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The country's top pastry chef is based in Midtown. 

Driving the news: Warda Bouguettaya of Warda Pâtisserie won the prestigious James Beard Award for Outstanding Pastry Chef at a ceremony held in Chicago Monday night. 

It's her first-ever nomination for the pastry world's top award.

What she's saying: "Detroit has been my home from day one and so it is an honor for me to bring this back," Bouguettaya, an Algerian immigrant who moved to Michigan in 2004, tells Axios Chicago's Monica Eng.

"Detroit deserves to have more nominations and coverage because it is the best city."

Detroit's Warda Bouguettaya wins prestigious James Beard Award

Bouguettaya's award is for Outstanding Pastry Chef.

Warda Bouguettaya of Warda Pâtisserie with her James Beard Award last night in Chicago. Photo: Monica Eng/Axios

The country&#x27;s top pastry chef is based in Midtown. Driving the news: Warda Bouguettaya of <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="Warda Pâtisserie" data-vars-click-url="https://warda-patisserie-midtown.square.site/" data-vars-content-id="544a50d1-38ea-445e-aa9b-eb849e90510e" data-vars-headline="Detroit&#x27;s Warda Bouguettaya wins prestigious James Beard Award" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://warda-patisserie-midtown.square.site/" target="_blank">Warda Pâtisserie</a> won the prestigious <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="James Beard Award" data-vars-click-url="https://www.eater.com/23162516/james-beard-awards-2022-winners" data-vars-content-id="544a50d1-38ea-445e-aa9b-eb849e90510e" data-vars-headline="Detroit&#x27;s Warda Bouguettaya wins prestigious James Beard Award" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.eater.com/23162516/james-beard-awards-2022-winners" target="_blank">James Beard Award</a> for Outstanding Pastry Chef at a ceremony held in Chicago Monday night.

Food and Drink

👋 Howdy, Everett here. I'm an Axios Detroit editor who recently moved to Royal Oak from New York City. 

One fun difference between my new home and old apartment is the backyard! It has real grass, actual trees and it's not a fire escape. This, my friends, is living. 

The intrigue: There's space to do plenty of gardening, but I'm a little lost on where to start. I was a college student the last time I lived in the mitten and back then, the only flowering plant that caught my attention was not (yet) legal to grow.

So far, I've got tomatoes, jalapeños, sweet peppers and a blackberry bush planted. What should come next?

📬 Email detroit@axios.com with your best Michigan gardening tips and tricks. We'll run the best responses soon.

Please help me garden

I've got space, but am a little lost on where to start.

The first family of my backyard — tomatoes and peppers. 

The first family of my backyard — tomatoes and peppers. Photo: Everett Cook/Axios

👋 Howdy, Everett here. I&#x27;m an Axios Detroit editor who recently moved to Royal Oak from New York City. <ul><li>One fun difference between my new home and old apartment is the backyard! It has real grass, actual trees and it&#x27;s not a fire escape. This, my friends, is living. </li></ul>

Things to Do

I recently asked for gardening tips as a first-time homeowner and friends, you did not disappoint. 

We got emails about basil, an easy-to-grow complement for tomatoes (reader John D.), and pest-repelling, edible marigolds (Heidi). There were warnings about massive squirrels (Christy Maier) and our persnickety frost zone (Micheline Maynard). 

The common thread: An infectious love for gardening. Here are a few more tips and tricks: 

🦋 PJ: "Go native! Plant hazelnuts for edible privacy hedges. Plant a serviceberry tree for fantastic color in the fall and delicious berries in the spring. Plant coneflowers and black-eyed Susans for our pollinator friends. Plant parsley in pots as an offering to black swallowtail butterflies." 

"And if you happen to have a shady spot in your yard where nothing grows, consider creating a mushroom bed!"

🌱 Emily Piper: "Okra is the perfect plant to grow! It grows vertically so it doesn't take much space. The flowers are beautiful. Experimenting with home grown okra is the most fun." 

