I need plant suggestions for growing in cold, salty winds only 15 to 20 feet from the high water mark of the Georgia Straits. In winter, the salt water from the ocean occasionally douses the area where I will be gardening. I’m particularly interested in perennials and small shrubs.
I found a list from Island County, WA (no longer available online) with revisions added for Bay Area gardeners.
Excerpts:
“Some of the better salt-tolerant shrubs and small trees to consider include Salal (Gautheria shallon), Ocean Spray (Holodiscus discolor), Snowberry (Symphoricarpos albus), Elderberry (Sambucus species), Tall Oregon grape (Mahonia aquifolium), Serviceberry (Amelanchier alnifolia), Nootka Rose (Rosa nutkana), and the Wax Myrtle (Myrica [now called Morella] californica).
There are a variety of native plants that are commonly found near the shoreline, and which typically do well in the Puget Sound area. These include the sword fern (Polystichum munitum), Bracken fern (Pteridium aquilinum), Fireweed (Epilobium angustifolium), Coastal lupine (Lupinus littoralis), Honeysuckle (Lonicera species), and Coastal strawberry (Fragaria chiloensis).”
Washington Native Plant Society also has a list of plants for a saltwater setting.
I recently answered a question about salt-tolerant grasses which may be helpful to you as well.
The book cited in the answer above, Frances Tenenbaum’s Gardening at the Shore, also lists shrubs and perennials. Below are those which might work in zone 8 or lower, and which are smaller than 20 feet.
Shrubs:
- Acca (also called Feijoa) sellowiana (8-12 feet)
- Amelanchier (small tree/large shrub)
- Arbutus (there are some smaller species than the familiar Pacific madrone)
- Arctostaphylos patula (6 feet)
- Arctostaphylos uva-ursi (ground cover)
- Atriplex canescens (3-5 feet)
- Baccharis halimifolia (6-10 feet)
- Calluna vulgaris (from 6 inches to 2 feet)
- Caryopteris x clandonensis (2-3 feet)
- Ceanothus (many varieties of different sizes, from ground cover to 20 feet)
- Chamaecyparis lawsoniana (look for a dwarf variety of this tree)
- Clethra alnifolia (8 feet)
- Gaultheria shallon (ground cover)
- Hydrangea macrophylla (6-8 feet)
- Juniperus virginiana (look for creeping juniper cultivars like ‘Bar Harbor’ and ‘Blue Rug’ which are salt-tolerant)
- Picea glauca (look for dwarf cultivars like ‘Arneson’s Blue’)
- Rhus typhina
- Rosa rugosa
- Rosmarinus officinalis
- Syringa vulgaris
- Vaccinium corymbosum (highbush blueberry)
- Viburnum (numerous species of different sizes)
Perennials:
- Achillea
- Armeria maritima
- Artemisia ‘Powis Castle’
- Artemisia schmidtiana
- Asclepias tuberosa
- Baptisia australis
- Echinacea purpurea
- Hemerocallis ‘Stella d’Oro’
- Nepeta x faassenii and Nepeta ‘Six Hills Giant’
- Perovskia atriplicifolia [now renamed Salvia yangii]
- Platycodon grandiflorus
- Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’
We have an apple tree in our back yard. Last year it produced more apples then we knew what to do with. We pruned it after last season and then this year was an off year and we only had a few apples. My question is do we need to prune it every year or only after a very productive year? We are very new at this so any pruning tips you have would be great as well!!
Many factors may have affected the fruit production on your apple tree, but the general rules on pruning are to prune young trees very lightly, and old trees more heavily, particularly if they have shown little growth.
Pruning is usually done when the tree is dormant (i.e., winter), but sometimes apples are pruned during the summer growing season (the main reasons to do this would be to improve fruit quality and quantity, to regulate growth and control vigor, and to reduce pest and disease problems). An excellent resource we have here is Training and Pruning Apple and Pear Trees by C.G. Forshey, American Society for Horticultural Science, c1992. Another thing to consider is whether your tree is a dwarf, semi-dwarf, or standard apple tree. Pruning differs for each of these.
The following factsheet gives basic guidelines for pruning fruit-bearing trees:
Pruning Apple and Pear Trees from Clemson University Extension
Below are useful webpages about pruning fruit trees, and apples in particular:
Pruning Tree Fruit from WSU Extension
Spring and summer pruning for apples from Oregon State University
We have many great books on this subject in the library if you need additional guidance.
Where can I get information about garden designers? I am more interested in designers than landscape architects.
Some sources of information and contacts for garden design are
Plant Amnesty’s Referral Service
Association of Professional Landscape Designers (look for APLD Chapters and then choose from the list of states/regions)
Edmonds Community College graduates in Horticulture are sometimes featured on the program’s Home page when they start businesses. You might also contact the department and see if they have information about garden designers.
