In late August of 2021, I put in a different kind of garden—a water garden. I dug a hole in my backyard. It was six feet long, four-and-a-half feet wide, and two feet deep at the deepest point. I put in a pond liner, and I filled it with water. I trimmed off the excess liner, and I buried the edges and tamped them down. Then I covered up the edges with rocks and logs, and I put in some water plants. I put in a small water lily (Nymphaea ‘Sioux’), one swamp milkweed (Asclepias incarnata), one marsh marigold (Caltha palustris), one wapato (Sagittaria latifolia), two gray rushes (Juncus paten ..read more

Are mud dauber wasps dangerous? Absolutely not! When I began making my garden more wildlife-friendly a couple years ago, I never dreamt that wasps would be among my favorite visitors. I have since gotten a glimpse of the fantastic diversity of wasps that will appear when welcomed into the garden, and I’ve begun to appreciate how beautiful, interesting, and charming they can be. One endearing example showed up last year in late August. It was a hot, dry summer here in Portland last year (once summer finally kicked in), and while my garden is pretty drought-tolerant, I did have to irrigate it oc ..read more

A leafcutter bee visits my garden. On a warm, sunny day in late spring last year, I discovered I’d unwittingly constructed a condo for one of our precious native pollinators. Some years before, I’d stacked a pile of twigs and small branches against the south side of the house to use as kindling. Well, we hadn’t had a fire in the fireplace for a few years, and in the meantime, dozens of teeny bees had found a home. The shiny, black bees were squeezing themselves into the tiniest cracks and holes in the twigs. After some research, I determined they were small carpenter bees in the genus Ceratin ..read more

When Friends of Trees, Portland’s non-profit tree-planting group, came to my neighborhood in 2017, I scored a beautiful street tree for 35 bucks. I’d wanted two trees, two different varieties, but I could only make my mind up on one—a silver-leaved oak (Quercus hypoleucoides). I considered getting a parrotia for another 35 dollars, but I couldn’t decide if that was what I really wanted. So, the other space in my hellstrip sat empty. Until two years later. In fall of 2019, I went plant shopping with my friends Alan and Patricia, and I spotted a Texas live oak (Quercus fusiformis). Honestly, I ..read more

Are you looking for something new to try in the garden this year? Here are 10 fun annuals that I’ve enjoyed having in my garden. All are easy to grow from seed. *** Ipomoea lobata, formerly Mina lobata Spanish flag, firecracker vine, exotic love vine 8–10 ft. Full sun Although I’d admired it in catalogs, I held off on growing Spanish flag for years, because I assumed that something so exquisite must be near-impossible to grow. Then, I saw it in person at the Edgefield McMenamins in Troutdale, Oregon. It was glorious! The next year, I grew a couple of plants in my backyard. They were magnific ..read more

A leafcutter bee visits my garden. On a warm, sunny day in late spring last year, I discovered I’d unwittingly constructed a condo for one of our precious native pollinators. Some years before, I’d stacked a pile of twigs and small branches against the south side of the house to use as kindling. Well, we hadn’t had a fire in the fireplace for a few years, and in the meantime, dozens of teeny bees had found a home. The shiny, black bees were squeezing themselves into the tiniest cracks and holes in the twigs. After some research, I determined they were small carpenter bees in the genus Ceratin ..read more

It’s mid-May, and I’m working in my garden when I hear voices coming from the direction of my neighbor’s apple tree. Peeking over the fence, I see two men with saws and pole pruners. I feel a flutter of apprehension. I’ve seen the carnage that untrained tree trimmers can inflict on a tree, and the lack of safety equipment tells me that these gentlemen are not Certified Arborists. Certainly, the old tree could use some pruning. From the looks of it, it has never been pruned. I’m guessing it’s been growing there as a free spirit for 60 years or more; it was probably planted shortly after the li ..read more

When Friends of Trees, Portland’s non-profit tree-planting group, came to my neighborhood in 2017, I scored a beautiful street tree for 35 bucks. I’d wanted two trees, two different varieties, but I could only make my mind up on one—a silver-leaved oak (Quercus hypoleucoides). I considered getting a parrotia for another 35 dollars, but I couldn’t decide if that was what I really wanted. So, the other space in my hellstrip sat empty. Until two years later. In fall of 2019, I went plant shopping with my friends Alan and Patricia, and I spotted a Texas live oak (Quercus fusiformis). Honestly, I ..read more

Are you looking for something new to try in the garden this year? Here are 10 fun annuals that I’ve enjoyed having in my garden. All are easy to grow from seed. *** Ipomoea lobata, formerly Mina lobata Spanish flag, firecracker vine, exotic love vine 8–10 ft. Full sun Although I’d admired it in catalogs, I held off on growing Spanish flag for years, because I assumed that something so exquisite must be near-impossible to grow. Then, I saw it in person at the Edgefield McMenamins in Troutdale, Oregon. It was glorious! The next year, I grew a couple of plants in my backyard ..read more

While many gardeners have been sprinkling coffee grounds, brewing compost tea, and painting pruning cuts, Dr. Linda Chalker-Scott has been busy destroying gardening myths like these. One by one, the fiery University of Washington Associate Professor and Extension Horticulturist has been debunking gardening beliefs and practices that don’t hold up to scientific scrutiny. Most recently, she has taken aim at a belief that has rooted in like bindweed: the notion that chemicals in walnut trees stunt and kill nearby plants. A paper Chalker-Scott published earlier this year asserts that, in reality ..read more