More email newsletters

 Since I brought up the topic of email newsletters, I think I should expand on that theme and recommend a couple of really good gardening newsletters. Many of the newsletters I receive are just mini direct response ads for gardening tools and such, and I find it hard to weed through the ads to get to the tips, so I wouldn't recommend most of them.

The best newsletter with the greatest amount of gardening news, tips and helpful information is The Georgia Gardener by Walter Reeves who hosts the website WalterReeves.com and also a local radio show on WSB. I haven't listened to the radio show but I do enjoy the receiving the newsletters he sends out each week and I will say he has more tips, hints and ideas than any newsletter I have seen yet. The newsletter contains an email with links to the website. Are there ads? You betcha, but the ads are always off to the side and non-obtrusive. It is obvious that he really loves to help gardeners like me succeed. I don't really mind the ads, especially if the free info is good.

Reeves is a long-time garden enthusiast, raised on a farm in Fayette County, Georgia. In addition to his writing, and hosting the radio show, he also writes for the AJC and is probably one of the most respected garden experts in the southeast. I am impressed by all this but that is not as important to me as all of the helpful information I receive on his website -- which appears to be newly designed. I really love the seasonal calendar below. We gardeners always need that extra nudge, especially in the cool weather when we are vegging on the sofa with a cup of tea.

I also love that his advice is perfect for my zone or area of the US where I reside. I know when he recommends a seed, plant or gardening activity that it is actually the right time plant it and it will grow well in our climate. If he says, start your seeds, I know they will be ready for spring planting where if someone from Canada tells me that, I might wonder if I am a bit late for the mild Georgia seasons.

Another thing I like about Walter Reeves.com are the helpful pdfs that tell me how to build things like rain barrels, warming trays and helpful DIY gardening projects that don't cost an arm and a leg. I would love to have a rain barrel and he has multiple sets of plans. You have to appreciate a person who gives his plans and recognizes that other people have good solutions for things, too. Below are four sets of rain barrel plans I downloaded from WalterReeves.com.

 Another newsletter I have enjoyed, though not as well, is Doug Green's Garden. He is an organic gardener and while he does have some good tips, I have to remember that his is gardening in Canada. He also has quite a few ebooks and helpful pamphlets that are only available if you pay for them. I am all for his making money and his ebooks are probably very good, but I would hate to pay big bucks to find that I could only grow the vegetable he recommends successfully in Winnipeg.

Still, I do like his website and his advice. I like the chemical-free style of gardening and I do look forward to reading what he has to say.

He also has YouTube videos to watch. Some are better than others but I like seeing things demonstrated. It helps me to know if I like his techniques.

That is the rundown. My gardening planning is in the early stages but with the helpful tips by these garden gurus I just may get some extra help this season.