Anyone who gardens in Seattle knows that tomatoes can be difficult to cultivate successfully. I’ve lived in the South East and the South West of the US, and in those long, hot summers there’s no stopping the bounty of ripening tomatoes all summer long. As I’ve come to understand that Seattle summers are late to [...]

During my childhood years in Northern California, I often encountered families of Quail scurrying through my outdoor playgrounds. We lived in what was then a remote western town with Hwy 101 running through it. Our house was on the semi-rural outskirts of town with a hillside in front of us and a forest behind us. [...]

J. Mack of Olympia, Washington asks:
“I have a question on growing winter vegetables. All of the web sites I have looked at don’t mention squash and yet I have planted a package of winter squash in my greenhouse, hoping to grow it this winter. Will it survive the winter if I put it out in [...]

Okay, we’ve all seen the “Kill Your TV” bumperstickers, right? Well, what about shooting your lawnmower when it doesn’t start? I just read that someone did just that.
My solution? Rather than kill the mower, why not get rid of the grass instead? That would save you in “lawn rage”, effort, chemicals, water, and so much [...]

Recently my pre-teen niece came to visit. She’s always been a picky eater, and as she approaches her teen years she’s at least tasting some new things. She never likes the new things, but at least she’s giving into my pleas to, “Come on…just one little bite. You don’t have to eat it if you [...]

L. Young of Schaumburg, IL asks,
“Hello, I live in zone 5 and I was looking for some plants that would survive under a pine tree. I tried hosta\’s but they died. Do you have any suggestions? Thank You”
 I think your best bet in finding a solution is to contact a garden coach or a nursery [...]

A friend just turned me on to a new proposal by the EPA to ban water features, or at least that’s how the headline came through on the blurb she sent me. As it turns out (or maybe I should say, “as it appears to me”), the EPA is proposing that ornamental water features will [...]

W. Maalouf of Marshall, VA asks:
“We have a two year old fruit cherry tree orchard. I had business out of the country, so asked my 19 year son to be sure to spray the trees when I was gone because there were worms and the start of the Japanese Beatles. Anyway..I just got home and [...]

The holes have started appearing on my just-budding purple brussel sprouts and my cabbage. The green loopers are starting to emerge. I’ve seen their white fluffy butterfly parents flitting about the garden; they’re out there every year and near possible to chase away. I cheer when a sparrow snatches one in mid-flight or the cat [...]

Garden Tenders is a fun community of blogging gardeners that I found about a year ago. It’s a great place to show off your own garden and chat with fellow gardeners about their spaces. It seems the largest population of members lives in Canada, but that is changing.
Garden Tenders has just opened up their Summer [...]