If anyone in the Portland area is reading this forum thinking---"I wish they were closer" --Like I do sometimes. Here is some info for a plant swap coming in May. Look under "Goodies" then "Calendar of Events" for "3rd Annual Pleasant Valley Plant Swap"
Sorry guys from Washington, had to throw in a plug. Wish I could make your event, but too far for me.

Running late but Patty and I are coming

Just got home, fed the dog and unloaded. Thank you Deb for getting this together! Such a fun day. Loved meeting everyone and reconnecting with others. I'm off to sow my Pansy seeds.

I hope everyone had fun! Thanks Deb for hosting - even though I wasn't able to make it!

I missed you, Greg - hope you are feeling much better. It was a fun day, great to put faces behind all the names. And, big bonus, we didn't get rained on!

Thanks again Deb for hosting, and everyone for plants - and chainsaw! It was fun meeting and visiting with fellow gardeners!

@in2art, we missed you. Hope there was not a mis-connect. We all agreed that we should try to do this more often, so perhaps next time...

On that note, Christianson's Nursery up in the Skagit valley is hosting a garden tour of La Conner Flats Garden next weekend that I may go to - it is from 1-2 on Saturday March 19. No charge. Warning - tulip traffic may be a bit congested, everything is early this year.

That was super fun. I came home with all kinds of stuff, but even if I had an empty car it would have been great. I hope we can continue the tradition. I was thinking about a day at the Arboretum in Seattle, later in the spring. Or maybe the Rhododendron Species Foundation in Federal Way, which I have never been to. These would be easy to carpool to, as our cars would not be filled with plants!

We could do that but on April 15th starting at 3 they have a plant sale at the Rhododendron Species Foundation. We could do 2 things in one trip!

A few fun photos

Well drat it I have to work that day, and the next day too. But if you go maybe I will give you $$ to buy a couple things for me that I have been planning to get!

It was really fun! Thanks, Deb, for hosting, and for the eggs from "The Blond Squad".

Becky thought it was even funnier than I thought, that you guessed correctly that I was "torturing" Gary with my stories!

The tables full of give-away plants were awesome! I think we could have supplied a church charity event.

Duane456, you were present, by proxy. If I recall correctly, Pistil re-traded some Agastache rupestris 'Apache Sunset') from 2012 to me. It had a "(G)" or "(g)" on the packet, were they from your Garden as suggested by the ATP Plant Database?

(P.S. Pistil, what an awesome seed-storage tub! The desiccant, clear sides and hygrometer were classy, but that's the ONLY plastic tub I ever saw with an O-ring!)

Sunset Hyssop (Agastache rupestris 'Apache Sunset')

I'm planning on putting them in a big pot, with bark chunks and grit to improve the drainage. I assume that any Agastache is likely to spread aggressively, even in clay that is wet 8 months of the year.

Can one plant really get this big in a 3-gallon pot?? Is it several years old? As the Donald would say, "It's HA-YUUUGE!" (But, for once, he would be right.)



Would you agree with "surface sow, 70F, 2-3 weeks to emerge"? I will pre-soak with dilute peroxide, just out of habit.

Hi Rick,
2012 is pretty old seeds. I 'd like to know if you get some to germinate. The "g" means it's from my garden. I don't think I've seen any agastaches spread for me. They may reseed, but not spread. The plant you see in the pic may be two or three plants together. Apache Sunset is one of the largest agastaches I have. You may get a little different shade of color to it, since it's from seed. They don't like wet feet, but seems to do alright for me. It does have decent drainage there. That one is in my front yard where it gets pretty hot in the summer. I've probably had it for 5 or 6 years. I don't grow any of my agastaches in pots, so can't help you there. I just winter sowed various agastaches this last weekend. They'll germinate when they are ready. I've started all my agastaches by winter sowing around this time of year.

I was thinking I might put them on coffee filters so I could watch them germinate ... my first agastache.

Maybe I'll try WS instead, or in addition to, indoor seed starting. I think I'll stick with a pot because I have no space left in beds.

Thanks for the seeds (indirectly through Pistil)!

Hi All, so sorry that I wasn't able to make it...I am just too darned busy. Work, school, paperwork, home, gardening, kid, husband, pets. I was really bummed to not be able to take the time out to come up. I hope I can make the next one, I really love doing these sorts of things (trading plants, hanging out with other gardeners, getting to tour botanical gardens and especially touring other gardener's gardens - that was what convinced me to join the NPA). It looked like you had a nice time.

Linda

It was fun, Linda! I hope you have time, next time.

Just starting to tune back in now that the rainy season is gone. I work Saturdays and wouldn't have been able to attend. I'll check in again to see if there's going to be another one sometime in the future.