plum blossom

 

I honestly do not know how other garden bloggers do it.

How can they even THINK about writing during spring?

Where do they find the time?

I’m so busy with work and being IN my garden that there is absolutely no time left to write about it. The truth is:

 

The Life of a Garden Blogger in Spring is insane.

 

garden flamingos

 

Last weekend officially marked my two month anniversary since I started with Milner Village Garden Centre. ( And what a couple of months it has been! ).

I most recently moved into the position of General Manager and all the hard work that goes into running a retail garden store in spring is now my new job.

 

There’s the constant restocking of fresh new product straight from our huge nursery…

 

greenhouse flowers

 

…so I get to ride a little beep beep… which is kind of a hoot.

 

making it pretty

 

Learning about my new team and hiring new members so we can rock those pink shirts like the gardenista pros we are.

 

milner girls

 

Planning a little get together so we can say goodbye to Miranda, the previous manager.

 

miranda's going away party

 

and we still have to give a big pink welcome to the newest Milner family member, little Avery.

 

998350_658749964151113_926778895_n

 

There’s decorating floats so we can win first place in parades ( we did you know..win first place, wink )

 

parade float

 

first place ribbon

 

Then going to marketing seminars and brain storming idea’s like gorilla marketing schemes that get peoples attention.

 

marketing seminar

 

We took beauty bombing to the fullest when the owner of the company, Tamara, decided that the construction was NOT going to be an obstruction to our business and decorated the meridian down Glover road with baskets.

 

Gorilla Marketing

 

The customers loved it!

The city and road crews…. not so much. And neighboring competitors? Well they hated it… bet they wished they thought of it themselves!

But hey, we were just trying to make it pretty

One Pylon at a Time 🙂

 Toilet Planter

 

And that’s not even the half of it ! Just making things pretty requires a lot of work don’t you know.

Like…

 gift ware ordering, green goods restocking,

inventory receiving, staff scheduling,

daily reports,

store maintenance, staff training,

plant care ( a whole ‘nother topic in itself! ),

meeting with reps, planning events,

updating social media,

planting up berms, shopping for supplies,

organizing the market,

and getting projects built.

 

Oh and…..

 

mascot

 

Don’t forget Mascot management…. yep. Gotta remember to get them to the curb… Gotta NOT forget to pick them up.

 

I’m a designer by the way and decorating is what I do… or did….. but I do try to have a little fun once in awhile and pretty up the store when I can.

Thankfully I recruited a former colleague of mine who has a flair for decor too.

 

wedding decor

 

and the most important job in a greenhouse….

 

Watering, Watering, Watering

 

watering plants

 

In between ALL THAT… the whole reason we are here is…

customer service

and being that I’m one of the most knowledgeable members on staff, I get the lions share of answering

 

hortie questions all… day… long!

 

That alone is a full time job for one individual in a garden centre in spring.

 

Then there is critter care like feeding the gold fish….as far as I know, we are up to three now. I think I’m the only one who cares about those little fishy’s….

 

….my little Nemo’s.

 

pond

 

Hosting luncheons for Guilds and Clubs…

 

guild luncheon

 

Planting designer containers for customers…

 

custom planter

 

Planning tours

 

Screen Shot 2013-06-23 at 9.39.31 PM

 

Then giving them…

 

Circle Farm Tour

 

Directing projects

 

antique car

 

Remembering Signage ( and not to forget to turn off the open sign at night )

 

milner

 

Promoting our Milner Village Market ( Open every Saturday 10-3, wink )

 

market vendor

 

Decorating sets for our CTV news spots…. and then planning for the next one.

 

CTV set

 

 SO… I hope I cleared up any misconceptions that working in a garden centre is just a

tiptoe through the tulips.

Of course I do love my husband and we try to have ‘micro’ dates where we slice a sliver of time together throughout our busy weeks.

