Northwest Flower and Garden Show

I could smell the Northwest Flower and Garden Show a block away as I climbed up Pike Street. You know that smell when you walk into a florist? That fresh-cut flower smell that is close to carnations? I was convinced spring arrived early.

Well, it did this year with the show. Usually it doesn't happen for a couple more weeks, but I'm glad it's here now. This winter hasn't been that bad--yes, a week of snow--but it hasn't been as wet and cold as it could be. But, still, we had a dismal summer so having this escape was a nice respite.

I know I talked up the amount of edible lectures at this year's show and I was looking forward to the displays being as impressive. Unfortunately, there was only one display that showcased how wonderful edibles can look in your garden.

Well...okay, two, but although this has edible items in its display, it's not technically filled with edible plants.

Yum! A garden with bread and cake.


They did manage to squeeze in this urn planter with an culinary bay tree. Nice. I have one of these in my garden...although it's much smaller and in the ground.

The one true edible display was created by Cascadian Edible Landscapes. Featuring colorful chard, kale, and an assortment of herbs. The main focal point was a converted VW Bus for 5 cute hens that were pecking around.



I also liked the large table that was probably 10 feet long decorated with pots crammed with herbs--mostly mint and thyme. A lovely touch and so easy to do!

Anyone can take this idea home with them for their outdoor summertime soirees.

I couldn't believe my eyes with apple trees and blueberry shrubs forced into bloom in time for the show. I have been involved in a similar process and it's tricky. Timing is everything since you want flowers for the show, but not too early that they're spent and falling off as the garden is installed.


Nice job, Cascadian Edible Landscapes! I'm inspired to eat my yard this summer. I hope others were too.

It's Show Time!

Next week is the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. I'm pleased with the number of seminars about edibles. It's enough to make your head spin! I seems like there is at least one per stage per day.

A few that have caught my eye are...

Cool Season Edibles with Bill Forness on Wednesday afternoon. I think we'd all like to know how to grow veggies year round. And also on Wednesday on the DIY stage is Edibles Cubed where you can learn how to grow an edible cocktail table. Sign me up!

On Thursday Wendy Tweten, who is also known as Miss Snippy, is going to show us how to make veggie gardening fruitful and fun during At Play in the Potager. Suckered in once again by the DIY stage, I may check out the gutter gardening lecture with Jayme Jenkins. I think my fence lined with lettuces would look fabulous.

Growing Food in Small Spaces lead by Teresa O'Connor on Friday looks good. And if you want a small break from the edibles but want your "scent-ces" to be enlightened, check out Riz Reyes' Fragrance in the Garden. I'm always picking Riz's brain for good ideas about the latest cool plants.

Over the weekend, there's another lecture about potagers, and another about winter veggies on Saturday.

I think Sunday's Eating Your Landscape will be interesting since the subtitle suggests edible trees, shrubs, and annuals--something I try to do in my own garden.

There you have it. That's just a small preview of what you'll find edible-gardening wise over the five days starting Feb 8th. Enjoy!

Tomatoes! Tomatoes!

I have a hard time deciding what tomatoes to grow each time I browse a seed catalog. The choices are overwhelming and I have to limit myself to three cultivars. Otherwise, I tend to lose track of what I've planted.

I'm one of the few people in Seattle who has successfully grown tasty tomatoes despite our mild summers. My trick is planting them in the front yard where I get maximum southern exposure. I don't worry about making a raised bed for them. They're planted right next to the shrubs and perennials.

When selecting a cultivar, I chose those that have short maturity rates; keeping it close to 75 days. Anything that takes 80 days or longer is not worth it. They will never ripen in time for those summer salads and you'll be seeking tomatoes out at the farmers' market instead (not a bad alternative, but still!). I also grow smaller fruited types since there's less tomato to ripen. I tried Purple Cherokees and others that were large heirlooms and they never ripened causing major disappointment.

