Hi GPODers!
If you’re particularly sleuthy, you might have noticed a small change to the Garden Photo of the Day submission directions at the bottom of the articles this week. Along with the instructions to email 5-10 photos to [email protected], we are also now inviting readers to submit via our new Garden Photo of the Day Form.
While this may seem like dull business that doesn’t necessitate more than a small footnote, anyone who has submitted to Garden Photo of the Day before knows how much work it can be to get your high-quality images sent along. I’ve received Google Drive links, Dropbox folders, PDF files, Word documents, and countless emails with all kinds of labels and methods for conveying your photos and descriptions. There have, of course, also been plenty of technological snafus. I am endlessly grateful for the patience and creativity each GPODer has had in contributing their garden photos, but I began to hunt for a solution that could allow contributors to share their photos with far less heavy lifting.
Today I’m thrilled to announce the official launch of our new form that should allow you to upload and share photos faster and easier than you ever have before, and allows us to implement a new perk for submitting your garden (more on that later). To help this launch get off of the ground, and hopefully answer some questions you might have about this change, I’ve decided to start this post with a little form tutorial.
The first half of the form asks you for the basic information we request when you submit your garden—no rocket science here. Please note that the information required in this section is your name and valid email address, as we might need to get in touch with you regarding your submission. Your location gives us better insight and context to your garden, but is not necessary if you feel uncomfortable sharing.
Next we ask that you include a short description of your submission. The prompt here is “Tell us about your gardening journey…” but feel free to use this space to include any information you would like to include about the conditions, plants, techniques, and designs shown in the photos. Below that is a space to include your growing zone before the section to upload your photos.
This is where things get really good. You no longer have a fuss with moving your photos around your computer, resizing, or attaching them to a dozen separate emails. Simply click “Choose file,” navigate to wherever your photos are located on your computer, and click “open” to upload.
You’ll know your photo was successfully uploaded when the image appears on the form. Directly beneath the photo is a spot to leave a caption, description, or list plant IDs. The text you write here will stay with the accompanying photo, so there is no labeling necessary!
Another great feature of the form is that it can be easily accessed and used from your phone or tablet. These screenshots show the same process of uploading photos, but from my cellphone. Click “Choose file” as you would on a computer, select “Photo Library,” click on the photo you would like to upload, and then click “Done.” Just as on the computer, your photo will appear in the form and you will be able to write a photo description.
When you’re ready, click “Add Another” to keep uploading photos. To ensure the form loads successfully and all photos are able to upload, the form is capped at 10 photos. However, if you’re unable to limit the photos you would like to share to just 10, simply fill out the form again. A quick note in the garden description section will let me know this is a continuation of your first submission.
As I mentioned in the intro, this new submission process also allows us to implement a new Garden Photo of the Day perk. Everyone who submits garden photos will be entered in a drawing for a free year of Fine Gardening All Access Membership. This will be a random draw that occurs twice a year, once in June and again in December. All you have to do is submit photos via the form to be entered.
While I wanted to announce this exciting change and give a brief guide to the new form, I’m not skimping on the actual garden photos today. As a reward for getting through my spiel, here are some of my summer garden highlights that I gathered for the faux submission.
First up are the new hens and chicks (Sempervivum tectorum, Zone 3–8) I planted in an old cinder block this year. My grandmother used to have an extensive collection of these hardy little succulents that would spread and multiply as she added more cinder blocks to her display, and I always wanted to try to replicate it. I spotted this colorful trio at a local nursery this spring and finally went for it. I’ll be sure to report back on how they perform next year.
As exciting as summer is outdoors, I have a handful of indoor plants that also put on a show during the warmer months. I got a tiny variegated moon cactus (Gymnocalycium mihanovichii f. variegata, Zones 10–12) at the Philadelphia Flower Show in March, and by the end of June it had produced three of these show-stopping blooms.
This summer I also made my first trip to Coastal Maine Botanic Gardens, which you can see some more highlights of here: GPOD on the Road: Coastal Maine Botanical Garden in Early Summer. One plant that somehow didn’t make its way into that article was this stunning Celebrations™ Masquerade kangaroo paw (Anigozanthos ‘KPMASQ’, Zones 9–11) that stole attention from a tapestry of other vibrant blooms.
On that trip up the Maine coast I also did some camping and sight-seeing with a close friend. Outside an old gift shop in one harbor was a couple of beds of annuals, but this bath tub was especially fun. Geraniums and clovers apparently make a very inviting bubble bath—even next to a marine fueling station!
About one month later I spent a week on the Connecticut coast housesitting for a family friend. She has a small garden that is always full of color when I visit, but these black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia hirta, Zones 3–7) and purple coneflower (Echinacea purpurea, Zones 3–8) were the top performers this year.
This summer was full of unexpected moments of plant wonder. I encountered this planting of White Swan marigolds (Tagetes erecta ‘White Swan’, annual) outside of a local restaurant. I grew lots of marigolds in my vegetable garden this year, but these giant, cream-colored blooms still took me aback.
Back at home, the season was all about the color yellow. I grew a compact variety of cucumber in a hanging basket that produced an abundance of bright yellow blooms. However, I tried to squeeze one too many plants into the containers and they got choked out by peak season—resulting in a less-than-spectacular harvest. I wasn’t too disappointed though. While anyone growing edible plants is aiming for successful fruit, I also enjoy growing vegetables for their beauty, and this plant delivered.
I also played around with growing some flowers from seed this year. I don’t necessarily strive for any particular look or feel in the garden, I find joy in experimenting and seeing what thrives or fails. These California poppies (Eschscholzia californica, annual) were super fun to see sprout and flower, and gave me blooms almost right up to the first snowfall.
If you’re going to start flowers from seed, you might as well throw in a few sunflowers. These plants bloomed later in the season after having to start from scratch when rabbits devoured my first round of seedlings. The makeshift cloches I made from fencer wire will come in handy next year, though I wouldn’t recommend that material. It was what I had on hand and did the job, but a softer wire, like chicken wire, would have been way more successful.
Lastly, I again had more tomatoes than I knew what to do with this year (pictured is one of many, many harvests).
Thank you all again for your continued support, and I hope we see some more stunning summer garden submissions in the coming weeks. Follow the NEW directions below to submit your photos to Garden Photo of the Day!
We want to see YOUR garden!
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, fill out the Garden Photo of the Day Submission Form.
You can also send 5–10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
Do you receive the GPOD by email yet? Sign up here
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Small note · This is so satisfying to read — thank you. Will try it.
Heads up: Good observation — well put. So snug.
Also — This brightened my day — thank you for sharing. Will try it.
PS · Nice take on “An Exciting GPOD Update – Fine Gardening” — I’ll try that soon. Love this!
FYI – Good eye — that detail stands out. Great share.
PS • So snug — makes me want a cup of tea and a quiet afternoon ☕. Love this!