 

Chris and I

 

Like an early Sunday breakfast at Krauss Berry Farms

 

Krauss Berry Farms

 

or a fire under a clear starry night

 

firepit

 

I know what your thinking…

 

What does any of this have to do with blogging?

and

How are you even finding the time to write this post now?

( You want the truth? It’s taken me a week to write this post…. really. )

 

It’s called ‘dirty dishes in the sink and unfolded laundry in the basket’ that’s how. I struggle to find the time to do the things I’m passionate about as a garden blogger in spring.

And all of the above doesn’t even begin to include my #1 passion:

 

Gardening!

 

vegetable garden

 

I do my best to keep my blog current and do the things us bloggers do. I try to participate in online groups, listen to media marketing podcasts and update Facebook or Twitter when ever I can.

 

 I managed to sneak in the Northwest Garden Show in early spring right before all the crazy started and meet with a fellow blogger down in Seattle

IMG_5970

Teresa O’Conner of Seasonal Wisdom

 

And went to a Blogger and Brands Convention here in Vancouver

 

blogger convention

 

I was invited to be a featured expert on Hometalk.com….

 

 expert gardener

 

Twice….

 

expert gardener

 

and I try to visit, comment and share on others blogs and social media feeds.

 

In fact, my commenting on Garden’s West Facebook page put me in touch with a fellow trying to find a home for his sisters beloved collection of magazines… I am now the proud owner of a complete 15 year collection of every edition from 1998 to 2013.

Still haven’t opened a single one yet…. yeesh.

 

Garden's west magazine

 

BUT

A garden blogger needs to have a garden to blog about. And that my friends is the thing that keeps me sane right now. Even though I have very little time, I make this a priority every week

 

my garden depends on it.

 

hanging basket

 

I have 2/3 of an acre and a lot of plants to take care of, so on hot sunny days… I don’t even get changed from work.

I just open the front door,

toss in my purse and keys….

then head directly for the facet.

 

tiki torch and flowers

 

Some would complain about the rainy June… and as a manager of a garden centre I would say it sucks. But as a gardener, that rain has been my savior…..or rather my gardens savior.

 

Red, Yellow and Chives all grow in the same bed together

 

However, I do have to take inventory of the goings on out in my little Eden as regularly as I can or else I’ll find I’ve missed out on a garden joy moment or things are starting to get out of hand.

 

Like the weeds in this bed

 

weeds

 

or the fact that my broccoli is starting to bolt

 

broccoli flower

 

And this would be called Crimes against Flowers… How I never found the time to stake my beloved peonies is just a crying shame…

literally, I could cry.

 

peonies

 

I need to remember to add more straw to my potato cages

 

potato cage

 

feed my tomatoes and peppers

 

container grown peppers

 

Defend my vegi’s from vicious predators

 

slug monster

 

Clean up the mess from flowering rhodo’s

 

rhodo flower carpet

 

prune the garlic scapes

 

garlic scape

 

Hang up the hanging baskets ( I mean seriously! )

 

hanging baskets

 

turn the compost

 

compost pile

 

create interesting vignettes

 

summer planter

 

deadhead spent blossoms

 

deadheading

 

Protect the neighborhood geese

 

geese

 

and grow a skirt for Miss Magellanica

 

grow a skirt

 

It’s tough just to try and not miss

 special moments

in the garden like when a bee visits my newly bloomed Giant Alliums

 

allium blossom

 

 or when the sun sets behind the old neighboring barn

 

barn sunset

 

and to remember to relax and actually enjoy my symphony of flowers

 

backyard retreat

 

So, there you have it….

the life of THIS garden blogger

in the spring is far from lollygagging along taking pictures of flowers and pretty dirty things…

it’s a non-stop exhausting push to try to fit it all in.

 

spring photography

 

But now it’s summer…. oh sweet lazy days of summer. How I’m so happy to see you. Time to get outside and….

do some summer projects!

Peace Love Garden