Share my passion for all things gardening!
The other day, I suddenly realized that I hadn’t sprinkled MoleMax on our front flower bed. This wonderful repellent keeps gophers and voles from destroying our plants during the winter. When our landscape is covered by snow, lots of nefarious activity goes on underneath. Gophers chew on and eat plant roots. Voles chew mostly at the base of plant stems. […]
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Do you get cold easily? Do you dread having to do projects or tasks outside during the fall and winter months? Well, a heated vest might be just what you need. I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism many years ago. Even though it’s manageable with medication, I’m always cold. Whether I’m indoors or outdoors, I’ve always had to put on a […]
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For the past 2 years, I have grown vegetables, flowers and strawberries in my GreenStalk vertical planter. It is so well-designed and all of the plants have thrived in it. Now I’m starting my third year of growing a small garden in it. The only downside to any type of container is that they dry out quickly. I was so […]
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For this week’s column, I wrote about water conservation in the garden. You can read it in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Practice water conservation in your landscape. (or you can read the text of my column at the bottom of this post) Here in Spokane, Wash., we’ve been experiencing a very dry spring which is unusual for us. That […]
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A few days ago, I shot a video of the newest addition to our landscape: it’s an elevated garden planter from Gardener’s Supply. As I explained in the video, the pandemic has made it very difficult to order garden supplies from just about any source. But it’s finally here and I had the chance to create an herb garden just […]
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I’ve been growing microgreens during the winter months for several years now. Up until recently, I have planted the seeds in a seed-starting mix (also known as a germination mix). I recently heard about using jute mats in place of the sterile potting soil. Intrigued, I ordered some from True Leaf Market and tried them out. Spoiler alert: It turns […]
Read moreYes, that’s a long title for this blog post, but it really sums things up! I’ve been meaning to write about this topic for a few weeks but just haven’t had the time. But now that I’ve seen TV and newspaper accounts of the return of black flies to the Inland Northwest, it’s definitely important to address this subject. I’ve […]
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While I was on Instagram, I saw a photo of some galvanized ribbed barrel planters on the Gardener’s Supply feed. I immediately fell head-over-heels in love with them! The style is right up my alley. They have that country look that goes perfectly with my favorite type of decor. When I swooned over them, they sent me one to test. It […]
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As many of you know, my husband and I are avid birdwatchers. Over the years, we’ve learned what will attract birds to our garden. One of the best ways to accomplish this is by adding birdbaths. Birds need to drink water and bathe — typically every day. Our bird feeders attract them, along with our landscape filled with trees and […]
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I know I’m forcing the issue here but I can’t help myself! The bulbs we’ve all known for so many years as Amaryllis are actually called Hippeastrum. So here is an update on how my Hippeastrum is doing! (After all, as a garden writer, I should probably be using the correct terms myself, right?) This gorgeous flower is ‘Papilio’ and […]
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