WEBVTT 1 00:00:30.359 --> 00:00:36.320 It's time for the Gardening Simplified podcast, YouTube and radio show coming to you 2 00:00:36.799 --> 00:00:41.880 from Studio A here at proven winners, Color Choice Shrubs. It's Stacy Hervella 3 00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:47.799 me, Rick weisst and our engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson. Well, let's 4 00:00:47.960 --> 00:00:55.159 raise the woof Yeah, popular things to do out in your landscape gardening and 5 00:00:55.520 --> 00:00:59.359 dog scaping. We're going to talk about dog scaping today, and statistics show 6 00:01:00.520 --> 00:01:04.439 percent of US households own a pet. More specifically, dogs are the most 7 00:01:04.480 --> 00:01:12.040 popular pet in the US. Sixty five million US homes own a dog now. 8 00:01:12.079 --> 00:01:18.400 In twenty twenty two, statistics show Americans spent one hundred and thirty six 9 00:01:18.439 --> 00:01:25.799 point eight billion dollars on their pets, and essential dog expenses cost owners on 10 00:01:26.040 --> 00:01:32.319 average about one thousand, five hundred and thirty three dollars annually. Stacy, 11 00:01:32.359 --> 00:01:36.599 I'd have to say people are mutts about their dogs and gardening. Oh that's 12 00:01:36.680 --> 00:01:41.480 rough, wreck, Thank you very mulch. Well, dog friendly gardening is 13 00:01:41.640 --> 00:01:46.400 very important, and you know, spending time outdoors with your pet, you 14 00:01:46.480 --> 00:01:49.719 want it to be less stressful because I think you got to think sometimes about 15 00:01:49.719 --> 00:01:53.840 your pupp as a toddler. You want it to be a safe environment for 16 00:01:53.920 --> 00:01:59.519 your dog. At the same time, dogs are very very smart and very 17 00:01:59.640 --> 00:02:06.000 very interactive. You can teach a dog tricks, so dog scaping is a 18 00:02:06.159 --> 00:02:12.159 topic that is great to cover to make the area wonderful for both you and 19 00:02:12.319 --> 00:02:16.240 your pet. When it comes to occupations, dogs are not good landscapers. 20 00:02:16.960 --> 00:02:23.719 They are roofers, so they can dig. You know. I've definitely seen 21 00:02:23.759 --> 00:02:27.639 some very digging dogs that could, you know, give you a little headstart 22 00:02:27.639 --> 00:02:30.240 on planting a shrub. If you can get them to dig in the right 23 00:02:30.280 --> 00:02:35.639 place exactly, I can dig it well. Full disclosure and transparency, I 24 00:02:35.719 --> 00:02:38.439 do not own a dog, but I live next to a dog beach. 25 00:02:38.479 --> 00:02:44.960 It's a fifty two acre park with breath taking views of Lake Michigan, and 26 00:02:45.319 --> 00:02:51.360 I watch dog owners and their dogs enjoy the beach now. I've also spoken 27 00:02:51.400 --> 00:02:55.680 to hundreds of dog owners who have called into a live radio show to talk 28 00:02:55.879 --> 00:03:02.080 about their dogs and their landscape and their yard. And it's not far fetched 29 00:03:02.319 --> 00:03:07.400 to say that dogs need room to roam and so Stacy, most of the 30 00:03:07.479 --> 00:03:13.199 questions that I would get through the years were surface related, turf related, 31 00:03:13.879 --> 00:03:17.000 Essentially, the dog evacuating on the turf let me put it that way, 32 00:03:17.120 --> 00:03:22.879 going potty and creating spots or digging up the turf, and I would say 33 00:03:22.879 --> 00:03:29.560 that that's probably the number one issue, at least as I've heard from dog 34 00:03:29.599 --> 00:03:35.400 owners, because that surface is important. There's controversy there. There are some 35 00:03:35.439 --> 00:03:42.159 people who will resign themselves to artificial turf. Well, that's expensive, it 36 00:03:42.199 --> 00:03:46.360 can get hot in the sun. You've got clean up issues. So I 37 00:03:46.479 --> 00:03:52.120 personally believe through the years, a tall turf type rescue that's used in heavily 38 00:03:52.159 --> 00:03:58.199 traffic parks, along with perennial rye grass which tends to germinate quickly, is 39 00:03:58.240 --> 00:04:02.039 a great way to go. Maybe some water in those areas where you need 40 00:04:02.080 --> 00:04:09.759 to drain the salts out of the areas where the dogs have evacuated. I'm 41 00:04:09.800 --> 00:04:14.599 going to use that word because I just think it's more radio friendly. And 42 00:04:14.919 --> 00:04:17.240 of course through the years too, we've advised people to use gypsum pellets. 43 00:04:17.319 --> 00:04:21.600 Gypsum pellets are used on clay lawns. Whether or not it works, that's 44 00:04:21.680 --> 00:04:27.240 up to you to decide. But I find that as one of the top 45 00:04:27.279 --> 00:04:30.199 issues. Well, you know, I think that along with all of that, 46 00:04:30.439 --> 00:04:33.519 a healthy dose of tolerance is also a good thing for dog owners to 47 00:04:33.560 --> 00:04:35.920 have. I mean, you're going to have a dog, then I think 48 00:04:35.959 --> 00:04:40.639 you need to just kind of resign yourself to not having a perfect turf. 49 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.199 And it's okay if those you know, you can coexist with those two things. 50 00:04:44.600 --> 00:04:46.439 I mean, you know, I think you know, my neighbors have 51 00:04:46.480 --> 00:04:51.360 two dogs, and their turf looks to me absolutely immaculate. I'm sure they're 52 00:04:51.360 --> 00:04:54.920 sitting there going oh jeezer spots all over it, but I mean I think 53 00:04:54.920 --> 00:04:58.560 it looks amazing, and so it's okay. You know, a lawn doesn't 54 00:04:58.600 --> 00:05:00.879 have to be a completely con assistant perfect thing. And if you're one of 55 00:05:00.879 --> 00:05:03.319 those people who have a home putting green, well you just keep your dog 56 00:05:03.360 --> 00:05:08.360 off of that problem solved, Yeah, exactly. Well, there are many 57 00:05:08.439 --> 00:05:13.839 wonderful dog owners who do a great job training their dogs and setting up in 58 00:05:13.920 --> 00:05:17.800 their landscape an area where the dog can go to the bathroom, and it 59 00:05:17.959 --> 00:05:21.480 works. It just takes some work, some time to train the dog to 60 00:05:21.560 --> 00:05:27.279 go in those areas. Obviously, the difference between male and female dogs also, 61 00:05:27.360 --> 00:05:30.399 the male dogs tend to do more damage to shrubs, the female dogs 62 00:05:30.439 --> 00:05:36.120 more damage to turf areas. Now, also we want plants that are tough, 63 00:05:38.000 --> 00:05:43.199 that can handle dogs rummaging around in the yard. I think ornamental grasses, 64 00:05:43.240 --> 00:05:46.680 as an example, are perfect. They're tough, they're safe for the 65 00:05:46.759 --> 00:05:53.600 dogs. And of course we have unsafe plants that we don't want in our 66 00:05:53.800 --> 00:05:57.959 landscape. You know, you think of sago palm or oleander. I mean, 67 00:05:58.000 --> 00:06:01.360 those are obvious plants that you don't want in your landscape. But Stacy, 68 00:06:01.439 --> 00:06:06.759 you've often advised people to use a method to look up university websites for 69 00:06:08.040 --> 00:06:10.600 plant list Oh yeah, I'm a big believer in this. And you know, 70 00:06:10.680 --> 00:06:13.120 over the years I've heard from a lot of gardeners who are like, 71 00:06:13.240 --> 00:06:15.759 you know, I'm interested in your fill in the blank plant, but I 72 00:06:15.800 --> 00:06:18.279 want to know if it's if it's okay for my dog to eat or you 73 00:06:18.279 --> 00:06:21.439 know whatever. And I will say, first and foremost, your assumption with 74 00:06:21.600 --> 00:06:26.879 any plant should be your dog cannot eat it. So even if something is 75 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:30.920 not harmful, it's not like you should encourage your dog to eat it, 76 00:06:30.959 --> 00:06:34.839 because you know, at least at worst your carpet could be at riskless once 77 00:06:34.879 --> 00:06:39.480 the dog comes back inside. So you know whether or not something is actually 78 00:06:39.519 --> 00:06:43.600 coming up as toxic, is an important distinction because you're just like, don't 79 00:06:43.759 --> 00:06:46.120 you just don't eat the plants. But if you are wondering, and if 80 00:06:46.120 --> 00:06:49.680 you are concerned or your dog has eaten something