Tobey Nelson Horticulture

10/29/2024

Wreath time is nigh!

Come make a festive wreath with botanical design pro Tobey Nelson! Learn how to construct a balanced and beautiful wreath using fresh greenery with fun accents, then take it home to show off over the holidays. We'll have hot drinks and cookies to share. Students will receive a coupon for 20% off decor and plants. Class fee is $75, to register call us at 360-321-9931 or to register click Here For 11/17: https://ventureoutnursery.regfox.com/holiday-wreath-class-11172024
or Here for 12/5: https://ventureoutnursery.regfox.com/holiday-wreath-class-12524

09/30/2024

Get a load of this Grevillea victoriae!!! On a sunny, south-facing bluff in Kingston. While the dogs were unimpressed, I am green with envy!

09/29/2024

Look! It’s SpongeBob Square Shrub!!

09/28/2024

Meet Digger, my shovel-head scarecrow for Fall Festival at Venture Out nursery this weekend on Whidbey island. He’s got a lot of cute and spooky friends! Go meet them and have some fun!

09/19/2024

Last call for cover crops!

With the help of my terrier pal Kali, I spent the afternoon digging the last potatoes, weeding and pulling down spent crops (sweet peas, old broccoli etc). I sowed fava beans, crimson clover, oats, winter rye and field peas. Then I piled all the crop “debris” atop the soil - more thinly where I have cover crop or deeper where I do not/between rows of seeds.

My goal in doing this is to protect and build soil: the “debris” provides lots of goodness for decomposers to work on (I dislike the common word for garden “waste” - debris, for it makes it seem like old stems and fallen leaves are not good!). This brings enormous benefit to the soil. That organic matter also protects the soil from erosion. The cover crops will build soil structure with their roots, and will take up nutrients into their greens, instead of the nutrients just washing away in the rain. This fertility will be released in the spring when I chop the cover crops down as the next layer of “debris” - green mulch.

This is how I am working on creating soil health in my veggie garden. Soon it will be too late for the cover crops to grow enough before winter. So if you want to do this too - you better get busy!!

08/23/2024

Had a great time at FarWest show down in Portland, meeting vendors, exploring new products, and sneaking out for a few garden and nursery visits!!!

08/22/2024

Spent a few days in Portland at the FarWest trade show for Venture Out Plant Nursery. Lots of great networking and plant discovery. Met up with my pal Alexis from Browne's Garden Center on San Juan Island. We *might* have sneaked out for a little shopping at some of my fave places: Xera Plants Inc., Cistus Nursery, Garden Fever, Portland Nursery and a new fave Pomarius Nursery. Might have also accidentally veered off-course for a plant nerd lunch at Kennedy School McMenamins - their gardens never disappoint! Now, where am I going to plant all my new treasures?!? ??!!

07/29/2024

My honey and I did some garden touring today, thanks to Northwest Horticultural Society and McMenamins Anderson School. Got to nerd out on plants and saw lots of great creativity. My perfect kind of day!

06/26/2024

Oopsie! Maybe I let JUST a little bit too much rewilding happen this spring! I am doing some major bush whacking now to keep all this stuff from going to seed!

06/24/2024

Gardening at twilight has its rewards. This sunset went from cotton candy pink, to lavender bubble gum, to a mango berry sorbet swirl. All the while this Phlomis perfumed the air with the sweet toasted sugar scent of the midway of a summer fairgrounds. I highly recommend this pairing!!

06/23/2024

Since I am teaching a Meadowscaping class at Venture Out today, I thought I would show a sweet moment from a few sunny days past in one of my mini Meadow experiment areas.

In this area, I sheet mulched with arborist chips and then spread 1-3 inches of topsoil. I then scattered my own blend of native Prairie seeds from Northwest Meadowscapes.

The first season after sowing yields lots of showy annual species: Douglas Meadowfoam, Baby Blue Eyes, and Sea Blush. If you could see through them you’d notice tiny perennials establishing below: Yarrow, Wooly Sunflower, and Lupine so far. I’m sure more will be revealed as the annuals die back, and will emerge with more fall rain (and maybe more decomposition of the sheet mulch layers).

06/17/2024

I am looking forward to speaking about Eco-healthy Horticulture at this great event, From The Ground Up, held by the Pierce County Master Gardeners next Sat, June 22! If you are looking for some rich garden education, this is an event to attend! Lots of quality speakers and important topics. Here’s the info:

The WSU Pierce County Master Gardener Program is excited to present our annual summer workshop; From the ground and up. This workshop is geared toward anyone with an interest in gardening and horticulture techniques and skills.

