A Taste of Fall in the Northwest: Cream of Wild Mushroom Soup
Earlier this month, as I walked into the West Seattle PCC, I saw a display of freshly foraged wild mushrooms, a sure sign that fall and the
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Welcome!
Whether you are a gardener, an Outlander fan, a West Seattle resident, or someone tuning in for the latest episode of Sound Transit and West Seattle Bridge drama, I hope you find something useful here.
Blog Posts
Marie McKinsey
- Dec 10, 2022
- 2 min
Chihuly Garden and Glass Seattle
There really is nothing quite like the Chihuly Garden, one half of the Chihuly Garden and Glass exhibit at Seattle Center.
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Marie McKinsey
- Dec 9, 2022
- 3 min
7 Things for Seattle Gardeners To Do in Winter
Yes, its rainy, windy and sometimes snowy. The ground is too soggy for digging. But that doesn't mean there aren't plenty of satisfying gard
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Marie McKinsey
- Nov 6, 2022
- 2 min
Give Your Lawn an Environmental Make-over
From an environmental point of view, what it takes to maintain a typical lawn is a nightmare.
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Marie McKinsey
- Nov 5, 2022
- 2 min
Leave Those Leaves!
The biggest lesson we have to learn from climate change is that we can't keep doing things the way we always have been
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Marie McKinsey
- May 21, 2022
- 2 min
Coloring Music
Early in my landscape design career, I learned that adding color to drawings was important if I wanted to sell my work.
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Marie McKinsey
- May 8, 2022
- 3 min
A Bit of West Seattle Garden Tour History
In the spring of 1995, a group of West Seattle gardeners brought us the first West Seattle Garden Tour (WSGT).
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Marie McKinsey
- Sep 24, 2021
- 2 min
Find Out by Zip Code How Much CO2 Your Neighborhood Emits
We've heard for decades that increasing population density is good for the environment. The theory is that it discourages suburban sprawl,
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Marie McKinsey
- Sep 11, 2021
- 2 min
A Fresh Look for the Arboretum at South Seattle College
I was a landscape design student at South Seattle College in the early 1990s. The Arboretum was our outdoor classroom, where we took classes
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Marie McKinsey
- Mar 6, 2021
- 2 min
How to Calculate Storm Water Run-off from Your Property
The EPA estimates that over 770 cities in the US combine waste water and stormwater in the same pipe and send it to sewage treatment...
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Marie McKinsey
- Jul 18, 2016
- 2 min
Create a Bee Friendly Garden
Without bees, we wouldn't have much to eat and we would have far fewer herbs
and flowers to enjoy.
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Marie McKinsey
- Jun 26, 2016
- 1 min
Tillandsias
Tillandsias are air plants, members of the Bromeliad family. They are native to Central and South America, the southern US and the Caribbean
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Marie McKinsey
- Mar 15, 2016
- 2 min
Le Jardin Luxembourg - Paris
In 1613, Marie de Medici began building her "dream home," a palace in Paris in the style of Pitti Palace in Florence, the city where she gre
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Marie McKinsey
- Nov 24, 2013
- 2 min
I'll Bet You've Never Eaten a Yam
the perennial question comes up - is a yam the same thing as a sweet potato? I've wondered about this for as long as I can remember and this
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Marie McKinsey
- Jul 9, 2013
- 1 min
What Is the Difference Between a Fruit and a Vegetable?
When people find out that a tomato is a fruit, not a vegetable, they are usually surprised. They think of fruits as being sweet and vegetabl
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Marie McKinsey
- Apr 16, 2012
- 1 min
Comely Camellias
Two types of camellias grow well in the Seattle area: Camellia japonica and its smaller, daintier cousin, Camellia sasanqua.
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Marie McKinsey
- Apr 15, 2012
- 1 min
Get to Know the Lily of the Valley Shrubs
Lily of the Valley Shrubs (Pieris japonica) are graceful, slow growing shrubs that are popular in the Seattle area, and for good reasons.
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Marie McKinsey
- Feb 2, 2012
- 2 min
Heavenly Hellebores
Hellebores add an exotic touch to the winter garden. Their elegant flowers begin to emerge in late January, and depending on the variety, wi
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Marie McKinsey
- Aug 10, 2011
- 2 min
Seattle Rain
My favorite book by local author, Tom Robbins, is "Still Life with Woodpecker." I have a well-worn copy that was given to me as a gift in...
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Marie McKinsey
- Jul 26, 2011
- 1 min
Can You Grow Kiwi Fruit in Seattle?
What you see above are newly set kiwi fruits I found growing near my house when I was out for my walk this morning.
Here are some things
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