Highlights from the January 2015 Home and Garden Show

There were so many fun things that happened this weekend. 

Where to begin?

Our #1 highlight from any show/fair/farmers market is the people. We love meeting people and talking with them about their gardening experiences.

We want to thank the people connected with The Home and Garden Show for allowing us to be a featured booth, especially RaeAnn Saunders. The H&G staff was present and available if anything was needed. We also want to thank The Oklahoman and Tim and Jim, the writer and photographer for doing a story about Garden Anywhere Box. So many people that stopped by our booth said that they read about us in the paper and came to the Home and Garden Show just to see us. How exciting!

Here are a couple of pictures from the show. Larry is demonstrating the watering system in the first picture. Our friend and mentor, LB stopped by to talk about GAB with people. He has been a long-time friend and big supporter of Garden Anywhere Box from the beginning.

 

Rodd Moesel stopped by our booth at the end of the show. I'm sorry that I missed him. I had just taken a load of stuff out to the car. Rodd was a part of the Oklahoma Horticultural Society booth across the way. I knew of the Moesel family in high school (Go Knights! Northwest Classen!).  They ran a very successful nursery called Moesels Hort-haven.

Rodd went on to found American Plant Products and Services, Inc. APA is a 35 year old wholesale company that sells greenhouse structures, equipment and supplies, as well as nursery, garden center and landscape supplies. The business was started by Rodd in 1974 with a $500 4-H Scholarship and now has sales of over five million dollars annually and approximately 30 employees.

Because of the article in The Oklahoman, old friends saw it and stopped by to say hi.

The picture to the right shows Larry demonstrating how the watering system works to an old friend from elementary school. 

We were happy to see the librarian,now retired, from the elementary school that my older sons attended. She read the article in the paper and wanted to stop by. It was nice to see her again and nice that she got to see the boys all grown up. We all remember her fondly. Good times. 

Speaking of schools, we love when teachers stop by our booth. Several teachers want to get boxes for the classroom. We believe that Garden Anywhere Box is perfect for schools. Because the boxes are portable, you can garden year 'round. Unlike a garden in the ground or a raised bed, GAB can be brought inside the classroom. It can also be taken home for the summer after school lets out. You can't do that with a raised bed. 

We have an idea for a fundraiser that we believe would be beneficial for us and the schools. We are just getting started with this through the Agriculture department of Larry's high school alma mater. The Ag. dept. has an annual plant (flower) sale. This year they hope to expand and sell vegetable plants as well. We would partner with them to sell boxes. For each Starter Kit sold, the school will receive $25. This could add up fast. This would provide extra money for the school, new customers for us and lots of people gardening.

Another highlight from the Show was a cooking demonstration from Uptown Grocery. Their chefs made the best kabobs. Our booth was near the Lifestyle Stage, so we got to hear different speakers and sample the food. Bonus!

I was visiting with a lady who said that her town had just begun water rationing. She was

waiting on her husband to be able to show him the boxes. Unbeknownst to me, her husband was stopping by different booths to learn about guttering and rain barrels and other means of water conservation. When he got to our booth, he started talking with Larry about the boxes. It wasn't until later that Larry told me that this man owned an Ace Hardware store and was interested in selling GABs. He is trying to do all he can to accommodate the drought that his city is faced with.  We are really excited about this. Obviously, we want to sell boxes. This is our family business and we have bills to pay...but this will also be a great opportunity to get more people gardening and save water in the process.

Garden Anywhere Box uses up to 70% less water than a traditional garden. The plastic on top keeps the weeds out, but it also keeps the moisture in. The only evaporation is through the plant. This method of gardening is perfect for drought-stricken areas.

Speaking of water conservation, Larry was asked to be on KTOK 1000 on Saturday. The Garden Show was doing a live broadcast. Larry has been on there before and was happy to have the opportunity again. He was asked about water conservation using the boxes. He was able to share that Garden Anywhere Box is a great way to garden and conserve water at the same time.

