If you are short on garden space, clematis, the diva of the perennial vines, adds lively impact without taking up too much premium ground space. Be aware, when these divas open their petals in your garden, it is easy to succumb to their allure. You may find yourself covering more uncharted territory with the lovely […]
gardening
CSAs — Farm-Fresh Community Supported Agriculture
Looking for a way to ensure you have a weekly supply of fresh, local food? Subscribe to a CSA. Short for “Community Supported Agriculture,” a CSA enables you to buy a share of a farmer’s crop by paying an upfront fee. Your fee purchases a “share” from a local farm and you receive a box […]
Get The Dirt — On Home Gardening
Mountain Lions (Puma Concolor) Here kitty, kitty. Not really, but mountain lions are actually closely related to domestic cats. But when hungry, they can also prey on and eat domestic cats, so keep your cats safely indoors, at least during the hours of dusk to morning light. Most people call them cougars or mountain lions […]
Debbie Teashon’s Rainy Side Garden
Jefferson Beach photographer, writer and gardener Debbie Teashon personifies the term “rainy side gardener,” which happens also to be the name of her popular website. Teashon lived in Marysville on the east side of Puget Sound and had a successful photography career, along with writing for a Canadian publication. She frequently visited the Kitsap Peninsula. […]
Growing Obsession — Dragonfly Farms Nursery
When it comes to plants, Heidi Kaster just can’t say no. Even though her Dragonfly Farms Nursery and attendant display gardens are full to bursting, she continues to bring in truckloads of cool new plants, old tried-and-trues and leafy-green deals throughout the growing season. Along the Dragonfly aisles, dark-leaved dahlias wink and wave, blue — […]
Get The Dirt — On Home Gardening
Castor canadensis Castor canadensis (beavers) are the largest rodents on our continent. They can be 3 to 4 feet long from head to the tip of their paddle-shaped tails and stand a foot tall at the shoulders. Their front feet (with claws for digging and grasping) and back, webbed feet are perfectly adapted for their […]
Seasonal Bouquets at The Bloedel Reserve — Floral Serendipity
Cathy Tyler has a sweet job. She’s the florist for the Bloedel Reserve and with the assistance of volunteers, creates fresh arrangements for the visitors center, tends the cutting gardens and checks the existing bouquets to make sure they are still looking new. The French-country-styled house that was the Bloedel family residence is now the […]
Jeanne Cronce’s Garden: A Bit of Paradise
Jeanne Cronce and her husband, Robin, began their married life in a single-wide, modular home on a 5-acre piece of land. When they decided to raise a family, they harvested enough trees on the property to build a log cabin. Every piece of their home is lovingly crafted. But that’s not all — the outside […]
Ron Gillespie’s Gardener’s Paradise: A Treasure Trove of Garden Rooms Extraordinaire
A Doctor Seuss garden, a swampy garden, a veggie and herb garden, a rain garden, a water garden including a pond with a rocky stream — that’s just the beginning of a peek at the garden retreat and plant treasure trove of Tracyton gardener Ron Gillespie. This gardener’s paradise sits on several acres off Tracyton […]
