The setting: Redbank, South Carolina. O M Motel. Having a beer with an auto parts salesman. I’m waiting on two of the south’s most famous gardeners. We’d just had a three hour car trip, Steve Bender and I , then picked up Felder Rushing and his dog Rusty for happy hour. What a treat, a chance to learn and see the plant world through well trained eyes.

Plants that got our attention:

Yellow Leaf Tansey with Salmon Queen hyacinth (photo above)

Golden leaf dwarf cypress tree, just budding out.

Pale blue Iphion, with white petals of a pear fallen all around it.

Brilliant fuschia Chinese Redbud (Cercis glabra)

Dull fuchsia Daphne (Daphne genkwa) – contrary to popular opinion, we both find this one EASIER to grow than regular Daphne

A few snippets of conversation:

Slow Gardening, thats the name of my new book. You can buy it on Amazon!

Yeah, Five Guys sounds great. They’ll have something for vegetarians.

Dandelions, Clover, Rye, henbit, spring weeds—you might as well enjoy them. I drink a mix of those everyday. If you can’t beat ’em, eat ’em.

My peak plant experience? Snowmobiling in the Yellowstone forest.

You do realize that all those Southern Living plants are contract grown? We don’t grow them and print the magazine in the same place?

Why do lawns get bashed? They feel good, they cool the ground, they are easy to take care of…

Remember mowing when you were a teenager? Dust, weeds, no irrigation? That was a sustainable lawn.

You sell crinum and chrysanthemum bare root? You must have a sophisticated audience.

Can we really park in the spot for low emission vehicles? Not after that Five Guys lunch.