By Kim Kelly and Cynthia Lafferty
Welcome to the Garden Palette — Eugene Weekly’s new monthly gardening column!
When my husband Ted and I first landed in Eugene many years ago, I became enamored with Rachel Foster’s monthly gardening column in the Weekly. Being new to the area, I absorbed all she had to say and put her ideas into action. Due to my inexperience, I had more mistakes than successes, but over time learned to go with the seasonal flow of Pacific Northwest weather. I also learned that plants, especially natives, were far more resilient to the fickleness of weather than I!
So I posed an idea to EW editor Camilla Mortensen to resurrect the column in a new format. Several gardeners with different interests and emphasis will be contributing on a rotating basis, organized by me.
Cynthia Lafferty of Doak Creek Native Plant Nursery, Alby Thoumsin, certified arborist from Sperry Tree Care, and John Fischer, master gardener on all things that grow, have all agreed to share their extensive knowledge with you. And Rachel herself will also pitch in from time to time. If you have specific questions you want answered, we can also fold those into the mix. Just email me at Gardening@EugeneWeekly.com.
Native plants are up first this month. After reading Cynthia’s column, I smiled at the “leaving leaves on the landscape.” I have been known to steal leaves from our neighbors for just that purpose. — Kim Kelly
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I first developed my love of plants and gardening from my grandmother. My love of wild places and native plants that grew there fostered the interest to grow them and help restore our disappearing natural habitats. I mentored with my sister and brother-in-law of Balance Restoration Nursery in Lorane. This is where I developed a passion and learning for the ways natives can be grown in pots and in the landscape. My brother-in-law suggested that my husband and I start a containerized native plant nursery in 1994.
Greetings, fellow plant lovers. I’m Cynthia Lafferty of Doak Creek Native Plant Nursery. The past 30 years have been a journey of learning these native plants and their habitats. I love sharing with people this great joy of bringing life and beauty back into their yards.
Here are some of the most common questions I am frequently asked about planting natives:
What to plant?
Well, many factors come into play here. In short, you want to imitate nature, choosing plants that would naturally grow in your location. If possible, include your upper canopy (trees), mid-canopy (bushes) and lower canopy (flowers and forbs). It takes approximately three years for a native landscape to flower and fruit, with some exceptions. Most of the native flowers will bloom the first year. It is very beneficial to plant your flowers that bloom in succession.
Do native plants need fertilizer?
No, native plants don’t need additional fertilizer. However, a newly planted native benefits from a shovelful of compost to help increase bioactivity in the soil. What we have found to work well is the blended mint compost from Lane Forest or Love Food Not Waste compost from Rexius.
After planting, it’s always beneficial to mulch with an inch or two of woody material (some leaves are OK), like hemlock bark mulch (no slivers) or wood chips from your local tree trimmers. Tree trimming mulch has all parts of the trees and the plants love it.
The benefits of mulch are numerous. Mulching imitates nature by enriching soil nutrients and promotes microbial activity. Without mulch, 75 percent of your soil moisture is lost. Mulch protects the soil from extreme heat and cold. Mulch suppresses weeds for the first year or two.
Leaving the fall leaves on your beds is important because many beneficial insects use this to overwinter. Plants are healthier with mulch. There are a few different ways to prep an area for planting, whether it’s lawn removal, incorporating into your existing landscape, or invasive remediation that I can share in a future column. — Cynthia Lafferty
The Gardening Palette is coordinated by Kim Kelly. Have a gardening question or tip? Email Gardening@EugeneWeekly.com.
