As always, the sale wouldn’t be possible without our wonderful group of volunteers, some of whom helped for multiple shifts. Their time totaled 188 hours! Thank you to: John Hilsendeger, Keith Chadd, Lindanne Gores, Chuck Natsuhara, Tony Ewald, Jim Hopkins, Diane Ryba, Rene Arbaugh, Sue Leland, Lyn Gordon, Barb Bourscheidt, Chris Goodman, Bill Kelly, Sue Audett, Jeanine Closson, Hermine Soler, Kelda Miller, Kris Neito, Sylvette Gunderson, Ann Hirsch, Sam Nohra, Ed Miller, Brian Peterson, Sharon McKelvey, Mike Viafore, Joyce and Dennis Anderson, Eleanor Moser-Winters, Sharon Fagg, Laura Kingsbury, Ronald Huhn, Terry Robbins, Robert Buda, Annette Masella, Terry Maves, Rocky Hauge, Jane Sherman, Steven Reed, and Casey Dale.

With several pick-up reminders mailed, emailed, and phoned out to pre-order customers, there was only one order not picked up this year. Those plants, along with a few remaining plants not sold at the walk-up sale, were donated to L’Arche Tahoma Hope Farm and Gardens and the WSU Master Gardener Foundation who will pot and sell them. The Clover Creek Council and Clarks Creek Council also received some of the unsold plants and will use them on stream restoration projects.

We hope your plants are doing well and beginning to put on new growth, and we look forward to seeing you at the sale next year. Look for pre-order forms in the fall edition of the Tahoma View.


Plant Care Tips for Bare Root Native Plant Sale Customers
To help make sure that the thousands of native trees and shrubs purchased last February are healthy and happy, here are a few tips to encourage establishment in their new home.

Because native plants are adapted to the climate of this area, they are quite hardy once established. However, these bare root plants will still need to develop more roots before they are able to make it on their own. So don’t forget to water your plants at least once a week when the rains stop to get them through our summer and early fall drought period. They should be more established by next year, and you may be able to roll up the soaker hose and kick back, unless you are babying a new crop of plants!

We have gotten reports from some 2008 plant sale customers of brown leaves on a few species. Don’t throw them on the compost pile yet! Scratch the bark first to take a look at the cambium layer. If that is green, then the plant is just fine. If there is no green underneath the bark, then the plant didn’t take to transplanting.

Tall Oregon grape sometimes does not take well to transplanting, and its leaves will turn brown. Unfortunately, this plant does not have the capability to shed its leaves when this happens and if not defoliated manually, it will not be able to set new leaf buds. Leaves of the semi-deciduous snowbrush will appear brownish in the winter, which is how they looked when we received them at the plant sale. You can also try manual defoliation on that species. Western red cedar is another species that often appears brown when we receive it from the nursery, but that does not mean the plants are sick or dying. This tree prefers shady growing conditions, but at many plant nurseries it is grown in an open field like a crop and often develops sunburn. But if planted well and cared for in their new home, they should bounce back and be fine.

However, as with all the plants we sell, we will be happy to give you a coupon for a free bundle of plants for next year’s sale at equal or lesser value for the plants you lost if you lose the majority of that species in spite of your best efforts. Please call René with any questions or concerns you may have. Hope your plants are all doing well in their new homes. Thank you for going native!