Site change

Hello all of my readers. I have recently renovated my website and would like you all to stop by and go for a tour. I have been updating the blog rather consistently on the web site.

Thank you for your interest and I hope you are happy with the new setting for my blog!
Gregory
www.nativerootdesigns.com

Pruning tips

A great article from the Flower World website makes some interesting points:

1. Pruning in the winter stimulates the most growth—good for fruit trees, not so great for ornamental trees/shrubs! With fruit trees it works because you can then thin to desired new growth and keep new fruiting spurs developing while cycling out the older ones.

2. Pruning in midsummer is the time that pruning stimulates the least amount of growth.

3. Prune the areas of the tree where new growth is desired.

4. Keep trees thinned to let light and air into the entire canopy.

A nicely written article that includes the basics of clean cuts to laterals and general caution prior to removing branches.

The bones of the garden

Winter in the Pacific Northwest leaves the garden revealed. I have heard from more than one gardener this year that now is their favorite time in the garden. You can really see what is there and admire the structure and layout.

It is a time to admire the fine pruning of shrubs and the careful spacing of perennials. For those who claim there are no flowers, here are only a few that I have been seeing this week!

A time for shears

My shears get a lot of work in January. Not that there are no weeds but in the last three days I have used my shears and my rake more than any other tool. Shearing down ornamental grasses, Astilbe, Coreopsis, Fuchsia, Iris, ferns, Helleborus, Epimedium and many other perennial plants that I left to over winter for their form, structure, winter color, or wildlife benefits.

In the case of Fuchsia shearing is a little rough. For the larger woody varieties I will usually shear them down to 12-18 inches then cut out all of the canes that are smaller than a pencil with my hand clippers. I may take out the canes that are oldest as well and clean up any cuts that the shears mangled. If they are beginning to show new growth at the base you may usually get away with cutting them clean to the ground. Leaving the canes reminds you that they are there and insures that they have some established growth to help pull them through.

On the Iris, ferns, Epimedium and Helleborus they have been providing lovely intense greens in the beds for months now and will begin to shoot new growth in the center from their base. It is easiest to shear them now just before the new growth begins because if you wait too long you need to do it with your hand clippers which takes exponentially more time. You can wait longer however in these gardens (including my own) it's seize the moment! The Epimedium and Helleborus will be sending up their flowers next, before leaves, which look fabulous if the old foliage is cleaned up.

Winter Crafting

While doing our winter clean up this morning, alright today since it took three sessions, Lila and I stopped for a little crafting in the garden. I was shearing down all the wintered over perennials and the Pacific Coast Iris leaves caught my eye. Lila was asking for a headband so we sat and put it together with the Iris leaves. First I found the longest and nicest three blades and split them down the center to have six narrower lengths. then I braided them together folding each turn so the whole thing kept a flat look and feel. As the length of one was about six inches from it's end I tucked the stub of the next one into the braid under it and used them together until the one ran out. they are a great material to work with right now, I didn't find them to be too brittle at all. A perfect garden craft to keep a child engaged!

September Harvests

It is so easy to think of Summer ending in September here in the Pacific Northwest have such rich bounty coming from our gardens this month it is certainly still Summer to me. The dryness on the leaves has started it's slow transition into fall colors. The sun is hanging much lower in the sky making it blinding most of the day and backlighting plants from nearly all sides. The lighting is dramatic the gardens are lush and bursting at the seams. I am still waiting for my a last Aster to open it's little starry flowers and then all five will be blooming. Sunflowers are a lovely plant, they fall all over but that just gives me an excuss to cut them.
We harvested loads of Tomatoes and I definitely have a favorite this year; Pruden's Purple. It had six larger than fist sized perfect Tomatoes on it the other day that made the sweetest large bowl of Salsa! All our Tomatoes are producing pretty well and the fruit is excellent. I am planning to sow in some Fava Bean cover crop in one of our beds for the winter but I am waiting to see if I get any Blue Corn before I pull it. Our beans are still going strong Rattlesnake is a winner, perfect texture and flavor for fresh eating; aka grazing!
With darkness at six am it's nice that most of the garden is holding it's own, resting at it's peak before it comes crashing down in the fall. All we have to do is enjoy the views and share the harvest.

Ready or Not?

What should you NOT do right before hosting a garden tour?

1)Tear all the gutters and old fascia boards off your house to prepare for a new roof.
2)Remove your chimney and store all of the busted masonry in your driveway.
3)Dig up a 7x3 foot section of lawn and lift it up 4 inches.
4)All of the above.

Well I managed to get into all of these projects just in time. I didn't think about it until I was lifting up the lawn section at 3 o'clock Wednesday afternoon in about 90 degree heat. It crossed my mind that it might look like I laid sod down in strips so I stuffed the cracks with dried grass from raking. The lawn has not been watered other than where Lila's pool is and we try to move that around fairly often.

