Touring Gardens for Design Inspiration

Melissa

The Hook Last week I was lucky enough to stumble onto an article previewing the local garden tour. Emphasis on preview because I had not yet missed the tour. As I continued reading the article I was further delighted that it was nearby and I had no plans that could not be moved. The descriptions of the gardens were what hooked me in though–nearly each garden featured a potential solution to a problem I had been trying to solve in my garden on my own. Brilliant! Garden design and landscaping Read More …

From Bickles to Zickles

ecalexander

Every Alaskan gardener eventually runs up against the end of the season and a plethora of produce. Then comes the problem of what to do with it to actually get people to consume it! I’ve heard of people dropping extra zucchini on unsuspecting door steps, and even putting them in random cars in the parking lot. You’re tired of “zuke dogs” right, you couldn’t grill another zuke, or deep fry it to save your life at this point. You’ve had kale every which way that can be imagined. You’ve had Read More …

City Girl Gone–How I Became an Alaska Gardener

kaschot

RAISED BY CITY PEOPLE Raised by Amsterdam Dutch parents in Seattle, I grew up in a landscape surrounded by flowers. My family bought food fresh and in small quantities from the local market, bakeries and butchers. Quality bread, produce, meats and cheeses were a must. My father prepared gourmet meals for a family of six, complete with garnishments. Dinner was a semi-formal family affair. Semi-formal meaning we were expected to use proper table etiquette. We ate as a family around a solid oak table and the conversation was always fun Read More …

Sometimes we just need a little inspiration…

dmmatthews2

Years ago, I was a late comer to a marvelous children’s book called The Secret Garden by Frances Hodgson Burnett, who also wrote A Little Princess, which was made into a movie in the 30’s starring Shirley Temple. Unfortunately, most film adaptations of The Secret Garden are nowhere near as magical as the book. The book starts out in late winter with the arrival of the young Mary Lennox to a relative’s (an uncle) manor on the English moors. Her entire family has just died while in India. However, Mary Read More …

Baby Powder Bug Repellent

dmmatthews2

Years ago I was an estate gardener on the Texas Gulf Coast, in Houston Texas to be exact. I worked on a property that was near a slow-moving, mosquito-generating body of water called Buffalo Bayou. Houston is not called “the Bayou City” for nothing, there are bayous everywhere and when it rains, the bayous flood and trap people in their neighborhoods until everything drains away. As a result of all this water, Houston, like Alaska, is inundated with mosquitoes and gnats, and we drive around with bug spray in our Read More …

A Gardener Wears Many Hats: Entomology In The Garden

Bonnie

A Good Defense Someone recently said to me, “A gardener wears many hats”. I thought of this when I was doing some reading for a quiz for the Alaska Master Gardener Online Course. A good defense against pests is to learn as much as you can about all insects, harmful and beneficial alike. This calls for our entomology hats! Getting to Know Bugs Did you know female aphids give live birth to pregnant females? This is how you can end up with a real problem before you even know you Read More …

Tank tops, flip flops, and greenhouse-free tomatoes

Kori

Climate change is no joke, and I am certainly no expert on the subject. Many of us have read various reports, observations, and predictions about the consequences of a changing climate on Alaska and Alaskans’ ways of life.   This post is not intended to be a debate or manifesto on climate change, but one component of this year’s garden did get me thinking particularly deeply about the Alaska climate and weather and gardening. That component was the gift of two tomato plants and the fact that I do not Read More …

All in the Family: Propagating a unique variety of Colorado Blue Spruce from cuttings

Mimi Corneliussen

My father-in-law is a long time wholesale nursery owner in Oregon. He learned the trade from his nurseryman uncle, who also inspired the Waconda Blue, a variety of the Colorado blue spruce (Picea pungens) that is now living in my family’s backyard in Alaska. The original was selected in 1977 for its very blue hue. Cuttings were taken and the Waconda Blue was established. A child of the tree was given to my husband in the mid-80s. He transplanted it in 1992 in Wasilla and it’s still growing beautifully. We’d Read More …

My Version of Companion Planting

smbowman2

People may say, “I did this…” or “I built this…”, but do they really mean they did it all alone, by themselves, with no help? “I can do things you cannot, you can do things I cannot; together we can do great things.” –Mother Teresa I don’t do much all by myself, that is why I need to give credit where it’s due and share  one aspect of my life: My Version of Companion Planting. According to Oxford Dictionaries, a companion is defined as a person or animal with whom Read More …