Archives by date

You are browsing the site archives by date.

The Well-Tended Perennial Garden: A Biased Review and a Giveaway

The Well-Tended Perennial Garden: A Biased Review and a Giveaway

Published by on | 43 Responses
Share the joy
21     

Mid-August meltdown It’s mid-August. Do you find yourself apologizing for your perennials right about now? Stems that can’t hold their flowers up? Foliage that’s become tattered and sad? Plants that have outgrown their space and are crowding their neighbors? Third time’s the charm All of these problems have clear solutions in the new third edition of Tracy DiSabato-Aust’s bestselling book, The… Read more →


Share the joy
21     
15 Landscaping Ideas at the ANLD Tour, Win a Ticket!

15 Landscaping Ideas at the ANLD Tour, Win a Ticket!

Published by on | 13 Responses
Share the joy
25  20  

There are some choice gardens on the Association of Northwest Landscape Designers Garden Tour this Saturday, June 17, on Portland’s west side. How do I know? I got a sneak peek last week! Here’s what I saw, along with 15 great landscaping ideas. Stick around til the end, and you can enter to win a ticket to the tour yourself. #1 River… Read more →


Share the joy
25  20  
Understanding Symbolism in a Japanese Garden

Understanding Symbolism in a Japanese Garden

Published by on | 11 Responses
Share the joy
11  8  

“Nothing you see here is by accident,” said our tour guide, Rolland O’Dell, when I went to the Portland Japanese Garden last month. Japanese gardens are very deliberate. Every element has purpose and meaning. Taking a guided tour when you go to the Portland Japanese Garden—or any Japanese garden—is the way to go if you don’t already understand this style of… Read more →


Share the joy
11  8  
BLACK+DECKER Unveils New Cordless Pruner--Win One Here!

BLACK+DECKER Unveils New Cordless Pruner–Win One Here!

Published by on | 31 Responses
Share the joy
1     

One of the neat things about having a blog is that sometimes you get free stuff. However, I was all ready to say no, thank you when someone from Bond Manufacturing emailed me to offer me a free BLACK+DECKER Cordless Pruner to review on my blog. I assumed by “cordless pruner” she meant cordless hedge trimmers. Since I have no… Read more →


Share the joy
1     
A Private Tour of Little Prince of Oregon Wholesale Nursery

A Private Tour of Little Prince of Oregon Wholesale Nursery

Published by on | 11 Responses
Share the joy
54     

“Our plants won’t croak!” If you live in the Pacific Northwest, you’ve probably seen Little Prince of Oregon plants with their trademarked frog tags at Fred Meyer and at your local garden center. I recently got the chance to go behind the scenes at this closed-to-the-public wholesale nursery in Aurora (30 minutes south of Portland) along with some of my… Read more →


Share the joy
54     
10 Brilliant Tips for Growing Vegetables and Berries at Home

10 Brilliant Tips for Growing Vegetables and Berries at Home

Published by on | 28 Responses
Share the joy
61  5  

When I was planning my first vegetable garden, I had a romantic vision of how it would go. I would sit on the back porch with a bowl full of peas, fresh from the garden. With great pride, I’d look out at neat rows of lettuce, carrots, beets, parsnips, herbs, and potatoes, shelling the tender peas into a clean bowl…. Read more →


Share the joy
61  5  
Persian Ironwood (Parrotia persica): Love This Tree or Buyer's Remorse?

Persian Ironwood (Parrotia persica): Love This Tree or Buyer’s Remorse?

Published by on | 69 Responses
Share the joy
61  39  

I’m a slow shopper. It takes me ten minutes to pick out five apples at the grocery store. Now I’m trying to choose a tree for the parking strip, and that’s a major decision. I’ll have to live with it every day, you know? Persian ironwood, or Persian parrotia (Parrotia persica), is on my shortlist, and I’m weighing the pros… Read more →


Share the joy
61  39  
Joy Creek Nursery vs. "Mr. Bear", Plus a Giveaway!

Joy Creek Nursery vs. “Mr. Bear”, Plus a Giveaway!

Published by on | 73 Responses
Share the joy
33     

Win a $40 gift certificate to Joy Creek Nursery! JCN opens for the 2017 season this Saturday, February 25. (They do mail order, too.) But first, a visit to this amazing nursery in Scappoose, Oregon, 20 miles northwest of Portland. I was invited to Joy Creek recently, along with some of my garden blogger friends, by co-owners Maurice Horn and… Read more →


Share the joy
33     
Cool Plants at Xera Plants Opening Day 2017

Cool Plants at Xera Plants Opening Day 2017

Published by on | 12 Responses
Share the joy
119  1  

Portland has had a horrendous winter. Multiple ice storms, lower than average temperatures, and a single freak snowstorm that dumped nearly a foot of snow have taken a toll, and not just on our spirits. Plants have been heaved out of the ground, broken in two, killed outright by cold. This is good news for nurseries, as people will be… Read more →


Share the joy
119  1  
Love Letters to My Garden: A Book Review

Love Letters to My Garden: A Book Review

Published by on | 9 Responses
Share the joy
32  1  

Love Letters to My Garden by Barbara Blossom Ashmun is like homemade mac and cheese and apple pie—comfort food reading for a drizzly winter day. In this, her seventh book, Barbara details her 30-year love affair with her garden, sharing stories that all gardeners can relate to, paying tribute to people who have helped her along the way, and marveling… Read more →


Share the joy
32  1