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Episode 120: Francoise Weeks                                

BB Garden Work Day

The time changes this weekend and that means longer days for working in the garden! It’s my favorite time of year and we start preparing for it in the fall as we clean up, sow seed, and put the BB Garden to bed for the winter (winter: my least favorite time of year!). Last November a few of my local flower friends stopped by and made the workday a lot more fun!

This is Gabe – the life of every party. He kept us laughing and eye-rolling all day. He’s a PhD student, as well as a shop owner in our downtown.

And this is the man who has supported me for 30 years, my husband – Joel. I can assure you there would be no BB without his support. Notice Gabe in the background…

We planted 5 new roses that day including ‘Heritage’ (David Austin). Can’t wait to see it bloom again this spring.

We always plant plenty of pansies and ornamental kale for the winter months. I have to have something pretty to look at from the kitchen window when everything else is brown and bare!

Oh look, he’s finished checking his phone and back to working/entertaining.

We cleared out the zinnias and celosia, added some new soil to the raised beds, and prepared to plant sweet peas.

Joel McGee gets the dirt ready in the BB Garden  

Of course, no garden day would be complete without an injury! Amelia, owner of Tersilla & Co, mistook her finger for a stem while cutting down the stems on a hand-tied bouquet she was making with materials foraged from the garden. No worries. I’ve always got butterfly band-aids on hand. (You might also notice a little poison ivy rash – Amelia did not get that gift from the BB Garden!)

And, of course, no garden is complete without a few beds of sweet peas! We planted ‘Molly Rilstone’ from Floret, as well as  ‘Elegance Lavender’ & ‘Spencer Ripple’ from Johnny’s. I’m looking forward to them blooming in the next couple of weeks right outside my office window.

A Sweet Pea seed bag in the BB Garden

Amelia designed a bouquet of Benary’s Giant white zinnias, basil, Sylphid celosia, elaeagnus, fountain grass, and variegated Chinese privet – the little bits left in the garden in November. And that’s our friend Erin, a Texas A&M horticulture/floral design student for a few more months (!), hiding behind the bouquet below.

This picture says it all. Working and minding my own business…while Gabe …does what Gabe does best. Seriously, one of the biggest blessings of the last year has been getting to know and love Gabe and Robby (who you’ll meet shortly).

I bet you’ve been wondering who the ball of fur is – because we never go anywhere that every passerby doesn’t stop and ask! This is Ponderosa, Amelia’s best bud. He kept the day fun and was right there waiting when we needed a break from work!

And, here’s Robby, Gabe’s partner in life and business. Together they own Market 1023 and Robby is the man behind the camera at Ten 23 Photography. He’s steady, hardworking, and kind – and together, he and Gabe make a great team.

A deep blue and purple plant from the BB Garden

In the afternoon, we decided to take a break from working and have fun putting together a tablescape. Amelia ran to her car and came back with dishes, candles, hand-dyed silk and pods from a Golden Rain Tree she passed on her way to Garden Day. The bouquet morphed into a centerpiece and she added the grapes we were snacking on to the tablescape.

Robby and Gabe brought goodies from their shop – macrame wall hangings and lanterns. And, of course, we had to drag the table, chairs, and duvet cover out of the house. I’m sure the neighbors thought we were crazy. I know you can relate. You’ve done the same thing, haven’t you?

Gabe Miller hangs a tapestry from a tree in the BB Garden  A floral centerpiece and chair design in the BB Garden

China berries were hanging over the back patio area, so they became part of a separate tablescape as did some of the potted ornamental kale.

   A decorated table with succulents and floral designs in the BB Garden

So grateful for community. We might just make this a seasonal get together. I remember a plaque my husband’s grandfather (who was an avid gardener) had in his garden:

The kiss of the sun for pardon,
The song of the birds for mirth,
One is nearer God’s Heart in a garden
Than anywhere else on Earth.

I couldn’t agree more.

The BB Garden crew after a long workday


Photography: Ten 23 Photography

Poem: “God’s Garden”,  Poems, by Dorothy Frances Gurney


I’ll leave you with this…

Thanks for sharing this BB Garden workday with us! See our BB story here.

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  1. Jenny says:

    SO fun and what a beautiful tablescape!

  2. Chelsea Leavitt says:

    This looks like a dream!

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