Category: Plants

Posted on in Plant Profiles

Hydrangea Heaven

Hydrangea_LakewoldGardens_Tacoma-WA_LAH_4511r

I just spent two weeks in the Pacific Northwest. Since our daughter and her family live there, we visit frequently, but typically at Thanksgiving or in mid-winter. This time we managed to arrive in July. What a treat! With blue skies, light breezes, and puffy white clouds, the weather was (mostly) perfect. All that rain during the fall, winter, and spring results in stunning summer gardens, with emerald green lawns and towering trees. And the flowers! Yes, the rhodies and azaleas were done, but the hydrangeas were in full bloom. Everywhere we looked, we saw huge flower clusters of bright pink, magenta, white, and most noticeably, pure sky blue.

(more…)

Posted on in Landscaping, Plant Profiles, Surviving Winter

Red, White, and Blue Berries

Three-leaf Sumac, Rhus trilobata
Red-twig Dogwood, Cornus serica
Oregon Grape-holly, Mahonia repens

What kind of fruit comes in red, white, and blue? Berries, of course!

Blueberries are a huge treat. Our daughter in western Washington grows them by the bucketful, although our granddaughters have a habit of grazing on them in the backyard, so they don’t always make it into the kitchen.

(more…)

Posted on in Plant Profiles, Weeds

Leafy Spurge? Noooo!!!

Jean K. Tool SWA along I-76 to Brush LAH 015

What grows one to three feet high, has small blue-green leaves, clusters of pretty yellow flowers, and is a stubborn, nasty, and aggressive noxious weed that is supported by an extensive system of underground stems? Probably the only good news is that it isn’t typically a weed in most landscapes, but if you’ve been out hiking much lately, you’ve likely encountered Leafy Spurge.

(more…)

Posted on in Garden Myths, Gardening, Landscaping, Soils, Weeds

The Myth of Weed-free Landscaping

Today I’m revisiting a topic I first talked about back in 2013. I normally don’t do this, as I assume you can go back and reread whatever you’d like, using the options at in the sidebar at right. However, this is an issue that I think needs a lot more attention. I’m so frustrated, I could scream.

What is this horrific landscaping practice that makes me cringe? Landscape fabric.

(more…)

Posted on in Garden Myths, Green Gardening Tips

Does Your Garden Need Dawn?

LAH_7580Once again, the blogosphere is full of recipes for weed killer, lawn restorer, insecticides, etc., all containing dish detergent. Most of them call specifically for Dawn, although I recently encountered someone promoting Joy instead. The most popular herbicide recipe includes vinegar and dish detergent. Some add Epsom salts. Others add plain table salt. It’s a supposedly “organic” or “natural” alternative to a purchased product.

(more…)

Posted on in Gardening, Surviving Winter, Veggies

May Snow

snow 2

A foot of snow. That’s what fell on my garden last week. Twelve inches of heavy, wet, icy snow covered our lawn, bent the branches on our trees, and broke the tender new shoots on my perennials. Yes, I had already planted annuals, but I put them in pots on our deck, which I hauled into the warm house when I saw the forecast. I managed to cover my lettuce and chard, which were already in the ground, but they’re reasonably hardy and did just fine, although they may still decide that they’ve endured a winter and it’s time to bloom, producing a flower stalk instead of the leaves I want. All things considered, however, we did well. Many of our friends and neighbors lost entire trees. I can’t complain.

(more…)