Blog
April 24, 2024 “I can do this. I’ll take a seed tray of Western Columbine (Aquilegia formosa) home and watch over it,” I announced to the native plant nursery co-chair at Magnuson Park. It was late November, when we propagate native plants by seed. The nursery leader makes a delicate, moist seed-potting medium. You push […]
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 […]
NANCY, PLEASE STEP FORWARD
April 30, 2022 Back in 2013, KING 5 came out to interview a representative from Freeway Estates Community Orchard. I pushed Nancy out to face the interviewer. She has a strong voice, a good memory and, she’s willing! Recently, Nancy has been interviewed three times about FECO. The first call was from an independent researcher. […]
Path Project Procures Power Players
March 17, 2022 Ken Yu Last Thursday was tough. We spent hours filling in ruts from the gravel truck. But, as we were getting ready to leave, Ken got out of his car. I smiled and my shoulder blades dropped down my back. Ken, always conscientious, wanted to look everything over, to be fully prepared […]
FECO Website Refresh
February 22, 2022 FECO’s old website had some bumps and bruises and we wanted to share new ideas and information. So, we went back to the drawing board! We hired professional help for layout and received support from the director of Zipcon.com (our website host). A chunk of volunteer hours were needed within a short […]
Whether to Wonder about Weather
January 25, 2022 Did my garden get enough rain this week? Will the seeds I planted yesterday need to be watered today? If I work in the garden this afternoon will I need my rain jacket or my sun hat? Or both? These are just a few of the weather-related questions a gardener might ask. […]
Blissful Birder
December 27, 2021 Alec is a new volunteer. His profession is landscape design and he worked hard on the recent 60th St restoration project. He is also a stellar bird enthusiast and photographer! A couple of weeks ago, I spotted a bird in our yard that I did not know. Excited, I emailed Alec. Ruth: […]
Everything From Fruit To Nuts
November 23, 2021 Friday we devoured the last few plump Evergreen Huckleberries – the end of our fruit and nut bounty this year. And just before the Huckleberries, a few volunteers tried the Medlar. (Medlar? Read Shakespeare to find out about this unusual fruit.) One volunteer thought it tasted like refried beans. Another tasted applesauce. […]
Salsify Can Satisfy
October 27, 2021 This fall I made the best batch of cooked greens! The secret ingredient? Salsify. Wow! Chefs (mostly from Britain) warn that the peeled root turns brown “at an alarming rate”. They advise to drop the peeled root quickly into water with lemon. I followed their instruction, then chopped the root to add […]