Shrubby penstemon (Penstemon fruticosus) – I spotted this pink form on a hike five years ago and snapped off a shoot on the way back down. I rooted it and can now propagate more of this lovely shrub from my mother plant. We are all adjusting to living and doing business during this COVID-19 time. […]
The nursery viewed anew
The month of May is a beautiful time for the native flora of Central Washington, from the shrub-steppe to the mountains – and in the nursery! Employee Erin Carlson has a keen eye for the plants, seeing them in her own way. She spent some time on a recent morning, wandering with her camera, and […]
Planting for Climate Change
Young lodgepole pine (Pinus contorta var. latifolia) five years post-fire Our climate is changing at an unprecedented rate, with far-reaching impacts in our region. Winters will be warmer and wetter, with less snow pack created, and summers will be hotter and drier, with lower streamflows. The incidence of extreme weather events will increase, leading to […]
May Flowers at the Nursery
May is a wonderfully busy time for a native plant nursery. Plant orders are going out, customers are coming in, lots of transplanting is underway… and it is too easy to get wrapped up in the pressing needs to not see and appreciate the beauty that is developing all around. Blue flax (Linum lewisii) It’s […]
Collecting conifer cones… and thinking of wildfire
September is the month I collect cones from both Ponderosa pine (Pinus ponderosa) and Douglas fir (Pseudotsuga menziesii). I won’t sow the seeds for a few months yet but I need to get the cones before the seeds are dispersed. Doug fir cones I can usually harvest from low hanging branches while still closed. The pine […]