There is no shortage of things to do in the garden in the month of June.  Hedges need to be pruned, warm season veggies should be planted, spring-blooming plants (like Forsythia, Heather, and Rhodies) should be deadheaded, weeds of course need to be controlled, it’s time to start thinking about watering, and all those annuals […]

All clients of Gardens ALIVE Design learn many valuable lessons about creating a healthy, thriving landscape. It is with joy that I’ve repeated myself hundreds of times when I say, “It isn’t just about putting plants in the ground. It is about all the pieces such as soil testing to see how deficient your soil is […]

The post REBROADCAST: Perfectly Pretty Peonies appeared first on Valley Nursery Inc..

I’m just home after hosting a wonderful tour of English gardens for Earthbound Expeditions. So many memories and so many ideas – but I wanted to share just a few images that highlight the use of color restraint and how effective that is as a design tool rather than a wild ‘jellybean’ approach. Monochromatic Schemes…

It pains me to see customers spending hundreds of dollars on new plants and simultaneously refusing to spend a few more on a bag or two of compost and a box of starter fertilizer.  These two items are not unnecessary “add-ons” that the retailer is just trying to add to the sale, they are critical […]

The post Episode 73: Nasty Noxious Scotchbroom appeared first on Valley Nursery Inc..

You and your rose soul-mates have found each other. Now what? How do you keep them happy and thriving in our maritime Pacific Northwest climate? Roses are not completely carefree, but with a few basic care guidelines, you can grow them successfully and enjoy their beauty for years to come.

By Nancy Penrose In the urban landscape, trees shade the sidewalks, absorb air pollution, lessen traffic noise, and also happen to be nice to look at. And of course trees take carbon dioxide in the air and convert it to oxygen, which we mammals kind of need for breathing. But it also turns out that […]

How can your lawn help save the bees? Last year we started Bee Friendly Lawn to teach people about lawn maintenance practices that help protect our native bees. Why not to participate in No Mow May The way you mow is part of the picture. In recent years some organizations have been advocating “No Mow […]

A few weeks back I was lamenting the fact that there were still so many bare spots in my new garden that needed to be filled in, due to plant failures from this last winter…  No matter how good of a gardener we might be, some things thrive while others just whimper away into oblivion.  […]