In our booth, we had a loop of GAB videos playing on the television. One was our News 9 clip from last summer. Another video was a cartoon that one of our sons made that is on our Garden Anywhere Box You Tube channel. This is a short, cute cartoon that shows how the boxes work. Two different people approached our son about his talent and want to visit with him about other projects. Very cool! Our son is self-taught in animation. When he was twelve, he asked for a flash animation program for his birthday. After we figured out what that was...lol...we bought him one, He learned how to animate cartoons. He and his brother used to do a cartoon series in their teen years.  They did the voices, drawing, music and animation. It was very good in my humble mom opinion. Very proud of my talented children! 

 Here are pictures of three of our sons explaining how the boxes work. Mom fail moment because for some reason, I did not get a picture of our #3 son. He was also talking to people and showing how the boxes work. I also do not have a picture of our daughter who is 15. She and our daughter-in-law (wife to #2 son) stayed home and made Grow Packs for the boxes. 

We had our baker's rack set up with plants and books. People really liked our "Chicken Greenhouses". I save the containers that rotisserie chicken comes in and use them to start seeds. When they get big enough, Larry will transplant them to cups to continue growing until they are ready for GAB. 

We were very busy the whole weekend. There was a lull Friday night towards the end, but I understand that it was because the Thunder was playing.

We love sharing Garden Anywhere Box with others. GAB has made such a difference in our lives. This truly is an easier and successful way to garden. To get your own Garden Anywhere Box or to learn more, visit our website at www.gardenanywherebox.com

We will be at the Home and Outdoor Living Show in March. Hope to see you there.


An update to our story... This event and these pictures occurred just two weeks after Larry was released from the hospital. He developed pneumonia the day after Christmas. We were in the hospital for eight days. While there, his x-ray showed that his heart was enlarged. He left the hospital pneumonia-free, but with 3 stents in his heart. Three weeks later he had a stroke. I call him the "Energizer Bunny." He just keeps going and going. His stroke was not as bad as it could have been, but at times he has trouble saying all that he wants to say.

Thoughts About Gardening in a Box...

Small rant...One of the speakers across from our booth at the Home and Garden Show said that gardening used to be very popular, but then it started to decline. The gardening industry panicked and began offering "gardening in a box." Our ears perked up since that is what we offer. After listening to him...and going online when I got home to try to clarify for myself his line of thinking... I concluded that he was talking about flower gardening. 

Quote from the article ..."It’s such an exquisite example of the pandering, avarice-driven, disrespectful motives espoused by portions of the American gardening industry. “Our exclusive garden in a box makes it simple” sums up their true opinion of today’s American gardener: You’re too busy, too lazy, and way too stupid to learn about garden design, so send us $125 and we’ll ship you your next garden via UPS. Plunk it in according to the diagram, and boy, won’t you be proud.

“BUY IT, PLANT IT, WATCH IT GROW!” Do you sense what they’re NOT saying? Don’t learn, don’t investigate, don’t experiment, don’t decide which perennials you love, or those you hate. Don’t worry about your soil, don’t think about disease, don’t even water the thing, for that matter … just buy it, plant it, and watch it grow." (Yikes!) 

I think what he does not realize is that not everyone fancies themselves a gardener. Some people need help. Some people want easy. That does not mean that they are lazy or stupid. It just means that they look for another way to solve a problem. 

Even though I "think" he was talking about flowers (it does not matter), his words still resonated with me. We offer an easier way to garden. It is folly to insinuate that a person is not a true gardener just because they don't want to spend laborious hours in the garden trying to figure it out. 

I realize that there are some people who are gifted that way. My mother was. She would spend hours in her flower garden. She knew the Latin names of the plants. She had so many different colors and kinds of flowers. Her garden was beautiful. Planning, planting and design gave her joy.  I did not get that gift. I did not have the "gardening gene."  I did not have joy in the garden. 

