Oh you, Greenbriar: Smilax rotundifolia!

With the warm very early spring weather, it's sprouting! The vine grows with the ominous spreading speed of a creature in a horror movie. It twins up trees. Curls around buildings. Crawls across the ground.

What is this frightening plant? It's Smilax rotundifolia or Common Woody Greenbriar or numerous other common names, some of them too nasty to write here. 

The smilax is back! I need to get it out before it goes to seed.

Smilax is a vine that has both tendrils and thorns. It's the only vine to have that.

It is resistant against Round Up. If you want to use a commercial weed killer, various gardening sites recommend that you soak the leaves in the weed killer for several hours.

But I'm working on going organic. So I'm following the recommended removal practice, which is a cultural practice. This means I've been physically digging up the vine and its tubers. The tubers look like sweet potatoes to me. I have read that the young ones are good to eat and were a staple in the Native American diet. I tried it and wasn't in love with the bitter flavor. 

I went through the yard and dug up as many of the tubers as I could. They can be stubborn buggers about coming out of the ground!

Vigilance is needed to keep it from coming back, which is why I'm back in the yard battling it. I'll also need to get it out of the neighbor's vacant lot before it comes crawling into my yard.

Wish me luck!

Carolina Yard Gardening School!

If you live in the Lowcountry of South Carolina mark your calenders and register today. The Carolina Yard Gardening School promises to be full of hands-on activities that you are going to love!

What: Carolina Yard Gardening School
When: March 24, 2012 8AM-4:30PM
Where: Charleston Exchange Park- Ladson, SC
Cost: $75 (includes lunch)

Join Clemson Extension and the Tri-County Master Gardeners for this one day hands-on intensive horticulture workshop for area gardeners featuring some of the area's most knowledgeable gardeners!  The CYGS includes:

• two garden lectures
• two hands-on workshops
• 1 soil test
• lunch and refreshments
• educational exhibits
• plant problem diagnosis clinic
• chance to win a door prize
• books and plants for sale on site
• complimentary compost

Lectures to choose from include: (Download the full brochure)

• You Can Do It. . . Easy Lawn Care
• Daylilies 101
• Amanda’s Favorite Landscape Plants
• Getting Started with Culinary Herbs in the Lowcountry
• Treasured Terrariums and Creative Containers
• Leaf Casting
• Simple, Successful Seed Starting
• Hands-on Plant Propagation
• What is a Romantic Garden? The Design and History of Magnolia Gardens
• Celebrating South Carolina’s Natural Heritage with Native Plants in the Home Landscape
• Tips for Tomatoes
• Composting at Home: The Dirty Little Secret of a Great Garden
• Success with Perennials in the Lowcountry

**********************************

Dorothy St. James writes the White House Gardener Mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Flowerbed of State is the first book in the series. Be sure to grab your copy while they're still available! Visit with Dorothy on the web or at Facebook. Or follow her on Twitter.

Praise for FLOWERBED OF STATE:
"Credible characters, a fast-paced plot, and a light look at political life in Washington, D.C., will delight cozy fans." ~ Publishers Weekly

"This spunky new romantic suspense series is an obvious pick for readers who enjoy Julie Hyzy's "White House Chef" series (Buffalo West Wing), but also think of gardening mystery series such as Rosemary Harris's (Slugfest)." ~ Library Journal

Order Flowerbed of State from your favorite bookseller. 

Look for The Scarlet Pepper in April 2012. Pre-order your copy today!

 As the White House's organic gardener, Casey Calhoun is up to her elbows in dirt. But when someone starts tampering with the Presidential vegetable garden, embarrassing the First lady-and a hard-nosed investigative reporter is found dead, Casey realizes that the next thing buried in the dirt might just be her...

Made in America Monday: All Amercian Clothing Co

It's Made in America Monday, where I feature a company that is producing (or selling) products that are made within the United States. Although you can find wonderful things made in other countries, I think sometimes we overlook the craftsmen and products that are being produced just around the corner.

So with the familiar slogan "Think Global, Act Local" in mind, I give you the second Made in America Monday. I hope you enjoy it.

The All American Clothing Company founded in 2002 is based out of Ohio. The company produces jeans, pants, shorts, shirts, and outerwear for men and women.

