“I am very enthusiastic about [gardening]. I don’t know if I’m that great at it. I’m not very knowledgeable. I can’t really answer any of your garden questions, but I love getting my hands dirty.” Gardening is for everyone! We’ve interviewed plenty of experts on Plants Always Win who’ve mastered everything from groundcovers to home hydroponics, but every so often we like to bring you a less experienced guest who is already skilled in one crucial area: gardening with joyful abandon. In their day job, Chris Paul Rainbows is a speaker and strategist who helps organizations create spaces where everyone belongs. In their own space at home, Chris has tapped into the joy that 80s and 90s children’s television once brought them, designing whimsical gardens inspired by Polkadot Door, Mr. Dressup, Sesame Street, and more. They take us back to the urban-farm inspiration that led them to buy their current home, and the transformation it has undergone with chickens, rabbits, and a surprise pumpkin patch that led to some heartwarming community building. Community, gardening, and cultivating joy are inextricable subjects for Chris, who is an activist for queer and trans visibility. We talk hostas, native plants, managing invasive bindweed, and Chris’ upcoming debut book for 2026, Guinea Pigs Don’t Wear Pants.  Now come on into the pumpkin patch through the Polkadot Door and remind yourself just how FUN gardening can be.  Find Chris Paul Rainbows Online at their website, where you can also find information about Chris’ upcoming picture book, Guinea Pigs Don’t Wear Pants: https://www.chrispaulrainbows.com/  on TikTok: tiktok.com/@chrispaulrainbows on Instagram: instagram.com/chrispaulrainbows/ on YouTube: youtube.com/@chrispaulrainbows  on Facebook: facebook.com/Chrispaulrainbows/ on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/chrisfarias/  Learn More About The Unicorn Fund: https://www.chrispaulrainbows.com/blog/unchained-philanthropy-hamilton Comments? Feedback? Want your garden question to be featured in a future Q&A segment? Email us, reach out over social media, or get Q&A priority by supporting us on Patreon.  Discord: https://discord.gg/K6wF9dY4Ja Bluesky: @plantsalwayswin.com TikTok: @plantsalwayswinpodcast YouTube: @plantsalwayswinpodcast Website: www.plantsalwayswin.com  Credits Website Design and Illustration by Sophia Alladin Intro and Outro Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!): https://uppbeat.io/t/soundroll/when-my-ukulele-plays License code: GWOIMMBAS15FG6PH Timestamps 00:25 Introduction and Housekeeping 01:55 Meet Chris Paul Rainbows 03:10 Gardening as Play 06:29 Protesting for Urban Chickens 07:47 Female and Male Gingko Biloba Trees 09:35 Corpse Flowers and Little Shop of Horrors 11:30 Pest Control and Fertilizer: Chickens Will Provide 13:45 Can You Go to Jail for an Overgrown Lawn? 15:17 Invasive Micro-Clover Lawn Replacement 16:29 Militant Native Plant Communities 17:23 Chris’ Inner Child Garden Project 19:47 300 Accidental Pumpkin Plants 21:54 The Unicorn Fund and the Most Sincere Pumpkin Patch 24:14 Pumpkin Care and Powdery Mildew 27:30 Strange and Fun Pumpkin Types 29:15 Hand Pollinating Pumpkins 30:30 The Importance of Queer and Trans Joy 33:50 Plant Sexes and Pollination 37:15 Chris and Sean Talk Parrots and Budgies 41:03 Dealing with Field Bindweed 47:27 Chris’ Children’s TV-inspired Garden Plans 48:39 Relationship Roles: The Problem Maker and the Problem Solver 49:36 How Oscar the Boxwood Grouch Started Everything 52:09 Find Chris Online 52:46 Chris’ Upcoming Picture Book, Guinea Pigs Don’t Wear Pants 53:56 Outro and Contact Us