Lincoln County Master Gardener™ Association

Pacific dogwood (Cornus nuttallii) is a a deciduous, and long-lived flowering tree that usually grows to heights of 20 to 30 feet in the garden. It has a graceful structure with creamy white flowers that cover the tree in the spring time. In its natural forest environment, these trees are usually found in partly shaded locations growing as understory trees. They prefer well-drained acidic soils high in organic matter. In a garden setting they require extra care, as they ar

If you enjoy saving seeds or just want to learn about different varieties of vegetables and their relationships, you'll find this book a great reference. Ashworth discusses more than 150 different vegetable crops and provides instruction on isolation distances, cross pollination problems, how the flowers are pollinated and techniques for hand-pollinating, harvesting, drying and storing seeds. ISBN-13: 9781882424580 Author: Suzanne Ashworth Publisher: Seed Savers Exchange P

Who doesn't respond to the grace of grasses swaying in the wind. If you live right on the coast, why not take advantage and plant drifts of native grass, like tufted hair grass. If you have brackish water areas, this is the grass for you. This plant actually requires wind for pollination. Very easy to grow. Likes full sun best, but will do okay in light shade. Be sure to mulch well during first year or two to help get it established. Look for tufted hair grass at the LCM

A natural enemy has arrived to help control the brown marmorated stink bug, an invasive pest that devastates gardens and crops, particularly orchard fruits and nuts. The samurai wasp (Trissolcus japonicus) is a tiny insect that hunts for the egg masses of brown marmorated stink bugs (BMSB) and lays an egg inside each egg in the mass. Since there are 28 eggs in a cluster, that’s the potential for 28 more wasps. The parasitic wasp develops inside the egg, effectively killing th

Yellow flag iris is an excellent example of a plant that is benign, even beneficial, in its native habitat of Northern Europe, where harsh winters keep it in check, but is a worrisome nuisance when it travels abroad. Sadly, it can now be found cheaply through online distributors like Craigslist at low cost because it is so easy to cultivate. And in the time honored tradition of sharing successful garden plants with your neighbors, people are literally giving it away! But when

This plant is for those gardens that need to stand up to strong winds and salty soil and spray. Fortunately since it is so hardy it will do well in other garden environments not quite so 'beachy.' I have it spread in a number of places in my garden which is on the east side of the County. The Verbena bonariensis grows to 6 ft, but don't just relegate it to the back of your borders. It's an elegant plant with an airy, see-through character that let's you put it anywhere in

Just Gorgeous! I first saw this plant at the Connie Hansen Garden in Lincoln City. It was unusual and just gorgeous. Ruffly dark green leaves that make an attractive evergreen clump. Then in early summer these beautiful flower spikes appear and stay around until fall. This plant is often used for bridal bouquets, so you know the flowers are going to be showy and attract attention. Mime is a bright orange color, but they also come in white, pink, and lilac. This plant like

Raulston allspice is a wonderful medium-sized shrub for the woodland garden, being showy but not overly so, and easy to grow. It tolerates very dry shade once established, but prefers dappled light and a little moisture. This lovely plant is easy to grow in average, medium moisture, well-drained soil. It does best in part shade, but tolerates full sun as long as the soil is kept moist. It will tolerant of a wide range of soils, including sandy or clay, but prefers rich moist

Growing hardy cranesbill geranium can be as easy as planting and watching it blossom when conditions are somewhat damp. Hardy geranium plants grow best in consistently moist soil when first planted, but become somewhat drought tolerant when established. Growing hardy cranesbill geranium in fertile soil also encourages the plant to spread. Many varieties of hardy geranium plants exist and thrive in full sun to shady locations. When considering how to plant hardy geraniums, con

All herbs grow best where they receive 6 or more hours of uninterrupted sunlight daily. Amend heavy clay soils with compost to provide a deep, loamy soil suitable for good plant growth. One inch of water per week, precipitation and irrigation combined, is best. Basil Basil is an annual plant easily grown from seed. Seeds can be sown directly in the garden or can be started indoors around March 15 for transplanting around May 15. Besides the common basil, there are licorice