Cascades Penstemon (Penstemon serrulatus), the purple flowers in the photo above, is native to the west side of the Cascades and a prolific self-seeder in our native plant garden. It stays in bloom for about three weeks for us, just finishing up now. If I recall, we started with just one or two plants in a different garden bed a few years ago. We cut a few stems with mature seeds and spread them in this bed and now we have masses. They seem to move themselves around to where they want to grow, which is how we ended up with this floriferous border. Continue reading →

Henderson’s checker-mallow, Sidalcea hendersonii, is a somewhat uncommon Pacific Northwest native plant. In its natural home you’ll find it just above the high tide line in coastal environments where it tolerates being periodically inundated with salt water. However, it’s quite happy in a garden setting. Continue reading →