How many times have I seen ‘Zulu Prince’ Cape daisy at the back of a seed catalog and thought, “Hmm, I should try that sometime”? But I always pass it up. Well, this year I tried it, and it’s a great little annual. I ordered this plant as Venidium fastuosum from Pinetree Garden Seeds, but after digging around on the interwebs, I… Read more →
By growing borage (Borago officinalis), I’ve been feeding butterflies all along and didn’t realize it. I love Portland, but I’ve been lamenting its scarcity of butterflies since moving here two years ago. Back in the Ohio Valley, I raised monarchs, viceroys, tiger swallowtails, zebra swallowtails (my favorite), giant swallowtails, spicebush swallowtails, pipevine swallowtails, red-spotted purples, and American ladies from eggs… Read more →
*UPDATE* 09/08/16 Unfortunately, ‘Golden Foam’ set a million seeds, of which about 110% germinated in my garden (and lawn). I will be pulling seedlings for the rest of my days. Plant this thing at your own risk.—AC *UPDATE* 04/08/17 ‘Golden Foam’ is my kudzu. I hate it with a white-hot passion. What really troubles me is that it will surely… Read more →
Did you know that common orange daylily (Hemerocallis fulva) flowers are edible? They’re good, too—mild-tasting with a hint of sweetness. And they make the prettiest salad toppers. I am NOT talking about any other kind of plant called a “lily,” such as lily-of-the-valley or Easter lilies, which are poisonous (to people and to cats). As for the edibility of other species… Read more →
So the other day I noticed my Tonto crape myrtle had this crusty white stuff on it. Not powdery mildew, which sometimes appears later in the year on crape myrtles. Mildew looks like white film on the leaf’s surface. Mine had white stuff on the tips of the leaves. My first thought was woolly aphids or cottony scale, but it… Read more →
Your backyard should be your sanctuary, your playground, your own intimate connection to natural beauty and the rhythms of life. When we bought our current house a year ago, it wasn’t any of those things. Years of neglect had left the backyard in a sorry state. The lawn was lumpy and compacted. The only tree, a 50-plus year old Norway… Read more →
Like any activity with a long history, gardening has its share of traditions. Some of these are sound practices, while others should have been thrown on the compost heap long ago. Seed-starting is one gardening project that seems especially steeped in lore. And with good reason—the whole process of turning a dead-looking speck of dust into a vibrant, living plant… Read more →
How do you fertilize your vegetables? Do you pull a bag off the shelf? Feed them a steady diet of homemade compost? Here’s how to give them what they really need… In his latest book, The Intelligent Gardener: Growing Nutrient-Dense Food (New Society Publishers, 2013), Steve Solomon’s message is simple—How can you know what nutrients to add to your soil if you don’t know… Read more →
I love before-and-after shots, don’t you? Here’s a short time lapse of my new perennial bed. Photo #1 was taken on Sept. 18th, just after the plants were set into their new homes. It was Portland’s second hottest summer on record, though for the record the grass is usually that blond here every summer. Photo #2 was taken today, Oct…. Read more →
With MUCH fanfare, happy tears, hugs, and rejoicing, I am ecstatic to report that my garden buddy George the cat is home safe. That little fuzzy-faced muppet walked 12 MILES back to our old home after slipping out during the move across town. This is a cat who regularly locks himself in the bedroom when he accidentally nudges the door shut. This… Read more →
