Everything You Never Wanted To Know About Fruit Tree Pollination

Everything You Never Wanted To Know About Fruit Tree Pollination

Growing fruit trees in the northwest can be a very rewarding venture. There is nothing quite like going out to the backyard and plucking a handful of tree ripened cherries or a juicy Asian pear or Japanese plum. It just doesn’t get any fresher than “straight off the tree”…

The 2022 Gardening Season Has Begun - Bare Root Fruit Trees & Roses Have Arrived

The 2022 Gardening Season Has Begun - Bare Root Fruit Trees & Roses Have Arrived

It is finally time to get the new gardening season started… January is the perfect month to start shopping for roses, fruit trees, berries and grapes, along with other shrubs that are dormant this time of year. Most of these plants are sold as what is known in the nursery industry as “bare root”. Let me take a moment to explain…

Regenerative Gardening: Saving The Planet One Garden At A Time

Regenerative Gardening: Saving The Planet One Garden At A Time

Have you heard of “regenerative agriculture”? I hadn’t until recently, but after a bit of research, I realized that this “new” movement is at its base just an expansion of organic gardening and farming principles that can be adapted from commercial agriculture to our very own backyards. Here are some components of this style of gardening that we should all take to heart…

Compost, It's What Makes Our Gardens Survive Extreme Weather

Compost, It's What Makes Our Gardens Survive Extreme Weather

Recently I had one of my readers reach out to me and inquire about how all the weather extremes of 2021 might impact our gardening experiences in 2022. It is a good question that is worth exploring, especially since I suspect this won’t be the last time we see such extremes in temperature, rainfall, and snow. Here are some of my thoughts…

“One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides.” W.E. Johns

“One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it provides.” W.E. Johns

I don’t know how you all feel about 2021, but for me it was like circling the airport waiting for clearance to land and never getting it. Oh sure, we made a couple of approaches and were really close to touching down, but then at the last minute the tower waved us off. There was great anticipation that maybe this was finally it and life would return to normal, or at least something close to normal. Alas, it wasn’t meant to be. But thankfully…

Hellebores - They Just Keep Getting Better

Hellebores - They Just Keep Getting Better

I have written about hellebores many times over the years and each time it seems like the breeders just keep improving them. Before I delve too deeply into some of the new introductions let’s do a quick refresher…

Pick Up Your Spirits With These Indoor Blooming Bulbs

Pick Up Your Spirits With These Indoor Blooming Bulbs

For those of us that miss the pleasures of gardening this time of year, growing things inside the house can be a good substitute. Forcing bulbs like Paperwhites and Amaryllis can help us fill a need to be grounded in nature and can uplift any soul mired in the gray doldrums of a northwest winter…