Colorful spring containers celebrate the start of the gardening season and creating them is fun and easy if you know which plants to choose. Look for these great gems to create a new spring container or refresh an existing pot.
Who isn't captivated with the lush blooms of the peony? We still get excited when peonies begin arriving! Alex LaVilla, our perennials buyer, has a few planting and care tips to help you be sure your peony is as happy and productive as it can be.
Early-blooming plants help brighten the gray, rainy days and remind us that warmer days are on the way. Here are a few of our favorites for the period we call “early spring” (February-late March). Some even bloom earlier in winter and well into April!
No matter whether this is your first-ever vegetable garden or just the first time planting this year, if you take a little time to prepare before you plant, everything will go more smoothly and you’ll be more successful. Here are a few simple things to consider when starting a vegetable garden this spring.
One of the first activities I want to do outside in early spring is to plant my early spring vegetable garden. There’s nothing like the smooth, clean surface of prepped garden beds, the soil still pristine and just waiting to nurture rows of bright green spring vegetables, carefully planted in perfect rows. It’s like a fresh school notebook - full of promise. But what to plant? Here are a few of my favorite vegetables to plant in spring, with tips on when and how to plant them.
This spring, Swansons Nursery launched the "Grow With Us” project to help people get the most out of their garden spaces. This free, online service offers personalized plant ideas, tips, and advice from our seasoned pros to help make your garden projects a success. We see it as a natural extension of what we already do for our customers here at the Nursery.
After winding down NW Blue Ridge Drive for what seems like forever, I pull up in front of my assigned meeting place with Amy Pennington, cook, writer, blogger, TV personality and edible gardener extraordinaire. I follow the sounds of laughter-filled chatter up the stairs and into the back garden, where I am met with a spectacular view: beautiful ornamental landscaping blending harmoniously with an edible garden of raised beds at the height of the property, with sweeping views of Puget Sound and the Olympics. It is a tapestry of blues and greys on this overcast morning.
While heading outside to do a little weeding on a recent sunny day I decide to check out my currant bushes. Two years ago I planted one bush each of red, white and black currants and I expect this year I’ll have a nice big crop. What the heck!?! The leaves had been chewed on and in some cases only the leaf stem and veins were left!
It is fall at Wychwood with the beautiful autumn colours in all their glory. It will be quite a change to come home to see how my spring bulbs have grown. Yesterday was a busy day in the garden and when I leave I'll miss being able to do chores in my shorts and tank top. Peter had moved the grass the evening before so obviously the nocturnal Wallabies seem to have enjoyed munching on the grass clippings and leaving their calling cards (which I raked up!)
