Mary Fran McClure
Most Recent Stories
In the Garden: Square-foot gardening is a popular strategy
A compact garden that produces lots of food — that’s the concept of square-foot gardening. Let’s shorten the name to SFG. Coined by author Mel Bartholomew more than 20 years ago, it’s basically dividing raised beds into foot-sized increments and growing a quantity of vegetables or flowers in those small spaces.
In the Garden: Consider plants of winter interest
With a fresh new year underway, welcome to these cold and blustery days of winter! Absent the luxurious growth and flamboyant color of the growing season, this is the perfect time of year for re-evaluating what’s in your landscape. January presents an entirely different picture — revealing the real structure of your landscape.
In the Garden: Don’t let bamboo bamboozle you
There are types of bamboo hardy enough for our climate, but don’t get too excited and run out and buy just any bamboo. It’s best to thoroughly understand the difference between the “runners” and “clumpers” — the two types of the some 1,400 bamboo species. Surprisingly, bamboo is a grass, although it varies from petite 2-foot-tall species to timber bamboo, reaching up to 100 feet tall.
In the Garden: Problem trees
Leaves shimmering in the breeze, brilliant golden fall coloring, fast growth — what more could one want from a tree? Above ground, aspens are pretty easy to enjoy; below ground, those invasive, suckering roots are a challenge, making aspens among the list of problem trees. Problem trees are just that — problems. Before buying that cute, little 4- or 5-foot tree at the nursery, do some homework and find out if its mature size fits your needs and it doesn’t have other drawbacks, such as suckering, diseases or brittle branches.
In the Garden: Problem solvers answer your gardening questions
Powdery mildew, scorched leaves, brown spots in the lawn, anthracnose — have any of these headaches appeared in your landscape? These are among recent garden problems handled by the Master Gardener diagnostics clinic, where many similar questions come in batches. I recently visited a Monday clinic in the WSU Extension office and found four friendly folks handling diagnostics; Master Gardeners Linda Sarratt, Homer McNeill, Orv Vanderlin and intern Linda Morse. Clinics handle phone calls as well as walk-ins on Monday and Wednesday afternoons 1 to 4 p.m. at 400 Washington St.
In the Garden: Make ivy work for you, or avoid it altogether
English ivy is one of those plants we either love or hate — sometimes a bit of each. It grows quickly, offers a lush evergreen appearance and is easy to grow. The hate part is when it gets out of hand and sort of takes over the world (or at least the immediate yard). This Old World native was introduced to our Northwest, where it grows with abandon, especially on the cooler and wetter west side of the Cascades. Its aggressiveness transforms it into a weed that easily engulfs trees, yards, fences — even houses.
Problem looms for backyard fruit growers
You’ll know drosophila has arrived when your berries or soft fruit turn mushy and icky
Beware, a tiny species of fruit fly may beat you to your ripening fruit this year. The name, spotted wing drosophila (dro-soph-ila), may seem unpronounceable and foreign, but predictions are we gardeners will come to know it dreadfully well this summer. SW vinegar fly may be an easier name to remember (it’s attracted to vinegar).
A greenhouse visit will get your spring growing
Spring is definitely in full swing when visitors enter the magic of Grant Road Greenhouse. It’s practically filled wall to wall with vigorous young flower, vegetable and herb starts. This is Diane Hendricks’ second year of leasing the nursery at 2419 Grant Road, East Wenatchee. Her excitement and enthusiasm is contagious as she shows visitors around and helps them find exactly what they want.
In the Garden: Help your garden recover from freeze damage
Alive or dead? Repercussions from last winter’s capricious cold are showing up on many plants this spring. If your garden looks like ours, damage ranges from a few plants flat out dead to ones mostly living with a mix of healthy and blackened branches. I’m surprised how many shrubs and trees fared just fine, even though zero degrees and below hit before most plants had time to reach full dormancy last fall.
Sunnyslope family is serious about their blueberries
If a few is a good thing, then a lot must be better. Perhaps that’s why Brent Cunderla of Sunnyslope planted 30 blueberry bushes in his fenced backyard. He chose blueberries because of their healthy antioxidants; plus they’re tasty, and the family wanted something good to eat with a fairly long-fruiting season.