Location: Franklin Pierce High School, 11002 18th Ave E, Tacoma, WA 98445

Schedule Overview:
8:40-9:40a Keynote - Katherine Glew - Lichens and Climate Change
9:50-10:50a
Jeanne Kinney - The Wonderful World of Rhododendrons
Hillary Esdaile & Pierce Co. Conservation Dist. - Water Conservation in The Garden - Plus Rain Gardens
Lisa Taylor - From Tired Turf to Magnificent Garden - Part 1 - Ripping out your lawn Joey Hulbert, Ph.D. - Western Red Cedar Dieback Map and Other Urban Trees
11a-12p
Rose Tobin - Beyond Mopheads: A Hydrangea for Every Situation
Dana Kelley Brissette - Native Plants for Wildlife Habitats Lisa Taylor - From Tired Turf to Magnificent Garden - Part 2 - Putting in a garden
Joey Hulbert, Ph.D. - USDA APHIS PPA Invasive Project
12:40-1:45p Keynote - Tobey Nelson - Eco - Horticulture for A Healthy Planet
2:15-3:30p
Rose Tobin - Fern Propagation 101: An Introduction to Propagating Ferns
Mary Coleman, Pierce County Environmental Education – Many Ways to Compost
Rose Pettit Cowan & Christine Gregorich - It All Starts With The Soil: The Soil Food Web Dave Mitman - Seed Saving 101

Register here:

The Pierce County Master Gardener Continuing Education Team is very excited to present our annual summer workshop; From the ground and up. This workshop is **Schedule Overview:** 8-8:35a Check-in and Welcome - Books Sales 8:40-9:40a Keynote - Katherine Glew - Lichens and Climate Change 9:50-10:50a J...

06/14/2024

In celebration of pollinator month, I present to you “the Pollinator Princess”. Friend of flowers and insects, she is guardian of the web of life in this ecosystem. It is her royal decree that we humans protect and nurture wild spaces, put down our poisons, plant natives and add biodiversity to our gardens. It is her plea that we remember the interconnection between us and all the creatures, both tiny and large, that we share this planet with.

This creation was made with all locally-grown flowers, without foam, and (I’m especially proud to say) without floral adhesive! It was a collaboration with some of my most beloved creative partners, photographer , model , and makeup artist extraordinaire who did an amazing job with spices and natural pigments to enhance her makeup kit! I hope this little blast of beauty inspires you!

06/08/2024

Time to thin your fruits! It seems painful, but a tree only has so much energy. By removing inferior fruit, resources are focused on the remaining fruit, making it much better quality. Select the most robust fruit, and cut or twist the rest out. Leave on per cluster. Don’t forget to look for (and remove) ones with damage from insects or mechanical damage. This is also a good time to for slipping on fruit socks (if you haven’t already)

05/28/2024

I just finished writing my notes/handout for this class. It’s going to be a good one! If you need some garden design pointers, I encourage you to sign up!

Basics of Garden Design
Sunday June 2nd, 1 - 2:30pm
with Tobey Nelson CPH, Garden Designer
Whether you are starting with a brand new garden or wanting a fresh take on an established garden, there will be something for anyone to learn in this class. We’ll cover some simple, basic design principles and learn how to implement them in our landscapes to create inviting spaces and pleasing plant combinations. Students will receive a coupon for 20% off plants. Class fee is $15, to register call us at 360-321-9931 or Click Here: https://ventureoutnursery.regfox.com/basics-of-garden-design

Clinton Chamber of Commerce

05/21/2024

Need some garden design tips?!

Whether you are starting with a brand new garden or wanting a fresh take on an established garden, there will be something for anyone to learn in this class. We’ll cover some simple, basic design principles and learn how to implement them in our landscapes to create inviting spaces and pleasing plant combinations. Students will receive a coupon for 20% off plants. Class fee is $15, to register call us at 360-321-9931 or Click Here: https://ventureoutnursery.regfox.com/basics-of-garden-design

Basics of Garden Design
Sunday June 2nd, 1 - 2:30pm
with Tobey Nelson CPH, Garden Designer

Clinton Chamber of Commerce

05/18/2024

One of my best tips for a drought-resilient garden: don’t turn your irrigation on too early. And if you have shrubs and perennials that have had 3 winters in the ground you barely should need to irrigate! More info in this video!

You may have heard that the State of Washington has issued an official drought declaration for 2024, join Tobey Nelson for this informative talk about what we can do now to prepare our gardens for drought! This dry Summer will bring many challenges, but Tobey lays out some ideas that will help us do our part AND maintain the health our garden!

https://youtu.be/ObHaKYIVJLw?si=GB8VkyznPoBa_Qqs

05/04/2024

We’re working on rainwater collection so I can irrigate without drawing from an aquifer!! This is just the beginning and it probably won’t be enough, but these 3 tanks will hold a thousand gallons. That ought to be a meaningful contribution toward keeping my young trees alive through the summer drought. I’m pretty psyched to be growing carbon-fixing shade, with rainwater!