Free Class Saturday, June 28th

Tropical Vines-Making A Hot Yard Cool


Many of you have yards that, in steak terms, would be considered well done. Crispy might be a better description, and it comes at a bad time. Summer is when we get together with friends and family to celebrate the outdoors. The 4th of July is just around the corner, and our yards are crying out for attention.

Tropical vines offer a lot of bang for your buck. They are the go-go dancers of the garden as they draw attention from anyone in the vicinity. They are the popular kids with the cool clothes. They are a first love that you Google from time to time. Why not invite such excitement into your yard?

The Mandevilla Vine is a lady with pink bloomers who thrives in the humid South. Position her around a lamp post or mail box and, my word, you've got a show! Be sure to set the stage with good soil and liquid fertilize every couple of weeks.

Thumbergia hails from India. She's a striking Sky Flower with light-blue blooms that are around three inches across. Thumbergia may appreciate a little shade, but not too much! By planting on a pergola, her dense foliage will provide shade for those beneath.


For more on vines, come to our Free Saturday Class!

Saturday's Free Class Notes

Entertaining With Herbs Class Notes

Place Herbal Soap In Your Guest Bathroom! It is a lovely way to
carry your herbal theme evening through your home. Be sure to give
it a special soap dish. Your efforts will shine!



Serving cocktails before dinner is a good idea for two reasons. It gives your friends something
to talk about while you're rushing around, and it keeps you from taking it all too seriously.

Your Main Course-Turkey with Herbes de Provence and Citrus

Dessert! It's what everyone has been waiting for all evening!
Cherry Sorbet With Tarragon

If you don't care for Tarragon, you can use any herb you like! You could also use a combination of herbs to really wow your guests.


Finally, you want your friends to take home something to remember the great time they had. Flavored Vinegar is a good idea, especially if you served it on the salad they enjoyed. Students in our class received the recipe for creating this delicious infusion. Pour it into decorative bottles, and tape the cork in with black electrical tape. (Spills on the way home aren't the impression you want to leave.) Use a different shape bottle for each person. You could also use different colored bottles. When you bring them out on a tray, your friends will feel like royalty!

How To Get Your Buzz

Hester and Zipperer's new and improved monthly e-newsletter, The Buzz, went out to about one hundred of you recently. We are delighted to say that we've already received positive feedback from customers. We're using software called "Email Brain" to create our newsletters, and so far, it has enabled us to make leaps and bounds in our creative expression.

Those of you who read this blog may be wondering what The Buzz will have to offer. My answer is that the newsletter and blog will work together. For example, the newsletter will give you a month's glance at what we're up to at the store. It will contain our Wilmington Island location's schedule for its Saturday morning classes. It will suggest issues that should be addressed in the garden during that month. It will also offer information on new products and plants.

Our blog will offer more detail on the topics mentioned in The Buzz. It will provide links to other sites dealing with those topics. It will contain all sorts of photos (some more entertaining than informative), and it will illustrate all that gardening has to offer us.

Do YOU get The Buzz? Send your email address to: hesterandzipperer@hotmail.com

Farmer D Organics

Hester and Zipperer is proud to carry Farmer D Organics Compost. Please take the time to visit Farmer D's blog and learn about his products. He explains them better than I could. You'll be glad you did!

Free Class This Satuday On Water Conservation!

Learn To Use Water Smartly
Watering is so simple, so why does it give us so much trouble? The truth is that mastering one's use of water is one of the most challenging things for a gardener. Different plants have different needs, and different watering methods are available. How does one decide which is best?

Your troubles are over. Devote a half hour of your time to our Water Conservation Class this Saturday, at 10:00 A.M.,(The Wilmington Island Store) and you'll be watering like a pro! Learn the tricks that will save you time, water, and money from your favorite tattooed teacher, Mary-Ann.

To show our appreciation for responsible watering, all class participants will receive 15% off any succulents purchased the day of the class!