As I got older and got married, I wanted to have a garden...not flowers, but vegetables...but I discovered that I did not have green thumbs. In fact, I did not have much success at all. I did the work, but still my plants did not thrive. My husband and I would work really hard in the spring, tilling, weeding, making straight rows, planting seeds. By July, it was hot and weedy and I had very little harvest to show for my work.  I was done...for the year...until the next year with renewed hope, I would try again...with similar results.

It got to be too hard to try again. I was older and did not want to work so hard for so little to show for my efforts. That's when we started gardening in boxes.  

With Garden Anywhere Box, I have success. I do not consider myself either lazy or stupid for wanting an easier way to garden. If it is a garden in a box, so be it. It works. Some people love to garden in the ground. They love the process. I do not begrudge them that at all. I think it's amazing to see beautiful gardens, flower or vegetable, that are thriving and huge, but I know the work that goes into making them beautiful. I am not that person.
I have found a way to grow and harvest vegetables without tilling the ground. weeding or investment of "sweat-equity" in the garden. I do not apologize for that. I revel in it. I want to shout it from the roof-tops. I have found joy in the garden. To those of you who were not born with green thumbs, who have given up on ever having success in the garden or who have never tried... Garden Anywhere Box works. You CAN be a successful gardener.

And the part about being "too stupid about learning garden design"...your education is just beginning. Once you realize that you can be successful in the garden, it's time to start really learning. What do you want to grow? What is companion planting? What herbs repel bugs? How can I attract bees to my garden?  What does it mean to grow organic and why should I care? What are GMO's? "Oh, the place's you'll go"...in your quest for gardening knowledge.

You CAN garden in a box 

You can garden in your socks. 

You can garden here...or there. 

You can GARDEN ANYWHERE.

I discovered a quote by Alice Walker a couple of years ago. It says, "In search of my mother's garden, I found my own." That is how I feel. I didn't arrive at my destination the same way as others, but I did arrive. 

My Favorite Things...

I wanted to make a list of my favorite things for Garden Anywhere Box.  This list will be ongoing. As I find new favorites, I will add and share.

 1. Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

www,rareseeds.com

I use heirloom seeds in my garden. Heirloom seeds are "seeds with a story."   Some seeds date back to the days of Thomas Jefferson. There are seeds that have been handed down through families. The people at Baker Creek travel the world to find rare and unique seeds.
Here is a link to read more about the Gettle family and their mission in life. 

http://www.rareseeds.com/about/

My favorite seeds: American Beauty sunflower, Cosmic Purple carrot, Boston Pickling cucumber, Golden squash, White Scallop squash, Cocozella di Napoli squash, Black Beauty squash, Strawberry (pop) corn...

2. Sea Agri

www.seaagri.com

I first learned of Sea Agri years ago, but the shipping cost was pretty high. Now you can find it in most states and can get it easier. You do not have to have this to grow food in a GAB, but adding extra minerals from the sea to your food couldn't hurt. Go to their website to read more about Sea Agri and its benefits to your garden and lawn and livestock.

3. Eckroat Seed - Dolomite

http://www.eckroatseed.com/

Eckroat Seed is a local company in OKC. They sell a 50# bag of dolomite for less than $10. We include a 2 cup bag of dolomite and fertilizer in each GAB. These two things plus black plastic is all that you need to redress your GABs each season. A 50# bag of dolomite will last a long time. Check with different seed/feed stores where you live to see what you can find.


4. Mason Bees

http://davesbees.com/masonbees.html

If you are lucky enough to have bees in your garden, you are very lucky. If you are not

seeing bees in your garden, consider making a Mason bee house. 

Mason bees don't make honey, but they are great pollinators. I provided a link to show you how to make your own Mason bee house. It is not hard and will reward you with hard-working bees all summer.



5. Willow Water

http://www.bluestem.ca/willow-article1.htm

i just learned about Willow Water. Gather some new growth small willow branches. Cut them into 1 inch pieces. Boil water and pour over the twigs. Let steep 24 hours. Discard the twigs and use the water as a rooting hormone for your plants. We pruned back a couple of tomato plants that had gotten spindly. The stalks did not look that great, but they were putting off new growth on the ends. We trimmed the ends and stuck them into potting mix. Now we have lots of new tomato plants. We will use the willow water rooting hormone to help stimulate root growth. 

