One of the markers of the start of every new gardening season is the annual Yard, Garden and Patio Show, produced by the Oregon Association of Nurseries.  What a visual extravaganza of sights and fragrances to bolster the spirits on these cold winter days.  It is an inspiring experience to see the plant combinations used in the many display gardens, and to see some of the new garden gadgets available.  I always peruse the speaker schedule, finding several that pique my interest.

Farmington Gardens will be showcasing some of our favorites, so stop in and say hello.  And pick up an FG discount coupon to bring back here for your spring shopping.

Oregon Convention Center, February 12 – 14

Tickets are available at the door, or online at http://www.ygpshow.com/.

I follow the Kitchen Gardeners International webpage (http://www.kitchengardeners.org/).  Their mission is “to empower individuals, families, and communities to achieve greater levels of food self-reliance through the promotion of kitchen gardening, home-cooking, and sustainable local food systems. In doing so, KGI seeks to connect, serve, and expand the global community of people who grow some of their own food.” 

And there’s more:  “With the world in the grips of intersecting food, fuel, financial and environmental crises, it is clear that we need to make a shift in the way we eat and live. Kitchen gardens, food gardens, Victory Gardens – whatever term you prefer – have been an important part of our past and will play an even more critical role in the future as we work to feed a growing world population using a dwindling and increasingly polluted natural resource base. Over the past 100 years, we have lost a great deal of cultural knowledge about the production, preservation, preparation and enjoyment of healthy, whole foods. The good news is that we can bring it back and help those who would like to have a healthier, closer relationship with their food to do so.”

That’s a tall order, but I’m an optimist, so I think these societal changes are possible.  I am encouraged by the interest we’ve seen this year in edible gardening – it is obvious that our customers are interested in being more self-reliant when it comes to feeding their families.  And please remember that Farmington Gardens is here as a resource to help you along in this venture.

Kitchen Gardeners International has marked August 23 as Kitchen Garden Day — an annual celebration of food produced on a human-scale. It is an opportunity for people around the world to gather in their gardens with friends, family, and members of their local community to celebrate the multiple pleasures and benefits of home-grown, hand-made foods.

So, here are our suggestions for activities for the day:

• invite your friends or neighbors together for a backyard feast from your collective gardens – it feels great to feast on the bounty of your own garden!
• organize walking tours of the neighborhood gardens, so that you can see how each gardener incorporates edibles into the landscape
• arrange for a vegetable exchange with your neighbors – trade surplus produce over the fence.
• visit the terrific display garden at the Washington County fairgrounds which is maintained by master gardeners
• take the beautiful drive to Champoeg State Park and visit their pioneer kitchen garden and apple orchard with heirloom varieties; and bring your bikes, because there are some great bike trails!
• stop by Farmington Gardens to see how our demonstration vegetable garden is producing – the tomatoes, peppers and eggplant are loaded with ripening fruit; the cucumber trellis has vines clambering up its sides; the Red Russian kale is billowing in the breezes…come check it all out!

And remember, NOW is a great time to stick some seeds and starts in the ground for your fall and winter harvest.  Refer back to our earlier post on appropriate fall veggies….

Here’s to self-sufficiency!!

Le Tour des Plants is fast becoming an annual regional event that gardeners have come to anticipate.  Participating independent garden centers plan interesting classes, demonstrations, and special give-aways to celebrate the fall garden season.  Did you know that  Fall is The Best Time to plant trees, shrubs, and perennials?  Well, it is — the soil is still warm and  nurturing and, combined with the autumn rains, plants have a much easier time getting established.  In Oregon we are blessed with long mild autumns, so it is still a rich and abundant time in the garden. 

Stop in and pick up your free official program - complete with maps, schedule of events, and passport.  In order to participate in the Le Tour drawing for some fabulous prizes, you will want to get your passport stamped at each garden center you visit during Le Tour.  The more you visit, the higher value prizes you are eligible for!   Top prize is valued at over $600.

Le Tour des Plants runs September 12 -20.  Here is what we have going on at Farmington Gardens – we hope you will stop by and say hello!

All Week - Hot New Plants from Terra Nova – Check out our week-long showcase of exciting new perennials from Terra Nova Nursery.

 Saturday, September 12 — 11 AM – 4 PM     7^th Annual Tomato Festival

• Free tomato tasting, over 80 varieties, all locally grown
• 11 AM – Chef Dan Brophy cooks up tomato recipes – taste samples!
• 1 PM – Tomato Talk – learn how to grow your own, and which are the best varieties for this climate
• 2 PM – Chef Dan returns for a second cooking segment – more great samples!
• Red Ridge Farms local olive oil tasting throughout the day
• Check our website for all the day’s activities

 Sunday, September 13  1 PM – 3 PM     Preserving the Harvest, with Chef Dan Brophy from the Oregon Culinary Institute

Take advantage of the abundant harvest – from your own garden or the farmer’s market!  Chef Dan Brophy, of the Oregon Culinary Institute, will show you how easy it is to preserve food for the winter.  He will have information on dehydration, root cellars, and infusions, but will focus most of his time on the art and science of canning.  Once you master these techniques, your family will truly be living local, in a sustainable and healthy way!  Space is limited and registration required; call 503-649-4568.  Free class.

