The Northwest Horticultural Society (NHS) reached new heights this year with its brilliant garden installation at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. The theme was "Eat Your Vegetables." They produced three different garden scenarios: a patio/deck kitchen garden, a container garden suitable for condo dwellers and a formal French potager. It was a show-stopper.
If you have yet to become a member of NHS, I would advise you to rush to their Web site - www.northwesthort.org - and find out more about this organization. Their next plant sale, on March 14 from noon till 8 p.m. at the Center for Urban Horticulture, is focused on spring ephemerals - those tender yet hardy garden treasures that gloriously mark the end of winter. Also read about their all-day Symposium scheduled for March 29. I have heard all but one of the speakers, and I can reassure you that even the most jaded of you will not be bored.
This is beginning to sound like a press release for the organization! The reason for my enthusiasm, however, is the desire to celebrate a local organization that has become stronger and more dynamic within the past few years. Their lecture series, their local and international garden tours, their small classes within local gardens, plant sales and newsletters are all produced by an impressive gang of volunteers. Whether you're interested in a single pot of herbs for the balcony or looking to know more about the vast world of gardens, this group's dedicated knowledge and energy is quite delightful to be around.
Meanwhile, with this recent incredible string of beautiful sunny days, many of us have played hooky from work and rushed to our gardens. A few seeds here, tucking some cuttings there to further propagate a favorite type of lavender plant, and always the ongoing cleaning up of the cold and slimy leftover winter detritus.
As we clear and discover the fattening buds of our plants, we worry about a hard freeze that might cause severe and even fatal damage. There is no right answer, however, to this dilemma. If we try to wait out the potential freezing temperatures, the plants will have grown on and the clearing work becomes a much more difficult task, for there is the potential of knocking off all the tender new growth.
March has arrived with its rain/sleet/snow/hail/wind storms, but not a severe freeze yet! I continue to be a gambler these days and take my chances with exposing those fattening buds. The quiet work, with the afternoon sun warming my back, is the perfect antidote to the last of winter's thin, cold light.
Madeleine Wilde
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