and you are now very concerned, 81 00:06:50.199 --> 00:06:54.920 the best way to get reliable information on if a plant is toxic to 82 00:06:54.959 --> 00:06:59.040 your pet is to search the scientific name if possible. So you don't want 83 00:06:59.079 --> 00:07:01.879 to just put in like, you know, maiden grass, because it's going 84 00:07:01.920 --> 00:07:04.000 to be, you know, kind of muddy. It'll be confusing, So 85 00:07:04.000 --> 00:07:08.240 you would want to put in miscanthus at the very least. And if it's 86 00:07:08.240 --> 00:07:11.120 a hydrangea, then you would want us put in like hydrange of piniculata, 87 00:07:11.120 --> 00:07:13.480 so as much scientific name as you can put it, So you would put 88 00:07:13.519 --> 00:07:18.439 in hydrange of peniculata toxic, not poisonous or anything that because the official term 89 00:07:18.439 --> 00:07:24.240 here is that it's toxic to the animal toxic and then dogs or cats or 90 00:07:24.360 --> 00:07:29.439 rabbits or tortoises or whatever that is. And then site si te colon dot 91 00:07:29.680 --> 00:07:33.560 edu. And so what this does is it limits all of your responses in 92 00:07:33.600 --> 00:07:39.160 your search to only university websites. And what that means is that you're getting 93 00:07:39.480 --> 00:07:44.680 results from veterinary programs where they're actually studying these things. And you know, 94 00:07:44.800 --> 00:07:46.839 the really good thing about this Ateran and I were just talking about this as 95 00:07:46.839 --> 00:07:50.319 well, is that it's not only just saying your dogs shouldn't eat this, 96 00:07:50.480 --> 00:07:56.240 it's actually giving you These sites are giving you actual information on what the mode 97 00:07:56.279 --> 00:07:59.800 of action of that potential toxin is. Is it going to be a dermal 98 00:08:00.120 --> 00:08:03.639 is bothering the skin, the hair, sure stomach? What you should be 99 00:08:03.680 --> 00:08:05.240 looking for, and then you can take that to the vet because you know, 100 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:07.720 if you just say, oh, he just ate this plant and it 101 00:08:07.720 --> 00:08:11.279 was a hydrangea like, that's not necessarily helpful. And I know in these 102 00:08:11.319 --> 00:08:13.680 times of you know, panic, it's not always easy to think straight. 103 00:08:13.720 --> 00:08:18.680 So it might be useful if you have a landscape and a very very curious 104 00:08:18.720 --> 00:08:22.439 dog is to just make a little list of those plants and do the research 105 00:08:22.480 --> 00:08:24.680 and then just have that list to refer to. That's a great way to 106 00:08:24.759 --> 00:08:28.480 do research. Of course, we also learn from each other. Being in 107 00:08:28.519 --> 00:08:33.919 the garden center industry for over forty years, I've learned a lot from dog 108 00:08:33.960 --> 00:08:37.759 owners. We can learn from each other and programming note today coming up in 109 00:08:37.799 --> 00:08:41.639 the mail bag segment, we're going to learn from you, and there's some 110 00:08:41.759 --> 00:08:46.840 great advice in there, Stacey. And then in the final segment today, 111 00:08:46.000 --> 00:08:50.679 we're going to learn from our very own Adrianna Robinson. She has two dogs. 112 00:08:50.679 --> 00:08:54.480 I'm gonna make sure to get this right, at Liass and Sage. 113 00:08:54.919 --> 00:08:58.159 And we're going to talk about Atlas and Sage coming up in our fourth segment. 114 00:08:58.639 --> 00:09:03.000 See. The other thing I've learned from folks through the years is, 115 00:09:03.039 --> 00:09:05.919 of course dogs like to roam. We should have a fence or a barrier 116 00:09:07.360 --> 00:09:13.720 to protect the dog, but a dog generally would like to patrol that fence 117 00:09:13.799 --> 00:09:18.360 line, keeping an eye on the neighbors. I love those windows you can 118 00:09:18.399 --> 00:09:22.320 purchase the ventilated windows. Yeah, peek out the fence line, but it 119 00:09:22.480 --> 00:09:28.320 means moving shrubs or plants maybe a little ways away, maybe two to three 120 00:09:28.320 --> 00:09:31.559 feet from the fence line, so they have that area that they can patrol 121 00:09:33.039 --> 00:09:37.240 looking at things like hard scaping or maybe looking at in an elevated lookout. 122 00:09:37.679 --> 00:09:41.960 And then in addition, when we talk dog scaping, Stacy, we've got 123 00:09:41.960 --> 00:09:45.440 to provide an area of shade for dogs too. Oh. Absolutely, clean 124 00:09:45.480 --> 00:09:50.440 water and clean water, yes, exactly, raised beds if you're going to 125 00:09:50.480 --> 00:09:54.559 grow herbs, vegetables, that type of thing. Raised beds are a good 126 00:09:54.679 --> 00:09:58.440 idea. And then you know, I'm gonna ask Adriana about this in our 127 00:09:58.480 --> 00:10:03.039 fourth segment too, because through about the years, people have asked about mulch, 128 00:10:03.159 --> 00:10:05.759 what does your dog eat? And of course there's the whole thing with 129 00:10:05.879 --> 00:10:13.679 cocoa mulch attention to exactly. So anyhow, the dog show up and they're 130 00:10:13.720 --> 00:10:18.320 the stars of the show. We love our dogs. As a matter of 131 00:10:18.360 --> 00:10:22.519 fact, that's when the paparazzi shows up. Sorry, there's so many good 132 00:10:22.600 --> 00:10:26.799 dog puns. I just can't resist. But you can train your dog. 133 00:10:26.879 --> 00:10:33.679 And of course some dogs are diggers. I mean, they just want to 134 00:10:33.720 --> 00:10:37.759 dig, that's their nature. And so if you have a dog like that, 135 00:10:37.919 --> 00:10:43.679 also maybe providing a digging pit. So let's continue on with dogscaping. 136 00:10:43.720 --> 00:10:46.200 We're going to see how Stacy ties it in with plants on trial this week 137 00:10:46.480 --> 00:10:56.799 here on the Gardening Simplified Show. Proven winners Colored Choice Shrubs cares about your 138 00:10:56.840 --> 00:11:01.399 success in the garden. That's why we try and test all of our shrubs 139 00:11:01.440 --> 00:11:05.399 for eight to ten years, making sure they outperform everything else on the market. 140 00:11:05.600 --> 00:11:07.960 Look for them and the distinctive white container at your local garden center. 141 00:11:09.720 --> 00:11:13.480 Greeting's gardening friends, and welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show, where the 142 00:11:13.480 --> 00:11:16.799 topic of the day is dogs. And you know, a couple of weeks 143 00:11:16.840 --> 00:11:20.759 ago, we did ask people to send in pictures of their dogs so that 144 00:11:20.799 --> 00:11:24.559 we could show them as part of this episode. So this is one episode 145 00:11:24.600 --> 00:11:28.840 I would strongly encourage you if you do not tune in on YouTube, that 146 00:11:28.879 --> 00:11:31.279 you tune in this time because we are going to add all of those in 147 00:11:31.519 --> 00:11:37.440 to the YouTube video. We got so many great submissions. I love them 148 00:11:37.480 --> 00:11:41.039 all. Every email that I opened was like a new joy. And I'll 149 00:11:41.039 --> 00:11:45.279 tell you, I don't know if other shows ask their listeners to send and 150 00:11:45.320 --> 00:11:46.919 dogs, but I think our listeners have the best looking dogs out there. 151 00:11:48.240 --> 00:11:52.879 Is just sayings are adorable, the landscapes are beautiful. These people give wonderful 152 00:11:52.960 --> 00:11:58.679 advice. You know. I was thinking, Stacey, about all the fertilizers 153 00:11:58.679 --> 00:12:03.000 that are out there that are dog safe and organic even weed controls, and 154 00:12:03.039 --> 00:12:07.679 so you know, those opportunities are there, and these people are living it, 155 00:12:07.840 --> 00:12:11.120 practicing it and making it work. And you know, so I don't 156 00:12:11.159 --> 00:12:15.799 have a dog as Rick said, I'm also a dog free American here, 157 00:12:16.919 --> 00:12:22.200 but my neighbors have two dogs, and so my main native plant garden borders 158 00:12:22.279 --> 00:12:26.279 their yard as well. And my neighbors are wonderful people, and so we're 159 00:12:26.279 --> 00:12:31.240 often chatting over the fence, and very often as soon as we start chatting, 160 00:12:31.240 --> 00:12:33.840 the dogs run over. And they're newish puppy she's I think she's a 161 00:12:33.840 --> 00:12:37.840 little over a year old now, will immediately just start nipping at every plant 162 00:12:37.840 --> 00:12:41.360 that comes through the fence. Wow. So it's like and I so I 163 00:12:41.399 --> 00:12:43.679 said to them last time, I said, does she always show this much 164 00:12:43.679 --> 00:12:46.039 interest in the gardener? Is it only like if we're over here talking? 