Here are the ones that have caught my eye for this year:

From Adaptive Seeds: Wheatly's Frost Resistant. First off, who could go wrong with a name like that?! It definitely sounds like it's meant for our climate. Sixty days to maturity and although not exactly frost resistant, it does fine in cool weather. It's also a grape/cherry type fruit.

Also from Adaptive is Grappoli d'Inverno. It's not meant for fresh-off-the-vine eating, but is claimed to be a good roasting tomato. Up to 70 days until maturity, the vines are semi-determinate which means they are less rangy than their indeterminate counterparts. They claim that they are good for cold storage and are tied in bundles called ristras for the winter. I want to try this tomato just so I can make the ristras! We'll see...so many to choose from.

The other seed company I would like to order from is Osbourne Seed in Mt Vernon. I'm not sure if I'll go with them since it seems like they cater more to farmers (understandably) and less to those with small city lots. I may just do it anyway and share seed with friends.

There are three tomatoes that I would like to try from Osbourne. Sweet Hearts because they claim to be the best tasting cherry tomato they have trialed. The ripe fruit isn't dropped (I can't say that about the Black Cherry I had last year) and they're crack resistant. Also 65-68 days to maturity. Sounds good to me!

Solid Gold was suggested as a good pairing with Sweet Hearts and I like a contrasting yellow cherry to mix in salads. Seventy days to maturity and are claimed to be vigorous plants with a heavy yield. Plus, who doesn't want to be a Solid Gold dancer?

Viva Italia is my last tomato I will have to decide on. It takes 76 days to mature so pushing the upper limit there for me. But, I love a Roma tomatos and have tried them in the past with not so much success. These are determinate plants and are described as being compact and yielding more fruit. I may just have to take on the challenge!

So much to think about, but I'll need to figure it out quick. It's almost February and I'm feeling the pressure to get my orders in!

The dangerous seed catalogue

Some may say their eyes are bigger than their stomachs. Well, my eyes are bigger than my garden.

I just discovered Adaptive Seeds through another fantastic blog Greensparrow Gardens. Joseph mentioned this seed company as a "crazy source for crazy cool veggies." That's a description that's right up my alley.

Although I've been partial to Fedco Seeds for several years now, I'm leaning towards Adaptive Seeds for a majority of what I would like to try this year. First, they are practically next door in Sweet Home, OR compared to Waterville, ME. Don't get me wrong. I have liked Fedco since they are in Maine which has a similar growing season as we do. And I have enjoyed their range of cultivars that I haven't seen anywhere else. But, it's time to branch out and give someone else a try.

Reviewing my initial wish list, I think I may have to make some major edits. I've decided this year I'm going to try growing my own lettuce. While I love supporting Let Us Farm at the Columbia City Farmers' Market, I'd like to harvest my own straight from the garden, minutes before I'm ready to assemble a summertime salad. Adaptive Seeds have so many to choose from and are organized by romaine, leaf, and head. I want to try at least one of each.

There's a romaine type called 'Red Flamingo' which I will try this season for several reasons. First, I love any purple-tinged edible for my garden. Second, my son loves flamingos--his favorite animal at the zoo. He even has a small flamingo stuffed animal that goes everywhere with him. My third reason also involves my son who dislikes eating anything green He's willing to eat purple lettuce so I'm hoping this will do the trick of getting him to eat more vegetables.

Of the leaf selections, I chose 'White Seeded Samara' purely on its looks. It looks like a butterhead with a lovely-shaped rosette, bright green with hints of pink. It's described to stand up in cold, wet weather and probably originated in Samara along the Volga River in Russia.

I was wooed by the butterhead 'Rolando' for it's bright green leaves to contrast the other two lettuces, and because all my edibles can't be purple. It's recommended for early spring harvest and seems like I won't need to put out row covers. I'm just too lazy for such a task.

The other lettuce I would like to try, but fear my eyes are getting bigger than my garden at this point is another green romaine called 'Winter Density'. It's described as a serious lettuce classic and a cross between a romaine and a butterhead. Who can pass up that description? Adaptive seeds says they don't carry common varieties, but when they do it's because they really love it. It's also cold and heat tolerant. It may be a good idea just to have some seed on hand in case one of the others I try fail. Another good reason is it came from Abundant Life Seed Company in Port Townsend, WA who's offices and seed collection were destroyed in a fire back in 2003.