From their website:

"All American Clothing Co. competes in an industry that is considered to be 97% foreign made. Thus we receive emails on a daily basis asking if we are truly in the top 3% of USA Made apparel manufactures. Patrons constantly question us about raw goods and labor. I certainly cannot fault buyers for asking.... but the truth is we are one of the few that can legally claim to be USA Made. We exceed the Federal Trade Commissions strictest of rules. The backing offered by Made in USA Certified™ consistently helps us to satisfy our patrons that we are being honest, compliant and well within the FTC Act's conditions/rules. USA Made products and jobs are important and Made in USA Certified™ helps us to give comfort to the patrons that they are getting a genuine USA Made product."

~~Lawson Nickol, Co-Founder

"It's halftime America..." Great Superbowl Ad!

Made in America Monday

This is the first in a new series that I'm starting called Made in America Monday, where I feature a company that is producing (or selling) products that are made within the United States. Although you can find wonderful things made in other countries, I think sometimes we overlook the craftsmen and products that are being produced just around the corner.

So with the familiar slogan "Think Global, Act Local" in mind, I give you the first Made in America Monday. I hope you enjoy it.

What's better than chocolate? Hand-crafted chocolate. That's what!

"Sweeteeth creates artisan chocolates using traditional, handcrafted techniques. Our operation in North Charleston, South Carolina, is devoted to the small-batch production of finely crafted chocolate bars and bon-bons, with an emphasis on high-quality chocolate couverture and innovative flavor pairings."

You can order their chocolates online at http://shop.sweeteethchocolate.com/  or look for their products at a store near you: http://sweeteethchocolate.com/shop-local

Valentine's Day is just around the corner. Hint. Hint.

Mystery Writers of America Scholarship available for aspiring mystery writers!

The fabulous Chris Roerden, Chair of the McCloy-MWA Scholarship Program reminds all unpublished mystery writers to not wait until the postmark deadline of Feb.29, 2012, to decide to apply for a scholarship to take courses, classes, workshops, or other live (not online) educational programs to improve your writing skills. 

"It will take you more time than you think to pull together the specific info on courses and have in hand the two letters of reference required. If you have not been previously published for money in the mystery field, you are eligible to apply. ("For money" means a publisher paid you; if you paid, you may be considered unpublished)," she writes.

Here's how to apply:

Every year, two scholarships of up to $500 each are awarded in the McCloy-MWA Scholarship Program. The samples of mystery writing to submit can be 3 chapters of a novel or nonfiction, or 3 short stories or essays, or a full-length script. There's no entry fee or membership requirement. Applicants even get feedback from one or more of the 5 judges, who are commercially published in mystery fiction, nonfiction, and scriptwriting. Download details and the 2012 application form from http://mysterywriters.org (click McCloy Scholarship in the sidebar). And send for the FAQs to the email address shown on the form.

Little Blessings Add Up

One of my resolutions for 2012 is to recognize all the blessings in my life, big or small. I'm not going to let the days slip through my fingers this year without sending out a note of thanks for the good things that happened.

Since practice makes perfect...let me get started now:

My May 2011 release, FLOWERBED OF STATE was selected by the Bismarck, ND Public Library system as one of the best Adult Mysteries for Teens for 2010-2011. I'm thrilled to have my work recognized by library professionals. Some of my favorite people are librarians.

Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!

**********************************

Dorothy St. James writes the White House Gardener Mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Flowerbed of State is the first book in the series. Be sure to grab your copy while they're still available! Visit with Dorothy on the web or at Facebook. Or follow her on Twitter.

Praise for FLOWERBED OF STATE:
"Credible characters, a fast-paced plot, and a light look at political life in Washington, D.C., will delight cozy fans." ~ Publishers Weekly

"This spunky new romantic suspense series is an obvious pick for readers who enjoy Julie Hyzy's "White House Chef" series (Buffalo West Wing), but also think of gardening mystery series such as Rosemary Harris's (Slugfest)." ~ Library Journal

Order Flowerbed of State from your favorite bookseller. 

Look for The Scarlet Pepper in April 2012. Pre-order your copy today!

Book Recommendation

Looking for a new mystery to read? I know I'm always on the hunt for new books for my TBR pile....

Julie Hyzy's 5th White House Chef Mystery Affairs of Steak is available today from Berkley Prime Crime!

White House chef Olivia Paras and her arch nemesis, White House Sensitivity Director Peter Everett Sargeant, must work together to solve the double murder of one of the First Lady's assistants and the Chief of Staff-before they become the next victims of a merciless assassin with a secret agenda.