165 00:12:46.080 --> 00:12:48.000 They said, Oh, no, it's only if she's here talking. So 166 00:12:48.039 --> 00:12:50.120 it's kind of one of those things where your dog may or may not have 167 00:12:50.159 --> 00:12:54.960 an inherent, you know, desire to engage with the garden, but once 168 00:12:54.000 --> 00:12:58.679 you kind of draw its attention to it, then it's a totally different story. 169 00:12:58.720 --> 00:13:00.720 So, you know, I feel like I have a responsibility. When 170 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:03.919 I was building this border, I certainly wasn't thinking, oh, are dogs 171 00:13:03.960 --> 00:13:07.080 potentially going to you know, eat it? And you know, an important 172 00:13:07.080 --> 00:13:13.120 thing to think about in terms of toxic plants and dogs. Is that toxic 173 00:13:13.200 --> 00:13:18.320 plants do not you know, become toxic in an attempt to trick the animals 174 00:13:18.320 --> 00:13:22.799 into eating them and then oh surprise, you've been poisoned. They taste terrible, 175 00:13:22.919 --> 00:13:28.679 like there is a taste to torrent in almost all toxic plants that is 176 00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:31.159 specifically there to be like, don't eat me, you will be sorry. 177 00:13:31.240 --> 00:13:35.240 So you know it is something to take seriously. But also to know that, 178 00:13:35.320 --> 00:13:39.360 you know, most dogs puppies of course, can be a different uh 179 00:13:39.919 --> 00:13:43.320 uh, you know, situation entirely, and I know that dogs have varying 180 00:13:43.519 --> 00:13:50.960 levels of interest and self awareness out there. My neighbor's dog leaves the plants 181 00:13:52.000 --> 00:13:56.039 alone, but loves to steal my garden gloves, grabs my gloves and runs 182 00:13:56.080 --> 00:14:00.960 with them. Bo Bo is a great dog. Well in my neighbors. 183 00:14:01.120 --> 00:14:03.919 When this dog was a puppy, she loved to pick up our pine cones, 184 00:14:03.919 --> 00:14:07.080 which was which was a very welcome things. Sometimes really liked chewing on 185 00:14:07.120 --> 00:14:11.279 pine cones. But anyway, so that is just a little aside to our 186 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:15.159 intro and a reminder to please do check out the YouTube version to see all 187 00:14:15.200 --> 00:14:18.200 of the darling dogs from our listeners. So Yeah. When I was thinking 188 00:14:18.240 --> 00:14:22.039 about today's plant on trial, you know, as usual, there's so many 189 00:14:22.039 --> 00:14:24.279 different directions that it could have gone in. I could have picked a dog, 190 00:14:24.320 --> 00:14:30.320 would but I did not. I almost went with a pug stair butterfly 191 00:14:30.360 --> 00:14:33.639 bush because it was our indeed named for the dog. Well done Pug, 192 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:37.200 because I kind of had that short, squat, little habit. But no, 193 00:14:37.440 --> 00:14:41.399 I thought back to my past, and I thought of a plant when 194 00:14:41.440 --> 00:14:43.519 I was a rooftop So I lived in New York City for twelve years, 195 00:14:43.720 --> 00:14:46.759 I was a rooftop gardener. And when I was rooftop gardener, very often 196 00:14:46.799 --> 00:14:52.759 we would also do the maintenance on the sort of small landscapes around the front 197 00:14:52.799 --> 00:14:56.720 of buildings in Manhattan. And I also worked in Central Park as a public 198 00:14:56.759 --> 00:15:01.159 gardener. And in New York City it's you have to be tough to be 199 00:15:01.320 --> 00:15:05.080 a plant in New York City in a park or in one of those landscapes, 200 00:15:05.120 --> 00:15:07.720 because what happens is, you know, have firmworks all day, the 201 00:15:07.759 --> 00:15:13.159 dog finally gets to go out, and the second that dog sets foot outside 202 00:15:13.159 --> 00:15:18.320 the building, that little landscape is just getting bombarded. And that's why they 203 00:15:18.399 --> 00:15:24.480 call it Central Bark. They usually don't even make it to Central Park before 204 00:15:24.519 --> 00:15:26.840 they immediately get to you know, that first landscape. Now they'll of course 205 00:15:26.879 --> 00:15:31.399 do more business once they're in the park. But yeah, between that and 206 00:15:31.919 --> 00:15:35.679 you know dogs in parks where people will take them to walk and do their 207 00:15:35.720 --> 00:15:39.960 business, you know, the plants really have to stand up to a lot. 208 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:43.320 And in my years of maintaining those little front landscapes, I have seen 209 00:15:43.360 --> 00:15:48.879 a lot of plants die due to Now, this is of course super usage. 210 00:15:48.919 --> 00:15:50.840 This is not like your regular you know, homeowner who lets the dog 211 00:15:50.840 --> 00:15:54.039 out and they one or two dogs are going out, you know, three 212 00:15:54.080 --> 00:15:58.759 times a day. This is like seventy or one hundred dogs coming out multiple 213 00:15:58.799 --> 00:16:03.919 time let the dogs out. So you know, I've seen a lot of 214 00:16:03.960 --> 00:16:07.960 plants die, and I've seen some plants really be able to stand up to 215 00:16:07.000 --> 00:16:11.639 that and consistently. One of the plants that I think is best able to 216 00:16:11.679 --> 00:16:18.960 stand up to the abuses of pet ownership, especially dogs, is Abelia. 217 00:16:18.000 --> 00:16:22.840 This is interesting, Stacy, because I think a lot of people aren't necessarily 218 00:16:22.840 --> 00:16:26.360 familiar with it. No, certainly not in the Midwest. So Abelia is 219 00:16:26.399 --> 00:16:32.799 a very interesting shrub. It is shade tolerant, which is very nice, 220 00:16:32.840 --> 00:16:37.240 it's very dear resistant, it's pretty drought tolerant. Most abelias do come from 221 00:16:37.320 --> 00:16:40.639 Asia, that's where they're native to. But for many, many years, 222 00:16:40.639 --> 00:16:42.480 people just did not assume that abelias were hardy. So you'll see them if 223 00:16:42.519 --> 00:16:47.799 you go to the south. They're a fairly popular landscape plant. But there's 224 00:16:47.840 --> 00:16:51.799 actually hardy varieties down to USDA Zone four, like our sweet emotion abelia. 225 00:16:52.600 --> 00:16:55.799 But this type that we're talking about today and the plant on trial today is 226 00:16:55.879 --> 00:16:57.440 fun shining abelia. Even though a lot of what I'm saying just kind of 227 00:16:57.480 --> 00:17:02.919 applies to these abelias in general, it's actually hardy to USDA Zone six, 228 00:17:03.000 --> 00:17:07.920 and I would say potentially down to USDA Zone five if you plant it in 229 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:11.720 a proper spot, you know where it's kind of protected and not totally exposed 230 00:17:11.720 --> 00:17:15.519 to the worst of the winter weather. But yeah, especially for us in 231 00:17:15.559 --> 00:17:18.559 the Midwest and a little bit you know more as you go on the East 232 00:17:18.559 --> 00:17:21.480 Coast, a lot of people aren't familiar with it, and you will see 233 00:17:21.480 --> 00:17:26.119 it abundantly. Bilio grande flora is a very very popular park plant in New 234 00:17:26.160 --> 00:17:32.839 York City for hedges and delineation and that kind of thing. So these abelias 235 00:17:33.119 --> 00:17:37.880 are semi evergreen, so they keep some of their leaves in winter and lose 236 00:17:37.920 --> 00:17:41.279 the rest. But the important thing about their foliage is it's very glossy. 