A few tips for establishing your trees in hot weather: 1) When they arrive, soak bare roots in a bucket of water in a shady outdoor area. Let them soak for at least an hour, or overnight, to recover from shipment stress. 2) If possible, wait for an overcast day...
All about Mason Bees What are Mason Bees? Osmia lignaria propinqua, or Blue orchard Mason Bees, are non-aggressive bees that live in solitary nesting tubes. They are smaller than honeybees and do no live in hives. Mason bees are excellent pollinators, demonstrating 95% pollination success compared to honey bees, which...
Looking for shade tolerant edible plants to grow on the north side of a fence, building or tall trees? The plants on this list will grow well in at least partial shade. Fruit production will generally be less with more shade. This list of shade tolerant edible plants is a...
Follow our Blueberry Growing Guide to insure beautiful plants and delicious fruit. One of our favorite fruits, Blueberries are easy to grow and will produce abundant crops of delectable and flavorful berries. In addition to nutritious and delicious fruit, these attractive shrubs will add beauty to your yard, garden or...
If you are looking for a new berry to add to your landscape this Fall, you should really consider Lingonberries. They are known by many names across their native range, including Mountain Cranberry, Cowberry, and Foxberry to name a few. The majority of Lingonberries are wild harvested, not cultivated. In fact,...
This winter in the Pacific Northwest was a good reminder that those low winter temperatures are still possible after a few years of having extremely mild winters. For lovers of subtropical or frost tender plants pushing the envelope on cold hardiness can be a stressful time as you watch the...
The month of January has been stunningly stormy in the Pacific Northwest and although winter’s icy grip is still holding firm over much of the country the days are indeed getting just a bit longer as we inch towards spring. Even with snow still blanketing much of the country and...
Planning out Orchard Succession is important because it takes a while for a fruit tree to start bearing, usually about 2 or 3 years for the first fruits, but 4 or 5 years before you really start seeing any significant harvests. With nut trees it takes even longer before...
Nitrogen Fixing Plants. Do you remember your grade school science teacher telling you about leguminous plants and their amazing nitrogen fixing abilities? It might have seemed like a dull subject at the time, but Nitrogen Fixing Plants are some of the most helpful plants we can incorporate into our gardens,...
Pawpaw Growing Guide for Pawpaws (Asimina triloba) are one of the most unique and delicious fruits that can be grown in the backyard orchard. Native to eastern North America, pawpaws are the only member of the Annonaceae, or custard apple family, that is adapted to temperate climates. Its tropical relatives include...
