Good Earth

The Trilliums are up, it is officially spring!

Remember, picking Trillium flowers can damage and even kill the plant. Transplanting can also be a challenge, and wild ones should be left where they are. To add Trilliums to your shaded garden, look at native plant sales from the conservation districts or, sometimes, the local nurseries have them. Many of the more colorful cultivars are readily available to order through the nurseries and online suppliers.

Once a rockhound, always a rockhound... I found this glacial erratic granite today while working on my property. I think it makes a great viewing stone... (cowboy hat for scale) What do you think of the placement?

I had the opportunity to mill a very large Madrone (Arbutus Menziesii) for a client the other day. It was a real treat to save this beautiful wood from the firewood pile! Slab is 27" wide x 12' long

In lieu of a handprint or date, a client asked if I would draw a cat face in the concrete for her catio shed.

What is your favorite thing about March?
We love the Rhododendrons!

This custom cedar planter was ordered as a special gift over the weekend. At only 18-inches wide and 3-feet long this box will make a great patio planter. You don't have to have a huge space to have a gorgeous raised garden box.

Have you planted your peas yet? I put my first row in on the 4th, just before the snow. Popped one up to check on their progress and things are going well. Peas will germinate in cool, moist conditions - amending your soil with peat moss will help prevent waterlogging and rot.

With the snow behind us now, we can't help but dream of summer.

Please join us in supporting and donating to this important project.

https://olympicpeninsulaaudubon.org/donate-swans

Sudden Impact A story of trumpeter swans and the danger they face trying to clear nearby power lines when they leave their roosting pond. The swans that fly into these lines can…

We really do get the best clients. A plate of fresh cookies, hot out of the oven!

Texture is the star of the winter garden. Positioning deciduous shrubs and perennials strategically throughout the landscape can provide beauty and interest even in the dreariest of months. Plus, leaving the seed heads and dried stems up through the cold season provides seed and shelter for wildlife.

Wondering how to prepare your garden for winter without disturbing overwintering insects? Along with leaving the leaves for beneficial insects, remember that small carpenter bees, yellow-faced bees, and other stem-nesting bees will overwinter in hollow plant stems! Leave seed heads and stems intact over the winter to provide food for birds and shelter for insects. The best time to prune back dead plant stems is in spring, just before bees start flying. For more information, see our guide to Nesting and Overwintering Habitat for Pollinators and Other Beneficial Insects!

Learn more in our Nesting & Overwintering Habitat For Pollinators & Other Beneficial Insects guide
https://xerces.org/publications/fact-sheets/nesting-overwintering-habitat

Photo: A nest tunnel in a cut stem (Sara Morris).