Finally – summer has arrived in Western Washington! Our recent dry stretch means we are now watering full speed ahead as the moisture reservoir from the prolonged spring rains has finally dried up. My garden is probably one of the last to dry out with its high water table, limited afternoon sun and heavy compost. [...]
Archive for the ‘garden care’ Category
drip irrigation
Posted in garden care, garden design, tagged drip irrigation, Netafim on 2011/08/25 | Leave a Comment »
did I jump the gun?
Posted in garden care, winter garden, tagged compost, garden clean up, garden tools, winter garden on 2011/01/31 | 2 Comments »
Our last frost was January 11th and warmer than normal temps have allowed me to begin garden clean up. As soon as I can get out there, I do – there is much work to be done and I prefer to do it in small chunks. However, as I sit at my desk today looking [...]
buzz buzz
Posted in garden care, native plants, tagged mason bees, pollinators on 2010/02/27 | Leave a Comment »
Nursing the tail end of a cold, I headed downstairs last night seeking honey laced chamomile tea. I ambled into the kitchen bundled in pajamas and a robe, and to my dismay noticed the honey jar was almost empty. As the kettle was boiling, I attempted to extract the remaining honey, but found that each utensil [...]
spring!…oh my back…
Posted in garden care, tagged garden injury on 2010/02/22 | Leave a Comment »
Day after day of sun, clear blue skies, chirping birds…perfect spring weather for working in the garden – – a complete anomaly for Seattle this time of year. And of course, I injure myself. A recurring injury I have from too much heavy lifting when we were building this garden. Actually not my back, I have the joy [...]
i edit, therefore i am…
Posted in garden care, garden design, tagged garden editing on 2010/02/19 | Leave a Comment »
I worked with a friend in her garden this morning suggesting which shrubs to move and remove so that the garden once again feels inviting on a human scale and not over grown. This was an inherited garden, and the prior owner planted far too many large specimen shrubs and not enough of the goodies - grasses, [...]
be a good gardener
Posted in garden care, garden design, tagged sustainable on 2010/02/01 | Leave a Comment »
Last week, I attended a lecture at Bloedel Reserve (www.bloedelreserve.org/) given by the design team of Withey Price (Glenn Withey and Charles Price). If you are not familiar with Withey Price, they are not only revered designers here in Seattle, but also curators of Dunn Gardens www.dunngardens.org/index.php. Prone to be being name dropped by clients and other landscapers, [...]
brrrrr
Posted in garden care, winter garden, tagged cold weather gardening, cold weather plant protection on 2009/12/06 | Leave a Comment »
Well it is finally here – the cold weather. The next week is currently forecast as the first hard freeze for the Seattle area – with drops into the 20s and teens possible. I have been busy composting my beds for added warmth and covering tender plants with Reemay. While we are spared from [...]
midsummer makeover
Posted in garden care, tagged Campanula 'Birch Hybrid', Geranium 'Brookside', Nepeta x faassenii 'Walker's Low' on 2009/07/28 | Leave a Comment »
I have just returned from a week at my parents’ house in California. I always enjoy being away from the garden for a bit, then gauging my immediate reaction when I return. This time, my gut response was claustrophobia. I may feel this way because my folks are high up with a wide open view of the ocean, while we [...]
are we there yet?
Posted in garden care, garden design on 2009/06/24 | Leave a Comment »
Every summer, I ponder changes that I will make in fall. I consider what has worked, what has not worked, and what has just gotten too big for its britches or routinely flops rudely on its neighbor. This year, I see that my bog garden has become too strongly dominated by grass and grass like texture [...]