Will loquat trees grow here in the Puget Sound, and which varieties are best?
In his book Trees of Seattle (2006), local author Arthur Lee Jacobson lists a small number of loquats growing in Seattle, all of them young trees. On his website, he at least mentions the potential for fruit if the winter flowers are not killed by frost. The book From Tree to Table: Growing Backyard Fruit Trees in the Pacific Maritime Climate (Barbara Edwards, Skipstone Press, 2011) says that loquat (Eriobotrya japonica) will grow well here as an ornamental tree, but it is extremely rare for it to produce fruit in USDA hardiness zones 8a and 8b (Puget Sound). (In warmer areas–zone 9 and 10–these are some of the recommended varieties: Gold Nugget; Champagne; McBeth; Big Jim.)
The website of California Rare Fruit Growers provides general information on growing loquat.
What do I have to do to ship a plant via the United States Postal Service? How do I prepare a plant for mailing? I want to mail a one gallon plant.
When sending your one gallon plant, you should mark the box Fragile and Living Plant Material. You should also use the fastest shipping method you can afford, to make sure the plant reaches its destination in good condition. You might also phone your local post office to learn whether there are any other regulations concerning mailing live plants. The U.S. Postal Service provides these basic guidelines for packaging perishable plant matter. Another matter to consider is whether plant quarantine regulations apply to the plant you are shipping, and whether or not you need a permit.
FedEx has a guide has a guide entitled Packaging Guidelines for Flowers and Plants which should help you.
In terms of packing the plant, you should also ensure that the plant does not move around in its box during transport. Avent (see the source below) recommends securing the pot to the side of the box, with strapping or similar material. You may also want to protect the vegetation with breathable material–perhaps biodegradable starch-based packing peanuts?
Source: So You Want to Start a Nursery, T. Avent, 2003, pp. 75-78
I am looking for information on Luzula purpureosplendens, and all I can find is very general information on the genus Luzula.
Luzula purpureosplendens is endemic to Azores islands, which may be why there is so little information about the species. Another reason it may be hard to find information is that it has synonymous names, according to en.hortipedia.com, and these are Luzula azorica and Luzula purpurea. If you search either of the synonyms on the web, you will get some results, many quite technical (chromosomal studies).
We are currently making plans to construct a Plant Science Laboratory at our school, a community college in Seattle. The plans are to have a two greenhouses, gutter connected and providing about 1,800 square feet of space. It will be constructed on a 10,000 square feet of property near the school.
I am wondering if there are any publications that discuss the management of an educational greenhouse at the CUH library. Also, are there any newsletters, websites or other materials you are able to recommend?
The bulk of our books on greenhouses focus on either commercial growing or home hobbyist. We have some back issues of the journal GM Pro, also known as Greenhouse Management and Production, which has a commercial focus.
I searched the Garden Literature Index (of journals) and didn’t find anything too promising on actual management. I recommend you try talking with some of your colleagues at the local colleges that have horticulture programs:
Edmonds Community College
South Seattle College
Lake Washington Institute of Technology
And here is a link to a college in Ontario, Canada – Niagara College – that is doing something similar to what you describe.
Do I leave my Siberian iris alone through the winter, then cut them back in the spring when new growth starts to show, as I’ve done in the past, or do I cut them back now? My neighbor has had hers cut back for months now and insists her way is best…
According to the book The Siberian Iris, by Currier McEwen, 1996, you should
“allow leaves to remain on the plants as long as they are green and adding energy to the plant through photosynthesis. When they turn brown in the fall, cut them off as low as possible and burn them.* It is risky to add them to the compost pile, as they may carry fungal spores, insect eggs, and other disease agents.
*Or put them in your trash (in a sealed bag).
What is the lifespan of Osmanthus? A client’s 20-year-old, 12 ft. tall shrubs were once a hedge that one was unable to see through, but have become a walk-through wall these past couple of years.
According to SelecTree, a database produced by the Urban Forest Ecosystems Institute, most Osmanthus species have a longevity of 50 up to 150 years. A plant’s lifespan varies, and urban trees and shrubs tend to be subjected to more interventions in the form of pruning, pollution, damage from construction, and so on. Also, the hedge has undoubtedly become woody with age.
I’ve been trying to contact someone about growing cascading mums in the Pacific NW. I’m wondering if this region is appropriate to start a new hobby for myself. Is there a group (or individual) that you could refer me to?
There is a chapter of the National Chrysanthemum Society in Washington State. This link provides contact information for the WA chapter.
In my research about cascading chrysanthemums, I learned that the major species used is Chrysanthemum x morifolium, also known as Florists’ Chrysanthemum. According to the Sunset Western Garden Book, this type of chrysanthemum will grow in Sunset zones 2-24; Seattle is zone 5.