237 00:17:41.920 --> 00:17:45.559 And I think this is just a theory. I don't have proof, but 238 00:17:45.599 --> 00:17:48.799 since I have seen abelia stand up to a lot of dog abuse in a 239 00:17:48.799 --> 00:17:53.079 lot of different places throughout New York City, I think that that glossiness really 240 00:17:53.119 --> 00:17:57.160 helps to keep it safe. You know, from when the dog earine hits 241 00:17:57.200 --> 00:18:00.359 it. There's heat, there's salt, there's all of these other issues that 242 00:18:00.400 --> 00:18:04.640 could potentially damage that leaf tissue. And I think that that glossy coating on 243 00:18:04.680 --> 00:18:08.400 the leaf, which makes it such an attractive landscape plant, also helps to 244 00:18:08.440 --> 00:18:15.799 protect it from extensive dog damage. And the glossy foliage probably makes the plant 245 00:18:15.000 --> 00:18:19.559 heat resistant too, so for folks who live in warmer areas, it's a 246 00:18:19.599 --> 00:18:22.279 great plant. Yeah, it's so, and I, like I said, 247 00:18:22.279 --> 00:18:25.759 it's very drought tolerant as well. Another thing that's good about it in terms 248 00:18:25.839 --> 00:18:29.880 of you know, dogs, is its leaves are very smooth, and so 249 00:18:30.000 --> 00:18:32.720 that is minimal leaf surface. So if you think of like a hydrangea leaf, 250 00:18:32.920 --> 00:18:36.160 it's got all those veins, and like thick quilting, that's a lot 251 00:18:36.200 --> 00:18:40.200 of extra surface area for things to get damaged, whereas the abelia, it's 252 00:18:40.319 --> 00:18:44.359 very smooth and it can roll off as well as reduce a surface area where 253 00:18:44.799 --> 00:18:48.799 there could be a potential for damage. So I think it's a great plant. 254 00:18:48.799 --> 00:18:52.920 And Funshine abilia is known for its colorful foliage. It is an extremely 255 00:18:52.720 --> 00:19:00.279 colorful, colorful plant. So the foliage emerges bright orange, and it has 256 00:19:00.319 --> 00:19:03.200 a red stem so that when that new growth comes out, it's not a 257 00:19:03.240 --> 00:19:06.559 red stem, and then as that matures, it turns yellow, and then 258 00:19:06.559 --> 00:19:08.319 it kind of turns to chartroot. So you're getting like three or four or 259 00:19:08.319 --> 00:19:14.480 five different colors on this plant at once. So it's looking really great in 260 00:19:14.519 --> 00:19:18.480 the landscape as well. And then in summer it develops sort of these small 261 00:19:18.640 --> 00:19:25.200 bell shaped, purply pink flowers. In the case of so in some abelias, 262 00:19:25.279 --> 00:19:27.279 the flowers are the main attraction. In the case of Funshine, I 263 00:19:27.319 --> 00:19:32.880 would say the foliage completely overshadows the flowers, like you're almost like, WHOA, 264 00:19:32.880 --> 00:19:36.000 that thing's flowering. You know it's the foliage. The color does so 265 00:19:36.000 --> 00:19:40.319 so much, And another great thing for dog owners. The flowers are fragrant. 266 00:19:40.559 --> 00:19:42.519 Oh, so you know who wouldn't benefit from a little bit of fragrance 267 00:19:42.640 --> 00:19:47.440 on a hot summer day and the dog's you know, availing itself of your 268 00:19:47.480 --> 00:19:49.799 nearby Abelia. This sounds like a winner to me. If you're keeping score 269 00:19:49.880 --> 00:19:55.960 at home, Stacy's talking about funshine Abelia. So that's spelled If you're driving 270 00:19:56.000 --> 00:19:59.720 in your car listening to a podcast or the radio version of our show, 271 00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:03.319 it's spelled A B, E, L, I, A, and Stacey. 272 00:20:03.400 --> 00:20:07.759 This sounds like a real winner. It is, and you know I 273 00:20:07.920 --> 00:20:11.680 like it too. So you're going to find a lot of different sizes and 274 00:20:11.759 --> 00:20:15.559 shapes within Abelia if you go to the garden center to buy this. Like 275 00:20:15.599 --> 00:20:18.000 I mentioned, the Abelia Grande Flora that is so popular in New York City 276 00:20:19.000 --> 00:20:22.960 is going to be a little bit taller, a little bit kind of twiggyar 277 00:20:22.359 --> 00:20:26.400 whereas the newer varieties that we're selecting for are really more about that dense habit, 278 00:20:26.440 --> 00:20:30.160 and they tend to be more rounded, so you can still use them 279 00:20:30.519 --> 00:20:33.200 as like a low hedge or an edging, so they are perfect for that 280 00:20:33.279 --> 00:20:37.359 IDEI referenced earlier about those little landscapes. Right when you come out the door 281 00:20:37.400 --> 00:20:41.880 where you just want something low and just something to take up space. And 282 00:20:41.920 --> 00:20:47.079 so I think this is a great suggestion. Abelia are non toxic. I 283 00:20:47.119 --> 00:20:51.319 did verify that using my method of you know, typing in the scientific name 284 00:20:51.680 --> 00:20:56.000 and site colon dot du to make sure that it is non toxic. Should 285 00:20:56.039 --> 00:21:00.319 your dogs be interested in it besides just marking their spot? And it's also 286 00:21:00.359 --> 00:21:03.400 deer resistant. Yeah, so that's another great thing about it. I have 287 00:21:03.480 --> 00:21:08.519 abelia in my yard and the deer have never touched it, and come fall, 288 00:21:08.960 --> 00:21:14.119 the hummingbirds and butterflies actually fight over it. Wow. So the flowers 289 00:21:14.359 --> 00:21:17.759 really attract a ton of hummingbirds and butterflies. It seems like, especially late 290 00:21:17.799 --> 00:21:19.839 in the season. I don't have to become more nectar rich at that point 291 00:21:19.920 --> 00:21:23.440 or what. But yeah, I mean I have seen multiple butterflies and a 292 00:21:23.519 --> 00:21:26.720 hummingbird will come along and be like, hey, out of my way, 293 00:21:26.240 --> 00:21:30.160 gotta get a drink here. So it's a great plant. It's a good 294 00:21:30.160 --> 00:21:33.759 looking plant. So even if you don't have a dog and you're just looking 295 00:21:33.799 --> 00:21:37.240 for a really colorful shrub, funshine abilia is a great choice. We also 296 00:21:37.279 --> 00:21:44.480 have a bunch of other newer varieties similar to Funshine variegated different colors. We 297 00:21:44.559 --> 00:21:47.559 will put a link in the show notes at Gardening Simplified on air dot com 298 00:21:47.599 --> 00:21:51.039 so you can learn everything you need to know about Funshine abilia and the rest 299 00:21:51.039 --> 00:21:53.359 of the proven Winter's Color Choice abelias. You can also find a retailer there 300 00:21:53.400 --> 00:21:56.079 if you want to add it to your garden. And for now, we're 301 00:21:56.119 --> 00:21:59.480 gonna take a little break. When we come back, we are sharing our 302 00:21:59.519 --> 00:22:10.240 listeners advice on dog scaping, so please stay tuned at Proven Winner's Color Choice. 303 00:22:10.279 --> 00:22:14.240 We've got a shrub for every taste and every space. Whether you're looking 304 00:22:14.279 --> 00:22:18.720 for an easy care rose, an unforgettable hydrangea, or something new and unique, 305 00:22:18.839 --> 00:22:22.039 you can be confident that the shrubs and the white containers have been trialed 306 00:22:22.079 --> 00:22:25.759 and tested for your success. Look for them at your local garden center. 307 00:22:26.599 --> 00:22:30.359 Greetings, gardening friends, and welcome back to the Gardening Simplified Show, the 308 00:22:30.440 --> 00:22:36.440 dog themed Gardening Simplified Show. And like I said, we invited our listeners 309 00:22:36.519 --> 00:22:41.039 to send us photos of their dogs in the garden and they did not disappoint. 310 00:22:41.160 --> 00:22:45.160 You know, when we asked people to send in their photos, I 311 00:22:45.200 --> 00:22:47.680 was wearing one of our new plank geek shirts, and I said, oh, 312 00:22:47.680 --> 00:22:51.680 we'll pick a winner at random, but it turns out that I am 313 00:22:51.720 --> 00:22:55.960 a softie. And since we heard from about you know, ten or twelve 314 00:22:55.960 --> 00:23:00.519 different listeners, they're all getting shirts. Fantastic. So if you send us 315 00:23:00.519 --> 00:23:04.799 a dog picture, uh look, check your inbox for an email from me. 316 00:23:06.000 --> 00:23:07.079 If it's not there, check your spam and if you still don't see 317 00:23:07.119 --> 00:23:11.440 it, then shoot me an email and I will get with you to get 318 00:23:11.440 --> 00:23:14.960 your get your size and gets you your planking shot, because we do appreciate 319 00:23:15.000 --> 00:23:18.319 you taking the time to write us and send us those pictures. And there 320 00:23:18.400 --> 00:23:22.160 is just some yes. And that was the really cool thing is you know 321 00:23:22.200 --> 00:23:25.359 we didn't say we may have said, like, hey, if you have 322 00:23:25.400 --> 00:23:27.839 advice, but some people wrote in with some really really good ideas, and 323 00:23:27.880 --> 00:23:30.839 I think, you know, it's so good when we learn from each other. 