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Garden Time is Portland's #1 garden show, and is owned and produced by the same person who started the In the Garden TV show and the former garden show on Good Day Lifestyles on KPTV-12.  It is our goal to give you the best gardening information in the Northwest.  We are a local show and we will always be a local show.  What does that mean?  It means we will stay topical and seasonal.  You will see what works in the Northwest, what you can plant here and how it will grow.  It is information that will help make you a successful gardener.

Garden Time is owned and produced by Gustin Creative Group and is not affiliated with any television station or network.  To advertise on "Garden Time" or have your business featured in a segment, please e-mail us at gustingroup@comcast.net.

Hosts Judy Alleruzzo and William McClenathan

SHOW ARCHIVE

Episode 171 • July 3, 2010

VIDEO ARCHIVE

Happy Fourth of July. The big holiday of summer is here and people are getting out and enjoying the sun (finally). Most of the gardens are waking up too and the veggie garden is showing some promise. You can still plant veggies if you want to. With the heat returning you can also start looking at your watering needs and how to take care of your plants when they need water again. Enjoy the sun and have a safe holiday!

This week we featured...

Smith Berry Festival

It is time for the 8th Annual Berry Festival at Smith Berry Barn (503-628-2172) on Scholls Ferry Road. On the 4th of July from 11am to 4pm, you can stop by and enjoy fresh berry desserts, wine tasting, hot off the grill sausages and hot dogs, and live music. This is a family friendly event with face painting and balloons. You can also stop by the gift shop to pick up some gourmet products and sample a fresh berry milkshake. Plus there will be a 'Berried' Treasure Hunt for the kids. You can also go out and do a little u-picking of your favorite berries. Rich showed us some of the varieties available right now in the fields. They have the final crop of strawberries, 2 varieties of raspberries, tayberries, and an early blueberry. They have all of these ripe for the picking and you can take them home to remember your day in the country!

Summer Hydrangeas

With all the cold and wet weather this past spring all the plants in the garden seemed to be having problems. We decided to check in with Kristin at Hydrangeas Plus to see what problems she noticed and how we can take better care of our hydrangeas. First she showed us some of the varieties that are looking great right now. The varieties that she showed included Hydrangea macrophylla 'Brestenburg', Hydrangea serrata 'Blue Billow' and the truly unique Hydrangea Macrophylla 'Sol'. These plants were a little slower to bloom due to the cooler weather, but they were worth the wait! Kristin then talked about the problems from the rainy weather. There is yellowing of the leaves of some varieties. There is also black spot and slugs. All of these can be treated and will not affect the long term health of your plants. If you have questions about the health of your plants or if you would like to add one of these wonderful plants to your landscape, give Hydrangeas Plus a call.

Medicinal Plants

For centuries if you were sick you relied on the healing properties of plants to help you get better. These days we have forgotten about some of those plants and the benefits they can provide. We met with Laura at Portland Nursery (503-231-5050) to check out some of the plants that are commonly used in the landscape for their beauty but also have a medicinal purpose as well. The first one she pulled out for us was the Motherwort, used for uterine health, then Arnica which is used to treat bruising. She then showed us Rue 'Jackmans Blue', which, in addition to its lovely ornamental effect in the garden, can be used to aid digestion. The Chinese have long used plants for medicinal purposes and we moved to the Goji berry which is used as an overall health tonic since the berries are loaded with antioxidants. Another Chinese herb is Dang-shen also used as an overall health tonic and wellbeing. It is a relative of ginseng and is prepared in many different ways for use. Lavender was next on the list and this one is well known to most people. Its fragrance has a calming effect on most people and it can also be used to promote the healing of scars.

Laura then moved to the Monarda (Bee-balm) which is an antimicrobial and can help prevent the onset of colds if used in a tea with Echinacea. The next plant was one that William tried just to see what it would do. The Toothache plant (Spilanthes acmella) has a numbing effect when eaten and can be used for toothaches and teething. William is able to report that it works! It was hard for him to finish the story because his mouth was so numb! We finished the story with Yarrow and Blueberries. Yarrow is known as the 'Nosebleed plant' because it does slow and stop the bleeding of minor cuts and blueberries are not only loaded with antioxidants, it makes a great tonic for overall men's health. We recommend that you don't start eating the flowers in your garden right away. Always check with an expert herbalist before you start using the plants for medicinal purposes. If you have questions, you can check with the experts at Portland Nursery or with Laura at Mostly Medicinals.

Water and Bog Plants

If you have a water feature or pond you may have some beautiful plants in it, but if you have a marshy area you may be looking for some plants that will thrive in that area as well. We stopped by Hughes Water Gardens (503-638-1709) to learn more about water and bog plants from the expert, Eamonn Hughes. First he covered a bunch of water plants. These plants either live in the water or can handle lots of moisture without rotting. These plants will help add character and depth to your pond and also create a habitat for wildlife. Eamonn started with some low growing plants. These will help soften the edges of your water feature. He showcased Golden Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia 'Aurea'), Corkscrew Rush (Juncus effusus 'Spirallis') and the Marsh Fern. Next we moved to the medium height plants like Yerba Yerba, Sagittaria 'Silk Stockings' and the Purple Pickeralweed (Pontaderia cordata). He then highlighted the taller water plants like Cannas, Iris Ensada, the hibiscus and the Egyptian papyrus.

We then moved over to the bog type plants. These can handle lots of moisture, but don't like to be immersed in water for extended periods of time. Some of these plants included Rumex, Pitcher Plant (a great fly catcher) and one of the buttercup family and even some lobelia. As you can see there are lots of different plants that you can use in your pond, bog or even the soggy places in your garden. To check out more you can stop by Hughes Water Garden. Also, check out this month's Garden Time On-line magazine to read the feature article on The Hughes Waterlily Festival and Invitational Art Show.

Gartner's 4th of July

It is time to celebrate freedom! From all the work in the garden and from the kitchen! Jerry from Gartner's Meats (503-252-7801) joined us once again to share some grilling tips for the up-coming 4th of July. This time he brought us chicken breasts for a grilling treat. The 2 problems that people have with chicken is having too much pink in the middle or having it turn out too dry. He solved that by having a small meat thermometer at the grill. The breasts were marinated in a new vacuum tumbler that forces marinate into the meat, then Jerry first got his grill to around 325-350 degrees, then he cooked the chicken to a temperature of 165-170 degrees. It was delicious!! If you are looking for a quick and easy meal to celebrate the holiday, check out all the choices at Gartner's!

 
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