Pacific Horticulture |

Planting in the Shadowlands

October 14, 2015

Creating a beautiful and well-designed understory can be a challenging and daunting task in the dry summer climate of the Pacific Northwest. Often, an evergreen

Garden Allies: Ants

October 1, 2007

Ants…As Allies? In Aesop’s fable, the ant is held up as a paragon of industry. Carpenters, weavers, gardeners, harvesters, drivers, and honeypot ants all uphold

Smith-Mossman Western Azalea Garden

April 1, 2010

Britt Smith and Frank Mossman were passionate about our native, deciduous West Coast azalea (Rhododendron occidentale). The Smith-Mossman Western Azalea Garden, at Lake Wilderness Arboretum in Maple Valley, Washington is the largest collection of Rhododendron occidentale selections in the world, with over 200 selections represented, all originally collected by Smith and Mossman.

Drought Tolerant and Shrubby Jasmines for West Coast Gardens

August 6, 2012

There’s more to jasmine than delicate tendrils and sweet perfume. Explore these hardy forms which lend substance, structure, and colorful blossoms to West Coast gardens.

Making a Garden

April 14, 2020

Greg Shepherd is an avid plant collector and nurseryman. Together with Paul Bonine, Greg is the co-owner of Xera Plants, a retail nursery and wholesale

Open for Viewing… Vancouver Island Garden Gem

April 1, 2003

The Milner Gardens and Woodland is a seventy-acre garden gem in Qualicum Beach, on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia. The property lies within an area of mild, semi-mediterranean climate centered in the southern Strait of Georgia. The weather in this area is strongly influenced by its proximity to the Pacific Ocean and its position in a rain shadow on the leeward side of the island’s mountain ranges.

A Winning Year

January 1, 2001

The year 2000 brought Pacific Horticulture awards to three garden design firms participating in garden shows on the West Coast. Our awards program, begun in 1998, was established to help garden show visitors—and readers of our journal—to recognize and appreciate quality garden design and appropriate horticultural choices for West Coast gardens. Our awards at the Northwest and San Francisco Flower & Garden Shows are given to the gardens “best demonstrating the regional nature of garden design.”