324 00:23:32.000 --> 00:23:33.480 And you know, Rick, you and I know we can talk about 325 00:23:33.519 --> 00:23:37.640 a lot of different aspects of gardening, but gardening with dogs is not one 326 00:23:37.680 --> 00:23:41.920 of them. So that's why we're going to invite Adriana on camera for segment 327 00:23:41.960 --> 00:23:45.279 four as our resident dog expert. And if you check us out on YouTube 328 00:23:45.279 --> 00:23:48.880 again, you'll see the dog pictures, and we'll put pictures of Adrian is 329 00:23:48.119 --> 00:23:53.000 adorable for babies there as well. But I did want to share some of 330 00:23:53.000 --> 00:24:00.599 the information that we got from our listeners on dog gardening. So Ela writes 331 00:24:00.759 --> 00:24:04.920 and that she loves to listen to the show while she's gardening, and she 332 00:24:04.960 --> 00:24:08.839 says fencing has been a true game changer for me and my garden. My 333 00:24:10.039 --> 00:24:15.279 sweet but clumsy ninety five pound golden doodle Marigolds the cutest name. I love 334 00:24:15.319 --> 00:24:18.880 it. And there is a picture she signed, a picture of Marigold, 335 00:24:18.920 --> 00:24:22.319 which is a She's an absolutely delightful dog. So Marigold used to trample all 336 00:24:22.319 --> 00:24:25.839 over my plants without a care in the world. Of course, she's a 337 00:24:25.880 --> 00:24:29.519 dog. I tried steaks and twine, she still broke through. Yeah, 338 00:24:29.559 --> 00:24:33.000 she's ninety five pounds. Earlier this spring, I invested in sturdy metal fencing 339 00:24:33.039 --> 00:24:37.880 that's about three feet tall as a perimeter around my perennial beds in my backyard. 340 00:24:37.359 --> 00:24:41.640 And this has been perfect for keeping Marigold from squashing my plants and still 341 00:24:41.640 --> 00:24:44.880 being able to play a game of fetch for my vegetable garden. As you 342 00:24:44.880 --> 00:24:48.079 can see in the picture, I went a step further and added a four 343 00:24:48.079 --> 00:24:52.279 foot picket fence. The barrier has proven to be incredibly effective in safeguarding my 344 00:24:52.359 --> 00:24:56.559 veggies from her playful paws. Since installing the fencing, I can relax in 345 00:24:56.559 --> 00:25:00.640 my backyard and Miss Marigold can enjoy her outdoor time. It's been a win 346 00:25:00.799 --> 00:25:03.960 win for both of us. If you are dealing with a similar situation, 347 00:25:03.480 --> 00:25:08.000 I highly recommend investing in some quality fencing. It's made a world of difference 348 00:25:08.160 --> 00:25:14.359 for us. Elaine makes a good point there, quality fencing do it work, 349 00:25:14.720 --> 00:25:18.880 you know, and quality fencing also means sturdy posts that you put the 350 00:25:18.960 --> 00:25:23.880 fencing on. Just invest the time in that and both you and your dog 351 00:25:23.920 --> 00:25:26.680 are going to appreciate that great Now, Yeah, you know what. That 352 00:25:26.759 --> 00:25:30.359 kind of goes along with our Regrets show from last week, which is if 353 00:25:30.400 --> 00:25:33.640 you don't invest in quality fencing, there you go. You will probably regret 354 00:25:33.680 --> 00:25:37.680 it because then you're out the cost of the not quality fencing as well as 355 00:25:37.720 --> 00:25:40.440 the cost of quality fencing. So you know, there's something to be said 356 00:25:40.440 --> 00:25:44.599 about it. It looks awful and so I don't know, there's no defense. 357 00:25:45.599 --> 00:25:48.039 Elaine did send an adorable picture of Marigold in front of her garden, 358 00:25:48.079 --> 00:25:52.240 and then she sent a picture of her vegetable garden. And really, this 359 00:25:52.319 --> 00:25:55.799 is another one that you have to check out because her picket fence, she 360 00:25:55.799 --> 00:25:56.359 doesn't even she just catches. It's like, oh, I just put in 361 00:25:56.400 --> 00:26:00.680 a picket fence. It's painted all different colors. And she has these colorful 362 00:26:00.759 --> 00:26:06.880 flags zigzagging over her garden and it just looks like the sweetest, most delightful 363 00:26:07.000 --> 00:26:10.119 place to be. So thank you so much Elaine for sending that advice and 364 00:26:10.240 --> 00:26:14.839 your photos. And here's to miss Marigold. You are a good dog. 365 00:26:15.119 --> 00:26:18.480 Yes, thank you, Marigold. Brianna writes to us. My name is 366 00:26:18.480 --> 00:26:22.599 Brie, my husband is Marshall. We are Zone eight B gardeners in Texas. 367 00:26:23.000 --> 00:26:30.000 I'm a surgery resident and my husband is a veterinarian. Attached our pictures 368 00:26:30.039 --> 00:26:33.359 of our dog, Ellie, and she is the best gardening buddy. Anytime 369 00:26:33.400 --> 00:26:37.920 we're out gardening, she wants to be with us. Her favorite things while 370 00:26:37.920 --> 00:26:42.400 we garden are playing fetch with her favorite ball, getting pets, or snoozing 371 00:26:42.599 --> 00:26:47.640 in a sunny spot. We trained her not to go in the garden beds. 372 00:26:47.720 --> 00:26:51.599 To her, they are off limits. And I love this Stacy. 373 00:26:51.599 --> 00:26:55.799 You know we talked about that in the first segment. Some folks are put 374 00:26:55.799 --> 00:26:59.880 the time in and are very good at training the dog to stay out of 375 00:27:00.160 --> 00:27:04.599 garden beds or go potty in a certain area. Early on, we did 376 00:27:04.640 --> 00:27:08.960 not even let her be outside alone to get into trouble. We used a 377 00:27:10.200 --> 00:27:17.319 lot of positive reinforcement boiled chicken is her favorite, and rewarded her for staying 378 00:27:17.400 --> 00:27:19.759 out of the garden beds. It took time, but now even if her 379 00:27:19.799 --> 00:27:25.960 favorite ball rolls into the garden beds, or if she's chasing a squirrel squirrel, 380 00:27:26.519 --> 00:27:30.200 she doesn't go into the garden. That's impressive. That's impressive. She's 381 00:27:30.240 --> 00:27:33.640 a very high energy dog, so we always make sure that she gets enough 382 00:27:34.119 --> 00:27:40.359 exercise and mental stimulation. And then I really appreciate what Brie wrote here, 383 00:27:40.720 --> 00:27:44.359 Stacy. She goes on to talk about the less toxic plans. Yes, 384 00:27:44.960 --> 00:27:48.799 so she mentions tulip's hyacinth s, daffodil's chrysanthemums. Now, obviously Bree's husband, 385 00:27:48.839 --> 00:27:52.279 Marshall, is a vet, so he probably has the benefit of, 386 00:27:52.319 --> 00:27:56.799 you know, knowing some of these, but it's not information that you know 387 00:27:56.319 --> 00:28:00.160 you need to go to veterinary school to get because veterinarians fortunately are sharing this 388 00:28:00.240 --> 00:28:04.000 information on university websites and we will link. I'll link to some of my 389 00:28:04.079 --> 00:28:07.519 favorites in our show notes so that you can keep those handy for if you 390 00:28:07.559 --> 00:28:11.960 do need to do that. So they put less toxic plants in the garden 391 00:28:11.960 --> 00:28:14.400 because the garden bed is off limits, so she doesn't dig or eat the 392 00:28:14.440 --> 00:28:18.680 plants. But they do make sure to keep any dead foliage or leaves picked 393 00:28:18.799 --> 00:28:22.640 up. And that's important too because I have a friend who had a dog 394 00:28:23.119 --> 00:28:29.160 eat some Taxis clippings. So they had trimmed the shrup the hedge and you 395 00:28:29.200 --> 00:28:30.359 know, left it and they were cleaning up, and you know, the 396 00:28:30.400 --> 00:28:34.559 dog never bothered the plant itself, but as many dogs are very interested in 397 00:28:34.680 --> 00:28:38.559 sticks, and you know, the dog picked up the stick. And Taxis 398 00:28:38.640 --> 00:28:41.640 is one of the most toxic plants, despite the fact that somehow deer managed 399 00:28:41.640 --> 00:28:45.039 to eat it, which never fails to boggle my mind. So they had 