Get your copy today. This book promises to be a winner!

Click here for a list of all the Berkley Prime Crime novels released today.

Roses on Parade

In honor of the Tournament of Roses Parade and Rose Bowl today, I thought I write a bit about growing roses.

Anyone who knows me well, knows I'm more interested in growing plants that feed me than in growing flowering plants. However...roses do provide rose hips, which are a great source for vitamin C!

Poor roses, I've been overlooking their value for too long. But no more. This past fall I planted a miniature rose bush.

The neighbor's lawn service already mowed it down to the ground once, but the feisty little plant came back, winning my admiration.

Quick and Easy Tips for the Care of Roses:
1. Plant bare-root roses in spring.
2. Plant potted roses in spring or fall.
3. Water regularly during the growing season.
4. Prune in early spring.
5. In areas where winters are cold, mulch heavily with mounding soil and piles of leaves topped with another layer of soil. (Or grow in pots and bring in during the winter months.)
6. Your rose bush should flower all summer and into the fall.

Hopefully, I'll have good things to report about my new rose bush (and pictures of its flowers) in the coming summer months.

If you have any tips on how to grow lush roses, please share them! After all, I'm a newbie when it comes to my roses.

Get your hands dirty!

If you're looking for something a little different this Christmas...

New Paranormal Romance Novella! Just in time for the Holidays!

A Wizard for Christmas
By Dorothy McFalls
Published by: Barking Dog Press Dec 2011
$0.99 from all ebook retailers
Get your copy today from: Amazon, Smashwords, or Nook

Blurb:

Holly desperately wants a perfect Christmas, and she's perfectly willing to make herself miserable getting one. Unfortunately, there are mystical forces at play that threaten more than her holidays...her life is in danger. And the only one who seems to know what's going on is a darkly handsome, but mysterious, wizard who makes her want to add "romance" to this year's Christmas wish list.

Excerpt: 

Christmas music was being piped onto the streets. Deck the Halls and Fa, La, La, La, La....Holly was ready to deck something. Fa, La, La, La, that.

Her suitcase toppled over again.

And again she had to stop, put the suitcase back on its wheels before she could continue dragging her personal albatross down the street. Why had she packed so many clothes? This was insane.

A few bouncy steps further, the suitcase hit a deep rut and one of the wheels got stuck. Brilliant. It took some effort to pry the wheel from the crack in the walk. And she was getting colder by the minute.

When she started pulling it again, she ran straight into an arm. A healthy male arm.

"Need a hand?" Hadrian asked. He was leaning against the storefront and blocking her way. He smiled. It made her stomach do a little flip.

"I-I'm okay," she said, and tried to push him out of her path. She didn't trust him. He was too interested in her, and she didn't understand why.

"Didn't you say you were going out of town?" His brow kicked up as he eyed her suitcase. "I didn't realize you were walking to your destination."

"I'm heading over to the train station."

"Really? That's blocks from here. Let me drive you."

Her throbbing feet wanted to scream, "Yes!" She'd dragged her suitcase from one end of town to the next in search of a non-existent hotel room. Her feet didn't want to take another step. Ever.

"I'm okay," she said, much to her feet's chagrin. But if he drove her to the train station, there would be a good chance he'd insist on staying with her until her train left. And she had no ticket because she had nowhere to go, and what was she doing telling complete strangers about her fantasy trip home in the first place?

She pushed him out of the way and hauled herself forward. He caught the handle of her suitcase.

"You're limping," he said.

"I'm fine." She tried to pry his hand loose.

"You're exhausted."

"I'm not." His fingers wouldn't budge.

"You're afraid of me."

Her gaze flashed up to his face. He looked harmless, but then so did many of the mass murderers caught in recent years.

"I'm being reasonably cautious," she said, tugging at the handle with all her weight. "Let go of my suitcase or I'll scream."

He let go so fast she nearly smashed her face against the sidewalk.

"You know me, Holly." He sounded so darned reasonable. "Deep in your heart, you know me. You know I'm not a threat to you."

"Perhaps. But maybe I'm not a very good judge of people. There is no Oblique Café. No one in my building has ever heard of it. I think you drugged me. Or hypnotized me."

"Hypnosis? Really? That's the best your wildly imaginative mind could come up with?"

"Goodbye Hadrian. Have a very merry Christmas."

