Interview with the garden lady

Many may already be familiar with the successful gardening blog of the Garden Fräulein. We asked her what is important to the young lady when it comes to gardening.

Dear Silvia, thank you very much for the interview. For all garden friends who may not know you yet, would you like to start by briefly introducing yourself? Who is behind the garden Miss?

In real life I'm Silvia Appel, 32 years old and living in Würzburg. The boundaries between Garden Fräulein and Silvia are fluid 🙂 After my media management studies, I worked in e-commerce for a few years. So the complete opposite of garden. Since October 2016 I've been self-employed as a blogger, author, expert - a colorful bouquet has opened up professionally!

How did your passion for gardening come about? Did certain family members make you do this?

That has a lot to do with my childhood in the country. Since my parents had a large kitchen garden, it was the most normal thing in the world for me to help out there. It never felt like work, it was great fun. My mother threw one potato in the hole, the other one my sister and then I again – whoosh, the potatoes were already there. Harvesting was of course even more fun. My goodness there really is nothing like the taste of little young yellow turnips! Looking back, I think my mother probably did it very skilfully, the way she involved us in the garden. After all, we were also her little plants, which she lovingly nurtured and cared for. At some point we girls naturally wanted to cultivate our own beds. As we got older we even got an extra separate small garden.

You launched a very successful blog as a garden lady. What topics are you particularly interested in?

From the beginning I wanted to show that gardening is not a science. I wanted to take people's fears away and show them "You can do what the garden lady can do too!” I have simple instructions and tips that really get you interested in gardening Foreground.

What do you think is part of a beautiful garden? Do you have certain favorite plants?

For me, a kitchen garden or a cottage garden is the most beautiful thing of all. A mixture of crunchy vegetables and useful flowering plants. To be honest, I can't do much with a purely ornamental plant garden. Growing something edible and cooking something good out of it is pure happiness for me.

You are now too successful author of six books. What inspired and motivated you to deal with exactly these topics in such detail?

That is difficult to say. It's a passion that runs deep within me. In fact, I felt a great need to put green ideas down on paper and inspire others to actively tackle them themselves.

Your new book is mainly about city gardens. how about you Are you more of a city or country kid?

Although I grew up in the country (a village with about 100 inhabitants), my heart belongs to life in the city. It is much easier for me to integrate the advantages of country life, such as growing fresh vegetables, into my city life than it would be the other way around. I love being active in the community garden, throwing seed bombs at the roundabout and turning the balcony into a cottage garden.

Now that it's winter, it's a bit difficult to garden outside. How do you bridge the cold season indoors?

Phew, that's actually a big challenge for me. It doesn't take long before I unpack my sprout jar and grow a few seedlings. That brings me back the garden feeling at least a little bit. Then it's time to start planning for the new season. Since I work full-time as a garden lady, next spring needs to be well prepared - new projects, ideas and cooperations have to be launched in good time.

What are your plans and wishes for the new year? How will the Garden Fräulein continue in the future?

First of all, I'll be happy if things continue as positively as before. Next year there will be a workshop weekend for the first time, in which I will pass on my blogging experiences to the participants.

Are there any other books planned?

So far, no new book project is planned. But six books are enough reading material for now 🙂

And last but not least: What is your garden trend for 2019?

To be honest, I'm not really into trends. For me, organic gardening with seed-proof seeds is an unbeatable trend that I would love to gain momentum.

Thank you for the interview. If you want to find out more about the Garden Fräulein, the best thing to do is to take a look at her blog here past.

Note: The Garden Fräulein now also offers an online course on "gardening in the apartment". We've already tried it and we're thrilled! To register, click here.