🍁 Roberta F. King: "I highly recommend growing backyard cannabis. Plants grow easily in a five gallon container in a sunny spot with frequent watering and fertilizing. The plants develop quickly and are interesting to look at and smell great. The harvest doesn't come until October, so patience is required." 

"Plus you get SO much weed, which is much easier to gift to friends than zucchini." 

🥒 Christy Maier: "I'd recommend growing some herbs. I find basil, parsley, and cilantro easy to grow, and it is nice to have them right there for cooking." 

"Some vegetables like squash and cucumber come in a bush variety for pots (as opposed to the vine type which really spread)."

☀️ Micheline Maynard: "Before you plant anything else, determine the kind of sun/shade your garden receives. Sunny in the morning, or afternoon? Sun all day?"

"Next, read up on plants that do best in Zone 5 (the agricultural zone for Detroit). That's a big factor: if you plant something that won't thrive in your available Zone 5 light, you'll be wasting your money."

💐 Heidi: "One thing you can plant that will come back every year is pansies. We had a plant that would even come up in the winter."

😄 Kara F.: "My best gardening tip is to go to the farmers market and buy their stuff. No green thumb here!"

Local tips and tricks for gardening in Michigan

Your advice for future plants includes basil, marigolds and marijuana.

Behold — a burgeoning tomato plant. Photo: Everett Cook/Axios

I <a class="gtmContentClick" data-vars-link-text="recently asked for gardening tips" data-vars-click-url="https://www.axios.com/local/detroit/2022/05/10/learning-how-to-garden-tips-michigan-detroit" data-vars-content-id="8ee227cd-292c-4524-b84c-a700e0371cbd" data-vars-headline="Local tips and tricks for gardening in Michigan" data-vars-event-category="story" data-vars-sub-category="story" data-vars-item="in_content_link" href="https://www.axios.com/local/detroit/2022/05/10/learning-how-to-garden-tips-michigan-detroit" target="_self">recently asked for gardening tips</a> as a first-time homeowner and friends, you did not disappoint. <ul><li>We got emails about basil, an easy-to-grow complement for tomatoes (reader John D.), and pest-repelling, edible marigolds (Heidi). There were warnings about massive squirrels (Christy Maier) and our persnickety frost zone (Micheline Maynard). </li></ul>

👋 Howdy, Everett here. I was a sportswriter in a former life and thought that meant I was done interacting with irrationally compassionate fans.

Reality check: Wow, y'all really love Vernors. 

After recently admitting I'd never tried the Michigan staple, I was lambasted by readers, friends and practically strangers I hadn't spoken to in a decade. 

This seemed like an overreaction. We're talking about ginger ale, right? The beverage of airplanes and stomachaches?

The latest: Last Sunday, worn down by the heat, I went to Jim's Frostie Treats with two friends who are as obsessed as it gets.

We figured Jim's, a Royal Oak landmark for more than 50 years, was the perfect place to try my first Boston Cooler. 

Quick take: It was fine. Oddly refreshing for blended ice cream and soda, but not flavorful or interesting enough to be added to my regular ice cream rotation. 

But but but: In the name of journalism, I later picked up a bottle of Vernors to try without the ice cream, and ... my, oh my. 

Sweet, but not too sugary. Bubbly, but refreshing enough to drink all day. Instant flavor that lasts through the sip with none of the chemical aftertaste. 

Thank you for showing me the light, my friends. I'll never doubt you again. 

Trying Vernors for the first time

A first-timer gives his review of the Michigan staple.

A Boston Cooler made with Vernor's from Jim's Ice Cream in Royal Oak

A Boston Cooler made with Vernors from Jim's Frostie Treats in Royal Oak. Photo: Everett Cook/Axios

👋 Howdy, Everett here. I was a sportswriter in a former life and thought that meant I was done interacting with irrationally compassionate fans.Reality check: Wow, y&#x27;all really love Vernors.

Everett Cook

Featured stories

Trying Vernors for the first time

Detroit's Warda Bouguettaya wins prestigious James Beard Award

Local tips and tricks for gardening in Michigan

Please help me garden