SHOW ARCHIVE

Episode 300 • October 12, 2013

VIDEO ARCHIVE

Wow, we are truly in the fall season. We seem to be plugging along with a record summer and then BAM! We are hit with some really cool and rainy weather. The last two weeks have been drenching! Now it looks like we will get a little a weekend of some sun and dry weather. Time to get out and do a little maintenance in the garden. I know for us that includes stacking wood. We called Grimm’s Fuel and got a cord and a half of wood for our wood stove for the winter. It is a great time to start doing chores like this for the coming winter months.

Enjoy those fall chores!

This week we featured...

Al’s Fall Décor

Al’s Fall Décor

The change of seasons means a change in the look of your home for the season. To see how easy it is we stopped by and chatted with Amy Bigej at Al’s Garden Center (503-981-1245) to see what she would recommend. Amy showed us how, with a little work, you can make a splash at your front door. Amy started with the ‘bones’ of the display which is what you build the entire structure upon. These bones were the bales of hay and the corn stalks from the garden. As we approach Halloween we can also add pumpkins (carved or not) and small gourds. To this we can add seasonal color from perennials and annuals like mums, millet and heucheras. We also looked at some of the planted containers near the doorstep. Amy had included small conifers and color spots that can be moved near the doorstep once the fall season is done and you still would like a welcoming display for your winter guests. If you are looking for more ideas for your front step or any other part of your garden you can stop by any of the Al’s Garden Center locations and check with the Al’s experts for help.

Portland Nursery Apple Tasting

Portland Nursery Apple Tasting

Be prepared for a celebration!!! A is for apple and you will find a ton of apples at Portland Nursery’s (503-231-5050) 26th Annual Apple tasting at the Stark Street location. This landmark celebration features over 50 different varieties of apples and pears available to taste. There is a kid’s area with face painting and balloon creations. Plus you can stop by on Friday the 18th for ‘Elementary School Field Trip Day’ which is loaded with kid’s activities. Cooking demonstrations, an apple press and live music are also on the list of activities. Another reason for stopping by is to get a chance to vote for the best scarecrow. Fellow shoppers have entered their best scarecrows for the chance to win prizes. You can also shop from a variety of local vendors that will be offering local honey, mustard, jam and a whole lot more. Special events include a special ‘Senior Day’ on the 16th with discounts for seniors, and everyday discounts on apple prices. Now is the time to also take advantage of all the wonderful fall perennials available at both locations of Portland Nursery. Come see these and a bunch more at the tasting!

Poison Oak

Poison Oak

This week we tackled a plant that everyone has heard of but few people can identify. To learn more about this plant pariah we traveled to a local trail with Tom Kloster from Trailkeepers of Oregon. He was able to take us to an area where we had 3 different habits of the same plant. As if it wasn’t a tough enough plant to deal with, it can present itself in 3 different ways in nature. It can be a ground cover, a shrub and a climbing vine. Right now the poison oak plant is looking beautiful. The leaves turn a wonderful fall color and if it weren’t for the bad reactions that people get, it would be a great plant for the garden. It is a plant that loves the difficult dry shady areas under trees. Tom showed us how it is now changing color and looking great. He also talked about how it looks in the spring and summer, with brighter green leaves and an oily sheen on the leaves. The winter is also a dangerous time for this plant. The winter puts this plant in the stealth mode because it appears as a bare stick, when it can still be just as toxic for unsuspecting gardeners.

Most of the year, though, it can still be identified by the old axiom ‘leaves of 3, let it be’. But how to get rid of it? Tom recommends that you cut it back and use a potent herbicide on it. We know that a lot of people would shutter at the use of a chemical, but this plant really needs something that strong to get rid of it. It is also important that you bag the cuttings and throw them out. Do not compost them at home or burn them! Composting will not always get rid of the plant and burning them will release the oils and the smoke can irritate your nose and lungs. If you have the plant in your garden you can remove it or avoid it, but in the wild you never know where it will show up. Tom told us that it is easier to spread in the wild. Sometimes pet owners will let their animals run off-leash to give their pets a little freedom. The problem with that is the pet can run through the poison oak and collect the oils on their fur and then they transfer the oils to their owners, not good! If you are looking for more information on this problematic plant you can check out Tom’s blog at http://wyeastblog.org/2012/05/28/10-common-poison-oak-myths/. Keep an eye out for this plant and be careful when dealing with it for a happier gardening (and hiking experience).

Fall Perennials

Fall Perennials

Fall is a great time in the garden. Some plants need this cooler weather to grow, bloom and showoff their best habits. We stopped by Out in the Garden Nursery (503-829-4141) to check with Carol about the best perennials for the northwest garden. She started with an ornamental grass, Miscanthus purpurascens ‘Flame Grass’. This plant is just a background plant for most of the year and then it really pops in the fall with some wonderful fall color. The next plant was a grass as well, Carex ‘EverColor Everest’. This one has a great variegated leaf and really stands out in the fall garden. It is great in containers and in the garden all year long. We then moved to a yucca called ‘Golden Sword’ which gets more ‘golden’ in its color as it matures. The next plant was an old favorite, the sedum ‘Autumn Joy’. It really looks great in the fall and will transition well from fall into winter with wonderful blooms that stay on the plant during the change in seasons. Carol then showed us a couple of ferns from her nursery, the first one was a Tassel fern and the second was a Shield fern (also called an Alaskan fern). Both of these ferns love the conditions that we have here in the northwest; the rain in the winter and the dry in the summer. One of the most unusual plants we’ve seen came next. This one was a hardy begonia ‘Grandis’ This one has great blooms, but it also has some great color on the back of the leaves. We got to our last couple of plants by looking at the Actaea ‘White Pearl’. This one is just starting to bloom right now. It not only has these great, late blooms in the garden, it is also very fragrant. Finally we looked at the Eupatorium ‘Chocolate’. This one starts with a chocolate tone in the spring and then gets some great blooms in the fall. It is a great plant for those shady areas in the garden. If you are looking for some great fall plants you can stop by your local independent garden center or take the short trip to Molalla and visit Carol at Out in the Garden Nursery. She is open for the next few weekends and then will close for the winter, so don’t wait too long.

Paley Bruschetta

Paley Bruschetta

Fall brings a lot of fresh produce to your table. The problem is that there are lots of fresh vegetables, but not a lot of new recipes where you can use them. To get a new take on a new recipe we dropped by Paley’s Place (503-243-2403) in Northwest Portland. We found chef Patrick McKee in the kitchen working on a bruschetta that is loaded with local produce. He started with some local tomatoes which he cut in half and smoked in an oven full of hazelnut shell smoke. Before he put them into the smoker he sprinkled the tops of the tomatoes with chopped garlic, shallots, dried Italian oregano, sea salt from Jacobsen’s in Netarts Bay and Olive Oil from Red Ridge Farms. While the tomatoes roasted/smoked, Patrick cut some French baguettes and toasted them in the oven. Once the tomatoes were done Patrick pulled off the tomato skins and pureed the rest into a tomato ‘jam’. When the bread was toasted he covered them with the ‘jam’ and some local goat cheese and then put them back into the oven to slightly melt the cheese. When the cheese started to melt, everything was covered with more olive oil and some micro parsley. The great thing about this recipe is that it is available at Paley’s during their happy hour! If you are interested in enjoying this and many other delicious treats, you can stop by their happy hour which happens 7 days a week.

 
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