Podcast Archive – A Dry Rain: Gardening In The Pacific Northwest and Beyond

We have been barely poking our heads out into the podcast realm this summer. Our gardens are taking too much time. Sorry for that. But here is an interesting tale for your listening pleasure. Summer is hot in the Northwest. The bugs are buzzing and the weeds are popping. Even aquatic weeds are blooming. Greg … Continue reading Aquatic Noxious Weeds →

Greg Rabourn visits the Vashon Cares Community Garden and chats with some Master Gardeners.

Marty Wingate and Steve Scher take a look at the big trees in the pots at Sky Nursery in Shoreline, WA. Cut the roots, make a big hole and keep the the tree watered for a few summers to make sure it thrives.

Tips for planting annnuals, tips for great plants to pick on this episode of A Dry Rain. Marty Wingate and Steve Scher are back at Sky Nursery in Shoreline, Washington to take a look at annuals you can, Marty might say you must, add to your pots for color and texture. Her advice, GO BIG! … Continue reading Plans For Pots? Go Big! →

Greg Rabourn talks to education specialist Sasha Shaw of the King County Noxious Weed Program. There’s a new list of state noxious weeds for 2015. It’s just like the Emmy Awards, but even more noxious. The government sees the list as an organizing tool to try and figure which sweet little plant might just hide … Continue reading The One Hundred Plants You Don’t Want Anywhere Near Your Garden! (Though they are probably already there) →

Steve scher talks with Michael Pollan about his garden. Michael Pollan is the author of a number of influential books about food, culture and healthy eating. Through all his years of writing about our need to understand the foods we eat and our need to put the nation on a healthier diet, he has maintained … Continue reading Michael Pollan, Gardener →

Some listeners sent in great questions, about plants that needed identification and about varieties to grow. We share our answers with all of you and Willi Galloway continues to share her ideas for how to plant a community garden plot for maximum fun and benefit. Please send us more questions, to Facebook, to Twitter to … Continue reading Your Questions and More Community Garden Strategies →

Willi Galloway, Greg Rabourn, Steve Scher and Mary Wingate started wandering around the spring flowers popping open. That somehow wound its way to rain gardens and much more. Seattle Public Utility Rain Garden Program Portland Rain Garden Promgram Snohomish County Rain Gardens Below find the recent press release from SPU including upcoming workshops. 14,000 Seattle … Continue reading Spring Flowers and Rain Garden Rebates →

Plant breeders have been cultivating and manipulating marijuana genes for years. With the industry now above ground, gardeners are getting a look into the agricultural operations around marijuana breeding. Greg Rabourn concludes his tour of a marijuana breeding operation with Michael a marijuana seed breeder on Vashon Island. His company is Vashon Seed and Mercantile. … Continue reading Marijuana Agriculture on Vashon Island (Part 2) →

What is your favorite bug? Is that question an oxymoron for you? Marty Wingate talks to Jessica Walliser about her book,”Attracting Beneficial Bugs To Your Garden.” Get beyond that common feeling of stomping on bugs. Jessica reminds us that the bugs are not the enemy. As organic gardeners, it is easy to see how insects … Continue reading Beneficial Bugs For The Garden →

How do you maintain a community garden plot when you know you can’t get there often? Willi Galloway offers some tips on what to plant in order to make your garden neighbors happy and your harvest rich. Where is your garden plot? What are your strategies? Share some thoughts and some pictures. Post on Facebook, … Continue reading Strategies For A Community Garden Plot When You Can’t Always Be There. →

Steve Scher and Marty Wingate tour the showy shrub area of Sky Nursery. The leaves are gone and the structure and color of the stems reveal themselves. Cornus Sanguinea ‘Mid-Winter Fire’ Some of the other plants we discussed: Winter Blooming Camellia Cornus Stolonifera Viburnum Tinus Witch Hazel ‘Jelena’ Thuja Plicata ‘Whipcord’ Corylopsis Pauciflora ‘Buttercup Winter … Continue reading The Red Stems of Winter Dogwoods and Some Surprises →

Marty Wingate takes Greg Rabourn and Steve Scher for a tour of the award winning professional gardens at the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. Take a walk with us. You can find out more about the winners and the garden show here.

We seem to be staying inside this week, looking at catalogues, staring out the window and making plans for new garden beds. We also get ready for a tour of the Northwest Flower and Garden Show. Why attend garden shows, anyways? Do you attend garden shows? What do you enjoy most? Write us at adryrain@gmail.com, … Continue reading Garden Planning, Gearing up for Garden Shows →

Steve Scher and Marty Wingate visit Sky nursery on the podcast, this time to learn about heaths and heathers. Also, the suburbs are a haven for variety of bird species. You just provide the habitat. University of Washington Wildlife Scientist John Marzluff, author of “Welcome to Subirdia,” shares ten steps you can take to expand … Continue reading Plant For Color and Birds →