Edmonds is Springing into Gardening Season: What You Need To Know
It’s a vibrant season in our town: Yellow daffodils nod their heads, pink blossoms are popping open on trees, and Washington’s signature rhododendrons show off their colors on almost every corner.
And, while we stop, smell, and smile, we’re thinking about our gardens. We’re cutting back shrubs, doing some weeding, and strategizing about seeds. Thankfully, we have a large handful of knowledgeable shops in downtown Edmonds that give us new ideas and tips. They’re also helping us prep for the growing season ahead.
Preparing your garden to grow in Edmonds
With planting season right in front of us, we’re all in major prep mode, whether thinking about flowers or sprouting veggie seeds. Many of us are even starting to add color to our gardens without plants just yet. Lili Hall, owner of Garden Gear & Gallery on 5th and Main, can barely keep her bright, ceramic mushrooms in stock. The same goes for anything that twirls or spins. People are grabbing “anything that brings movement” to their yards,” she says.
Todd Waddell, owner of Bountiful Home and Nursery right off of 4th and Main, agrees. “People want color. They want drop and go,” he affirms.
That mentality is understandable, especially as we come out of what felt like a prolonged and colder than average winter. With warmer weather upon us, and the sun up until almost 7 p.m., Todd has many plants for his backyard nursery arriving over the next few weeks, and Lili is seeing many of her customers snatch up their favorite organic, non-GMO seeds from her seed stand. “Now is a good time to sprout,” she says. “You can’t kill radishes here. Also, start your hearty seeds like peas, broccoli, and carrots. Start lettuce in the house and, once it’s warm enough, plant outside in stages—every one to two weeks—that way, you’ll always have something to harvest instead of having to harvest everything at once.”
Gear up
Garden Gear sells tools to set you—and your green thumb—up for success. Stop in often to see what Lili has to offer. “After 27 years, the store is always changing,” she laughs.
Once you load up on what you need from Garden Gear, finish your haul at Ace Hardware on 5th. Whether you’re looking for potting soil, squirrel food, a hummingbird feeder, containers, or any kind of gardening tool, Ace has you covered with a large, local selection. And, while you’re there, grab yourself a snack to keep your energy up for the work ahead. Not only do they have great BBQ options in their deli, but they also have pre-made sandwiches and a wide selection of local drinks.
In our experience, nothing goes better with a sunny planting day than a cold beer. Non-alcoholic options abound, too, so don’t fret if beer isn’t your style.
We’d be remiss if we didn’t mention sun protection, too. Even on grey days, the rays are still coming through those clouds. FIELD by Morgan & Moss has a beautiful array of sun hats for any head size and style as well as gardening shears from Modern Sprout. Owner Liz Morgan says the shop can barely keep the latter in stock. “Customers snatch them up as soon as they come in,” she confirms.
Veggie + flower gardens = a pollination happy place
We all know that bees love flowers. You may not know that veggies love flowers, too. Planting flowers and vegetables next to each other makes both healthier and happier. Consider that mixing vegetables and herbs with flowers can increase your garden’s yield and flower production. Flowers attract beneficial insects that protect edible plants and pollinators increase flower production, which increases nectar production, too. Pelindaba Lavender off of 5th and Main has a new variety of plantable lavender this year, Blue Spear, along with longtime favorites (there are over 400 varieties of lavender!) that is drought-resistant and attracts both bumble bees and butterflies—two welcome garden insects—while keeping other bugs away. “Many people assume lavender is hard to grow here,” Ren Johnson from Pelindaba said, “But it’s really not. It’s almost like a weed in Washington! You never have to water it and it likes a lot of sun. Plus, it smells wonderful.”
Keep cross-pollination in mind as you pop into every shop we’ve mentioned and prep your planting. Bountiful Home, Garden Gear, and Ace Hardware all have flowers, too, so make sure to do the rounds. The inventory at each shop is always evolving.
Planning ahead to Mother’s Day
There’s just something about florals for Mother’s Day that makes everyone smile. While flowers may be blooming in your yard, many moms love the surprise of a gorgeous hanging basket to add to their porch for Mother’s Day. Lili at Garden Gear & Gallery has a long history of ensuring Edmonds moms have a happy Mother’s Day. She’s already taking orders for her famous hanging baskets to celebrate the special women around town. Contact her ASAP to get your name on the list!
No room to hang or looking for something to bring inside? No problem! FIELD by Morgan & Moss has grab and go bouquets that nearly fly out of their shop. They also create custom arrangements and customizable gift baskets (this year with a local charcuterie company—keep your eye on their website to learn more!). Snag a card off of their shelves or add one to your haul while you’re at Bountiful Home.
It may still be March, but trust us on this one. While you’re planning your gardens at these downtown Edmonds shops, keep mom front of mind. Come May, you’ll be glad you did. Plus, we all know that planting the seeds for all the things now will pay off beautifully and deliciously later. You’ll also want to stop by FIELD by Morgan & Moss around Mother’s Day to check out their new FIELD and The Farmers program to learn about other flower farmers in the area. From featured farms, pick out local daffodils, tulips, ranunculas, butterfly ranunculus, and other bulb and Spring flowers by the bunches. Bring the moms in your life or get them for yourself.
Get your gardening on
Are you feeling ready to clip back, trim, till, sow, and seed? We sure are! We hope we gave you some new ideas, too. We’d love to see where you end up and how your gardens turn out. Take us along on the journey—tag @edmondsdowntown in your posts on social media and add the hashtags #edmondsdowntown and #loveedmonds, too!
By Whitney Popa, photos by Matt Hulbert