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Every year, I write garden columns for The Spokesman-Review from February to October. I’m happy to report that my first column of the 2015 garden season, which is about soil care, has run in today’s edition of the paper. Here is a link to it: Time to dig deep. In it, I talk about what I’ll be growing in this year’s […]
Read moreLast fall, I conducted an experiment: overwintering geraniums. You’d think that as a Master Gardener and plant enthusiast, I would already know how to do that. But, to be honest it’s not something I’d ever tried before. That is, until last October. I did some research and am delighted to report that it has gone even better than I could […]
Read moreSusan Mulvihill is co-author with fellow columnist, Pat Munts, of Northwest Gardener’s Handbook. Published by Cool Springs Press in Jan. 2015, NGH contains a wealth of knowledge for gardening in the beautiful Northwest. What’s really special about this book is that it covers the Inland Northwest region, an area that has in the past been given little attention in garden […]
Read moreI’m sure all of you are anxious to begin seed-starting and plant your veggie seeds so you can get the 2015 garden season under way! I completely understand, but correct timing is critical so you don’t end up with leggy, root-bound seedlings. I live in Spokane, Wash., which is in USDA zone 5 (or 6, depending on which microclimate you […]
Read moreThis is part two in a series on some of the easiest-care, most rewarding houseplants you can grow. One of the houseplants I have the most success with is Dracaena deremensis (druh-SEE-nuh dair-rem-MEN-sis). Perhaps you’ve heard of references to corn plants and rainbow plants which are the common names of some types of Dracaenas. As you can see, the leaves […]
Read moreI have some exciting news for you: my dear friend and colleague Pat Munts and I have written a book! It is called The Northwest Gardener’s Handbook and will be in bookstores as of Jan. 15, 2015. It will be published by Cool Springs Press and covers all of Washington and Oregon, southern British Columbia and a bit of northern California. […]
Read moreI have to admit I’ve killed a fern or two, mostly notably Boston ferns. Our house is just too dry for them and I seem to have difficulty getting the hang of providing them with the correct amount of water. I almost gave up on growing ferns altogether. That is, until one day when I was wandering around a home […]
Read moreI wanted to let you know about a few modifications we’ve made to our hoop house in the past few days. My husband, Bill, and I felt it needed to be a bit more “buttoned-up” for the winter. Here’s what we’ve done: 1) We purchased a 4-inch-wide roll of greenhouse repair tape from FarmTek. You’ll recall from my original post […]
Read moreMy husband, Bill, and I just finished building a hoop house in our vegetable garden so we can grow veggies through the fall and winter months. A hoop house is a greenhouse that is covered with plastic rather than glass or polycarbonate panels. The goal was to create a structure that would cover two of our 3’ x 8’ raised […]
Read more‘Peppermint Stick’ chard (read about it and other vegetable varieties below) As promised, here is a report card on how the vegetable varieties I grew in my garden this year performed. Their grades are in parentheses. Artichoke: Green Globe – (A) This variety has more rounded heads and greener foliage. It was less productive and seemed more prone to aphids […]
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