Everybody has a Story...This is a Continuation of Ours.

Dear GAB friends,

I wanted to share our progress with you. One of my first blog posts was Humble Beginnings, and how we got started gardening in boxes. I posted Things I Learned Last Summer in 2012 updating on our progress and a post in September of last year about the birth of Garden Anywhere Box. There have been other posts along the way updating our GAB journey. 

It's time for another update. Every business has a story. This is the continuation of ours.
Some of you know that Larry has developed macular degeneration. It had been advancing slowly, but at the end of last year, it worsened. He could no longer drive or see the regular print on the computer to do his telecom job. He has been without a "regular job" since January. Thank heavens for Garden Anywhere Box. This is something that he can still do. We have been (mostly) able to live on GAB sales from The Home and Garden shows and farmers markets...but just barely. Pay bills...buy box supplies, both, neither...

If Larry was able to do his telecom work, we would be fine, but apparently there was another plan. We were not ready to jump feet first into the deep end of our business just yet, but...here we are. Sink or swim. 

Some months have been really tough, especially as the summer gardening season came to an end. If it were not for the generosity of family, friends and our church, we don't know how we would have survived this year. We think of those that have helped us as silent investors. Your investment WILL pay off!

We have had a booth at the Home and Garden Show for the 

past two years.

The first year, 2013, we didn't even have any boxes to sell. We didn't know if anyone would want them. We paid for a booth space and handed out flyers to anyone that would take one. From that humble beginning we found out that, yes, people were interested in Garden Anywhere Box. Yay!









The second Home show, 2014, was a lot better than the first. We'd learned some things along the way. 


This is a picture of one of our last customers of the weekend.  She had heard about us on the radio from Larry's "minute of fame" the day before. All she could remember was "garden box". This lady went through five buildings to find us. She has a condition that does not allow her to have a garden. She grew up with a big garden and misses not being able to have one. She literally was in pain by the time she found us. Larry was talking to someone, so we offered her a chair in our booth to sit and rest. 

We were so humbled that she would seek us out so diligently. I wish I could know how her garden did this year. When people buy GABs, they get us. We care and want to hear about successes and failures. We want everyone to be successful and if you aren't, we want to help.

This picture is of William Moss, a Master Gardener who lives in Chicago and gardens in containers. http://www.wemoss.org/

He was at the Home and Garden show this year. Larry met him while waiting to be on the radio. He invited Mr. Moss to come by our booth to see our container garden set-up. He said that he would stop by. His handler did not want to let him come because he was on a tight schedule, but he came anyway. Larry offered to send a Starter Kit to Chicago for him to try. He said that he would really like that. We emailed and tried to establish contact, but I guess he never got the email. Oh, well...it was still a pretty exciting meeting. 

This is a picture of Larry being interviewed by our local gardening show hosts. Notice the eye patch...perfect for radio...last year, he developed Bell's Palsy. When you have Bell's Palsy, sometimes your eyelid will not close without much struggle. This causes your eye to become irritated and dry. We got an eye patch, but our oldest (hipper) son was not satisfied. He got his dad a Steam Punk monocle to wear. Now, his dad could protect his eye and be cool. Plus, the monocle allowed him to see out instead of using the patch which blocked vision.

Larry had to wear eye protection for a while and tape his eye shut at night. The Bells' Palsy lingered longer than we hoped. After almost a year, his Bell's Palsy was getting less noticeable. He started using frankincense essential oil around his eyes for a little while. One day I noticed that his eye was closing on its own and the Bell's Palsy was nearly gone. YAY! Yay for oils.
This year has been a roller-coaster of a ride and January, 2015 is fast approaching.

We did not even know if we could afford a booth at the Home and Garden Show this next year. We were planning to borrow the $1000 (yes, it costs that much) to pay for a 7x10 ft. space just to be there. I'd been emailing back and forth with the managers of the event to let them know our situation and that we really did want to be there. They were more than understanding and said that our product was perfect for the Home show and that they would wait for us. (Thank you!) 

