Native Plants Sales in Progress

     Five years ago, I tore out almost all the native plants in my back yard and stupidly replaced them with rhodies which were promptly eaten up by root weevils. There have never been any root weevils in the front yard attacking my rhodies, but the back yard was a wild place where there once was Salmonberry, Thimbleberry, Indian Plum and other natives that I didn't have the sense to delight in. (Notice the heavy foresting in back of the fence.) After watching my transplants muddling about in the formerly forested back yard, I'm going back to natives. I never watered them - although I will have to water the new transplants for several years until they're rooted in - and they were a haven for birds.

     All of the Conservation districts will be having Native Plant Sales soon. They come in two parts:
PART 1: You get to Pre-Order plants in (mostly) groups of 10. You can print out a form from the various conservation websites and send in a check or use a credit card. Ten may seem like a lot of plants, but there will be some plant mortality and you can always share with friends. By pre-ordering, barring environmental catastrophes, you will have a much better chance of getting the plants you want. Pre-orders received will get filled in the order they came in. You'll receive a confirmation letter and you can pick up your plants ahead of the sale and avoid the last-minute crush.

PART II: If you only want to buy single plants or five Thimbleberry plants instead of ten, you can go on SALE DAY and brave the crowds. I was assured by a nice person at Thurston Conservation that parking is plentiful and it's not that crowded.

     Mason Conservation District Pre-orders go thru Monday, Jan. 11th. The Plant Sale is Saturday, February 20th between 10 am - 2 pm at the Mason County Fairgrounds. See their website for plant choices. Pre-Orders are sold (mostly) in bundles of 10; at the Saturday sale, you can buy single plants.

Thurston Conservation District Pre-orders go thru January 30th. Actual sale, where you can purchase single plants if there are any left of the popular varieties, is Saturday, February 20. See their website for time and place.

Here is the central website listing for all other WA state county extension offices:

     I'm going to try to fill that blank spot in the back yard with Red Flowering Currant, Salmonberry and perhaps a Vine Maple. Maybe attract more hummingbirds. I'm also a big fan of Bunchberry (Cornus canadensis) shown above, which are like miniature Pacific dogwood flowers.