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You might be a gardening geek if…………………. (monarch metamorphosis!)

September 28, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

you might be a gardening geek if...

You might be a gardening geek if...

  • when you find a Monarch chrysalis, you plaster the news over social media;
  • you are convinced if there is one, there must be more so you crawl around on your knees in the mulch along the house and fence searching for other Monarch chrysalises—and you were right(!);
  • you read everything you can about the process, all the way to the last page of the internet;
  • you postpone travel plans because your Monarchs are likely to emerge during the time you would be gone;
  • you photograph your chrysalises several times a day (more often than you photograph your dogs) to monitor changes even though there don’t appear to be any;
  • you might even talk to them;
  • on the morning that two of your chrysalises begin to show true signs of metamorphosis, you skip an all day writing class because what if they are born while you are gone?;
  • you head straight to Westwood Gardens where you ignore the giant containers of fall mums in favor of more milkweed, your new favorite plant;
  • when you return, TWO OF THE MONARCHS HAVE BEEN BORN!

Continue Reading

Lucy and Annabelle go to Wilson Park

September 23, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

Lucy and Annabelle go to Wilson Park

On the day before the last day of summer, Lucy and Annabelle went to Wilson Park. The weather was perfect, as you might imagine Autumn-Eve-Eve to be. Wilson Park, Fayetteville’s oldest park, is a 22.75-acre oasis within walking distance of our house. And, a river runs through it. Well, actually a creek—Scull Creek. As Lucy and Annabelle stood watching from the bridge above, it was as though they understood the immenseness of the place beyond our spot in the Ozark Mountains—that the water beneath them would join the Illinois River and eventually flow into the Gulf of Mexico. The world is astonishing, even for dogs.

Especially for these dogs.Continue Reading

Lazy Sunday Brownie Sundaes

September 21, 2015 By Talya Tate Boerner

brownie, ice cream, butterscotch sauce

Sunday morning, rain is falling… That’s how it started, a slow, steady rain matching our downhearted moods and providing comfort for those of us mourning the ridiculous Razorback loss. The rain turned to drizzle and ended rather quickly, much like the game. The skies remained gray, the day cool. What’s more idyllic than a rainy, unhurried Sunday? We lazed around the house (is lazed a word?), had a late lunch with family, napped and read and read and napped. We watched the end of the Cowboy game, which proved to be the unhappiest 2 and 0 season start ever. A bad football weekend calls for chocolate. To be specific, brownies. To be more specific, Lazy Sunday Brownie Sundaes.Continue Reading

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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 (coming 2025)

Recent Ramblings:

  • Sunday Letter: February 22, 2026
  • Our Garden Mission Statement
  • Goodbye, 2025. Hello, 2026.
  • Sunday Letter: 11.23.25
  • Maggie and Miss Ladybug: My New Children’s Nature Book

Novels:

Coloring Books:

Fiction-Themed Coloring Books

Backyard Phenology:

Children’s Nature Book:

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