Look for new NPKS around town!

This one is on Polk.  We also just installed one on Conifer.

The Joy of Gardening Moves Indoors

December is the month to enjoy your winter garden, a warm cup of tea, and the new seed catalogs that grace your mailbox among the many holiday cards and catalogs.

Also consider starting members of the onion family like chives, leeks, onions, scallions or members of the rose family like alpine strawberries indoors with added light and heat so they will be ready to plant outside in early spring.  Ind

Or maybe you decide to start some slower-growing flowers like geraniums, snapdragons, yarrow, or violas to transplant under a cloche in late March.

Invite Wildlife into your Garden

Provide water not only for birds, but also for predatory insects.  A shallow bowl with rocks in it helps both birds and insects get a sip.  In the winter, check the water every morning and thaw it out with warm water if it freezes.

Provide shelter for wildlife.  Bird houses are lovely, but a rotten log, stump, or snag can be a home for birds and insects, too.  Don’t clean everything out of your garden over the winter; a bit of grass, a pile of rocks can be a home for insects.

Provide habitat.  Plant natives and berry shrubs in your garden along with vege-tables, herbs, and flowers.  This provides a habitat for both birds and insects.  As a bonus, the birds help you out in summer by eating pest insects.

Reduce, Reuse, Recycling and Rot in the December Garden

The 4 Rs — reduce, reuse, recycle and rot — are ways of eliminating waste which helps combat climate change by reducing  greenhouse gas emissions.  The 4Rs can also help you save money and improve your garden.  Here are some ways to use them in your yard and garden in December: 

Reduce water runoff during heavy rains. Find ways to capture rainwater and allow it to soak in slowly. Consider rain gardens, bioswales, tanks, and simple depressions that can hold water short term.  This also recharges groundwater for later use and prevents flooding downstream by slowing the flow of stormwater.  Here are a couple of fun links to explore - https://www.portlandoregon.gov/bes/article/188636 https://www.slideshare.net/Sotirakou964/oregon-rain-garden-guide 

Reuse your poinsettia next year by repotting and cutting back the stems in March.  See- https://www.extension.iastate.edu/news/yard-and-garden-handling-christmas-trees-and-poinsettias-following-holidays 

and 

https://today.oregonstate.edu/news/start-now-get-beautiful-poinsettias-holidays for more information on how to do this.

Recycle your fireplace ash by spreading wood ashes evenly on your vegetable garden. Use no more than 1.5 pounds per 100 square feet per year. Don't use if the soil pH is greater than 7.0 or if potassium levels are excessive. 

Recycle your Christmas tree by placing it in your yard as shelter for birds and wildlife. Hang fruit slices, seed cakes or suet bags for extra food.  Alternatively, trim the boughs to use as a winter mulch.

Improve your Rot (compost) by turning it and protecting it from heavy rains, if necessary.

From Benton County Master Gardeners -

Membership meetings:  3rd Monday Oct. to May 7:00pm Benton County Extension office.

Plant sale:  May 6 at the Benton County Fairgrounds