Blog
March 26, 2024 Geurrilla gardening is an ancient practice that began centuries ago when property became a commodity, versus a community resource. It is practiced all over the world! These days, you can ask permission to plant on a site or you can just do it and hope that you or your plants don’t go […]
Wapato – Against All Odds
April 26, 2023 Hang on to old wash basins, especially if they have a small leak. You never know when you might need to make a water garden! I am intrigued by wild native plants* that served as food for the Coast Salish Peoples. The food plants we grow at the orchard are very different […]
The Lovely Lacewing
March 19, 2023 I approached a bush bean plant last year and spotted an insect on a leaf. I waved my hand to shew it away! Then I saw another, but this time I looked closer. A lacewing! “Come back!”, I yelled to the first one, in vain. How thrilling to be hosting a lacewing, […]
Practical Planting Precursers and Phenology
February 17, 2023 If you love nature and are looking for a field of study, consider Botanical phenology. Check out the programs at the University of Arizona, Brandeis, or Northwestern. Phenology involves noting the dates of seasonal events such as budburst, flowering, dormancy, migration and hibernation. Scientists who study phenology are interested in the timing […]
January in the Orchard – Is Anything Happening?
January 13, 2023 Today. Rain. Relative humidity 92%. Many of you would not be thrilled to get out and be active today. However, some of our nature friends are thriving this month. What? Who! A slow walk at the orchard reveals a lot of activity. Take this camas bulb (Camassia), already popping out of the […]
The Way of Non-Attachment
December 27, 2022 Our FECO project is quite unique. Our volunteers don’t have their own garden plots. They don’t come to grow food and take it home with them. Most growing areas are dedicated to a Food Bank. Food of lesser value goes to the volunteers. The reward for people who volunteer here is maintaining […]
Native American Heritage Month
November 6, 2022 Native American Heritage Month – honoring the ancestry and traditions of Native Americans Ethical participation, responsibility and reciprocity are words often used to describe the way a Native American experiences nature, or place. (There is no mention of Western concepts like ownership, resources, or maps in my readings by Native American authors.) […]
Consider Native Plants
October 18, 2022 We cleaned up and set out seventeen species of Washington’s native plants to sell at Saturday’s 12th annual Cider Fest. I found it interesting to listen to visitor’s comments and questions. Here is a sample: “I love seeing hummingbirds and pollinators in my garden!” Native plant growers say this is a big […]
Janet In The Background
September 10, 2022 On Sunday, 4/12/2020, Janet wrote: Being a conscientious citizen, I removed my license plates and am cruising around the neighborhood looking for people who are not practicing social distancing and blasting them with my super soaker. My cousin advised me to be extra careful because retaliation might come in the form of […]
Cover Crop Culture
August 28, 2022 Oh just throw some newspapers or burlap over the garden bed for the winter. That’s one approach, and it might keep the weeds down. On the other hand, you can think of your relationship to your garden bed as reciprocal, much like you might think of land in general. Your summer crops, […]
Jinxed in June
July 8, 2022 Who liked the June Seattle weather? The slugs, that’s who! We scorned them as they began to diet on the little green bean plants. Actually, the celeriac, parsnips and salsify, plus most of the cool weather greens were delighted with the Juneuary weather. But, here’s a strange twist. Soon after the brassica […]