Thanksgiving is here.  This coming week drives us directly into the holiday season.  We want to thank all our viewers who have watched the show this past year.  It is great bringing you a new show every week.  Take the time this week to thank those people that make a real difference in your life.

This week we featured...

Tsugawa Annual Christmas Open House

We got to kick off our holidays at Tsugawa Nursery (360-225-8750) in Woodland, Washington.  Brian Tsugawa and his crew have dressed up the nursery in greens, ribbons and bows to kick off the holiday season.  This weekend they have a huge party to help get you in the mood.  The holiday open house features all kinds of Christmas decorations.  They have decorated Christmas trees, poinsettias, refreshments and great gifts.  On Saturday and Sunday you can learn how to make your own wreath or learn how to make a Bonsai gift.  You can also pick up a ‘live’ Christmas tree.  Live trees are a great tradition for some families.  They are a reminder of the holiday that you can have in your garden year-round.  The key is knowing how to treat them during the holiday season so they survive and thrive.  Brian recommends only having them inside for 5-7 days. Tsugawa’s has a huge variety of trees and all the instructions on keeping them healthy and happy.

Gifts for the Gardener

If you are having a hard time buying gifts for the gardener in your life, we found some great gifts at some of the local garden centers.  First, we found a digital picture frame from Smartparts.  This frame will load all your favorite still pictures and some will even play videos, so you can enjoy the sights and sounds of your garden all year long. Getting a plant is also a great idea.  Any gardener will love getting one.  You can spice things up by getting one that is new and unusual too like a bonsai, or an orchid.  Some of the smaller, inexpensive gifts include a garden themed ornament or bauble.  Almost all of the garden centers now carry these cute little knick-knacks.  For people who enjoy the taste of gardening you can get them an AeroGarden Pro.  This is a mini hydroponic system that allows you to grow herbs, peppers or tomatoes on your kitchen countertop.  We found them at Portland Nursery on Division (503-788-9000) or the Greenhouse Catalog (800-825-1925). 

You can never go wrong with tools.  Judy had some to share, including the latest from Leatherman.  The experts in multi-purpose tools now have pruners!  The ones we looked at were called the Hybrid and they fold up so they can stay in your pocket until you need them.  They also have knives, saws and other accessories right in the handle!  You can find them at Cornell Farm (503-292-9895), Leatherman Company or other independent garden centers. And don’t forget gloves.   We found some great ones at Al’s Garden Center (503-726-1162) in Sherwood.  These were West County gloves and they had some that were insulated and waterproof.  Perfect for the Northwest!  After you get through using those gloves don’t forget to pamper your hands.  We found some great hand lotions and crèmes at Drake's 7 Dees (503-256-2223) that will help your hands heal after a long day in the soil.  If it is a rainy day you can reward your gardener with a great read!  Timber Press (1-800-327-5680) is a local company that specializes in garden books and they have some wonderful how-to books, including the ones we have featured recently from Tracy DiSabato-Aust on pruning and garden design.

Finally, we featured memberships in some of our local gardens.  The Oregon Garden (1-877-674-2733) not only has memberships, but also features a gift shop that has pre-made gift baskets.  They also offer engraved bricks at the garden and other garden treats.  If you are looking for a garden closer to home, check out the Portland Classical Chinese Garden (503-228-8131).  The PCCG offers membership that will also get you discounts in their gift shop, the tea house, and their plant sales. Plus, during the holidays, you can buy 15 tickets for stocking stuffers and the price is only $5 a ticket!