 Friday, September 18     1 PM;  $35      Green and Edible Wall Art, with Landscape Designer Lisa Annand

During this hands-on workshop, you will construct a beautiful vertical garden – your choice of edibles or succulents.  This thoroughly chic “green wall art” would look great on a deck, handy for picking and enjoying!  Space is limited and registration required; call 503-649-4568.

 Saturday, September 19    3 PM; $10     Girlfriends’ Afternoon Getaway  ~ Awesome Au Courant Fall Container Gardens, with Laura Nash and Marinda Parks from Farmington Gardens

Grab your best friend or your mom, and join us for a gardening afternoon.  Enjoy nibblies and a glass of sparkling wine while Laura and Doris inspire you with their container garden creations!  You will leave with “recipe cards” for each of their collections, as well as lots of trendy ideas for fall containers.  Space is limited and registration required; call 503-649-4568.

 Sunday, September 20    1 PM     Great New Perennials for Your Garden

Larry Finley from Terra Nova Nursery will introduce us to some fantastic new perennials.  Larry offers a very entertaining discussion about where these plants originated; how Terra Nova developed them for commercial markets; and most importantly, how best to use them in your own garden.  Class registration is limited to 50 – please call 503-649-4568 to sign up.  As an added bonus, Larry will bring a special gift for everyone in the class!

 Specials

•  One free 1 gal Terra Nova Coreopsis ‘Autumn Blush’ or ‘Gold Nugget’ with purchase of any 1 gal or larger Terra Nova merchandise.  One per customer please.  While supplies last!
• 50% off regular priced select containers and container gardens.  While supplies last!

Neighborhood House is a local non-profit that we support as often as we can – they are doing some terrific work in Portland serving low-income children, families and seniors.  So when they asked us to help them get the word out about their annual fundraiser, we are only too happy to help – especially since this event showcases a spectacular garden!

Their Summer Garden Party will be held on Friday, July 10th, at 6:30 pm, again  this year at Duckridge Farm.  Located in the West Hills of NW Portland, Duckridge Farm is Oregon’s largest private garden, and is listed in the Smithsonian Institute’s Archive of Gardens.  The house is styled after French country farmhouses, and is bordered by an 85-acre property and stunning gardens. 

Chefs David Barber of Hillsdale’s Three Square Grill, Kevin Sandri of Garden State Cart in Sellwood and Mark Doxtader of Tastebud Farm will prepare a summer feast celebrating the region’s finest foods, harvested at the peak of the season.  Listen to live music from local band, Rhythm Dogs, while you stroll through impressive gardens enjoying local wines and conversation with friends old and new.

Tickets are $75 per person, and available by calling Tia Sherry at Neighborhood House at (503) 246-1663 x 118; or email her at tsherry@nhweb.org.

I think I’ve said this before – touring private gardens is a really fun thing to do!  It is always interesting to me to see the way different gardeners use different materials and plant combinations – no two gardens are alike.

Another opportunity for this kind of an excursion is coming up next month:  The Washington County Master Gardener Association is hosting their 2009 Tour of Gardens, and I encourage you to take advantage of the chance to see some master gardener’s home gardens.  They are showcasing seven inspiring gardens with a focus on sustainable gardening practices for both ornamentals and edibles.

Free admission to this tour on Saturday, June 27th, 10 am to 4 pm, rain or shine.  Stop in here to pick up your tour guide.  For more information, call 503-821-1150.

The Friends of the Rogerson Clematis Collection are holding their second annual benefit, Inviting Vines II, on Saturday, May 23rd, and you can purchase your $20 tickets here.  See how local gardeners grow these unique and beautiful vines – from a few well-chosen clematis cohabitating in mixed borders and containers to gardens beset by clematis mania.  The tour will include:

• The lush and colorful borders at Phyllis McCanna and Gary Smith’s garden.
• Nancy and Ron Gronowski’s verdant woodland garden, which is framed by two 60-year old dogwoods, firs and hemlocks accented by specimen shrubs and perennials.
• A red barn focal point in the large, country garden of Charlene and Bill Tuttle where large mixed borders consort with vegetables, berries and a small orchard.
• Nancy Dunis’ eclectic garden of themed plantings augmented with colorful object d’art.
• A 50’ totem pole carved from a recently deceased cedar tree in Judy Dauble’s one acre garden filled with beautifully maintained mature trees and shrubs and vintage structures.

The Rogerson Clematis Collection garden is open year round and makes an ideal gardener excursion – it is located at Luscher Farm, 125 Rosemont Road in West Linn.  Check their website to see what is in bloom before you head out.

If you have never been on a local garden tour, I encourage you to take advantage of one this year. It is so interesting to poke around someone’s backyard, seeing how they live and use their garden spaces. You take away tons of inspirational tidbits.

Metro hosts the popular Gardens of Natural Delights tour. This year’s program features four geographically focused mini-tours. Each event will showcase three organic home gardens plus a public demonstration garden with seminars and free resources. You will see incredible edibles, a naturescape and a small four-season blossom bonanza at the first tour, scheduled in the Hillsboro area.

The dates of the tours are:

• March 23 in Hillsboro area, registration opens March 23
• June 13 in Gresham area; registration opens May 4
• June 28 on Oregon City area; registration opens May 18
• July 19 in Lake Oswego area; registration opens June 8

You may register for up to two tours at a time. Call Metro to register or for more information: 503-234-3000. Grab a friend and make a day of it – you’ll be glad you did!