Seattle-based freelance garden writer, author, blogger, and new editor of Pacific Horticulture, Lorene Edwards Forkner, has an exciting new book out called Handmade Garden Projects.

Swinging through Southern California on a recent speaker circuit, Lorene had time to give a special hands-on demonstration and sell some of her "hot" books. Lorene demonstrated her Galvanized Wire Plant Support craft to my enthusiastic garden friends. It was a beautiful Monday morning, and there under my Torrey pine, she crafted a wire garden cloche from 36" galvanized wire fencing. Lorene's wit and humor was "icing on the cake" as she maneuvered through her demo. Thanks Lorene!

Lorene has been a special friend of mine for several years now. Last summer as part of "Seattle Fling" (a national garden blogging event) I attended, and Lorene helped organize, I had a chance to visit Lorene's special garden. There, I saw first hand many of the projects created and photographed for Handmade Garden Projects.

There are  33 projects in this book, with two options to every project, which makes a total of 99 potential projects you can make. Her book is cleverly organized into six chapters, such as "The Ground Floor" and "Supporting Acts." Each garden project is beautifully photographed and detailed in easy-to-follow steps. True to my own heart, Lorene embraces eco-friendly salvaging and re-purposing for these projects. Above all, she urges us all to "Go outside--it's a nice day!"

Publisher, Timber Press is hosting a Handmade Garden Projects Blog Tour this week with several other participating garden blogs. I invite you to visit these fab gardening blogs from all over the country, and read more about what they have to say about the talented Lorene Edwards Forkner, and her new book.

http://www.amateurbot-ann-ist.com/ http://torontogardens.blogspot.com/ http://wwwrockrose.blogspot.com/ http://heavypetal.ca/ http://www.growingagardenindavis.com/ http://bonneylassie.blogspot.com/ http://bwisegardening.blogspot.com/ http://www.bumblebeeblog.com/ http://www.thebikegarden.com/ http://www.ourlittleacre.com/ http://www.commonweeder.com/ http://www.debraprinzing.com/

My hens are so excited to share with you a new exciting book just released, Free-Range Chicken Gardens by Jessi Bloom. I met Jessi last July in Seattle at a national garden bloggers conference, Seattle Fling, when Jessi was just completing this book.

Jessi Bloom has written a terrific book on chickens, and the many facets of the fine line of keeping happy, healthy, chickens in a beautiful backyard garden setting. It is a fresh and informative book on chickens. I consider myself a chicken aficionado, and I think her book is right on. Her tips are little tidbits of chicken wisdom.

That's not all, now through February 17, 2012, Timber Press is currently hosting a contest highlighting Free-Range Chickens and featuring great chicken-related prizes to win. If you love chickens, or you are thinking of getting chickens this spring, this is a great read and guide.

Please share if you let your chickens free range in your backyard garden setting. Please comment how you were introduced to keeping chickens. Please share what you like most about your backyard chickens. Please comment on how you name your chickens.

What do garden bloggers like better than writing about gardening and plants? They like gathering in verdant places like Seattle, The Emerald City, experiencing new gardens. and joining the "sisterhood of garden bloggers" across the country. Okay, there were a few fellas in the mix, too.

This year's garden blogging conference, dubbed Seattle Fling, was a compilation of nearly 80 gifted garden writers who pen their passions about all things gardening. A "Who's Who" of multi-talented voices naming off plant names like a foreign language.

It is a diverse group, not just for the climatic regions they represent, but how they hail their expertise. Some are Generation X, with soon-to-be-released garden books under their belts. Some are forefront blog sensations who can proudly say they have almost a decade of posts and writing in their arsenal. Some are veteran garden writers and speakers, well known in this country's garden circles.

This phenomenon of garden bloggers and writers gathering together magically happens once a year, usually in July. Last year it was in Buffalo, New York, serendiptously coinciding with Buffalo's Garden Walk. Next year's 2012 event is tentatively planned to be held in Asheville, North Carolina.

Garden bloggers attending this year's Seattle Fling 2011, experienced a well-planned and orchestrated itinerary of private and public gardens, retail garden shops and nurseries, a David Perry photography workshop, West Seattle's Sunday morning Farmers Market, and a spoiling by garden-related sponsors.

Garden bloggers were treated to this unique concrete "ruin creation" by Little and Lewis in a wooded private garden. The concrete leaf fountain now moss-aged with water and time, was originally molded from an actual Gunnera leaf.

A trip to the picturesque waterfront Olympic Sculpture Park featuring 21 works by world-renowned artists was both captivating and breathtaking, capturing the essence of Downtown Seattle on one side, and the beauty of the Olympic Mountains and Puget Sound on the other.

VintageGardenGal wishes to thank everyone involved in this year's Seattle Fling 2011, and embraces her fellow garden bloggers.