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

ornamental grass

Ornamental Grasses: Plumage and Fall Color

Ornamental Grasses: Plumage and Fall Color

Ornamental grasses provide many desirable qualities to our home landscapes and containers, especially in the fall season.  They add wonderful texture, color and structure, and when the breeze blows they also add motion and sound to any garden.  There are essentially two types...

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Fountain Grasses - Late blooming accents in the garden

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Fountain Grasses - Late blooming accents in the garden

I have written many times about the attributes of ornamental grasses in our landscapes… Their unique texture contrasts nicely against the coarser foliage of both broadleaf evergreen and deciduous shrubs.  Depending on the variety, they can function either as…

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The Golfing Gardener

Trevor Cameron

Featured
Late Summer Do’s and Don’ts in the Garden
Late Summer Do’s and Don’ts in the Garden

I am having a hard time accepting that September is upon us already.  The school year is beginning once again and fall will soon be in the air.  In all honesty, autumn is my favorite season in the garden (without question), but having said that, I am in no hurry to…

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