Katy Abraham, 83; Author, Co-Host of Radio Gardening Show

Katy Abraham, 83, a gardening expert who teamed up with her husband, George “Doc” Abraham, on one of the longest-running shows on American radio with the same hosts, died early Tuesday in Naples, N.Y. She had Alzheimer’s disease.

The couple wrapped up the last edition of “The Green Thumb” on Dec. 14, 2002. The half-hour, call-in show went on the air in 1952, offering advice on flowers, fruit bugs and lawn care mixed with his down-home humor and her poetry.

The couple’s chemistry -- Abraham’s sweet nature as a foil to her husband’s gregariousness -- drew a loyal following on Rochester, N.Y.’s WHAM-AM (1180).

After World War II, the couple launched a greenhouse business and a syndicated gardening column that during its heyday reached 5 million readers in 130 U.S. newspapers. Many of their 16 gardening books, notably “The Green Thumb Garden Handbook,” remain in print.

George “Doc” Abraham died Jan. 27 of complications from a heart ailment. He was 89.