400 00:28:45.079 --> 00:28:48.640 to, you know, take him to an emergency vent, which is expensive, 401 00:28:48.680 --> 00:28:51.400 and you know, they had no idea of if he had consumed enough 402 00:28:51.400 --> 00:28:52.720 to be a problem. So yeah, it's important to make sure that all 403 00:28:52.759 --> 00:28:56.480 of that stuff is being kept up, picked up as well as you know, 404 00:28:56.640 --> 00:29:00.240 just keeping them from the actual plants growing in your garden. You know, 405 00:29:00.279 --> 00:29:03.920 you talk about plants they see often within the garden center. We would 406 00:29:03.920 --> 00:29:10.759 get calls from people where the dog would eat the organic fertilizer if that folks 407 00:29:10.759 --> 00:29:11.880 had purchases. And of course, if you think about it, it's got 408 00:29:11.880 --> 00:29:15.000 bone meal in it, blind meal, it's got the corn, gluten, 409 00:29:15.200 --> 00:29:21.680 ratten eggs. All that gets exactly right, everything that dogs love. And 410 00:29:21.720 --> 00:29:23.599 I am aware of that, like if I spray deer repellent like that, 411 00:29:23.680 --> 00:29:26.119 I don't want their dogs to be going crazy if they're you know so. 412 00:29:27.000 --> 00:29:30.799 But Brianna goes on to say that there are some highly toxic plants that they 413 00:29:30.839 --> 00:29:36.319 completely avoid, and Marshall, the veterinarian husband recommends that you do the same. 414 00:29:36.799 --> 00:29:40.599 So she lists a couple that are common in Texas, less common for 415 00:29:40.680 --> 00:29:45.839 us up here in Michigan. Sago palms oleander is one of the most toxic 416 00:29:45.880 --> 00:29:49.319 plants out there for humans as well as animals and lilies. She said, 417 00:29:49.359 --> 00:29:53.000 this is actually for cats, but the pollen can cause kidney failure and death, 418 00:29:53.000 --> 00:29:57.200 and they specifically don't get lilies in the flower bouquets because of how toxic 419 00:29:57.319 --> 00:30:00.880 they can be for cats, she says. Lastly, Marshall is very passionate 420 00:30:00.920 --> 00:30:04.960 about education and it's happy to answer any questions or talk more about plant health. 421 00:30:06.079 --> 00:30:08.119 So I love that. I thought we would have him on a future 422 00:30:08.160 --> 00:30:11.559 show and what I thought would be you, So we didn't have time to 423 00:30:11.559 --> 00:30:14.359 book it all together for the dog scaping show. What I thought would be 424 00:30:14.359 --> 00:30:17.640 great to talk to Marshall about is sort of you know, if your dog 425 00:30:17.799 --> 00:30:19.440 eats a plant, what should your plan of action be? What do you 426 00:30:19.519 --> 00:30:23.240 need to know to go to the vet with so that they can act, 427 00:30:23.519 --> 00:30:27.279 you know, defensively and in a hurry. So look for Marshall on a 428 00:30:27.480 --> 00:30:33.240 future show hopefully. And thank you so much to Brianna and Marshall and Ellie. 429 00:30:33.279 --> 00:30:36.119 Ellie, you are a very good dog, Julie writes to us, 430 00:30:36.160 --> 00:30:41.079 Hi, I'm sending what I do to keep my garden and lawn looking good 431 00:30:41.160 --> 00:30:44.640 with two dogs. After seeing the damage my male dog was doing, I 432 00:30:44.680 --> 00:30:48.440 started training them both to go number one in a certain area before they get 433 00:30:48.480 --> 00:30:52.880 access to the yard. They are anxious to get out, so they will 434 00:30:52.960 --> 00:30:56.359 hurry up and do their business with a verbal queue. Now sometimes they will 435 00:30:56.400 --> 00:31:00.240 go again a second time out in the yard, but it's very rare. 436 00:31:00.559 --> 00:31:03.559 I don't mind number two, just number one that does the damage. And 437 00:31:03.920 --> 00:31:08.599 like we talked about in the first segment, yes, surface areas and damage 438 00:31:08.640 --> 00:31:14.200 to most notably turf. I have included a picture of the little area behind 439 00:31:14.240 --> 00:31:18.680 our garage that I have playground wood chips on them for them to go, 440 00:31:18.000 --> 00:31:22.880 and then also a picture of them out and about enjoying the yard. A 441 00:31:22.119 --> 00:31:26.799 third picture of my son's dog last year when I was dog sitting, he 442 00:31:26.880 --> 00:31:32.759 found a nice comfy spot on my annuals to lay down. It always makes 443 00:31:32.759 --> 00:31:34.559 me laugh when I see that, and it is a great picture. It's 444 00:31:34.599 --> 00:31:37.920 a big gray looks like a bowl mastiff or something. He's a very large 445 00:31:37.920 --> 00:31:41.480 dog and he is just like, it's cool here where if I fits, 446 00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:45.559 I sits. So yeah, And I think that Julie, you know, 447 00:31:45.640 --> 00:31:48.160 her yard obviously looks great. It's very very neat. I think she's her 448 00:31:48.279 --> 00:31:52.160 advice is a great example of, you know, how you can kind of 449 00:31:52.480 --> 00:32:00.319 balance having a really beautifully tended yard and having two dogs. And so that 450 00:32:00.359 --> 00:32:04.240 was really great advice too. Now, whether or not it's possible for you 451 00:32:04.279 --> 00:32:07.480 to train your dog at that level, whether or not it's too late for 452 00:32:07.519 --> 00:32:09.160 you to train your dog at that level, whether you can teach an old 453 00:32:09.200 --> 00:32:12.759 dog new tricks as it were. But you know, if you're getting a 454 00:32:13.240 --> 00:32:15.720 newer dog, a puppy or something like that, it's worth considering, you 455 00:32:15.759 --> 00:32:19.480 know, how can you put the effort in to train them so it's not 456 00:32:19.720 --> 00:32:22.119 an issue in the first place. Although I have heard from a number of 457 00:32:22.160 --> 00:32:24.759 people who say that wood mulch is like their dog's favorite thing to chew on. 458 00:32:24.920 --> 00:32:29.400 It's like the stick selection. They can just like go through and find 459 00:32:29.400 --> 00:32:31.960 their favorite little chunk and chew on it. They love that exactly. You're 460 00:32:31.960 --> 00:32:37.039 barking up the right tree. But you know, again, the wood mulch, 461 00:32:37.319 --> 00:32:40.119 and I think we had a question about this recently, is widely believed 462 00:32:40.119 --> 00:32:45.799 to be the best for the most dogs safe of all of the mulches out 463 00:32:45.799 --> 00:32:51.079 there. So so thank you all so much for your advice and assistance and 464 00:32:51.079 --> 00:32:54.160 your amazing photos of your beautiful dogs. Oh, I forgot, Julie didn't 465 00:32:54.160 --> 00:32:58.279 tell me her dog's names, but I'm sure they are also very good dogs. 466 00:32:59.000 --> 00:33:00.000 Anyway, Thank you again. We're going to take a little break. 467 00:33:00.000 --> 00:33:02.920 When we come back, we're going to bring on Adriana for some more dogscaping 468 00:33:02.960 --> 00:33:12.839 advice, so please stay tuned. The Gardening Simplified Show is brought to you 469 00:33:12.920 --> 00:33:16.880 by Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs. Our award winning flowering shrubs and evergreens have 470 00:33:17.000 --> 00:33:22.880 been trialed and tested for your success so you enjoy more beauty and less work. 471 00:33:22.240 --> 00:33:27.079 Look for Proven Winners Color Choice Shrubs in the distinctive white container at your 472 00:33:27.119 --> 00:33:32.880 local garden center. Welcome back to The Gardening Simplified Show, our dog scaping 473 00:33:34.240 --> 00:33:38.480 edition of The Gardening Simplified Show. And as we've mentioned previously on today's show, 474 00:33:38.680 --> 00:33:44.039 both Stacy and I are not dog owners. We are plant lovers. 475 00:33:44.200 --> 00:33:50.960 We are obviously gardening lovers and certainly appreciate pets. We're surrounded by them. 476 00:33:51.119 --> 00:33:54.960 Our neighbors own dogs, and as I mentioned, I live near a large 477 00:33:55.119 --> 00:34:00.759 dog beach on Lake Michigan. But the true dog owner here on the set 478 00:34:01.279 --> 00:34:07.920 of The Gardening Simplified Show, as our wonderful engineer and producer Adrianna Robinson and 479 00:34:07.320 --> 00:34:14.199 Adriana I understand two dogs, Atlas and Sage. Tell us about Atlas and 480 00:34:14.239 --> 00:34:17.320 Sage. Yes, so yep. As Rick mentioned, I have a husky 481 00:34:17.400 --> 00:34:21.719 named Atlas. He I think I've been saying he's eight years old for the 482 00:34:21.760 --> 00:34:25.840 past like four years, but this year he is officially turning eight. And 483 00:34:25.880 --> 00:34:30.320 then Sage is a little mutt pup that we got from Honduras, oh recently. 