It seems like everything is
blooming! After the long winter and late frost we are finally
getting the warm weather we (and our plants) deserve. There are
more festivals happening and more on the way. Get out of your
garden and enjoy all the fields of color around the Pacific
Northwest!
This week we
featured...
Adelman Peony
Gardens
Most of us are
familiar with peonies. They are the flowers that were one of
the staples in our grandmother’s garden. These old favorites
were popular because they are so reliable. Carol from
Adelman’s
Peony Garden (503-393-6185) shows us why they are still a
favorite with NW gardeners. We see the start of the spring
color in the fields and even one of the new spectacular
varieties, Paeonia Ludlowii. The gardens are open for visitors
from now until the 15th of June. Stop by and check
out the blooms and take one of these favorites home.
Farmington
Garden Spring Plants
With all the
color bursting out all over it may be hard to remember that all
our plants, including trees, shrubs and perennials, are starting
to show off right now. Jon DeBoer from
Farmington Gardens (503-649-4568) pulled out a couple of his
favorites from the long list of plants available at Farmington.
He gave us a good mix of plants including Brunnera ‘Jack Frost”,
Heuchera ‘Peach Flame’, Improved Double File Viburnum, the
Dappled Willow ‘Hakuro Nishiki’ and the Japanese Maple ‘Kamagata’.
Planting
Potatoes
One of the
early vegetables that we can plant now is potatoes. There are
lots of different ways to plant them. You can plant them
shallow or deep, but remember that the more stem you have
underground, the more potatoes you will be harvesting. They
grow potatoes all along their stem. What some people don’t
realize is that you don’t have to plant them in your garden.
Some people have discovered that you can plant them in a deep
pot or container. Then when it is time to harvest all you have
to do is tip the pot over and pick up your potatoes!
Low Conifers
One of the
most over-looked plants in the garden is the conifer. There are
so many varieties of new conifers that you can’t cover them
all. Tim Clarke from Garden World had a few that are low
growing that he liked. Varieties like, Juniper ‘Daub’s
Frosted’, Mugo Pine ‘Valley Cushion’, Dwarf Norway Spruce
‘Little Gem’, Dwarf Spruce ‘Globe’, and Balsam Fir ‘Nana’ are
all great plants that can work well in your garden or even in a
container on a deck or patio. They have the benefit of being
evergreen, relatively drought tolerant and slow growing. A
perfect plant for most home gardens!
Cutworms
If you have
new seedlings in your garden that are cut off at the base, you
probably have cutworms. These little pests are the larval stage
of a night-flying moth and they can do some real damage to your
early season seedlings. There are various ways to control
them. You can use an insecticide like a ‘Bayer’ product or a
natural product like diatomaceous earth that will irritate their
skin. Or, you can create a barrier to prevent them from
getting near your plants. Check with your local garden center
to see what is right or you.
Tsugawa
Maples
If you like
maples, then you will LOVE
Tsugawa
Nursery (360-225-8750) in Woodland, Washington. Brian and
his crew are experts in Japanese Maples and they usually have
the biggest selection of maples in the NW. Though they are
known for their fall color, this week Brian showed us that they
can be very showy in the spring as well. We saw ‘Beni Maiko’, ‘Katsura’,
Osakazuki’, ‘Fireglow’, ‘Beni Schichihenge’ and ‘Shinobuga Oka’.
Some of these varieties have light colored foliage and might in
a shady spot in the garden, but they are well worth it. Stop by
Tsugawa’s and check out all the different types of Japanese
Maples they have on display!
KinderGardening
– Mothers Day Pots
Our
Kindergarden segment takes us back to
Al’s
Garden Center (530-981-1245)
in Woodburn. Amy Bigej and her little helpers
showed us how easy it is to decorate a small clay pot. All you
need are the pot, a tube of tile caulking and some little
decorative pieces to dress it up! Spread the caulking on the
pot. Spread it out with a knife and stick you small pieces to
the still soft goo. Let it sit for a day and it is done! If
you get the caulking in areas you don’t want it, just wash it
off with a wet paper towel. After it is dry, pot up a plant and
surprise your mom with a cool gift that says "I Love You."