If you want some gardening know-how, Denny McKeown is the place.
McKeon was known to many from his Saturday morning radio show, The Denny McKeown Gardening Show, and from his blue ash business, Denny McKeown’s Bloomin Garden Center and Landscape.
He died Sunday at the age of 81. His show was syndicated in the Midwest, but in his hometown McKeon was always known as The Gardener of Cincinnati.
His influence didn’t stop at the garden, according to his son Chris McKean. He was known not only for his community work, but also for his humor and kindness to others.
“He was good at making people laugh, even at his own expense,” he said of his father.
McKeown was widely known for his green thumb, but his influence was far-reaching. He previously served as Deere Park City Councilor and Sycamore Township Trustee as he moved to each community. “He always wanted to give back,” said his son.
According to his son, one of his most acclaimed community initiatives was organizing the charity WSAI Haunted House in the 1970s. In the first year he raised $21,000. That’s just a fraction of what they’re going to collect over the years, with the following year’s event raising $121,000 for his $1 entry fee.
Yet gardening was both a routine and a passion. The passion turned into a radio show his son took over and his column in The Enquirer.
McKeown’s words were the law of the earth in the gardening world.
“If he said he liked Knockout Rose on the radio, by the time he was done talking about it, everyone in Cincinnati had Knockout Rose,” said Chris McKeown.
The same was true of his famous three-stage fertilizer program.
“If he did it a certain way, that’s how they did it,” Chris McKeon said.
McKeown is survived by son Chris, daughters Jenny and Molly, and wife Pat. A Christian Burial Mass will be held at 10:30 am on Friday at St. He Vincent Ferrer, 7754 Montgomery Road, Sycamore Township.