Check out Territorial Seeds for PNW adapted crop plants. You are right tomatoes are pretty sad here, after all they are a tropical plant and love heat, but there was an agriculture professor in Oregon whose life work was breeding tomatoes for here, and Territorial (in Oregon) sells many of them.

And...today we have snow! Just a little sprinkling and not sticking to sidewalks or roads, but jolly nevertheless. I guess I can call this my 'killing frost' even though we haven't really had a frost yet. For you new transplants, Halloween is typically my first hard frost, although the last couple years it has been really late (mid Nov to early Dec). I can grow salvias fine, but struggle with both rosemary and lavender. I think they like sharper drainage that I offer, my soil is rich but tends to puddle up. The funny thing with rosemary is it will over-winter just fine but for some reason just up and dies in early spring. I just grow them both as annuals.

I will 'second' Pistil's recommendation for Territorial Seed - great company, all their seed is tested in the Willamette Valley of Oregon and grows well in our short season. Their seed catalog is a mini-reference for growing vegetables, and they also offer mail order seedlings (I've never gone that route). I find their seeds at my feed store and local nurseries. http://www.territorialseed.com

Ciao all-

This is what I woke up to. Michael looked at me like "Mommy, when you said we were moving to an island, I was thinking more like Hawaii." At least he has a fireplace to warm himself up and a brother who still grooms him from time to time.

I didn't know that cats would allow clothes! Very cute! Stay warm!

No frost or snow for me last night, but it did get down to 34 degrees.
I am looking out the window and I have blooming:
petunias
kniphofia
california fuchsia 'Mattole Select' which are hardy here
annual salvia in planters red, violet
bidens
jethro tull coreopsis
coleus
begonias
some little white flower in a planter
Rozanne geraniums
Eccremocarpus scaber (hardy for me)
snapdragons (hardy for me, and some of these are volunteers)
cosmos
there are more but that is just what I see!

Ciao all-

Wow, Pistil, that's impressive! Duane attempted to cover the Pineapple Sage last night with a plastic leaf bag, but didn't anchor it well and it blew off overnight. It's right next to the house and still hanging in there, trying hard to bloom before it succumbs to cold weather.

This snow won't last. It's very wet and the sun's out. I will definitely need to get a second hummingbird feeder next spring, though, if I can't find one now. It's late to be looking for them. There was a small icicle on it when I got up, but there was enough liquid for the birds to get some early drinks. I'd rather like to swap them out so I can have a nice warm one ready to go first thing in the morning.

Michael has been used to harnesses, leashes, and all manner of clothing since he was little. All four of them have. Michael was super eager even as a kitten to explore the outside, so early on, we put a harness on him and tethered him to a laundry line that ran across the backyard. This gave him the freedom to move in a diagonal line, but kept him from running off. Now, he doesn't even blink when we put a harness on him. All of them have a collection of scarves that their Grandma made for them and all four have coats for the cold Toronto winters. I think the fleece/fall-spring coat will be enough for Michael. At least I hope it will be. He's got a proper Canadian parka if it comes to that.

Adorable! I guess if you get them used to things early, it works. My mom used to use a hand vacuum on a long haired cat and he loved it. all of our animals have always run at the sound of a vacuum.

Sorellina, Your cats are adorable in their coats! We have started looking at rentals over our area and it appears that we may run into the same thing that you did. 98% of them do not allow pets. I thought the west would be more open to fur babies, not less open to it .

You all may just be getting a sprinkling that won't stay, but that is more snow than I have seen in years and years. I'm not sure how i'll react to snow again

Bellingham got 4" per my son.

We lived on Whidbey almost 40 years ago and things were a bit different then...built a house between Freeland and Langley, up in Maple Glen and loved it there. I have read in years since then that there are now rabbits on the Island...and coyotes have found their way there also. It's sad to hear that there are drug problems, but that may be rampant everywhere now. The main thing that I want to mention is that in the past year I've read about water issues on the island....possibly stemming from jet fuel pollution...this may be more of an issue around Coupeville and I've read about it affecting sales of properties, etc. Please be aware of, and check into this, before locating and buying......