Well...Larry got a call on Monday from one of the event managers. She asked him if he would consider a proposition. Okay...Intrigued.

She asked what we would think abut having Garden Anywhere Box as one of their featured booths. We would get a 20x20 space (huge) for $500. (No kidding!) We would have to do demonstrations all throughout the weekend and be available for interviews. (Ummm...YES!) We were beyond excited to receive this invitation. We do demonstrations all the time. GAB is not self-explanatory so we always take the time to show how the boxes work and what we are growing.

We are so grateful to the managers of the Home Show for allowing us this opportunity. Add this to the list of silent investors. :)

So, if you live in the OKC area and want to come by our booth, we'd love to see you. We will be getting some free tickets and just like last year, we will be having drawings to give away free ticket to the Home and Garden Show coming January 16-18 to the OK State Fairgrounds. It looks like we'll be in the same spot that we had at the fair. :)

In the Kitchen...

Busy day in the kitchen. Getting ready for our church Thanksgiving dinner tonight. 

Our Primary group made cute little Pilgrim hat crayon holders and turkey posters saying what they are thankful for. I've been in charge of activities at my church before. One thing that I like to do for the Thanksgiving dinner is to cover the tables with butcher paper and set crayons out. This gives the kids (and some adults) something to do once they've eaten dinner.

I signed up to bring my mom's recipe for sweet potato casserole, Chunky Cranberry Applesauce, Mexican Fruitcake and a green salad with home-grown tomatoes from the greenhouse.

 Here is a pretty close recipe for sweet potato casserole.

I use three eggs and my recipe does not call for buttermilk, but I found a recipe on Pinterest and decided to post it. My mom made Sweet Potato Casserole every year for special occasions. My husband would not touch a sweet potato until he tried my mom's casserole recipe. 

  Chunky Cranberry Applesauce

This is a favorite recipe that I found in an issue of Southern Living a few years ago. I grew up with cranberry sauce from a can. I was fine with that...until I discovered this recipe. It is just so good. Worth the time to make to add it to the holiday table. 

Mexican Fruitcake,

This is one of my very old and very favorite cakes. I got the recipe years ago when I worked in an office. People were always bringing goodies. A salesman's wife brought this cake. She called it, "Mexican Fruitcake." I'm not sure why since the only fruit in it is crushed pineapple. It was so good. I had to have the recipe. This cake is super easy to make.

Beat two eggs in a large bowl. Add sugar, crushed pineapple, vanilla, flour, baking soda (my recipe does not call for baking powder) and chopped pecans. Mix with a fork and pour into an ungreased jelly roll pan. No mixer, just a fork and an ungreased pan. What could be easier?

Bake until done, cool, and ice with cream cheese icing.

If you haven't made any of these recipes, you should give them a try. 

Snow

Here are a few pics from winters past.


The pic of my family is a few years old. Our oldest son was out of the house at the time.  The rest of the family could not resist playing in the snow and I couldn't resist taking pictures. Btw, I had to cut this picture in half to make it fit in one of those collage picture frames. 













This is a picture from last year. The snow on our little pine tree looked so pretty. The leaf looks like a heart. 

This picture is from two years ago. These are some pine trees in the front yard. I found a quote by Lady Bird Johnson that expresses how I feel about snow.

              Here's a picture out our kitchen window of Garden Anywhere Box in snow. 

This is a picture of our pond last winter. The water level is a bit low, but the geese don't seem to mind. 

The last pictures are of our pond a few winters ago. 

The pond was not here when we bought our property. It was a boggy spot where blackberries grew and snakes gathered. Yikes! We decided to see if we could turn it into a pond. There were some willow trees in the middle of the field. I asked if we could turn it into an island...and we could. Yay! So, now we have "Willow Island" ...because I like to name things...lol. 

This is a picture from when the pond used to have a constant flow of water and the creek was always full. 

