That's Life for Don Shor

Lois Richter says: In today's show, I talk with the "mystery man" Don Shor. Why do I call him a mystery man? Although I talk to Don every week about the Davis Garden Show (which we co-host), Don usually keeps himself to himself about non-plant-related things. He is a master of the terse reply: How are things at your farm? "Fine." What's happening with you? "I'm okay."

HOWEVER...  Today I got to interview him about his life, so I finally got answers to some questions! Did you know he never had a full-time job working for someone? Instead he went directly from graduating from UC Davis to opening a business in town -- Redwood Barn Nursery -- and will have been doing that for 40 years come August. Lots of history here. I've known Don since my days as a DCTV producer (1992-2003) and because I have known him so long, I could even ask him to explain things that happened 20 years ago. Lots more history! We ended discussing his plans for the future -- and, no, there will be no public tours at the farm.

The Folk Brothers for June 23, 2021: When Phil went all Elvis

Contrary to its title, Phil Ochs' final studio album -- 1970's Greatest Hits -- actually was a collection of new material that moved him in a new country/folk/rock musical direction, which today we'd call Americana. The album cover featured Ochs -- in homage to Elvis Presley -- dressed in a gold lame Nudie outfit. Also on today's show: new music from Adam Holmes. Suzzy Roche and Lucy Wainwright Roche, Dave Alvin, Dirk Powell, and Andrew Marlin. And much more!

KDRT celebrates international Make Music Day June 21 with special programming

In honor of “Make Music Day” celebrated across the globe each June 21 on Summer Solstice, today we present the “Make Music Davis-DIMI Showcase 2021” which will air on KDRT 95.7 FM  at 10-11 AM and 6-7 PM. This song showcase highlights five emerging local young musicians/bands from the Davis Independent Music Initiative (DIMI) project recorded by Davis Media Access at the Davis Veterans Memorial Theatre. Additionally, from 11 AM to 1 PM June 21 we will air special extended live recordings of performances from DIMI 2021 Award winner Boca do Rio, and from multi-SAMMIE Award winners The Nickel Slots. We will also feature some highlight performances from the well-loved Thursday Live! community concert series recorded at Davis Odd Fellows Hall.

Church signs this week on Listening Lyrics

This week Listening Lyrics does a little tongue in cheek. The glue of the show, however, is the music. Songs from The Black Crows, David Simon, The Chamber Brothers, Rosemary Clooney, Jimi Hendrex St. Vincent, Mdou Moctar and many more. A nice set of music will please your ears and settle your stomach.

Davis Garden Show, June 17, 2021 -- Leave It To Beaver

Did your tree-removal company leave you with a bunch of chips?  Stump grinding can lead to problems with your replacement bushes. How, you ask?  Listen up!  

Don Shor and Lois Richter answer garden questions -- including dealing with drought, lawns, ant farming, ant management, mistaken culprits, and more. Ask your questions by emailing us at DavisGardenShow@gmail.com.

The Folk Brothers for June 16, 2021: Ballads and fiddlers

This week: modern and ancient ballads from Gretchen Peters, Lau with Karine Polwart, Salt House, and Kacy and Clayton. Also some instrumental tracks featuring gorgeous fiddling from the likes of Sam Sweeny, Benedict Morris and Christian Sedelmyer (with Andrew Marlin). And new music from Eli West, Jeffrey Foucault , Amanda Anne Platt and The Honeycutters, and The Travellin' McCourys.

Davisville, June 14, 2021: A big milestone on the path back from the pandemic

June 16 update: Aaron says that in the interview, when he's talking about a restaurant's need to hire employees for re-opening, he inadvertently mentioned the incorrect restaurant. He meant DeVere's Irish Pub, not Delta of Venus.

This week, California ends many of the restrictions that it imposed last year because of the Covid-19 pandemic. If you’re not entirely clear on what to expect or do now, you’re not alone. As one way to understand the changes, we talk today with Aaron Wedra, marketing coordinator for the Davis Downtown Business Association, about how this step back toward normal conditions might play out for the businesses, shops, restaurants, and their customers, in the core of Davis.

Davis Garden Show, June 10, 2021 -- Herbaceous Fall Flowers

Cool week ahead!  But we still have watering challenges. A few questions (about new plantings and fungus gnats) lead to several important discussions about:

  • Proper planting techniques (why planting trees ONLY with native soil is so important);
  • How roots grow (and get damaged), and how that shows up in a full-grown tree;
  • Home remedies (which have no research done on them and are NOT labelled for pesticide or herbicide use).

A large portion of the show is a discussion of each of Don Shor's 20 Favorite Summer Herbaceous Perennials. An "herbaceous perennial" is a plant that blooms every year but dies down every winter (different from a shrub, bush, or tree). These twenty bloom from the late summer into the fall.  (We only got part way thru before running out of time, so listen to the 24 June show for the rest of the story.)