I used to live in WA and had a sister-in-law who lived on Whidbey Island we used to visit. My husband and I would go night fishing off a pier we could walk to from her house. Fun

She had a beautiful garden, too. You just figure out what will grow in your zone and the length of the season, which is pretty short, and you're good to go.

You can still grow a lot, though. Roses do well, as far as flowers - my SIL had a bunch of them on Whidbey Island. I never really cared for roses, so they weren't my thing.

I was more into veggies back then, but, I could grow cherry tomatoes, lemon cucumbers (yum!), potatoes, carrots, onions, early small sweet corn, peas, beans, broccoli, strawberries, blueberries, raspberries - lots of fruit trees do great. You'll get to grow snow (chinese pod) peas most of the year. Greens, herbs.

Oh, and I had lilac trees I loved, and peonies. So, there are lots of options. And ferns! Oh, and rhodies and azaleas!

You can pretty much forget about growing things like melons and okra. But, you won't go hungry or be without flowers. I learned how to force bulbs, so I'd have some early spring in the house.

The transition was really hard for me, moving from where I grew up in the SF Bay Area. And I can't tell you I ever fell in love with snow or long winters. But, you can still grow lots of great stuff, and you just get used to doing things outside, even if the weather isn't great. You put on lots of layers and get some good waterproof clothing and shoes, and make the best of the beautiful, albeit often wet, outdoors. Get an LL Bean catalog or go shopping at REI

Ah, REI...fond memories of the original co-op, which was in a basement somewhere up on Capitol Hill, with random outdoor equipment and gear stacked up on or under folding tables. If I remember correctly, you either bought a membership or worked a set number of hours in the store. Everything was a deal, and you never knew what might be available. Not sure when or how it became so yuppified.

Sherry, Thank you for the information in regards to the water issues. Might have to look into that before we purchase.

Sue, Thanks for the information about all the plants you've had success with/know will be successful in the area. I love lilac trees . I am not a super huge fan of roses, but we will more than likely have some when we get some land, because the SO loves them. I definitely will have some shopping to do. I do not have many winter or wet appropriate clothing. Most of my wardrobe is beach attire and sandals .

I have found that if go outside before it starts raining, it is much easier to continue working in the rain. If I have a hat on and some residual body heat going, I can just keep going, especially if it is a light drizzle. Once I take a break though, much harder to get out again.

I have gotten used to getting wet here in Florida, but I'm not sure it will be quite the same

Well, we are getting closer and closer to relocation time. I believe we are leaving Florida on the weekend of February 3rd. We found a rental in Anacortes to tide us over until we decide on purchasing or not. I have been watching the weather and it has been warmer on the islands than it has been here in Florida! Seems crazy. My SO will be going straight through and I will be taking my time and winding through Texas and Oklahoma visiting family along the way. I can't wait to get to Island County and start exploring everything and taking in all of the beauty that the landscape has to offer.

It was a record-breaking 62 degrees here on Monday. Kinda freaky.
Wow what a great road trip you get to have, but do be careful as it is actually winter. We want some pics from along the way!
Are you bringing any plants?

After responding here, I looked at today's papers. Uh oh, Whidbey Island is mentioned...
https://www.seattletimes.com/s...

62! Wow! It's like you moved to Florida! Yes, it will be a very long road trip. I will likely be going to "straight through" norther route, but yes, it will definitely still be winter up in the mountains. I will be taking lots of pictures, I'm sure!

Since we are in a small rental, I am going to drop off most of my tropicals with my sister in Texas and just bring my indoor/low-light plants with me. I will bring my air plants and some other various things, but my plumeria, adenium obesum, etc. are all going back home to Texas (at least until we have some actual space).

Oh, that is definitely not good about the water. At least the Navy is paying for the filters and the cleanup. I hope not too many people were actually affected.