Flea Market Gardening friends tell of their FMG experience and interviews website owner, Sue Langley. as the group celebrates their 2nd year March 6th, 2013.
THIS MORNING I HAD the pleasure to visit a beach house where I saw a beautiful wind chime made of a colander, glass beads, and silver spoons (inspired by Sue Gerdes’ photo); an hour later, I was relaxing to the vignette of green grapes, scarlet flowers, and a worn white chair that whispered “French farmhouse—please sit come for a spell!”; photo by Linda Gladman. And if all this were not enough to make my day more calm, beautiful, and magical … I suddenly found myself revisiting one of the first photographs I saw that inspired where I am today: the beautiful white door arbor, red flowers cascading down the center, in front of a background cloud of white cleome, by Jeanne Sammons.
This amazing garden world I inhabit changes throughout the day and inspires me no end, but it also inspires some 28,000 friends and visitors from around the world at the time of this writing. It’s a virtual wonderland, classroom, and community gathering place all in one called Flea Market Gardening. This March 6th, 2013, the Flea Market Gardening group is 2 years old! To celebrate, I thought you might want to know more about the writer, photographer, and organizer who has nurtured Flea Market Gardening, both the website and Facebook page, since the earliest days: her name is Sue Langley.
When Sue originally moved to the high California mountains with her husband, Larry Langley, and corgi, Maggie, she began blogging about her gardening projects, hoping it would help others with similar situations, especially with deer, snow, and every gardener’s nemesis: weeds. Today Sue says she can hardly remember what she used to do before Flea Market Gardening. As she says, “I’m so happy with how we’ve grown and all the good friends and creative gardeners I’ve met.”
This year in her own garden, Sue is working on installing a deer fence so she can grow vegetables. She is continuing to collect old watering cans and fun new containers, one of which is an old tool box.
Intrigued by circles in garden design, Sue recently created a circular sitting area and says she is starting a circle of herbs this spring. Here is a look at her wonderful meadow project.
Sue balances time at Flea Market Gardening with giving monthly gardening workshops at a local garden center where she says one of the most common questions she hears is: “How can I cover a slope quickly with drought resistant plants” Sue also speaks at local garden clubs and most recently gave a talk on how she replaced a weedy field with beautiful wildflowers native to her state. Here’s a look at her birdbath and the beginnings of a lavender field.
How does Sue work as a garden speaker, organize the Flea Market Gardening on the web, and find time to garden at home? She says, “I never put pressure on myself, because all these, especially FMG are meant to be fun. I know I’ll be gardening a lot more once spring comes … Everything gets done in good time.”
Also, behind the scenes at Flea Market Gardening are wonderful artists and contributors like Marie Niemann of Utah (who photographed the penny orb she made, above) and Jeanne Sammons from Iowa (who created the tipsy pots here), both of whom have become Sue Langley’s friends as well as moderators on FMG Facebook. Most important of all, it is the community of creative gardeners, artists, and crafters who visit Flea Market Gardening everyday with stories and photos of inspirational garden projects who make this inspirational place work. We are all so glad you are growing with us!
Grow, Grow, Grow, Your Boat... These boat gardens are beautiful, colorful, and well grown. It looks like a lot of… Read More
'Paint' Your Garden with Blue... Is your garden is singing the blues? Mix recycled containers and crafts with blue flowers… Read More
See this hilarious and sometimes poignant list of lost items in the garden Question.......what was the last thing you lost… Read More
Designing a charming garden baker's rack When I first saw Jeanne’s well-arranged and simply delightful Baker’s rack, I thought, ‘Somebody… Read More
Choosing a color from 'Over the Rainbow Garden' Billie Hayman's garden is full of color and she shows how one… Read More
Alliums are drama queens in the garden! Whether real flowers, grown from bulbs or the crafted faux flowers modeled after… Read More
View Comments
Happy 2nd Anniversary to FMG ! Stephie,I love the article on Sue. I want to thank Sue,Marie, Jeanne and Stephie on all that you do here at FMG and all the inspiration from everyone. I don't know what I did before FMG either,I have been here since May 2011. It is amazing how it has grown !! I am so glad that we all have that same drive to grow flowers or plants and create treasures to add to the beauty of our gardens. There is definitely something for everyone's tastes.
