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Mind flex: Celebrities sowing seeds

While these celebrities may get gussied up to walk the red carpet, did you know they also sport green thumbs and like to dig in the dirt?

“You get a garden! And you get a garden! Everyone gets a garden!”

Yes, that’s right. It may surprise you that the famous talk show host, Oprah Winfrey, was raised on a farm in Mississippi. This upbringing inspired her to transform 16 acres of her property in Maui into an organic farm to produce over 145 pounds of food per week for the people on the island.

All the King’s gardens

Not only does King Charles III reign over England, but he also reigns over 15 acres of organic gardens at Highgrove House in Gloucestershire. The king has also implemented many sustainability measures, such as solar panels and reignwater (see what we did there?) collection.

“What? Like it’s hard?”

Southern-born Reese Witherspoon enjoys gardening with her children by her side. At her ranch in California, they grow cucumbers, tomatoes, lemons and herbs (just to name a few) to promote a healthy and green lifestyle.

“Just a girl…standing in front of a garden…”

It may come as a surprise that the “Notting Hill” and “Pretty Woman” star, Julia Roberts, has quite a passion for gardening and green living. She even does her own composting, starting with food scraps from her kitchen.

Just like heaven…on earth

Trading the Hollywood Hills for the Catskills, Mark Ruffalo lives on a 50-acre piece of land in upstate New York with his wife and children. There, he lives simply with his own vegetable garden and an eco-friendly guest house.

Taking the Mysterio out of gardening

When he’s not facing Spider-Man in the movies, Jake Gyllenhaal is an ambassador for The Edible Schoolyard Project, which is centered around educating children to grow and cook their own food, so they can lead a healthy lifestyle.

“Who’s that [garden] girl?”

The blue-eyed actress, singer and songwriter, Zooey Deschanel, started The Farm Project to help people grow their own food and work directly with farmers in their communities. She also maintains her own organic vegetables and promotes a sustainable, hydroponic system to reduce carbon footprints.

An octopus’s garden

While his song weaves the tale of a garden under the sea, Beatles drummer, Ringo Starr, was inspired to begin gardening by fellow bandmate, George Harrison. He grows both flowers and vegetables in his own garden and frequents The Chelsea Flower Show.

Where the garden is hers and hers and his…

Even though she found her fame with “Three’s Company,” Suzanne Somers remains fully grounded through gardening. She lives and promotes an organic lifestyle by growing her own vegetables and keeping her home and diet both chemical- and pesticide-free.

Drop some of this celebrity garden knowledge with your friends as you begin to prepare (or admire) this season’s flower and vegetable gardens. And the award for the best garden goes to….

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