Although not explicitly a Christmas song, “My Favorite Things” from The Sound of Music has long been associated with Christmas, regularly playing on radio during the holiday season. Truth be told, for us gardeners, the spring season holds more than a few of our favorite things never mentioned in the classic song. As we enjoy a gloriously sunny break from the wet weather that dominated March, here are a few [...]
At Vander Giessen's, we're proud to grow a wide selection of Proven Winners annuals, our preferred brand for unique colors, plant vigor, and overall performance where it matters--in your garden! Our selection for 2026 includes more than 80 varieties, including the items listed below. Please note that this list does not reflect current stock on hand but does encompass the entire selection of varieties we will be growing throughout [...]
As with the selection of Proven Winners annuals we carry each year at Vander Giessen's, we're proud to grow and sell a wide selection of Proven Winners perennials, our preferred brand for unique selections, resistance to insects and disease, and overall performance in your garden year after year. Our selection we're growing for 2026 encompasses more than 40 varieties, including the items listed below. In addition to those varieties [...]
My Grandma Vos—long-time owner of Vander Giessen's and gardener par excellence—often advised her customers that “God’s colors don’t clash” when picking out flowers. Her point in offering such advice was to encourage customers to plant what looked good to them; after all, gardening is meant to be fun, so why stress over what plants “work”? Whether you like bold, saturated colors in your containers or prefer the muted elegance [...]
Gardening in April requires maximum flexibility: a day’s forecast may run the gamut of rain, wind, a chance of thunder—and hopefully, sun. This is nothing unique to the Pacific Northwest, either; just be glad we don’t typically have to add snow showers to that forecast! Whether you’re finally getting around to landscaping the new home you bought a few years ago or just need to replace some overgrown plants around [...]
Early season produce is beginning to ripen in gardens, strawberry stands are sharing their sweet harvest, and long days mean evening fun watching kids shoot hoops or play in the yard. All this can mean only one thing: summer has arrived. With the arrival of a new season, our tasks in the garden shift slightly, giving gardeners a new set of goals to keep plants performing their best throughout the [...]
We gardeners are always on the lookout for plants that have that special characteristic: unique foliage, multi-colored flowers, unusual growth habit, or some other eye-catching trait. In today’s world of dozens of options on the shelf even for toothpaste, it takes a lot to stand out from the crowd, which is why so many of the new plant introductions are released specifically for their “wow” factor. As you plan and [...]
We Pacific Northwesterners are a fickle people. If you need proof, just look at the last few months. March? Too cold. April? Too rainy. May? Too warm. If you have friends in the Midwest, you know they might experience all three of those extremes in the span of a week—or even a couple days. And while we gardeners might complain, it’s for good reason; after all, we want only the [...]
With sunshine and blue skies here, we’re in for a stunner of a weekend, and after a cool, wet spring, I think we can all appreciate the arrival of more warm, dry weather. Along with the sun comes the perfect weather for getting your pots, containers, and flowerbeds planted up with color for summer beauty. As you plan for what you’ll plant this spring, here are five no-fuss plants you [...]
Ask any native Washingtonian and they’ll tell you that “June Gloom” is a very real thing in our corner of the world. Unfortunately, this year’s June Gloom comes on the heels of Abundant April Showers and a Mostly Moist May, leaving weather forecasters with few friends. With summer just around the corner (one can hope!), June is a great time to work outside, ensuring a colorful, productive, and healthy garden [...]
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