Plants we like:
California Wild lilac (Ceanothus)
This one likes the sun and a well-drained soil, so it’s the perfect drought tolerant addition to your garden. Its dark, evergreen leaves make an excellent hedge and it’s beautiful blue clusters of flowers in summer will attract every beneficial bee in your neighborhood.
Blueberry (Vaccinium)
Many varieties do well in our climate. You’d be surprised how easy it is to bypass the expensive little packs at the grocery store and grow your own. Our kids can’t keep their little fingers off them. Which is a good thing, when you consider how good they are for you!
Elaeagnus Gilt Edge
A drought tolerant evergreen, this fragrant favorite is used frequently to create privacy in a garden. Tiny silvery flowers are beautiful in the early spring, while the dark green leaves with yellow “gilt edge” markings provide interest year round.
Hardy Fuchsia (Fuchsia megallanica)
This plant is amazingly adaptable, tolerating full sun as well as shade. Hummingbirds adore this plant, making it a must have for wildlife gardens. And some varieties have an oblong shaped fruit that is edible for humans as well.
Lavender (Lavendula)
There are many varieties that do well in our climate, but we seem drawn to the usual suspects – namely, English Lavender (Augustifolia) and Spanish Lavender (Stoechas). Both are hardy, sun loving and wonderfully fragrant. We especially love them lining a pathway or greeting us along a fence border or entryway. With the right mix, you can have lavender blooms all year round in our mild maritime climate.
Peach (Prunus persica)
We like Frost and Q-18. Both varieties need full sun and have proven to do well in the Puget Sound Area.
Red flowering currant (Ribes sanguineum)
Truly one of our favorites, this native shrub grows 5-12 feet tall in full to partial sun. It attracts hummingbirds in the spring with its gorgeous clusters of pink to red flowers.
Rosa Rugosa
This is not your typical high-maintenance hybrid rose. The rugosa rose is a drought tolerant shrub that is loaded with white, pink or red flowers in the summer. Large rose hips appear in the fall that will hang on all winter long, providing food for birds. They send out runners, so only plant in an area where they can spread.
Rosemary
Ideally suited to our climate (along with thyme, oregano and marjoram) this plant practically grows itself. It requires full sun and very little water once established. And it's a great culinary herb to have handy.
Service Berry (Amelanchier)
This single or multi-stemmed small tree has pink buds opening to white flowers in early spring. All varieties have edible berries (the birds love them) and some, like Autumn Brilliance, have leaves that turn a beautiful orange-red in the fall.
Evergreen huckleberry (Vaccinium ovatum)
This deciduous native grows well in shade to part sun and can be trimmed as a hedge, if desired. If you are a jam maker, you’re going to want to compete with the birds for the berries!
Creeping thyme
(Thymus serphyllum and other varieties)
Soft and colorful with purple flowers in the summer, this hardy little guy likes full to partial sun. This heavenly fragrant plant makes a great filler between stepping stones, in pathways and as a border for your herb garden.
Strawberry (Fragaria)
There are so many good ones, but we particularly like the everbearing plants because they provide bowlfuls of fruit all summer long. Strawberries are easy to grow and very tasty!
Variegated red twig dogwood
(Cornus alba elegantissima)
Talk about drama! The brilliant red leaves and twigs in fall and winter make this plant stand out in a garden with moist soil. Deciduous, this plant is also lovely in spring and summer with variegated leaves that definitely attract attention.
