Hi friends! I’ve missed you! Apologies for being away from the blogosphere for ages, but if you’ve kept up with Garden Delights via Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook, you’ll know that it was a busy year:

I wrote a BOOK! You can find it here! (I’ve enjoyed teasing my kids: “Want me to proofread your paper? I’m a PUBLISHED AUTHOR, you know!”) Here's a sneak peak of the book.

I built a brand new, dream KITCHEN GARDEN! (OK. Peter helped, too.)

I’ve been promoting the BOOK on lots of podcasts, in magazine interviews, and online. (Marketing is much more work than the actual writing, to be honest.) You can listen to the Down the Garden Path podcast here. Thank you to all the writers and media friends who’ve featured the book!

We traveled. Never in a million years did I think I’d visit Holland when there wasn’t a tulip in sight. Sigh. (To be fair, I knew this ahead of time, but wow—I had no idea how sad it would make me to see empty fields…) There was also the time I thought I was going to die hiking a Swiss mountain, but that’s a story for another day…

Our girlie is a senior and visiting colleges! (SOB!)

And we have a BLACK BELT in the house! Woot! (Beware burglars. Our 13-year-old will TAKE YOU DOWN.)

There’s lots to share in the next few weeks and months, but first—to apologize for my absence and celebrate the launch of my new book published by Cool Springs Press, Starting and Saving Seeds: Grow the Perfect Vegetables, Fruits, Herbs, and Flowers for Your Garden… I’m throwing a party, just for you!!!

And there are PRIZES!

Grand Prize (Approximate value: $200):

• A copy of my new book, Starting & Saving Seeds, of course!

• An incredible selection of heirloom/open pollinated seeds from my friends at Botanical Interests, including The Heirloom Organic Seed Bank Collection, featuring 24 heirloom vegetable varieties. Additionally, they're including several varieties of open pollinated herbs and flowers: organic Borage, organic Italian Genovese Basil, Sea Shell Blend organic Cosmos, and Alaska Variegated Nasturtium.

• A Seed Keeper Deluxe from my friends at The Seed Keeper Company! The Seed Keeper Deluxe holds more than 100 seed packs, keeping them organized with an A-Z file system, or by using the monthly dividers to plan seed starting, planting, or other garden tasks. The Seed Keeper Deluxe also includes a 1 gallon burlap girdle planter, 10 wooden plant stakes, 10 seed saving envelopes, 10 plant labels, 3" seed sorting dish, a 6" wooden garden ruler, anti-static seed tweezers, graphite marking pencil, seed magnifier, and a hand/nail scrubber.

• A germination station, including a heat mat, tray, 72-cell pack, and 2” dome!

• 8-quart organic seed starter mix!

(2) Runner-up prizes include a copy of Starting & Saving Seeds, plus seeds from my garden!

How to Enter:

1. Follow Garden Delights on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook and LIKE the giveaway post.
2. Follow Botanical Interests on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
3. Follow The Seed Keeper Company on Instagram, Twitter, and Facebook.
4. Leave a comment on the blog below. For more chances to win, visit @juliesgardendelights on Instagram and Garden Delights on Facebook. Look for the giveaway post and tag a friend in the comments sections for additional entries into the giveaway. (One tag per comment, please, but tag as many friends as you’d like. Each one counts as an entry!)

Giveaway Fine Print…

One winner will be selected randomly to receive the GRAND PRIZE. Two additional winners will be selected (also randomly) to receive a copy of Starting & Saving Seeds, as well as seeds from my garden.

The giveaway is open to U.S. residents and ends Wednesday, October 31, 2018 at midnight EST. Winner will be announced on the blog and Garden Delights social media sites on November 1.

Of course, if you can’t wait to read Starting and Saving Seeds, you can get it right now on Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Chapters/Indigo (Canada), or your favorite local bookstore. If you’d like an autographed copy, along with a pack of seeds from my garden, you can email me at: julie {at} gardendelights-sc {dot} com.

Whew! We’ve got a lot of catching up to do, don’t we?! So, tell me: what’s new in your garden? And then, go enter all the sites for your chance to win! We’ll meet back here in a bit for seed saving fun and garden gossip!

Good luck! Happy gardening!

XOXO ~

Julie

P.S. If you read my book and like it, would you mind heading to Amazon and leaving a comment? I would be grateful--and so would my publisher! Thank you!