Gardening on the cheap
Photo by Brian Diggs, American-Statesman
Local writer and gardener Robin Chotzinoff gabs about creating a garden via Craigslist in yesterday’s Statesman. Check it out for a fun take on “dirt cheap” gardening.
In other garden-related news, the Statesman reported on Friday that the torrent of rain this summer has busted Texas’ 10-year drought. Austin itself “is nearly 3 inches above its annual rainfall with a total of 36.6 inches at Camp Mabry [in north-central Austin]. . . ” (Italics are mine.)
And in honor of the late Lady Bird Johnson, the Austin City Council has resolved to rename beloved Town Lake as Lady Bird Lake. According to the Statesman, Mrs. Johnson “lent her clout, money and time” to the beautification of Town Lake and the creation of its hike-and-bike trail, transforming its denuded shores into a natural oasis in the heart of downtown. However you feel about renaming landmarks (I’m not necessarily a fan of changing sturdy, commonsense names like Town Lake), you can’t deny the sentiment behind this one. The change will occur on August 6.
That was a fun, and oddly inspirational, article. Thanks for sharing it. (And I support the name change of your Town Lake. It’s a whole lot better than selling off the naming rights like we do for buildings. At least it isn’t the “Bob Evans Sausage Biscuit Town Lake” or something like that. It’s a very fitting name.)
Carol at May Dreams Gardens
Man, it hadn’t even occurred to me that the naming rights to Town Lake or other places in Austin might ever be sold to the highest bidder. Heaven forbid! And you are quite right that the tribute to Lady Bird is fitting. —Pam
The wonderful book “People With Dirty Hands” by Robin Chotzinoff, has been in my collection for more than a decade – the pepper roasting chapter is a favorite part – but she was living in Denver then. I knew she’d moved to Austin a while ago, so was happy to see her Craigslist gardening article in the Statesman.
I’d be happy to passalong some stuff to her if Robin wants the chlorophyll type passalongs rather than artistic stuff!
Pam, there are lots of stories out there which make Ladybird’s final consent seem a bit coerced…maybe she just realized that it was going to happen with or without her permission. I also read that that the more lyrical ‘Ladybird Lake’ was her choice over the more ponderous ‘Ladybird Johnson Lake’. ‘Town Lake’ as a name is akin to ‘Main Street’, so the new name does have that sense of place which Ladybird emphasized, doesn’t it?
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
How cool that you’ve read one of Robin’s books. Now that she’s living in Austin, maybe you can trade a passalong plant for an autographed signature. 😉
I agree that Lady Bird Lake is a nice name, and a fitting tribute. But I don’t know . . . I guess I prefer the factual simplicity of “Town Lake” (like New York’s Central Park). I suppose in a few years it’ll roll off the tongue easier, but I may still be calling it Town Lake then, just as I’ll still be calling the newly renamed Ann Richards Congress Avenue Bridge simply the Congress Ave Bridge. Great women, both of them, though. —Pam
Fun article about dirt cheap gardening. Thanks for the link, Pam!
I thought it was quirky and fun too. Glad you enjoyed it. —Pam
Thanks for that link, such an interesting idea. Count me in as a fan of Robin Chotzinoff’s book “People with Dirty Hands”. I acquired it frugally at a used bookstore a couple of years ago. If I remember correctly, she begins the book with the story of the Texas Rose Rustlers.
I’ll look for it sometime. —Pam
Imagine my thrill at suddenly coming across this website and the comments about dirty hands! I will be writing a column by that name in the Statesman, starting soon, and would love to hear from people like you, who know the right sort of gardeners for me to write about. Not only that–I would never refuse a free plant or cutting. Please email if there’s anything you want to talk about or suggest to me. Of course I’d autograph a book! I get sick of sitting alone in this room.
Robin Chotzinoff
Hi, Robin. It’s good to “meet” you. Congratulations on your new gig at the Statesman. I’ll look forward to reading a regular column by you. —Pam