484 00:34:30.360 --> 00:34:34.480 Treso Stage is a recent addition to the family. Yes, got her 485 00:34:34.519 --> 00:34:37.840 in April. You know, I joked about the Papa Razzi and we were 486 00:34:37.880 --> 00:34:44.599 having fun Adriana talking about the fact that both of us had visited Hawking Hills 487 00:34:44.599 --> 00:34:49.360 in Ohio, and I think you brought along Atlas on that trip. Is 488 00:34:49.400 --> 00:34:52.559 that correct? Yes, that is correct. We actually went with two of 489 00:34:52.559 --> 00:34:54.840 our friends who had a husky and a Golden retriever with them as well. 490 00:34:54.960 --> 00:34:59.599 It was super fun. Atlas loved swimming around in the area, but it 491 00:34:59.719 --> 00:35:02.960 was very crowded. Yeah. Yeah, and of course they surround Atlas. 492 00:35:04.000 --> 00:35:07.159 They become the stars of the show. You know. One of the things 493 00:35:07.199 --> 00:35:12.599 I was thinking Stacy with dog scaping is that, again fencing in barriers, 494 00:35:12.639 --> 00:35:15.559 you have to think about your neighbors. You have to think about what's safe 495 00:35:15.639 --> 00:35:22.559 for your dog and also consider your neighbors and their part in this relationship with 496 00:35:22.679 --> 00:35:27.599 your dog. Also, and Adriana, we have a story to post on 497 00:35:27.639 --> 00:35:34.599 our website, Gardening Simplified on air dot com, and that is this dog 498 00:35:34.639 --> 00:35:40.079 owner who got revenge on her neighbor who was teasing her dog with a drone 499 00:35:40.119 --> 00:35:46.880 and eventually the dog destroyed the drone and the neighbor was trying to get the 500 00:35:46.960 --> 00:35:52.440 money back on this drone, but the judge ruled in favor of the pet 501 00:35:52.559 --> 00:35:59.920 owner and the individual owned the drone ended up paying up. But again, 502 00:36:00.280 --> 00:36:05.280 neighborly relations when you have a dog, pretty important thing to pay attention to. 503 00:36:05.960 --> 00:36:07.599 Yeah, and you know, it's funny because I feel like normally it's 504 00:36:07.639 --> 00:36:09.800 the one who owns the dog that it's like, you know, you're kind 505 00:36:09.840 --> 00:36:12.920 of having to be more cautious. You don't want it to be barking in 506 00:36:12.920 --> 00:36:15.119 their window or anything like that. This story was interesting. You know, 507 00:36:15.159 --> 00:36:20.719 I am a drone pilot and having a husky specifically, I definitely side with 508 00:36:20.800 --> 00:36:22.760 the dog owner on that. I think anytime you just start off a story 509 00:36:22.760 --> 00:36:27.519 with trying to terrorize a dog, it's usually a bad idea. So I 510 00:36:27.559 --> 00:36:30.559 think it was it ended the way it should have for that story. Well, 511 00:36:30.599 --> 00:36:32.119 you know, dogs need a safe space too, and the yard is 512 00:36:32.159 --> 00:36:36.320 their home just as much as it's yours. And if you go and start 513 00:36:36.360 --> 00:36:40.599 antagonizing some poor unsuspecting dog on its home turf, I mean yeah. And 514 00:36:40.639 --> 00:36:45.239 you know dogs have a natural predator sense to a degree too. So something 515 00:36:45.320 --> 00:36:49.400 buzzing around, you know, kind of coming at it, it's probably panicking. 516 00:36:49.400 --> 00:36:52.079 It doesn't know what's going on, so Atlas would have grabbed it to 517 00:36:52.280 --> 00:36:53.719 Yeah, it doesn't know that. It's not like a hawk about to like 518 00:36:53.880 --> 00:36:58.280 swoop down and you know, mess with it or something like that. So 519 00:36:59.119 --> 00:37:01.840 I know you have a vegetable garden, yes, So have the dogs ever 520 00:37:01.840 --> 00:37:06.000 shown any interest in the vegetable garden or any other part of your garden? 521 00:37:06.360 --> 00:37:09.880 Yes? So the vegetable garden, I do have a fence around it where 522 00:37:09.960 --> 00:37:13.480 you know, it's got some wood frames and also some chicken ware, so 523 00:37:13.519 --> 00:37:15.199 they can't go in it unless I'm in there. And then Sage likes to 524 00:37:15.199 --> 00:37:17.880 go around. She loves smelling the celery because she knows she's gonna eat it 525 00:37:17.920 --> 00:37:22.519 later. And then so that's pretty much the extent of getting in the vegetable 526 00:37:22.519 --> 00:37:27.519 garden. But then for my regular garden. They definitely like to explore everywhere. 527 00:37:27.639 --> 00:37:30.039 I leave certain areas of the yard open for them because I know they 528 00:37:30.159 --> 00:37:34.519 enjoy playing. So we have a back fence where our neighbors have two dogs 529 00:37:34.599 --> 00:37:37.199 and they like to go and run around there, So I don't plant anything 530 00:37:37.239 --> 00:37:39.000 there because I know it's going to get trampled. Other than that, I 531 00:37:39.039 --> 00:37:43.079 do have Atlas trained to stay out of the garden beds, so he's pretty 532 00:37:43.079 --> 00:37:45.320 good at that for the most part, unless there is a squirrel he's got 533 00:37:45.360 --> 00:37:47.440 to chase. He never catches them, but you know he does love to 534 00:37:47.519 --> 00:37:51.480 chase them. Well, instinct kicks in, you know, he's just like, 535 00:37:51.480 --> 00:37:53.360 I gotta go after the squirrel. My training it all goes out the 536 00:37:53.360 --> 00:37:57.639 window right exactly. And he's, you know, a protector of the yard. 537 00:37:57.760 --> 00:38:00.320 So sure, but you know I have trained him to respect the garden 538 00:38:00.360 --> 00:38:05.079 and training stage as well. We were talking about mulch in the last segment. 539 00:38:05.199 --> 00:38:08.280 I use a shredded plane bark mulch no die, so Sage will kind 540 00:38:08.280 --> 00:38:10.920 of chew on that sometimes, but not to an extent where it's been a 541 00:38:10.960 --> 00:38:15.199 problem. Right, So just the shredded hardwood mulch, not something that has 542 00:38:15.239 --> 00:38:20.239 a dye in it that makes it red or black or chocolate colored. Yes, 543 00:38:20.400 --> 00:38:22.719 correct, yep, just a natural shredded bark. Yeah, and of 544 00:38:22.760 --> 00:38:27.679 course avoiding cocoa mulch. You know, off the top of my head, 545 00:38:27.719 --> 00:38:31.400 I was thinking of a word, and I think it's I think it's pronounced 546 00:38:31.559 --> 00:38:36.400 smoothe or smooth. Oh, yeah, a little. You talked about that 547 00:38:36.400 --> 00:38:42.000 before, Yes, m u s when you talk about Atlas chasing a squirrel, 548 00:38:42.320 --> 00:38:47.480 I leave them in my yard so they can escape most Yes, the 549 00:38:47.519 --> 00:38:51.960 squirrel stands a fighting chance. Yeah. Going back to maultch too. When 550 00:38:51.960 --> 00:38:54.559 I was just looking up a couple different facts for this show, I had 551 00:38:54.679 --> 00:38:59.639 read one of those articles too, where it was how to prevent fleas from 552 00:38:59.679 --> 00:39:02.679 getting new yard and kept saying cedar bark mulch, which I was not able 553 00:39:02.679 --> 00:39:08.960 to find scientific evidence that that truly supports prevention from ther yard, but mentioned 554 00:39:08.960 --> 00:39:12.599 that that is interesting because you know, a little while ago, we had 555 00:39:12.719 --> 00:39:16.679 a listener question who was asking about mulch to prevent fire ants, and they 556 00:39:16.719 --> 00:39:21.000 were also making claims about cedar being less attractive to fire ants, but there 557 00:39:21.039 --> 00:39:24.079 was also no scientific evidence that you know, the cedar mulch. It's typically 558 00:39:24.119 --> 00:39:27.599 more expensive and say with a dyed mulch. So it's like what we're saying 559 00:39:27.599 --> 00:39:30.920 here is just get the cheapest mulch that does the best job, and it's 560 00:39:30.920 --> 00:39:32.079 better for the dogs, and it's better for you, and it's better for 561 00:39:32.119 --> 00:39:37.880 the garden as well. So I'm curious about how you managed to train out 562 00:39:37.920 --> 00:39:40.280 lists to not go in the beds like that. Seems like I haven't trained 563 00:39:40.280 --> 00:39:45.320 a dog before, but this seems very difficult. Ye well, yes, 564 00:39:45.679 --> 00:39:49.679 yes and no. So we have our lawn where it's just you know, 565 00:39:49.719 --> 00:39:52.639 grass, and I'm not a huge lawn fanatic or anything, so mine doesn't 566 00:39:52.679 --> 00:39:55.800 look that great. But so the garden beds edged and they are shredded bark 567 00:39:55.880 --> 00:40:00.239 mulch, so it kind of is already a perimeter. And I trained to 568 00:40:00.239 --> 00:40:04.400 to teach those perimeters almost like a fence, positive reinforcement. Whenever he would 569 00:40:04.400 --> 00:40:06.199 stay out, you know, I'd say stay out of the garden and he 570 00:40:06.239 --> 00:40:07.840 would, and I would give him some boiled chicken, which he loves as 571 00:40:07.880 --> 00:40:12.480 well. Which I mean it took years, right like it's not And when 572 00:40:12.519 --> 00:40:15.599 I moved, I had to it was completely new training. He knew the 573 00:40:15.599 --> 00:40:17.079 phrase, but he didn't understand, like, well, is this a garden? 