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Why a Rainy Day Is the Best Time to Visit a Botanical Garden

June 3, 2026 By Talya Tate Boerner Leave a Comment

Wanna hear a garden secret?

A rainy day might be the very best day to visit your local botanical garden. 🌧️

My husband and I recently spent a rainy morning at the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks. After months of drought conditions, the rain felt less like an inconvenience and more like an invitation to step outside and celebrate. So that’s exactly what we did. ☔

It turned out to be one of our favorite garden visits.

Most people plan garden outings around sunshine and blue skies. We do too. But after experiencing the garden in the rain, I’ve come to appreciate a different kind of beauty. There’s a special magic that reveals itself when raindrops begin to fall.

Rain reveals the soul of a garden.

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Happy Birthday, Theo Gruene!

May 20, 2026 By Talya Tate Boerner 1 Comment

Happy Birthday, Theo Gruene!

 

Today marks the first book birthday of The Third Act of Theo Gruene. I can’t believe it! Kids sure grow up fast, don’t they?

Spring is the perfect time to celebrate Theo Gruene — a man who spent his life preserving plants and avoiding change… until one rainy afternoon changed everything.

Maybe that’s what spring really is: evidence that quiet things are still growing.

Oh, Theo would not want the attention of a book birthday party. He wouldn’t have social media—no way!—but if he did, his posts would probably include:

  • detailed weather observations;
  • plant photos with Latin names;
  • complaints about texting culture and how no one writes in cursive anymore;
  • maybe a viral quote from Penelope

I am grateful to all the readers and book clubs that have selected The Third Act of Theo Gruene as their book of the month. And, I would especially like to thank those who not only read my book, but also took the time to post a review. By spreading the word on Amazon and Goodreads, you’ve help me gain new readers.

That’s no small feat.

Summer reading is almost here!

 

Click HERE to add Theo to your summer reading stack.

 

Thank you for celebrating this milestone with me.

And, thank you for being a good literary citizen!

Talya Tate Boerner
Grace Grits and Gardening
farm. food. garden. life.

 

Sunday Letter~ 05.17.26

May 17, 2026 By Talya Tate Boerner 10 Comments

Hello, Sunday Letter readers!

In case you were wondering—no, I haven’t fallen off the face of the earth. I’m still here, and I’m glad you are too. Lately, I’ve been busy in the garden and doing a little traveling. In between all that, I read and write. That’s pretty much my life these days, and honestly, I’m not complaining in the least.

Yes, I’m still plugging away on my next book. I hope to have a completed first draft by June 30. I’m a slow writer, partly because of all the aforementioned ways I like to spend my time, and partly because I tend to let a story unfold in its own sweet time. Have no fear—I’ll keep you updated on my progress along the way.

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Hi! I'm Talya Tate Boerner. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of:

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (2022)

THE THIRD ACT OF THEO GRUENE (2025)

Recent Ramblings:

  • Why a Rainy Day Is the Best Time to Visit a Botanical Garden
  • Happy Birthday, Theo Gruene!
  • Sunday Letter~ 05.17.26
  • Sunday Letter: 03.29.26
  • Sunday Letter: February 22, 2026

Novels:

Coloring Books:

Fiction-Themed Coloring Books

Backyard Phenology:

Children’s Nature Book:

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