As we head into the peak spring season and the temperatures continue to rise, more and more of our landscapes are popping with spring color.  Another shrub all gardens should contain is a deciduous Azalea.  Us gardeners have plenty of evergreen options to help with our Azalea and Rhododendron addictions, but a deciduous Azalea specimen offers a different look with brighter flower color options, fragrance on many cultivars, and of course, spectacular fall colors as they go dormant before winter.   Many gardeners refer to deciduous Azaleas as “Exbury” Azaleas, which is partiall ..read more

For generations of gardeners, and certainly for me, Rhododendrons represent the arrival of spring in our local landscapes.  Everywhere you drive this time of year there is a stunning Rhododendron in full bloom to catch your eye.  These flowering beauties come in all sorts of shapes, sizes and colors, and thrive in our climate when located and planted correctly.  The choices of cultivars is truly endless with over 5,000 registered varieties; some growing tall while others small and some blooming as early as February and others as late as June.  While some may be hard to fin ..read more

Going vertical with climbing plants adds visual interest to any garden, providing nice foliage and often ideal seasonal flower power.  There are useful vines out there in all kinds of shapes and sizes; some for larger areas and others to use as smaller garden accents, or even as simple container specimens.  Whether you are trying to grow on a decorative trellis or obelisk, up a post, along a railing, over a large pergola or arbor, or even naturalize something along a fence line, vines may be exactly what you are looking for. First of all, let’s start with one honest truth about vin ..read more

Now that spring has officially arrived and the sun has returned, our gardens are beginning to brim with activity.  Bees are buzzing about visiting early flowers, foliage is emerging everywhere, and plants are awakening from winter dormancy.  Perennials in particular are a welcome sight for this gardener’s eyes, as they finally spring back to life and fill up all the spaces in my garden that have been a little bare over the winter months.  Some species will emerge a bit later or come on slowly in April on into early May, but there are some excellent early spring perennials that ..read more

Japanese Maples come in all sorts of shapes, sizes, colors, growth habits and foliage types, offering the home gardener a myriad of choices to suit each individual’s taste.  All of these trees get outstanding autumn color, but gardeners should note their spring foliage tones as well.  Here at Sunnyside Nursery we stock over 120 cultivars of these garden beauties, and our patrons are often pleasantly surprised with the bright yellow, orange, red, purplish, pinky, or simple bright pea green options.  As we cross over the spring equinox and they begin to leaf out for the season, i ..read more

One outstanding shrub choice for spring color is the Barberry.  Not only do these offer us showy spring flowers, but they also provide us with numerous foliage color options and growth habits.  All thrive in hot sunny locales, are drought tolerant once established, and resist browsing deer as well.  From low, globe-shaped specimens to upright, arching growers, there is certainly a variety of Barberry to enjoy, for almost any spot in the landscape. All Barberries are old wood bloomers, which simply means that they bloom on last year’s wood in March and April each spring.  ..read more

In the maritime PNW climate, mosses have invaded and naturalized almost all of our native habitats, in one form or another.  Our Western Washington locale provides Mr. Moss with his three favorite things: plenty of shade, regular moisture and soil acidity.  Many gardeners embrace these soft and cushy creatures, admiring their colors and low maintenance qualities, while others think of moss as some sort of plague that never ends.  This month is the perfect time to either go to war against Mr. Moss or to let him be, flourishing wherever he wants. Consider the nature of true mos ..read more

Magnolias offer us gardeners some spectacular options for our PNW landscapes.  Many types are beginning to bloom now as we near the end of winter and head towards spring, bursting to life in a variety of colors and flower forms.  Most are deciduous and bloom on bare wood before the foliage emerges in spring.  Perhaps you visited the Northwest Flower and Garden Festival in Seattle a couple weeks back…  Magnolias are always a popular choice for the designers there and various varieties could be seen in bloom in the show gardens.  With more than a couple hundred species ..read more

The rose is a flower that has captured the imagination of gardeners for centuries, in all corners of the globe.  With a plethora of color choices and specific fragrances, roses have become symbols of many things in our culture: the red rose denotes love, lavender/blue ones bring mystery, yellow roses honor friendship, white ones symbolize purity or innocence, and orange flowers speak of passion.  With hundreds of options, choosing the right one can be overwhelming at times.  There are certainly some great classic rose options that perform well in our local area, but each year n ..read more

One plant that simply must be present in every yard is a Laceleaf Japanese Maple.  You know the ones… the beautiful, manageable sized trees that have interesting leaves in stunning colors all throughout the year.  Laceleafs can be living art pieces when cared for properly and developed slowly into specimens that add character, texture, and color to any landscape.  Even over the dormant winter months, a properly grown Laceleaf can be a stunning focal point in the garden. Some of you are asking “Why the heck are you writing about Laceleafs in the winter?”, which is most certain ..read more