574 00:40:17.119 --> 00:40:20.719 You know? Where am I? He's kind of he's too smart for 575 00:40:20.760 --> 00:40:22.280 his own good. So when I'm not around, I know, he definitely 576 00:40:22.360 --> 00:40:27.559 like casually walks around the plants and like tiptoes in there. But and then 577 00:40:27.559 --> 00:40:30.280 I'll like poke my head out and he'll like screw you away or like hide 578 00:40:30.280 --> 00:40:32.239 behind the garage where I can't see him. So he's not probably as trained 579 00:40:32.239 --> 00:40:37.360 as Ellie, who sounds amazing, but he's he's a good boy's fair So 580 00:40:37.519 --> 00:40:38.960 you know, you're like Alice, dude, you're one hundred pounds. I 581 00:40:38.960 --> 00:40:44.559 can tell if you've left a foot printed, you know, And like certain 582 00:40:44.599 --> 00:40:49.039 things are really cute, Like he loves smelling lilacs and lavender. So if 583 00:40:49.199 --> 00:40:52.559 I see, you know, a little paw in done next to the lavender, 584 00:40:52.639 --> 00:40:54.639 because I know he was stepping over to smell it, That's okay. 585 00:40:54.719 --> 00:40:58.039 It's for him to enjoy too, that's great. You know, I would 586 00:40:58.039 --> 00:41:00.920 think repetition is the key? Is that is the word I was looking for? 587 00:41:01.039 --> 00:41:05.519 Yes, you know, one of the observations that I had and with 588 00:41:05.599 --> 00:41:09.840 my neighbor, and that is when you own a dog, it gives you 589 00:41:09.920 --> 00:41:15.519 the opportunity to get exercise for yourself. His dog goes busting out the back 590 00:41:15.599 --> 00:41:20.880 door and goes crazy when he initially is able to get out of the house. 591 00:41:21.239 --> 00:41:24.519 But I think one of the important aspects here, from my observation, 592 00:41:24.679 --> 00:41:29.119 would be that if you're going to own a dog, you're going to have 593 00:41:29.199 --> 00:41:31.719 to be willing to get some exercise yourself. In other words, take that 594 00:41:31.880 --> 00:41:37.880 dog for a walk. Yes. Absolutely. Going back to even bad habits 595 00:41:37.920 --> 00:41:39.880 that dogs have in the yard, you gotta almost look at it as from 596 00:41:39.920 --> 00:41:44.159 a why is this habit happening in the first place. So a lot of 597 00:41:44.199 --> 00:41:47.360 the time it does have to do with their not exerting enough energy. You 598 00:41:47.400 --> 00:41:50.880 gotta take them out more, or if they're chewing a bunch of stuff, 599 00:41:50.880 --> 00:41:53.039 maybe try putting different toys in the yard for them to interact with. Sure 600 00:41:53.159 --> 00:41:55.239 the digging, I know a lot of dogs will do that, either because 601 00:41:55.280 --> 00:41:59.880 they're anxious or the energy thing again, but some will do it like Sage 602 00:42:00.119 --> 00:42:02.199 from Hondura's No doubt, she was used to doing that all the time to 603 00:42:02.239 --> 00:42:07.039 get cool, so okay, so I would whenever she would do that, 604 00:42:07.079 --> 00:42:08.280 and it would always be, you know, in a fresh garden bed. 605 00:42:08.320 --> 00:42:12.239 I just dug up so it was like really dirty. So whenever she would 606 00:42:12.280 --> 00:42:14.119 do that, I would just redirect you. I'd say no, and then 607 00:42:14.159 --> 00:42:16.559 redirect her to this spot on my back patio where it's cement and in the 608 00:42:16.559 --> 00:42:20.960 shade and nice and cool. So then she knows to go there now whenever 609 00:42:21.000 --> 00:42:22.480 she's trying to cool down. And she picked it up really fast. And 610 00:42:22.519 --> 00:42:27.920 some dogs definitely take more time. But I think that knowing why the dog 611 00:42:28.000 --> 00:42:31.079 is behaving the way it is is the first step. Sure. Absolutely, 612 00:42:31.440 --> 00:42:37.960 have your dogs ever brought something interesting home to you? I was reading a 613 00:42:37.039 --> 00:42:40.960 thread some dog owners here, and I had so much fun reading this. 614 00:42:42.559 --> 00:42:45.400 One of these individuals says, my neighbor's dog once brought home a man's bathing 615 00:42:45.440 --> 00:42:50.800 suit with keys in the pocket. All we knew to do was hang the 616 00:42:50.800 --> 00:42:53.840 bathing suit out on our mailbox and hopefully the owner would find it. And 617 00:42:53.880 --> 00:42:59.880 then a yellow lab mix named Bailey. Her most incredible find was a tom 618 00:43:00.119 --> 00:43:04.079 Blur half filled with bourbon on the rocks. Oh that kind of does. 619 00:43:07.360 --> 00:43:10.039 It's hilarious. You know, my dogs, if they're bringing anything to me, 620 00:43:10.639 --> 00:43:15.280 it's concerning for me because it's from my backyard and like, what did 621 00:43:15.320 --> 00:43:17.199 you tear up? Or what did you do? So they're not really roaming 622 00:43:17.239 --> 00:43:21.880 around too often in the neighborhood or anything like that, so mine haven't. 623 00:43:21.960 --> 00:43:25.039 There was famously the Halloween We're at last fell in love with the gourd. 624 00:43:25.440 --> 00:43:29.400 Oh yes, oh, hopefully I can find pictures of that. Yes, 625 00:43:29.599 --> 00:43:34.320 there was a Halloween where there's just a random gourd, nothing really special about 626 00:43:34.360 --> 00:43:37.559 it, but he carried it with him everywhere. He went to bed with 627 00:43:37.599 --> 00:43:39.719 it for months until it started getting bad. So I tried to, you 628 00:43:39.760 --> 00:43:43.000 know, be the parent that was like, I'll just replace it and hopefully 629 00:43:43.039 --> 00:43:45.840 we won't he won't notice. But he did, and he never looked at 630 00:43:45.840 --> 00:43:51.800 another gourd the same. That's a story, well, folks. Adriana Robinson 631 00:43:51.920 --> 00:43:55.039 is our engineer and producer of The Gardening Simplified show. Just does a wonderful 632 00:43:55.119 --> 00:43:59.159 job. We could not do this show without you, Adriana, and we 633 00:43:59.199 --> 00:44:01.199 so appreciate you. As a matter of fact, you work so hard you 634 00:44:01.320 --> 00:44:07.960 deserve a vacation. I was noticing on online that there is an airline now 635 00:44:07.000 --> 00:44:12.719 called Bark Airlines. It now serves New York, La London, Paris, 636 00:44:12.800 --> 00:44:16.280 Chicago, San Francisco, Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Phoenix. So maybe 637 00:44:16.280 --> 00:44:21.920 look into Bark Airlines and take at listen Sage on a trip. Ah absolutely 638 00:44:22.159 --> 00:44:25.199 ute. Yes, Thanks Adriana, thank you well, Thank you all so 639 00:44:25.320 --> 00:44:29.360 much for listening, and thanks so much especially to everyone who's sent in their 640 00:44:29.400 --> 00:44:31.280 advice and photos of their dogs. I hope you all take the time to 641 00:44:31.440 --> 00:44:36.679 enjoy the dogs of the listeners to the Gardening Simplified Show. And thanks Rick, 642 00:44:36.920 --> 00:44:40.480 thanks for our resident dog and our resident dog expert, Adriana, and 643 00:44:40.559 --> 00:44:43.760 thanks to all of you. We hope you have a wonderful week ahead.