Whew! I think I've narrowed down the lettuces. Next group to tackle: tomatoes!

Parsley!

Who says there's nothing growing or edible in the garden at this time of year?

True, we may not have tomatoes ripening on the vine, but we can still harvest fresh herbs. My three parsley plants are still going strong. And I have sage, rosemary, and oregano to chop up and throw into various dishes like roasted squash and marinara sauce.

I made lamb kefta last week and the recipe calls for a lot of parsley and cilantro. While I had cilantro in the fridge, I briefly panicked because I forgot parsley on my shopping list. Then I realized the three plants still going in the back yard. Freshly chopped, straight-from-the-garden sure beats expensive store-bought herbs. And if you're opting for organic, it's even more pricey.


What a beautiful green bouquet!

Armchair Gardening

I'm feeling only half guilty about doing a little armchair gardening when it's so nice outside. The sun is pouring into my south and west-facing windows so I am taking advantage of it...just not fully outside in the thick of it.

I had to finish Monty Don's Extraordinary Gardens of the World today--or face an overdue charge! This is the companion book to his BBC series Around the World in 80 Gardens. I feel like I had a mini vacation in just a couple of hours of pouring over these great places. Plus, he has a great voice throughout his descriptions. Each garden's unique characteristics come through without getting tired at the end.

I have been lucky enough to visit a handful of the gardens featured in his book: the Huntington Botanical Garden, The City in a Garden in Singapore, Pura Taman Ayun in Bali, and most recently, The Majorelle Gardens in Marrakesh, Morocco.

The gardens in India seem especially amazing. One in particular called The Rock Garden started as someone's hobby and built illegally has evolved into a landscape of mosaic sculptures. And if I ever do get to India, I hope it's during the February flower show so I can see The Old Railway Garden which is on an old railway and described an idea of colonialism as most of the garden staff have never been to Britain. They are only open to the public during the flower show and are known to have won the contest several times.

I appreciated a chapter on edible gardens from Vivero Organoponico Alamar in Havana, Cuba to Thomas Jefferson's Monticello in Virginia. I'm hoping soon I'll be on the East Coast and be close enough to make a stop at Monticello. I would also like to make another visit to Singapore and see Wilson Wong's community garden. This opened in 2006, a year after I was there. He has started a forum about gardening in Singapore and beyond.

Oh, and this is when seed catalogs start arriving en force. More armchair gardening and planning to come!

Garden in Review

With the New Year just around the corner, it seems appropriate to wander the garden and see what is going on. Plus, there is a break in the rain and it really hasn't been that cold. Perfect for taking a look at how the plants are doing.

I was shocked to see a rose blooming!


Mild indeed...the rose knows!

I noticed my tatsoi is also putting out new leaves. The rosettes are definitely bigger and I think the slugs have either moved on or decided to hibernate for a bit.

I can't wait for these to get a little bigger and cook them up!

And I am really enjoying this combination of Ruby Streaks mustard, escarole, and red lettuce. The lettuce came from a mix and I think it might be a red romaine.

I don't want to get too greedy with using the lettuce, but in a couple of weeks I think I'll have enough for a salad for two!

And yes, I looked at what I needed to weed. I didn't document it with photos. But, my "to do" list is tucked away in my head. I have some sections that have liverwort and fireweed seedlings that need to be removed.

Now, if someone can please explain why my "early" purple sprouting broccoli never sprouted, that would be great! I planted it plenty early in the spring.


It's huge--at least three feet tall--with gorgeous, inedible leaves and no flowers. What to do? I am tempted to yank it if it's not going to produce anything. On the other hand, it's providing some interesting structure to the bed in a spot that would typically be bare at this time of year. I guess I'll leave it in for now.

Happy New Year everyone. Stay tuned for dreaming with seed catalogs!