The plants in this picture make me smile, not just because of the colour combination but because of the story behind where they came from. Social media has its negatives but in terms of gardening it has made it more accessible and affordable.
The Geum in this picture comes from a local guy who runs a Facebook Page selling his plants. Stu works in a nursery and in his spare?!? time, he propagates and germinates. The last time we talked he had over 10,000 baby plants on the go! This is great as although I love the idea of growing from seeds, I lack the patience to mollycoddle them. My Geum seedlings died – probably through lack of water and frying in the greenhouse… So Stu’s red babies have come in and its worked out so well. The red of the blooms really offset the red of the Phormium.
The Phormium came from a Facebook group that I am in about flowers arranging. One of the members had a plant that was too big and outgrowing her garden and was giving it away. I gladly took it off her hands and split it into 3. All off them are doing well in this bed and help a mass spikey affect. I gave her some dried grass in exchange.
I love re distribution of plants. Instead of plants hitting the compost bins, seedlings are exchanged or given away. In many ways social media platforms have continued the sharing thread of the gardening clubs of old in a more accessible way.
I have learned lots from various social media gardeners whether it be on no dig, grow your own, plant combinations, discovering new plants and the sustainability issues of horticulture.
So if you are looking to increase your plant collection or gardening knowledge, Facebook is a great place to look.