garden Archives – Spokane County Library District

Helpful Spring Gardening Programs, Informative Books & the Latest from the Master Gardeners

Posted in Explore and Discover on April 11, 2023 at 6:00 am

By Crystal Miller Spring is upon us and that means there’s a new crop of gardening programs on offer at our libraries, fresh gardening books on our shelves, and seed libraries to visit. Our long-time community partner, the WSU Extension Spokane County Master Gardeners, has been presenting gardening programs and hosting a plant clinic at […]

3 Easy Gardening Projects to Tackle This Spring, Plus Helpful Programs for Gardeners

Posted in Explore and Discover on February 16, 2022 at 6:00 am

These three gardening projects for the 2022 season are a bit more urban in nature than for those with vegetable gardens: dividing perennials, adding a second rain barrel, and creating a container herb garden. Check out the library's gardening resources & upcoming programs to see your projects come to life. […]

Winter preparation for your spring garden

Posted in Explore and Discover on February 17, 2021 at 9:00 am

BY ABRA COLE Gardening season is fast approaching. Whether you’re planning your second or first pandemic garden, or if you’ve been gardening for years, the library is here for you! Late winter is an ideal time for garden planning. It may be too early to start seeds in the still-frozen soil, but it’s not too […]

Tags: adults, garden, gardening, kids, teens

Drought-tolerant yard project: Researching, planning, digging & planting

Posted in Explore and Discover on October 7, 2020 at 6:00 am

By Jane Baker I didn’t mow the front yard all summer. This is just one of the benefits of installing a drought-tolerant landscape, a project I started researching in 2018 and took on in 2019. In creating a new landscape, especially one without grass, I learned a lot about plants, climate, and drainage, but the […]

Green looks good on you: Digital resources for gardening

Posted in News on March 18, 2020 at 6:00 am

Whether you’re new to gardening or looking to spruce up your spring and summer gardens, you’re bound to find the ideas, information, and help you need with these digital resources. Hobbies & Crafts Reference Center Find creative gardening ideas and how-to instructions for many gardening projects and topics, including these and more from Hob […]

The art of saving seeds

Posted in Explore and Discover on July 31, 2018 at 6:00 am

by Abra Cole In a remote vault located halfway between mainland Norway and the North Pole, nearly one million seed varieties are stored. The purpose of this immense storage facility is to ensure the genetic future of these seed varieties, should any of the gene banks located around the world suffer catastrophic disaster. One hundred […]

Anticipation and inspiration: Getting ready for spring gardening

Posted in Explore and Discover on February 27, 2018 at 6:00 am

by Abra Cole It’s nearly Go Time, my gardening friends! We’ve almost made it through the winter, through the snow and the ice, through the below-freezing temperatures. We have watched last summer’s plants freeze and die back, disappear under a blanket of snow, and get stomped on (along with other indecencies) by neighborhood cats. We […]

Overabundance: What to do when the produce is piling up

Posted in Explore and Discover on September 7, 2017 at 6:00 am

By Susan Goertz This spring, I bought a house with a lovely little backyard. At the time, it was pretty hard to tell what was growing back there—just what looked like lots of promising looking twigs and buds. As spring warmed into summer, my vegetative bounty slowly revealed itself. Every new discovery was a delight […]

Sharing your harvest’s bounty at library produce swaps

Posted in Explore and Discover on August 8, 2017 at 6:00 am

by Gwendolyn Haley My eyes are bigger than my freezer and pantry. Every year, I plant a little garden, only to be overwhelmed when everything starts to ripen at once. My family starts to groan and say, “No more… beans, tomatoes, squash” and so on. Each spring, I underestimate just how much produce will come […]

Building and planting next year’s garden

Posted in Explore and Discover on September 13, 2016 at 6:00 am

By David Wyatt Earlier this summer when it was still scorching, I fenced off a portion of our yard to keep our new raised-bed garden out of reach of our two mutts. The dogs were not pleased to have lost some of their lawn. Too exhausted from the heat to do any more, I took […]

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