass, YouTube; Becky Grubbs Bowling’s talk, “Can Trees and Turf Coexist?” at the 2022 ISA Texas Trees Conference; Cobalt St. Augustine; Atrazine; Shade Friendly Wildflower Mix from Native American Seed.