When we dug the pond, we discovered that there was a spot of quicksand over by the woods. That was pretty cool. Our kids had so much fun playing in the red dirt that was excavated to make the pond. We stocked our pond with fish and got to observe the fish building their nests along the bank. Pretty cool for a homeschooling family to get to watch.

If you look closely at the top pic,  you can see geese on the pond. We have a family of Canada geese that come yearly to have babies on the island. Over the years, the family has grown to include many generations of geese. It's pretty cool.

We have had years of fun on our pond. From the year that it froze SOLID and allowed the kids the opportunity to sled across it, to Scout camp outs, fishing and swimming parties, to group gathering for cookouts, to canoe and paddle boat races. We are truly blessed to live here and we know it. You are welcome to come fishing anytime. The catfish are usually biting.

Taking Pictures

When you see my pics, does it help you to see planting and harvesting in a different way?  Planting, not just to harvest, but to include color, texture and shape in your decision about what to plant. I  hope that when you see my daily pics, it will inspire you to take pictures of your own harvests and share the beauty of nature with others. 

June 16, 2013

I did not always take pictures of my harvests. For one thing, there was not much to harvest...lol. Another reason was that when I went out into the garden, I was there to work, to weed and hoe. I didn't even really think about taking pictures. 

One Day's Harvest

These two pictures are examples of harvests before using a basket. The one to the right was from a few years ago It was one day's harvest.  The picture above was my first harvest picture from 2013. Five zucchinis. The basket would follow three days later. 

A tomato harvest - 2012

The pictures that you see today, evolved over time. I didn't have a basket.  When I actually had something to harvest,  I would grab a bowl or pail and head out to the garden to harvest tomatoes. 

One day I was at Hobby Lobby and saw a basket that I thought would be perfect for my daily harvests. I love baskets and especially this one because it is not deep like my other baskets. 

Now that we garden in GABs, I have lots to harvest.  Below are pictures of harvest pictures from my 2014 garden.

In this first picture, I show the sizes of my baskets. The one on the right is my original basket. It's about 10 inches across. It's holds a good amount of food. I saw the same basket, just a little bigger at Hobby Lobby one day and decided to get it for days that the garden was really producing. It's about 16 inches across. The basket in the middle is one of my regular baskets that I have on top of a bookshelf in my library. This day, I needed the BIG baskets for my harvest. 

The picture on the right is of a three day harvest. Lots of work ahead of me in the kitchen! 

This year I decided to look for another  basket as a spare, but discovered that Hobby Lobby no longer carries "my" basket.

I did find a wire mesh basket that I thought looked interesting. Now you can see all the way inside. 

The next picture is a weeks worth of tomatoes. Between harvesting, farmers markets and other errands, I found myself behind in the kitchen. Yikes! 

I like to combine different colors, shapes and varieties, not only to have diversity in my baskets, but to have diversity in my kitchen. This basket combines the beauty of sunflowers with the harvest of zucchini, squash, tomatoes, cucumbers and assorted herbs.

If you had told me a few years ago, that I could be a successful gardener without working so hard to till the ground and weed my traditional garden, I'm not sure that I would have believed you. A traditional garden was how we did it. I had tried raised beds, but not with much success. I thought that there was no easy way to garden and no easy way to grow my own produce.  Garden Anywhere Box has changed my perspective.

Garden Anywhere Box makes it easier to be a successful gardener. I can attest to that. I WAS that gardener who worked in the garden with little to show for it. I was convinced that I had "brown thumbs" and would kill anything that I tried to grow. After gardening with GAB, I finally consider myself a successful gardener. I love going out to the garden, I Phone in hand, to see who is in the garden and what is ready to harvest.  I only use natural light from the sun. No filters or special apps to alter my daily harvest pics. I do sometimes play with my pictures after posting my daily harvest pic, but what you see is what you get on the original.

I know that if GAB can help me be successful, this method of gardening can help anyone. I'm excited now about gardening. I can't wait to see what is ready to harvest. 

Once you realize that you can be a successful gardener, the sky is the limit on what you can grow.