It’s Spring!
Oh, wait, it's snowing!!!
The Pacific Northwest spring weather is always a moving target. The old saying ‘March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb’ is a little backwards this year with much of western Washington vacillating between snow, hail, cold rain, wind and 60o F and sunshine! Interestingly, sometimes, especially here in the western […]
Waning into Winter
Garden planning and simple chores during the dark days of winter.
The Pacific Northwest is a special and unique place on the planet. We are blessed with thick coniferous forests in mountain ranges that store our water and keep it clean. We have shoreline galore, from Pacific ocean beaches to the Salish Sea borders. We host a river through our largest city with more creeks and […]
Looking Forward to Fall
A few rainy days come along and we start thinking ahead to the fall and the things we need to be doing for our gardens. Here is a helpful check list and some resources to help you plan for fall groundwork. There are many things we can do in the fall to ensure a healthy garden next spring. TIPS […]
Puget Sound Basin in August
Wilting, watering and staying hydrated
August is upon us and this year it feels like summer is also finally, finally here! Temperatures are climbing into more reasonable ranges with some hot days and certainly more sunny and dry days in the mix. Average rainfall in August in the Puget Sound basin is an inch or less. While not blistering hot […]
Fun With Food Scraps!
Sue Hartman - Garden Hotline educator emeritus
We throw away a lot of food! According to Seattle Public Utilities, Seattle residents throw out approximately 100,000 tons of food annually. Composting food waste is an important step in reducing this mountain of garbage that is now hauled 300 miles away for disposal in a landfill in Eastern Oregon. But you don’t have to […]
Planting Peas!
Cultivating the Pisum sativum
Melissa McGinn and Laura Matter – Garden Hotline Educators Peas are annual plants (grow, bloom, flower and set seed within one growing season) that grow like a vine and can be planted in the cooler part of spring. Peas can be planted from March through May in the northwest for a reliable crop. We sometimes […]
Gardening and COVID-19 Concerns
Safe and Healthy Gardening This Spring
If you are like many of us, fortunate to be healthy and safe from the COVID-19 illness, you might be finding yourself home right now with some time on your hands. And if you are also like many of us northwesterners, in love with the outdoors, you might be coming to the realization that you actually […]
Getting Ahead of Winter
How to protect your plants during inclement weather
How well your plants will fare during bouts of winter snow and freezing temperatures depends on many factors. You will want to look at how well your plants are sheltered, the hardiness of your varieties and the maturity of your plants. If plants are already under stress or if they are in containers, they might sustain […]
Leave the Leaves
Katie Vincent, Garden Hotline Educator Fall is iconic—and, sometimes, obnoxious—for the swath of red, orange, yellow and brown deciduous leaves that litter the ground. But this shedding of foliage is more important to our yard’s ecosystem than many of us may believe. Getting the leaves out of your driveway and street side curbing will also […]
The Waning Days of Summer
What a summer we have had in the Pacific Northwest! From record heat to minimal rain to smoky skies that kept us indoors we have all been challenged to keep our gardens alive and thriving. Our rainfall measure since April ended (and that was a rainy month!) stands at 0.88 inches total. An average summer […]