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The Garden Lady
Hosted by C.L. Fornari

The Garden Lady is a weekly, hour-long call-in radio program hosted by plant expert C.L. Fornari. It airs on WCAI 90.1, WNAN 91.1, and WZAI 94.3, Saturdays at 1 p.m. On The Garden Lady, Fornari takes listener questions and discusses a wide range of topics around gardening, horticulture, and nature, with a special focus on helping the Cape and Islands community make the most of every season, regardless of their level of plant experience.

Call our Listener Line with your gardening questions: 866-999-4626

Latest Episodes
  • A postcard from plants
    The Garden Lady opens the program with a postcard from plants for the cutting garden. C.L. then focused on pruning of hydrangeas, explaining that different species get pruned in separate ways. Calls from listeners covered many topics, from great varieties of tomatoes to black spot on roses, and possible suggestions for replacement shrubs where a burning bush once grew.
  • Amalanchier serviceberry
    Mulch Ado About Nothing
    The guest on The Garden Lady was Jon Laurie, Director of Municipal Outreach for the Black Earth Compost Company. Among other spring topics, callers to the program asked about squirrels eating the new growth on trees, groundcover for hot, dry areas, and getting rid of pea-gravel mulch.
  • Storm damage and Fig trees
    C.L. talks to Rhonda Fleming Hayes, author of Garden For Life and answers your questions.
  • clippings serrata pruning
    Spring planting extravaganza
    It's a spring planting extravaganza as The Garden Lady talks with Katie Rotella, of Ball Horticultural, about four top performing plants for 2026.
  • Bouquets of flowers
    Garden inspiration and winter damage
    C.L. talks with Stephen Orr, author of The Gardener's Mindset: Connecting With Nature Through Plants and answers your calls.
  • Floating flowers on a bowl of water
    Designing your garden
    C.L. talks with Andrew Fisher Tomlin author of The Modern Professional Planting Designer and answers your calls.
  • A vase of blue hydrangeas.
    AI in the garden
    C.L. speaks with author Carol Michel about AI, answers your calls, and shares how helpful the snow can be.
  • A fallen tree limb
    Split Arborvitaes and Insects of Interest
    This week C.L. is joined by Tawny Simisky and Esher Cattle, Entomologists with the Cooperative Extension and answers your garden questions.
  • A row of chairs in front of a stone wall with logs on top of it.
    Springing Forward With Inspiration - Episode 63
    C.L. speaks with Mikel Folcarelli, the co-owner of Sakonnet Garden in Little Compton, Rhode Island and answers your calls.
  • rows of peas growing on a vine on a fence.
    Soil Temperature and Mass Hort Programs - Episode 62
    C.L. gives tips on planting peas, talks with Allison Dush, Director of Programs and Education at the Massachusetts Horticultural Society, and answers your calls.