Garden 'siteseeing' at Thanksgiving

Sometimes Diggin' It likes to go "visiting" via the Web to see what's happening in other gardens and with other gardeners -- thus the name "siteseeing."

It seems especially appropriate at this time of year, when so many people are heading out to airports, train stations, and highways to visit family and friends.

Here are five blog posts that are just perfect for this time of year:

– The Garden Lady looks out from her own garden to give thanks for all those who have created beautiful  public gardens and landscapes that we all can enjoy. "I am grateful for all those professional gardeners, landscapers and garden workers as well as all the volunteers who help in so many public or private gardens or even create their own gardens for people to see and visit," she says.

– Naturalist Matt Miller of the Nature Conservancy reflects on wild turkeys,  which, he notes, "roam forests, wood lots, farm fields and prairies from Maine to Florida, from New Jersey to California." They're a real conservation success story, since in the early 1900s, the birds' numbers had dwindled to 30,000 nationwide.

– A Wisconsin gardener and dietitian looks back at this year's harvest of fruits and vegetables – from apples to tomatoes – with gratitude. "Those of us who grow our own truly appreciate our abundance. We feel secure knowing we have more than enough food to sustain us through the winter," she says.

– Marianne Binetti doesn't overlook the trials that sometimes come up in gardening, but recognizes that the Pacific Northwest is a great place to grow things. She says:

The last week in November is the time to take stock and realize once again how thankful we should be to live and garden here in Western Washington.

You don’t need to travel to find out why gardeners from New Zealand to New Hampshire wish they could garden right here – where our weather is mild, our rainfall plentiful and our access to new plants, new styles of landscape design are complemented by a fine selection of independent nurseries.

– Scott Hokunson of Blue Heron Landscape Design counts the blessings in his garden and his natural surroundings in A Thankful Garden.

Editor’s note: For more on gardening, see the Monitor’s main gardening page, which offers articles on many gardening topics. Also, check out our blog archive and our RSS feed. You may want to visit Gardening With the Monitor on Flickr. Take part in the discussions and get answers to your gardening questions. If you join the group (it’s free), you can upload your garden photos and enter our contests.

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