Blog
November 6, 2024 To say “deciduous plant” implies seasonal leaf senescence (leaf shedding), a process that helps the plant optimize photosynthesis and nutrient efficiency. Senescence is a good survival strategy for plants in that the abundant nutrients within the leaves are not lost, they are transferred to shoots and roots, readying the plant to spring […]
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 […]
Reverence for Wood
June 19, 2022 Reverence for Wood is an old book by the early American writer, Eric Sloane. This enjoyable book, with a soothing and thoughtful tone, contains amazing woodworking tips and I applied a couple while making a new garden bed of old-growth cedar. The project took a lot of time but was good for […]
Late Blight – Steps to Win the Fight!
May 29, 2022 Knowledge of plant pathogens is very useful in a community garden; your gardening practices can affect your neighbors’ harvest! Tomatoes and potatoes are the main hosts of late blight, a devastating disease caused by Phytophthora infestans (an oomycete protist that behaves much like a fungus). Even though tomatoes and potatoes are main […]