Spring is here and you’re raring to get your garden in. Well, hold on just a minute. Sowing seed or planting seedlings at the wrong time will bring nothing but heartache. One of the biggest mistakes people make is to plant too early,” said Weston Miller, a horticulturist with Oregon State University’s Extension Service. “They
Strange as it may seem, plants and clothes have some traits that make them parallel to one another. Clothes are fashionable. New styles appear every year, but there are always some holdovers from previous years. A parallel can be drawn here with plants. Some become more fashionable in gardens, while others fade away. A current
Visit Red Ridge Farms in the heart of Oregon Wine Country. Shop edible and medicinal herbs, lavender, olive trees, unique shrubs, perennials, seasonal color, pottery, gifts and art. 5510 N.E. Breyman Orchards Road, Dayton, Oregon 97114 Open daily from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. year round. Facebook: www.facebook.com/durantoregon Instagram: www.facebook.com/durantoregon Email: info@durantoregon.com | Web: www.durantoregon.com In their own
Hummingbirds are garden jewels, as beautiful as they are valuable. Each weighing less than a nickel, hummingbirds play an important role in the garden as pollinators and insect predators. Five kinds of hummingbirds regularly visit Oregon, according to Nancy Allen, faculty member in fisheries and wildlife at Oregon State University. Rufous hummingbirds, the most common,
With deeply lobed silver leaves and a 3-foot stature, the artichoke unfolds as much mystery in the garden as it does on the dinner table. Used to set off any color in a perennial border, as a striking specimen plant or the flagship of a vegetable garden, the artichoke has much to recommend it to
Western Oregon homeowners with boxwood shrubs should keep their eyes peeled in early spring for signs of a disease that’s been making gradual headway in the state. Boxwood blight first showed up in nurseries in Oregon in 2011, and has continued to make inroads in the Portland area, according to Jay W. Pscheidt, a plant pathology
Confession time: I am a seed catalog hoarder. Especially during winter months, I can’t resist the beautiful books full of pages upon pages of the promise of spring! Right now, I have a pile of them on my nightstand, one or two on the dining room table and several more scattered throughout the house. Maybe
For mason bees, the wait for their first meal is a long one, nine months or more while they wait for the day to emerge, sun themselves a bit and fly off for an awaited meal. There’s no TV, no smartphone, not even a book to while away the time as these solitary bees hang
Get onions in the ground in spring and avoid heartbreak when it comes time to harvest big, beautiful bulbs this summer. Plant as soon as the soil is dry enough to work, said Jim Myers, a plant breeder at Oregon State University. March and April are prime times. Most onions grown in Oregon are long-day
You’re invited to the Garden Gala at The Oregon GardenAll gardeners and plant enthusiasts are invited to network with other exuberant growers at the Garden Gala at The Oregon Garden, starting at 4 p.m. Saturday, April 27 at the Oregon Garden, 879 West Main Street, Silverton, Oregon. This social event welcomes horticulturists of all skill
If you don’t have space for a garden – or even if you do – a terrarium may be in your future. “Terrariums are an easy way to have some greenery,” said Brooke Edmunds, a horticulturist with Oregon State University Extension Service. “And they’re fun to make.” Not only that, a terrarium can take on
For a hedge, arborvitae has a place. It’s tall, skinny, evergreen, low-maintenance and cheap. “Some people look down on arborvitae, but it fits in places that other things can’t,” said Neil Bell, a horticulturist for Oregon State University Extension Service. “And it’s about as low-maintenance a plant as anything you can buy, if it’s sited