Meet James Golden, gardener and author of ‘The View from Federal Twist: A New Way of Thinking About Gardens, Nature and Ourselves’. James gardens in New Jersey, Zone 6b and shares photos and stories on his blog. His garden has been featured in numerous publications including The New York Times, Gardens Illustrated, the Financial Times, Horticulture, Elle Décor, and Better Homes and Gardens. What struggles did I face when starting my garden 15 years ago? My heavy, wet, saturated clay soil severely limited the range of plants I could grow, but by making the plants part of the solution—for example,… 

Meet Linda Cochran, a home gardener in Port Ludlow, Washington, Zone 8. She has embraced native plants in her gardening and strives to create beautiful, naturalistic gardens with natives. How long have I been gardening in Port Ludlow? Before moving to Port Ludlow, I had a large well known garden on Bainbridge Island which I created over the 20 years I lived there. Since moving to Port Ludlow in 2013, I have developed my much smaller garden, using a lot of natives that I grow from seed. It is not an exclusive native garden, however. I also spend a lot… 

Meet Kate Bodin, Executive Director of Portland Botanical Gardens, recently-retired instructor of horticulture at Portland Community College, and Registered Horticultural Therapist. Kate gardens in Portland in USDA Zone 8b, Sunset Zone 6. Additionally, Kate shared the plans for PBG in an online program which you can view below. What garden trends am I embracing in the future? I’m currently moving away from as much irrigation as possible and using more climate appropriate plants. It’s a long process and I may never completely give up some of my water hogging plants, but I’m in the midst of having the lawn and sunburned… 

Meet Scot Medbury, Executive Director of Sonoma Botanical Gardens. Scot has managed various public gardens including Brooklyn Botanic Garden and San Francisco Botanical Garden. Additionally, he is excited to share a new personal garden project on the southern Oregon Coast.  Scot currently gardens in Glen Ellen, CA (USDA Zone 9b; Sunset Zones 15 & 16) and Curry County, Oregon (USDA Zone 9b; Sunset Zone 17). What are some of the more unusual plants or genera that I am looking forward to growing in Curry County? Araliads, citrus, Maddenii series rhododendrons; select palms, tree ferns, bromeliads, proteas, and araucariads; mild-temperate Southern… 

Meet Darcy Daniels, garden designer and creator of eGardenGo, a resource she created to help gardeners easily choose beautiful plant combinations to reflect their personal style.  Darcy gardens in NE Portland, USDA Zone 8b, and we are excited to feature her profile on the HPSO blog so we can all get to know her better!  How did I become involved in gardening professionally? I’d always loved plants when I was growing up, but it wasn’t until I bought a house in 1998 that things changed. The house is a small bungalow, and when I moved in, it had no garden… 

Buying a property can be hit or miss when it comes to the garden. It’s rare to find a home with a beautifully maintained and established garden. Oftentimes the best-case scenario is a blank slate, a standard lawn, rather than struggling with a garden overgrown with weeds. But imagine buying a home whose previous owners were talented gardeners that had spent 30 years creating an established garden on the 1-acre property. That’s not to say Kathleen Shelman and her family haven’t made it their own. Ducks peep through the borders from their pen, artful sculptures and tokens adorn the garden,… 

The easy answer to creating a garden that looks just as good in January as it does in July is to plant more evergreens. But the skill comes in designing an evergreen garden that you want to enjoy for several months of the year without turning your backyard into an arborvitae-filled parking lot. Pomarius Nursery in Portland, Oregon, is a testament to that skill. The nursery is a prime example of how to use both tried-and-true evergreens and unique varieties in garden design to keep your garden looking fresh and modern – even through the winter. The wide range of… 

ARTICLE BY: BOB HYLAND Bob Hyland is a Portland-based garden designer and former HPSO board member. He sells an eclectic, contemporary assortment of outdoor garden pots at his shop Contained Exuberance next to Xera Plants in southeast Portland. Bob designs container displays and plant-driven gardens when not in his Shop. *** I love pairing pots and plants to boost a garden, outdoor patio, and business entrance in Portland’s summer-dry climate. Well-placed containers carrying artful plant combinations become focal points during the dog days of July and August. Granted, that’s easier for me to say and do with a shop full… 

ARTICLE BY: DARCY DANIELS HPSO member, Darcy Daniels is a renowned garden designer with Bloomtown® Gardens and creator of eGardenGo a web site that helps gardeners decide what to plant with what. Loaded with plant combination recipes, the site is perfect for gardeners at all levels — beginners as well as pros can find lots of fresh ideas and inspiration within its pages. Her gardens have been featured in many publications, and her home and client gardens have been included in numerous local, regional and national garden tours. *** In 1998, I was a completely novice gardener when I began…