She stuck her chin in the air and hoped she looked determined when she felt anything but. Tears stung the backs of her eyes. This was her chance, perhaps her one chance to spend Christmas with someone. Anyone.

She stopped, but didn't turn around.

"What if I told you I didn't have anywhere to go?" she asked the empty space in front of her.

"I'd ask what happened to your apartment," he answered.

"It's a long story."

"Hmmm..."

"It's a stupid, long story," she amended.

"There's plenty of time to tell it, you know. There's six days before Christmas."

She wanted to laugh. But if she did, she'd probably end up crying. So she bit her lower lip.

"What should I do?" It was a desperate plea. A question framed more for herself than for anyone else.

"Come to the café with me. Jake has a room upstairs. It's not the Ritz, but it's comfortable. And affordable."

His offer sounded like a blessing.

"But there is no café."

"Not in this world. But, Holly, it does exist." He held out his hand. "Believe me. It exists as a refuge for people like you...and me."

Get your copy today from: Amazon, Smashwords, or Nook

For more information, visit Dorothy at her website: www.dorothymcfalls.com
Or learn more about Dorothy's White House Gardener mystery novels written as Dorothy St. James at www.dorothystjames.com

The Retelling of a White House Ghost Story

 Since I was talking about ghosts yesterday, I thought I'd post a reprint of a blog I'd written for Killer Characters (A Blog Where the Characters Come to Life) that's a true White House Ghost Story. Enjoy!


By Gordon Sims, White House Gardener
from FLOWERBED OF STATE book #1 in the White House Gardener Mystery Series by Dorothy St. James

Halloween is just around the corner. My assistant Casey Calhoun thought it might be fun if I stopped by and told a ghost story. A true ghost story. One that was set at the White House.

I’ve worked at the White House for the past thirty-five years, mowing the lawns, planting the flowers, and watering the hedges. In that time, I’ve seen and heard some eerie things, but nothing like what my predecessor told me he heard and saw.The year was 1947. President Harry Truman—the farmer who had turned politician—had taken office a few years earlier. My predecessor, Harold, started his first day like many new White House employees: with a tour of the residence.

The Chief Usher was showing him around the grand old house’s second floor when he had to leave Harold for a moment to take a phone call. While Harold waited, he wandered around the Queen’s Bedroom, inspecting the furnishings. He was looking at the antique canopy bed when he heard a loud pop. Before he knew what was happening the door to the bedroom flew closed with a loud crash.

The Queen's Bedroom 1947. (photo source: www.whitehousemuseum.org)

“Did you hear that?” President Truman demanded as he threw open the heavy wooden door and rushed into the Queen’s Bedroom. “I was in the Lincoln Bedroom. I swear it happens several times a day.”

“S-sir?” Harold stammered. This was the first time that he’d met the President, and he was feeling more than a little awestruck. Harold, a simple gardener, was standing in one of the ruler of the free world’s bedrooms. It was a guest bedroom, but still... Harold’s first thought was, “wait until my mom hears about this!”

The door behind the President slammed closed again. Both the President and Harold jumped.

“What do you think could be causing the door to swing like that?” Harold asked.

“Doors opening and closing on their own? Strange groaning sounds? And popping and creaking, like the past inhabitants of this old place are restless? I tell you this place is haunted. Sure as shooting, it is haunted,” President Truman said.

“Ghosts? With all due respect, sir, you must be pulling my leg. There’s no such thing as ghosts,” Harold said with a nervous laugh as the floor seemed to take a life of its own. It sagged and bounced underneath him as if the unseen visitor in the room was anxious to see him leave.

Harold sucked in a quick breath and grabbed hold of the canopy bed’s closest post. “Should I go, sir?” he asked, thinking that his first day and last day at the White House might be one and the same day. No sane man would willingly work in a place like this.

“No. Stay where you are. I want someone else to witness this,” Truman ordered.

“Y-yes, sir,” Harold said even though his legs itched to carry him as fast and as far away from this cursed place as possible.

“Do you feel that?” Truman asked as he held out a hand. The President appeared more curious than concerned with the fact that they were sharing a room with a noisy and apparently unhappy ghost.

“Feel what, sir?”

“Come over here,” Truman said.

Harold had to peel his fingers from the bed’s post. He cautiously crossed the room. The floorboards still bounced, but not a violently as before.

“Hold out your hand,” Truman said.

Harold did as he was told. A cold draft, surely sent straight from the depths of hell, spiraled up his arm. He jerked his hand away and rubbed it vigorously.

