From Football to Farming

This is Duke’s first year as one of three UW Farm student staff. Originally from Woodinville, WA, Duke was on the University of Washington football team his freshman year. During that first season as a Husky, he sustained a back injury that ended his playing career. However, he continues to be connected to the team, working as part of the UW Football film crew that tapes games and practices. 

Grown for their delicate showy flowers rather than pungent leaves, the ornamental oreganos deserve a place in Pacific Northwest gardens.

1)  Rubus armeniacus, Himalayan blackberry

This notorious invasive species was introduced to Washington in the late 1800s for its delicious and prolific berries.
It is often found in disturbed areas and has adapted to wet, dry, sunny, and shady conditions.

2)  Rubus leucodermis, blackcap raspberry

This species, native to the West Coast, is known for the dusty white/blue coating on older stems and its arching habit. 

1)   Fuchsia magellanica

This is the hardiest of the fuchsia species, and the parent of most hardy fuchsia hybrids.
F. magellanica is native to Chile and Argentina and can reach ten feet in height in moist, frost-protected areas.
This and all featured fuchsias can be found in the Chilean Entry Garden, part of the Pacific Connections Gardens at the southern end of the Washington Park Arboretum. 

This western native shrub will spice up your garden with showy burgundy flowers in June.

Corinne Kennedy was not an early-blooming gardener. As a teenager, she was adamant that her parents couldn’t make her do “yard work.” Fortunately, after buying her first house years later, she discovered that gardening was a great way to relax from her coordinator position at Metro Transit. It was a “good job,” but the realities of sump pumps, exhaust fans, and other equipment were far removed from her interests, passions, and education (a Whitman College BA in English Literature, and a University of Washington BA in Women Studies). 

The Council on Botanical and Horticultural Libraries (CBHL) announced the 2019 Annual Literature Awards on May 17th at the Desert Botanical Garden in Phoenix.  The winners are:

Annual Literature Award: Seeking Eden: A Collection of Georgia’s Historic Gardens
Award of Excellence in Botanical Art and Illustration: Joseph Banks’ Florilegium: Botanical Treasures from Cook’s First Voyage
Award of Excellence in Botany and Floras: Flora of the Chicago Region: A Floristic and Ecological Synthesis
Award of Excellence in Children and Young Adults Literature: The Girl Who Drew Butterflies: How Maria Merian’s Art Changed Science
Award of Excellence in Gardening and Gardens: Heirloom Vegetable Gardening: A Master Gardener’s Guide to Planting, Seed Saving, and Cultural History
Award of Excellence in History: Gardens of the Roman Empire

Several UW Botanic Gardens current and former staff had a role in these awards.  

The bark of this tree is lightweight, impermeable, elastic, and a great insulator. Humans have used it to close up wine bottles for centuries.

I was walking around the grounds at the Center for Urban Horticulture last week looking for a plant to feature in the May edition of our Plant Profiles. While walking through the Fragrance Garden a really cool-looking rhododendron caught my eye, just about to bloom. Little did I know just how cool this rhododendron was until I started researching it! Rhododendron edgeworthii is a species rhododendron and belongs to the lepidote (scaly leaved) group. 

1)   Acer palmatum ‘Beni otake’                          “Big Red Bamboo”

This linearilobum type of Japanese maple has long, strap-like lobes to its leaves and an upright-layered form.
Fall color of this maple is deep crimson and can be seen next to parking lot 11 in the Woodland Garden.

2)   Acer palmatum ’Shigitatsu sawa’        “Snipes, quacking, flying up from a swamp”

This variegated Japanese maple of the Amoenum type has a pale yellow blade, divided by deep green veins with a pale pinkish blush at the lobe tips.