Fall and Winter Garden Design

Fall and winter are a great time to work on the design of your garden.  It is good to look at your garden with a fresh eye while the blooms of summer are still in your mind.  We talked with Tracy DiSabato-Aust, the author of ‘The Well Designed Mixed Garden’ from Timber Press (1-800-327-5680) and got her thoughts and tips on garden design.  First, determine the maintenance needs of the type of garden you want.  This will help you select plants and may determine the type of garden you can have.  Next is color.  Are you looking for a single color or complimentary/contrasting colors, cool or warm colors?  Then we move to style.  What type of garden are you interested in?  Are you a ‘formal’ garden type of person or do you like something a little more laid back?  Remember it should reflect who you are and be a reflection of yourself.  The fourth tip deals with the long term view of your garden.  Remember that things change.  Plants grow, tastes change, so don’t be in a hurry to be ‘finished’.  Take your time and grow with your garden!  Finally, consider scale and proportion.  The small plants of today may become the large plants of tomorrow.  Consider the size of a plant in 2-5 years.  Does it still work in the area you planted it?  Do you want, or need to move it after a year or two?  If so it may not be the right plant in the right place.  If you are looking for more tips on design you can pick up Tracy’s book at your local bookstore and create your own garden masterpiece.   

Wrapping your Hardy Banana

One of the hottest garden plants of the past few years is the Hardy Banana (Musa basjoo) and some of the nicest specimens of this plant are found at the Portland Classical Chinese Garden (503-228-8131).  Their plants always seem to be the biggest and they all seem to produce fruit!  We stopped by to find out why.  Bill and Glin, the horticultural specialists at the garden told us how they did it.  They don’t cut their plants to the ground at the end of the season.  They wrap their plants to a height of 5 to 6 feet.  This means the plant has a head start on growth for the new season.  They also mulch the base of the plant to keep the roots warm.  They wrap their plants with a combination of insulation and burlap, but you can use bubble wrap at home.  If a leaf gets frost bitten they cut it off.  When spring comes around, they unwrap them and the plants are on their way.  This means that most of them will produce the showy (but non-edible) fruits towards the end of summer.   Well worth the effort!  If you would like more information you can give them a call and they will walk you through the process.

Jan’s November Tips

Fall and winter is recharge time for the gardener.  It is the time you can pull back, clean up and prepare for the promise of spring.  We visited Jan McNeilan, retired OSU extension agent to learn about some of the things you can do to keep your green thumb going during the cold months of winter.  Jan showed us how she was taking cutting of her geraniums and Christmas cactus to propagate and make more plants for her garden next year.   Geraniums are easy to grow.  You can just cut off a stem.  Peel off some of the leaves at the base of the plant and stick it in water.  After a couple of weeks you will start seeing roots growing out of the areas where you had leaves.  You can then transfer it into a pot with soil and you are on your way.  Next we saw how to check the viability of your old garden seeds.  Place 10 seeds in a moist paper towel and then place them in a sealed plastic bag.  In a week pull them out and count the number that have sprouted.  If you had 8 out of ten sprout, then about 80% of those seeds are probably good.  It is a good way to tell if you need fresh seeds this spring.  Finally we talked about mulching and covering your plants for the winter.  Jan and Ray just rake the leaves from their lawn on to their garden beds to protect their perennial plants.  They also make use of the south side of their house for storing containers. The south side is where the plants will get the most sun and warmth.  They also use leaves here and sometimes a tarp to hold them in place.  For more tips check out the OSU Extension website.

Gartner Thanksgiving Turkey

The one thing we have learned is to be helpful in the kitchen during the holidays.  So last year we took some of the pressure off the kitchen by grilling a ham outdoors.  This year Jerry Yost from Gartner’s Meats (503-252-7801) showed us how to do the same thing with a pre-cooked smoked turkey!  This bird comes fully prepared from Gartner’s and only takes a couple of hours to heat up on the grill.  Jerry uses a Traeger grill so he can maintain the heat needed to warm the turkey.  If you have a charcoal grill you may need to preheat it in the oven for a little bit.  If you are not a turkey kind of person Gartner’s has a huge selection of other kinds of meats and treats for your holiday table.

Candle Holder

We found a quick craft that can really add a festive touch to your holiday table. We took one small pumpkin gourd and cut a hole in the center.  We then used some hot glue and secured a candle in the middle of it.  We added some silk leaves and it was done.  It was a great little project that will add a fall/harvest flavor to your dinner table.