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 — […]
Garden
Many interesting and delightful gardens abound in our area — how fun to glimpse into a gardener’s back yard (or even front yard). Enjoy gardens from Gig Harbor, Port Orchard, Bremerton, Central Kitsap, and the North end of Kitsap including Bainbridge Island. These articles are only a sample of what we have in West Sound Magazine each issue — subscribe to the print version today to see all of what we have to offer!
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Hummingbirds of Winter are not The Same
Hummingbirds may appear dainty because of their diminutive size, but these dazzling visitors to local gardens are bursting with energy. And they need to refuel often to maintain their dizzying blur of activity. But those who love hummingbirds are always sad when the birds leave for the winter. Or do they? Devoted hummingbird fans are […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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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 […]
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Valley Nursery: A Poulsbo Destination
For nearly 40 years, Poulsbo’s Valley Nursery has been a fun and floriferous stop on the to-do list of those with a garden or gardener in the family. Homeowners, plantaholics and day trippers alike from around the Puget Sound area are drawn to the six-acre nursery like bees to bergamot, Stellar jays to sunflowers and […]
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By the Light of the Silvery Moon
A garden can be a magical place after dark. As the sun wanes in the sky, subtle evening light begins to illuminate the garden in a completely new way. Flowers and foliage add a new dimension to a garden when caught by the light of a full moon. Moonlight gardens are not meant to do […]
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Western Bluebirds and Your Fall Chores
Fall migration of most Pacific Northwest birds has completed — from the huge shorebird population, to the area warblers and many other migrants from Oregon, Washington, British Columbia to Alaska. They have raised successful broods and are now heading south to winter over in Central and South America until January or February, when they will […]