Nell, you are SO LOVED for your sweetness, creativity, beautiful spirit, and garden and home inspiration!
Thanks Stephie, nice write up and I know Sue appreciates it. By osmosis I've become a fan of FMG and admire all who create. Flea Market Gardening has grown by leaps and bounds but it is still personal which is kinda amazing. It's the core group that keeps it together along with your amazing touch.
Lare, you are our beloved Tractor Man ... how about a post from you! I've never driven a tractor before, but many of my family members have here in the hills of WV and I envy them. There's an art to mowing a slope,I've seen some here that are beautiful too ... care to be interviewed about it? You make those beautiful vistas that are so gorgeous behind Sue's gardens! What's it like driving a tractor on a mountain?
Happy 2nd Anniversary to FMG !
Stephie, I loved the article on Sue. She is such an inspiration to us all. Everyone here is so talented, friendly, and inspiring, but especially you, Sue, Marie, and Jeanne. You seem to be the main people who keep this site updated and fresh.
I can't stand to go a day without checking out the FMG FB page. It's become addictive. I love seeing all the pictures people share, the inspiring articles, and the comaraudery among all. I also love that FMG is about sharing things any of us can accomplish. So many sites and magazines show us things that most people can't afford to do, or have the skills to do, but here it's different.
Thank you for creating FMG.. I know in the year that I have been following this group, it has grown tremendously. Great job!
Myra, I am addicted to you and FMG! I am always so happy when I see a post from you and you have absolutely the most wonderful garden! I love the brick walls, roses, and gazebo ... I would have serious garden envy, except that FMG is just like one continuous garden on the web, always growing and changing. I'm going to squeeze some real life gardening into today too ... talk to you later!
Wonderful article Stephie about a wonderful woman that amazes all of us how she seems to balance everything with ease and keeps it fun with her wonderful sense of humor. We've all become a family here and have met a ton of wonderful people that we all have very similar interests and love of gardening and the more unusual and affordable garden treasures that we all enjoy and love to share our pictures. I've been a dedicated fan of FMG since the moment I discovered them in May 2011. I was saying WOW then and I still do, I'm totally hooked and love to see what our people share with us, new and fresh ideas and friendship. I'm happy to be a part of the FMG gang and appreciate everyone! Thanks Stephie!! Happy Birthday FMG and thank you Sue Langley for all you do!
This is going to be a wonderful year, Marie! A year of wonderful gardens and art! What could be better?
Wonderful article and pictures. FMG was a much needed cataylist between gardening and myself 2 years ago... A divorce, a move from a home I loved, put me in a rut where I was not accustomed to being. Then I ran across this crazy site where I was refreshed, inspired, and met a whole new bunch of "gardening" partners who ignited the fires of desire once again to get " down and dirty" in the gardens!!!! Thank you for a place to go to be inspired, learn from, share my own developments and creations, and ultimately a place where the love of gardening is TWEEKED ever so slightly with the imagination of each creator to make it down right FUN! Thanks to Sue for bringing it all together and to all those who are the thread that binds!
Thanks so much Nell, dear Larry, Marie, Myra and Jeanie and Stephie,...FMG is certainly a group page and I appreciate all of your contributions. Without you all who post your own ideas and projects, what would we be? ~~ Sue
I think I found FMG in June or July of 2011 and I found HEAVEN, so many wonderful people who share their unique slant on gardening. It is great to see other ideas and fun, doable projects. And we are so blessed to have Sue and her merry band of helpers to keep things moving along --keeping FMG fresh and new, with so many "how-to" s and beautiful photo ablums. I have been blessed to find FMG and my many new friends.
We are richer because of your contribution, Nancy,...I'd love to see your gardens in person some day and feel that I really will.