The roses are coming back into full bloom just in time. One of my favorites is Dapple Dawn. It is a beautiful single pink rose that flowers most of the season, kind of loose open flowers. And of course the lovely Sally Holmes, a blushed pink single flower in huge bunches covering the shrub.

I do plan on having the place cleaned up for the Rainier Valley Garden Tour this weekend so please stop by and take a look!
See you on Saturday!

Gregory Smaus

Native Root Designs
sustainable garden management, design, and exploration...
206.227.4458
www.nativerootdesigns.com

Summer thinking

August 10th 2009
Just under two weeks until the Garden Tour. The rain came and wet the earth nicely. Thirsty roots in hard clay soil waiting patiently through our hottest days on record. There is no irrigation system that is adequate when it gets that hot and dry for so long. A couple of good soakings with the hose help immensely to water the back sides of shrubs and in between spaces that the irrigation doesn't reach. The rain came last night, so by 8 pm tonight the ground was perfect to go and weed. Nice and moist but not saturated, dandelions coming up with nearly full roots in the loose soil. I used the evening as a chance to go at the Morning Glory along my fence line again. That is the second time this year but I should have done it two weeks ago. It is very good at wrapping around stems so tight you pull a plant apart just while trying to get the morning glory off of it. My next strategy will be to plant larger shrubs and small trees so they won't get covered up so quickly and they will be easier to free. The best method is to cut the Morning Glory vines every 12 inches or so along the stems of other plants so that you can pull it off in sections without stripping the leaves off or breaking the preferred plant.
Soon I will be getting around to cutting most of the burned foliage out of the garden. Despite watering fairly consistently I ended up with many burned plants. The plants I put in about a month ago have done very well with regular watering and all the sun and heat. The garden will be a good representation of a Seattle August garden. The Asters are just getting started and most of the Fuschia's have come through unscathed. The Sedum look great and the ornamental grasses are full and billowing. The burned and dry leaves begin the transition into our true Western climate Fall Season. The Summer drought stresses the plants so that many of the natives are already going dormant.
I will go out and get a few pictures in the morning.
With the hours of daylight becoming more precious by the day, Fall seems so strong in the air. I was out until I could not see the thorns on the rose as I removed the weedy vines from it's fragile branches, joined of coarse by an evening chorus of tickling mosquitoes and, a shame, it was just past nine o'clock. Not yet ready for Fall I will thoroughly enjoy the coming weeks of warm sun and burned gardens, Morning Glory and Mosquitoes because one of my favorite things about Seattle is it's entirety of Seasons. Every Season is so full you are ready for the next when it comes time. Now is the time of Summer. Fruit is ripening and faces are red. Warm skin, white wine and so many things to do sleep is just another thing on the list.

Things you don't question...

I enjoy my vegetable garden. Last year we had a very nice consistent crop of beans, peas, beets, chard, kale, lettuce, and some others. I still talk often about not knowing what I'm doing with vegetables however that is because I have known many organic farmers who still say they don't know what they're doing after twenty years or more. That said, my true love is in Ornamentals.

So I rearranged our vegetable garden this year. I terraced the slop and moved it back a bit so that I could plant ornamentals above the wall.

I realized that below the wall would be the perfect spot to plant tomatoes. They could pick up all the radiant heat from the stone. Before I thought of that I had been pretty excited about planting some Japanese Forest Grass at the base of the wall. So I kept an area clear for tomatoes and started to plant around it. When I was almost done I thought again about the tomatoes and realized they would be much happier above the wall where they would get a lot more late afternoon sun. The wall would actually shade them pretty earlier in the summertime afternoons. Obviously I found a couple choice plants for the spot, antique roses that I've been saving for something perfect. I planted the first one and dug the hole for the second. As I picked it up it told me that it didn't want to be down there, it wanted to be on top of the wall. Now this is a special little rose so it's deserves a say in things but I was saving the spots above the wall for tomatoes right? Apparently not.

The lesson is when a sweet little rose tells you what it wants you should listen. Souvenir de St. Anne will be absolutely charming up there backed by a Skyracer Moor Grass and a Mid-Winter Fire Dogwood. Plus you can sit on the wall and smell it!

Intro to new blog

Gregory here, I am starting this blog as a source for my many thoughts that don't fit into my other Blog, The New Parents Organic Garden Blog, which is most easily seen from my website www.nativerootdesigns.com. You can also find out all about Native Root Designs at the website. In short we are a seattle based organic gardening/landscaping company.
I have found that I think a lot about a very wide range of issues and would like to practice writing about them. I do not intend this Blog to be any sort of finished writing material it is more a source for me to vent ideas in writing.
I look forward to reading any and all comments!
Thanks!

Enjoy...