Joan McDonald in her cottage-style Wagener Terrace yard
Joan McDonald’s cottage industry delivers arrangements, growing advice, and a profusion of floral fun
Most spring mornings, Joan McDonald dons her “properly broken in” straw hat, grabs coffee, and heads outside with her Glen of Imaal terrier, Penelope Pitstop. In the yard of her 1940s Wagner Terrace bungalow, laissez-faire beds burst with verdant vines, frilly herbs, edible ornamentals, and cross-pollinated curiosities. “Annuals and perennials, that’s my whirligig,” says the self-taught horticulturist, whose personality is as layered and exuberant as her freewheeling cottage garden.
Over the past year, McDonald has channeled her plant enthusiasm into a thriving floral design and consulting company, giving fresh meaning to the term “cottage industry.” The Gardeners Green offers bouquet subscriptions, event florals, workshops, and garden education with cottage coaching. “It’s so rewarding to teach people to grow their own flowers. Of course, not everybody has the time or interest for gardening, so I also deliver,” says McDonald, who buzzes around town in a classic Citroën, usually laden with blooms to share.
In her “zippier days,” the former Charleston magazine garden editor says she once worked with the city’s horticulture division nurturing 55,000 seedlings annually as well as “schlepping giant ficuses” at The Citadel greenhouse. She’s volunteered countless hours for local garden organizations and serves as the assistant director for the Garden Club of South Carolina’s East Low Country District. “Gardening has been a lifelong journey,” she notes.
McDonald inherited her mother’s green thumb during a Zone 7 childhood (Pennsylvania and Virginia), then set down her roots in the Lowcountry’s Zone 9a nearly 30 years ago. And while her formal schooling took the path of stone carving and printmaking, her horticultural education blossomed through hands-on learning. The creative gardener views bouquets as a sort of floral collage, often adding unique “winks” from her private garden, such as broccoli rabe, dried amaranth, lemon verbena, or hand-dyed poppy pods.
McDonald’s Citroën, nicknamed “Dolly,” does double duty as a floral delivery vehicle and a photogenic backdrop for special events.
“I like plants that have multiple uses,” she says, ticking off traits like edible, ornamental, fragrant, and color changing. “A cottage garden balances beauty and utility, letting you harvest at every stage. You can eat the tender leaves that aren’t found in the grocery, use the flowers in an arrangement, and then harvest the seeds to plant later.” Since her harvested seeds often cross-pollinate when planted in small spaces, McDonald’s never quite sure what will sprout when they start to germinate, saying, “The fun is in finding out what’s going to happen.”
Dig Into Upcoming Events:
April 11
Cottage Gardening 101
Join Joan McDonald for this class designed to get you started growing a cut-flower garden at home. Charleston Horticultural Society, 46 Windermere Blvd., Thursday, 10 a.m. $50, $40 for members. chashortsoc.org. For more events and tips, visit thegardenersgreen.com.
Gather & Create
How to create Joan McDonald’s arrangement of her backyard blooms
Flower List:
Lenten rose (Helleborus orientalis)
Stock (Matthiola incana)
Ranunculus
Anemone
Roman chamomile (Chamaemelum nobile)
Tulips
Foliage List:
Aspidistra or corn plant (Dracaena fragrans)
Jonquil (Narcissus jonquilla)
Supplies:
Buckets
Flower food
Snips
Vase
Flower frog
Stapler
Floralife Crowing Glory solution
Instructions:
1. Flower Prep: Whether you’re purchasing plants or harvesting from the garden, this step will extend your vase life. Fill clean buckets with water and flower food. Use sharp, clean snips to make a fresh cut on each flower stem, stripping lower leaves that may fall under the water line.
2. Vase Prep: Place your frog into the vase. (Flower frogs come in a variety of shapes, weights, and sizes and can be used instead of floral foam. Some vases also have built-in frogs. You can also use chicken wire in the base.) Fill the vase with water.
3. Lenten Rose: Remove the immature blooms that still have their stamens or are in bud. The blooms that are more mature without stamens will hold up longer and won’t wilt. Snip them to serve as the lower third of your design.
4. Tulips: Tuck tulips at the base of your arrangement next to the Lenten rose. Tulips will continue to grow in the vase. (Note: you can purchase bulbs pre-chilled and plant in the fall for spring blooms.)
4. Stock: Snip blooms to fill out your arrangement and add fragrance. Stock is easily grown by seed as a cool season annual and is great for a cut-flower garden in spring.
5. Ranunculus & Anemone: Tuck stems to fill. Both are easily grown here. Purchase your corms in the fall, then pre-sprout and plant in October for multiple spring blooms.
6. Roman Chamomile: Tuck stems to fill. Chamomile can be directly sown in the garden in January or February for early spring blooms.
7. Foliage: Roll the aspidistra leaves tip to stem, and staple to hold. Place at the base of the arrangement. Add two jonquil leaves and spray with Crowning Glory to finish.