“I think you must be right, sir,” Harold said. “This place is surely haunted.”

“Haunted? Yes, that’s what I thought a minute ago, but now I’m not sure. That draft, my friend, is coming from somewhere up there.” He pointed to a large crack in the plaster above their heads that hadn’t been there before. “I’m afraid the White House is about to fall down around our ears.”

The President grabbed the room’s phone and asked the operator to call in the Commissioner of Public Buildings. “This home needs a full inspection before someone falls through a floor or a chandelier crashes down upon some state dignitary’s head.”

After giving the White House a full inspection, the commissioner agreed saying that the White House was in dire need of renovations and that the old place had to have been “standing purely from habit.”

In 1950, the White House was completely gutted. The walls strengthened and rebuilt.

Interior of the White House (photo source: Truman Library)

The basements being added to under the North Portico, where the grounds offices can be found today. (photo source: Truman Library)

The renovation, they say, put the end to the creaking, moaning ghosts.

Or did it?

Late at night when the lights are turned off and the wind blows the right way, I have heard the steady footfalls of an unseen resident wandering through the halls.

Do you believe in ghosts? Have you ever met one? Tell us about it!

**********************************

Dorothy St. James writes the White House Gardener Mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Flowerbed of State is the first book in the series. Be sure to grab your copy while they're still available! Visit with Dorothy on the web or at Facebook. Or follow her on Twitter.

"Credible characters, a fast-paced plot, and a light look at political life in Washington, D.C., will delight cozy fans." ~ Publishers Weekly

"This spunky new romantic suspense series is an obvious pick for readers who enjoy Julie Hyzy's "White House Chef" series (Buffalo West Wing), but also think of gardening mystery series such as Rosemary Harris's (Slugfest)." ~ Library Journal

Order Flowerbed of State from your favorite bookseller. Look for The Scarlet Pepper in April 2012. Pre-order your copy today!

White House Ghosts Captured on Film?

On December 5, 2011, I was invited to attend a White House Holiday Tweet-up.

When I returned home and looked at the pictures my husband and I had taken, I noticed strange orbs showing up on some of the pictures.

Even though we took tons of pictures in loads of locations (inside and out and under various lighting conditions), these orbs only showed up in a few locations and only within the White House.

It was an overcast, unseasonably warm December afternoon.

Most of our pictures turned out well. It's just that there were a few that raised a brow.

First, in the Vermeil Room.

 

And then I noticed another strange orb in the next image taken in the Center Hall.

But we didn't see anything odd in the pictures we took a moment later with the same camera in the Library...

 Or in the China Room.

 But back in the Center Hall, the mysterious spot returned.

The pictures we took of us climbing the stairs show nothing out of place. But then at the top of the stairs...

...It's back!

Nothing unusual showed up in the pictures of the large, shiny East Room or in the Green Room decked out with aluminum ornaments and trees.

The Blue Room, with the official Christmas tree filling the space, produced some of our best photos.

And then we entered the Red Room with its blood red walls.

 The orbs are back (or are they different ones?) And they're stronger than ever.

 And then they disappeared again...until we came to the high school students singing Christmas carols in the Cross Hall and entrance at the North Portico.

Is it dust on the lens? Was the camera picking up shadows of other camera's flashes? Possibly. Possibly.

But what if what we're looking at is the sign that some dedicated White House servants (or maybe even a President) is lingering in these hallowed halls, making sure the job gets done right?

A romantic thought? Perhaps. But what's Christmas without a rousing ghost story?

Merry Christmas! Happy Chanukah!

And Have a Prosperous New Year!

**********************************

Dorothy St. James writes the White House Gardener Mysteries for Berkley Prime Crime. Flowerbed of State is the first book in the series. Be sure to grab your copy while they're still available! Visit with Dorothy on the web or at Facebook. Or follow her on Twitter.

Praise for FLOWERBED OF STATE:
"Credible characters, a fast-paced plot, and a light look at political life in Washington, D.C., will delight cozy fans." ~ Publishers Weekly

"This spunky new romantic suspense series is an obvious pick for readers who enjoy Julie Hyzy's "White House Chef" series (Buffalo West Wing), but also think of gardening mystery series such as Rosemary Harris's (Slugfest)." ~ Library Journal

Order Flowerbed of State from your favorite bookseller. 

Look for The Scarlet Pepper in April 2012. Pre-order your copy today!