Earth Day – Calling Us to Action
Keeping Us Invested
Earth Day is an annual day to pause and reflect about the state of our ecological well being, a day to get busy and do something that helps the planet, and a day that has a long history and that has survived for the past 54 years without losing momentum. That’s pretty remarkable and a […]
In the In Between
(Seasons, That Is)
Officially, we are in the latter half of “the big dark”, the period of gray skies, rain, and dark days that starts in October in the northwest. We are headed towards the spring equinox, where the days and nights share equal time in our 24 hour day and the earth’s axis tilts neither away nor […]
Embrace Beneficial Insect Allies in Your Garden
pollinators and predators, oh my!
The summer solstice is nigh and we are happily gardening these days with a little more warmth and sunshine than we encountered this past spring. Many plants have finished blooming and many others are just making an appearance. Along with all those fabulous flowers follows a plethora of amazing and beneficial garden allies in the […]
Spring is Almost Here!
Spring is “official” on Monday, March 20th this year. We all know though, that the Pacific Northwest often shares some spring like weather and early flowering plants during traditional winter months so it’s not unusual for us to be antsy to get into the garden. I’m certain many of us already have been at work […]
Long and Cold Spring
What about planting tomatoes?
If you are like the educators on the Garden Hotline, you already have tomato plants in hand, waiting to set them out. OR wait, maybe you already did! It seems like it should be time but this year our spring weather has been particularly cold and wet. If you have set these heat lovers out, […]
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 […]
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 […]
Mulch 101
Laura Matter, Garden Hotline Educator
What is Mulch? Mulch is a form of organic matter spread on the surface of the soil around plants to keep weeds down, conserve moisture and moderate soil temperatures all year long. Fall is a great time to apply mulch—getting ahead of cool season weeds and freezing winter temperatures. When applying mulch to beds with […]
The Best BOMBs: Blue Orchard Mason Bees!
By Katie Vincent, Garden Hotline Educator
Honeybees may be cute, popular and extra fuzzy, but the real proboscis behind most of our region’s fruit crops is a completely different arthropod: the blue orchard mason bee (Osmia lignaria). Why Choose Mason Bees? Native to North America, mason bees get their common name from their habit of patching up naturally occurring holes with […]