Gardening is Zip Code Local...Beware the Zone 5 Mafia!

You know, the Zone 5 Mafia right? You gotta watch out for ‘em! Look, I say this all with a giggle all in good fun (this is an industry insider’s joke I didn’t make up), but the reality is a TON of generalized accepted gardening information, recommendations, schedules, instruction, assertions, plant introductions, plant tags, etc. come to us from Zone 5/6 gardeners (discussions of zones another time), researchers and educators.

But the reality is that often such information is totally irrelevant or inaccurate for those of us living in huge regions around the rest of the country; and especially those of us who live in extreme, hot climates, with challenging soils and a very different plant palette, both native and introduced.

Be mindful when seeking out gardening and plant information (or designers and LAs) to remember you often need to get zip code local, and may need to make a lot of changes/substitutions to a technique, recommendation, timing, plant choices, that’s coming to you from someone who has no experience in your environment (me included).

So don’t get frustrated if certain recommendations haven’t worked for you…it may not be FOR you! Or for your particular environmental conditions, both outdoors and indoors. . .