General Gardening
Ben Smith
Compost and Fertilizer - A Boring But Necessary ...

It pains me to see customers spending hundreds of dollars on new plants and simultaneously refusing to spend a few more on a bag or two of compost and a box of starter fertilizer.  These two items are not unnecessary “add-ons” that the retailer is just trying to add to the sale, they are critical components of a successful transplanting process - or as I like to refer to them as “plant insurance”.  Unless you have phenomenal soil, you should always add compost and starter fertilizers when you are planting new plants.  Here is why…

Compost and Fertilizer - A Boring But Necessary Topic
Summer Gardening
Ben Smith
The Secrets Of Proper Summer Watering

Summer watering is inevitable in the northwest if we want to keep our landscapes green and healthy…

The Secrets Of Proper Summer Watering

Annuals

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Don't Be Annoyed, Fill That Void!

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Don't Be Annoyed, Fill That Void!

I am going to go out on a limb here and make a brash statement: “perfection in the garden is fleeting”.  Yes, it is sadly true… Earlier this spring I was congratulating myself on how nicely all of my many perennials (probably too many if I am honest with myself) were knitting themselves together and gradually obliterating any bare, visible soil.  That is still happening, to be sure, but along the way some of my early bloomers have “gone over” and it is time to take another look at what I can plop in and around them to keep things looking colorful and interesting…

May Is Annual Planting Month

May Is Annual Planting Month

Before I launch into my diatribe on the glories of annuals, I probably should make sure everyone understands the difference between annuals and perennials… Annuals are plants that grow, bloom, set seed, and die all in one season. Perennials, on the other hand, grow, bloom, set seed, go dormant, and then return the following season twice as big. Where as annuals will bloom all summer long, perennials, for the most part, only bloom for 5 to 6 weeks….

Belarinas - Not Your Grocery Store Primroses

Belarinas - Not Your Grocery Store Primroses

There is no doubt in my mind that spring has sprung. This indisputable fact lies in the discovery this week of the first white blooms on a wild plum tree that lives down the street from the nursery… The proverbial dam of winter has been breached and I, for one, am more than ready to start basking in the glow of spring floral color…

Saving Begonias & Geraniums

Saving Begonias & Geraniums

With the mercury dipping down into the low thirties, and maybe even some frost for some of you, I am reminded of the often asked question: “How do I save some of my seasonal color for the next season”.  It’s only a matter of time before a really good hard frost is going to make that question moot.  So, if you are serious about trying to preserve some of your investments that you made this year, time is of the essence…

Latest post from Trevor Cameron,  “The Golfing Gardener”:

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Rockin’ Out With Rhododendrons

For generations of gardeners, and certainly for me, Rhododendrons represent the arrival of spring in our local landscapes.  Everywhere you drive this time of year there is a stunning Rhododendron in full bloom to catch your eye.  These flowering beauties come in all sorts of…

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