Gabriel's Garden Notes

Step It Up

Spring has finally sprung!  What a relief.  I don't know about you but that was a really long winter.  Now all around Seattle and beyond Flowering Cherry and Magnolia's are making my head spin with their display of flowers.  Fresh new leaves are appearing on Hydrangea's, Mock Orange, Barberry, etc.  Daffodils nod their heads good morning and the tulips are just starting to shine.  Lilac flower buds are starting to fatten up as Forsythia starts to fade.  So many plants to enjoy.

Spring is a great time to take a walk through the Arboretum, or just around the block.  I took the time to stroll around a neighborhood near Ravenna Park last week and took photo's of interesting fences and arbors for future reference.  Looking at what works and doesn't work in other people's yards is a great free resource available to everyone.

There are many upcoming plant sales where one can often find plants not available at the nursery's around town.  Find out about regional plant sales by logging on to the Elizibeth Miller Library website or download  Regional Plant Sales Handout pdf.

Another event I am excited about is Step It Up 2007 which is a nation wide call to action for Saturday April 14th to increase awareness about global climate change.  There are many events scheduled in and around Seattle for more information go to http://www.stepitup2007.org/.

Northwest Flower and Garden Show

The weather in Puget Sound continues to make getting anything accomplished in the garden a challenge.  Many people had barely cleaned up after the last wind storm when we were hit yet again with wind and rain causing more downed trees and mud slides.  Next up freezing temps and snow.

It is still best to stay out of beds and off of lawns if possible.  Since there isn't much to do in the garden, it is a great time to work on planning for the upcoming spring and summer.  We all have areas in our gardens that we would like to improve.  We may want to add something as simple as a few new containers for quick easy color, a new variety of disease resistant rose, or maybe a fruit tree, or vegetable garden.  If you do want to add something to the garden a great place to get some inspiration is the Northwest Flower and Garden Show held at the Convention Center from February 14th to the  18th.  This is a great event to attend, just be warned that the best time to go if you don't like crowds is in the evening or sometime on Thursday.  If you want to attend the show go to www.gardenshow.com for ticket information, hours and seminar schedule.