Winter

Plants that I can’t live without…..

As a landscape designer I love to look at and test new plants.  Like fashion they change every season.  Something that has been popular for years may suddenly disappear from the market because it’s lost favor.  (Think of how many New Zealand flax everybody planted about 8 years ago.)  Though I like experimenting in my [...]

Saving Geraniums over the Winter

Fall, 2011   Today, before the Seattle area has a frost, I pulled out all of my geraniums and packed them away for the winter.  It’s easy.  I use a weeding tool with prongs to pull each plant out of the ground, keeping the root systems as intact as possible.  I shake off as much [...]

Talk to the Shovel Part 2

Is there a point in a gardeners development when you suddenly become immune to delicious cultivar names?  The growers throw out these wonderful names that tempt you to purchase a plant you KNOW is wrong.  Campanula ‘Pink Octopus’ or Heuchera ‘Tiramisu’ or Dianthus ‘Fancy Knickers’.  Who can resist? One of my all time favorite ridiculous [...]

Plant of the Month for March

Helleborus x hybridus-  Commonly referred to as Lenten Rose, Christmas Rose, Lenten Hellebore or Stinking Hellebore. These plants have become a staple in many types of gardens, but are particularly pleasing in a woodland scene.  They prefer partial or full shade (although in my experience they will tolerate sunny conditions with ample water).  Hellebores are [...]

Talk to the Shovel Part 1

I have been an gardener in the greater Seattle area for 25 years.  (Yes, I started young).  When I was 10 my grandmother purchased a Queen Elizabeth rose for me.  We planted it together, but I was on my own for the pruning.  At that point a particular cycle began and it wasn’t until many [...]

Great Plant Picks

The pacific northwest list of Great Plant Picks was released by the Elizabeth C. Miller Botanical Garden last week.  It’s a wonderful blend of old favorites and new teasers. Here are a couple of notes on some of the plants: I love to use Geranium macrorrhizum ‘Album’ as a foamy, fluffy filler under larger perennials [...]

Companion Plants for February Interest

It’s often difficult to find steady performers when it comes to winter interest in pots and containers.  Sarcococca ruscifolia (Sweet Box) can be a strong foundation for winter annuals such as Primroses and Pansies.  It provides that hard to find vertical accent that really makes a container noticeable.  Later in the spring or summer you [...]

Plant of the Month for February

Sarcococca-  Commonly called Himalayan Sweet Box or just Sweet Box These plants are fabulous year round for their tolerance of shady conditions in the garden.  They come into prominence in February as they fill the air with a heady, sweet, floral fragrance.  Use them in the shade where their shiny leaves add life under dark [...]

Landscape Tips for Winter

Our crew has spent their “down time” this winter upgrading our landscape plantings and putting a new, bright green metal roof on the office. It feels as though improving our grounds and building is a good investment for the future, no matter what happens to the economy. And we get to enjoy the results. If [...]