Have you ever had home-made blackberry jam? On toast, sandwiches, or cornbread this is one of my absolute favorites. This bounty comes with a price. Thorns, and I’m talking clothes ripping, hand pricking, blood letting thorns. And I swear these snaky tendrils reach out and grab you when you’re not looking. Think your free? Walk away, nope, that one was around your bare ankle.

These, of course were the Himalayan Rubus discolor Blackberries. A Non-native species to the Northwest. This plant is by far the most prolific producer of fruit. And, as I’ve stated, are so darn good. Find a good jam recipe, or make a pie. Mmmm. Ok, for the connoisseur. There is, in smaller patches, another species of blackberry. This is the Trailing Blackberry Dewberry Rubus ursinus. And it is a native. You can tell by the flowers, which are like little star bursts rather than the rounded petals of the Himalayan. There are rolling blankets of these blooms all over our property right now. Beautiful. These little gems need to be picked one by one and savored on the spot. These are truly that good. When you hit a patch that is just at the absolute almost falling off in your hand ripeness there is truly nothing better. Enjoy!

There is also the Black Raspberry Rubus leucodermis or Blackcap. The way you tell the difference from this and a blackberry is this. Blackcaps or raspberries pull away hollow. Blackberries (Himalayan) are not hollow. Trailing Blackberry Rubus ursinus our tasty native has a tri-leaf configuration and the flowers go from white to pink. Because the male and female plants are separate. You may find large patches with no fruit (male).

Pete Skenandore
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Here in the Northwest we only have a dozen or so which is what makes them so special.  From the Mountain Ladyslipper Cypripedium montanum to the Heart Leaved Twayblade Listera cordata.  These aren’t the flashy, impress your date corsage orchids, and you may just not even notice some of them unless you are looking real hard, or, like in my case, get lucky.  All are deserving of up-close inspection to enjoy their delicate intricacies. Please note that many of our orchids have established complex relationships between their roots and other fungi in the forest floor.  Please make sure to take care when observing.

I discovered the Po-mac about a decade ago. Po-mac being slang for the authors of Plants of the Pacific Northwest Coast written by Jim Pojar and Andy MacKinnon. There are other books on the subject, but this is my all time favorite for this region. A favorite family pastime has been to grab this book, grab some snacks, and explore, on a hike, in a vacant lot, or even in the back yard. My kids have been caught reading this book all on their own. It’s got great pictures, and great facts. This book has been invaluable in encouraging our kids to go hiking. We have many precious memories of our native plant treasure hunts. If you are interested in owning a copy you can pick it up at here for around $18.00. It’s worth every penny!

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This herbaceous perennial grows in moist woods from sea level to mid-elevations west of the Cascades.  Pacific bleeding heart grows 10-20 inches tall in full to part shade.  The seeds have a small fat deposit (white) that encourages ants to harvest and thereby transport the seeds around the forest floor. Try pinching the flowers to encourage summer long blooming.  If you are lucky enough to live in the Cascade foothills there are plenty of alpine hikes to be taken where you can enjoy these native beauties first hand.  But you better get out quick!  You will enjoy their light pink to purple hues.  On one very special family hike along the I-90 corridor from Seattle I spotted a super rare white patch. That was neat. If you find them please remember the “look but don’t touch” rule. And tell them I said hi!

MY HEART BLEEDS FOR YOU

If your mother would break out the worlds tiniest violin and play this song for you then raise your hand. If you want some of these beauties in your garden then raise your green thumb! You can contact the Washington Native Plant Society (wnps.org) and ask where you can get some. A Gardenview™ encouragement is to become a native plant specialist (for your local) and learn how to cultivate native species and get them back into people’s yards and gardens. Spread the love with Native Plants.

Pete Skenandore

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New World natives, marigolds were the sacred flowers of the Aztecs. They attributed magical, religious, an medicinal properties to the marigolds. The marigold was taken from the Azteks by early Spanish explorers to Spain. These cultivars were grown in monastery gardens. From Spain they made their way to France and northern Africa. In the early 20th century they were introduced to the American gardener, making a full circle where they are one of the most popular garden flowers today.

Bright yellow, orange and red marigold blends make a fantastic border for your vegetable garden. They prefer rich light soil and a sunny location. They take 45-60 days to germinate and will flower all summer long.
Marigold (Calendula) can be used in fish and meat soups, rice dishes, salads and as a coloring for cheese and butter. This flower is also used to heal wounds, including internal and external ulcers, improves blood flow, and is an antifungal agent used to treat athlete’s foot, ringworm and candida.

-Pete Skenandore

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We spent many rainy days floating our race-boats (popsicle sticks) down those gutters.   On occasion we would dam them up with varying degrees of ambition.  Our goal, of course, and now remember we were 7, was to connect both sides of the street and make a huge car stopping lake. My first garden “scent” memories were from this neighborhood.  There was a very nice family that lived down the street on the way to the pool.  While most homes had the lawn and fence routine.  They were gardeners extraordinaire!  Their entire yard, front to back was like a jungle.  While I don’t remember everything they had planted, I do remember two distinct things.  When I get a whiff of these two distinct things, I am whisked back to the early 70’s  in my old neighborhood in Fort Collins Co.

To this day, I love these two smells.  They evoke such potent feelings of nostalgia.  It’s crazily unavoidable.  If I smell these two things, I can’t help but think of Fort Collins.  It was in Fort Collins where I first learned how to swim.  It’s also where I learned how to ride a bike.  It’s my first memory of having a best friend. Santa delivered huge denim bags of wooden blocks one Christmas. Squares and rectangles.  A black dot on my set to differentiate from my brothers.  Hours upon hours were spent in the basement making opposing forts and then sliding blocks back and forth across the black and white checkered floor to see who’s would be destroyed first.  Now that was fun.There are many more memories and good times that are brought back by those two scents. While I don’t remember having a family garden in Colorado.  I am thankful for the incredible garden of a neighboring family.  I’m thankful for those scents that remind me I was once a kid.  I’ve planted Marigold seeds with my 7 year old daughter this year.  I’ve also had her help me turn the compost. Which is my other favorite childhood garden smell.  I don’t think it’s hers…  Yet.

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Pete Skenandore
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