Home gardening

Obsessive gardeners

By Mike Darcy — Posted November 26, 2018

The first time that I saw a rose garden with umbrellas over the plants to protect them from rain, I was in disbelief! “Umbrellas keeping the rain off of rose flowers,” I thought. “That must be a very obsessive gardener.” Since that time, I have learned that it is not an uncommon obsession for rose […]

Common questions from the summer

By Mike Darcy — Posted September 25, 2018

It probably goes without saying that it has been a long, hot summer and early fall. With record high temperatures and little or no rain, one might have expected customers to stay away from garden centers. However, this was not the case. Customers continued to shop for plants and also relied heavily on garden centers […]

Ferns … not just a fancy frond

By Mike Darcy — Posted July 31, 2018

A friend that was recently visiting my garden commented that I had quite a few containers with ferns. Until he said it, I had not really noticed. The next day as I walked around my garden, I realized that it was true. I have been gradually adding ferns into my garden. Was this just me, or […]

Farwest Show speaker recommends choosing plants with purpose

By Curt Kipp — Posted July 12, 2018

At the 2018 Farwest Show, August 22-24, in Portland, Oregon, renowned garden designer Darcy Daniels will share her method for finding the perfect plants for a given space in today’s gardens. Her talk, “Plants with Purpose: How to Pick Plants that Get the Job Done, Beautifully”, will be delivered Thursday, August 23, 12:30 p.m.–1:30 p.m., […]

Farwest Show speaker boasts gardening with ferns

By Curt Kipp — Posted July 9, 2018

In a wide-ranging presentation, Steffen will share information on how to use ferns effectively in the landscape and their historical use in gardens. Using beautiful photography Steffen will highlight top performing native ferns along with exotics from around the world. The lecture will illustrate clever garden features that anyone can create at home 8:30—9:30 a.m., […]

July 2018

By Bill Goloski — Posted June 28, 2018

Growers can read about the pros and cons of creating a display garden for buyers to explore on site, or check out the colorful varieties of Agastache which are becoming a perennial favorite in this month’s Digger issue. Plus, the Farwest show is almost here! Explore the Farwest Show New Variety Showcase insert to see the latest […]

A perennial favorite

By Tracy Ilene Miller — Posted June 25, 2018

Traditional and new Agastache varieties offer beauty, fragrance and other endearing qualities If not for agastache’s manifold attractive qualities, growers and landscapers may have given up on this sun-loving flowering perennial long ago for its finicky and sometimes sprawling growth habit. Agastache has endured as a garden favorite with growers and landscapers because it checks […]

Natural by design

By Kym Pokorny — Posted May 25, 2018

The concept of designed plant communities combines the synergy of nature with the order and beauty of horticulture Some neighbors are better than others. They’ll take in your mail, watch your dog or bring you soup when you’re sick. Then there are those who fight over boundaries or play their music at 2 a.m. So […]

Are olives viable for Oregon?

By Mike Darcy — Posted May 25, 2018

With a column title like What I’m Hearing, I am always listening for new ideas, new plants, trends in garden centers and new plant trials. Recently in a conversation with Ann Murphy, a communications and marketing manager at Oregon State University (OSU), I learned that the OSU North Willamette Research and Extension Center in Aurora, […]

Small, tall and packed together

By Dawn Hummel — Posted March 27, 2018

The trend toward smaller spaces drives intensive use of perennials and grasses The midcentury ranch house with the huge yard is a thing of the past. Replacing it is the tall house with a small yard — and that’s changing the shape of home landscaping. Everywhere across the country, homebuilders are squeezing as many new homes […]