The Springtime Beauty of Seattle Native Plants

Spring can be overwhelming for Seattleites. We hibernate all winter, then the days stretch a little, and the sun pops out, and suddenly we are trying to finish a million garden chores in a single day. Or is that just me?

I managed to take a little time this spring to look around my own native plant garden, native plantings at the North Acre dog park, and around Twin Ponds. Seeing spring unfold in these places is such a joy. Here are some photos of the beauty I’ve noticed.

Red-flowered currant, pink cultivar in my native plant garden

Madrone tree, Arbutus menziesii, grown from a bird-sown seed under our Douglas fir tree, blooming beautifully!

Bracken ferns, Pteridium aquilinum, are taken for granted as a weedy fern. But they are extraordinarily graceful when they unfurl in spring. These are at North Acres.

Stinging nettle is blooming at North Acres.

Western bleeding heart blooming at North Acres.

Native pollinator coming in for a landing…heavy bumble bee.

This bee is a perfect fit! Exactly why native plants are so important.

This tree snag is full of fungus. Unfortunately, ivy is also taking over this tree. The folks who help curate North Acres will likely cut down all the ivy soon.

Western red cedar has a special grace when it leafs out (needles out?) in spring. This one is at North Acres.

Trillium ovatum blooming in my native plant garden. This is a fresh white flower.

Trillium flower aging perfectly at North Acres.

Fringecup (Tellima grandiflora) is blooming in my native plant garden. It is one of my favorites. It comes easily from seed, survives in dry shade under trees, and has showy, graceful flowers that are attractive to native pollinators.

Another favorite–this one in my memory garden in the parking strip–large-leaved avens, Geum macrophyllum. Very easy from seed, simple to grow (weedy, some would say), and lovely in flower and seed.

I almost forgot about this Amelanchier alnifolia in my native plant garden. It is pretty spindly still, and unassuming, but it is growing very well and blooming impressively this year.

The piggyback plant, Tolmiea menziesii, is blooming in my native plant garden. The flowers are so delicate and interesting.

Seep monkey flower in the new native plant garden in front of Leon’s studio. The flowers will be open in a few days, lots of them!

Native plant propagation is going very well this year–many pots of seedlings that will need to be potted on and cared for, including madrone, western buttercup, western columbine, Douglas aster, biscuitroot, yarrow, osoberry, fringecup, vine maple, oceanspray, choke cherry, western hemlock, red alder, western red cedar, and showy fleabane! I am so excited for all the tree seedlings, especially as I haven’t had much luck with them before.

In addition to seeds, I took cuttings of Douglas aster over the last few weeks and potted them up from my boisterous clumps around the yard. Some will already be rooted by now — they grow quickly as long as I keep them moist.

The “They” in “If You Plant It, They Will Come” have definitely been showing up in numbers here in the yard. We had two dark-eyed junco nests (both sadly raided, but early enough they will likely begin again), for sure, and Bewick’s wrens nesting in a box near Leon’s Bedrock studio. In addition, I believe the following are nesting on our property or very near: spotted towhees, bushtits, house finches, song sparrows, and red-breasted nuthatches. And I heard flickers in the Norway maple across the street where a pair nested last year. It looks promising that they will raise young there again! The crows are all over the yard/neighborhood, but I haven’t seen their nest yet. I also hear a male robin singing his heart out morning and night.

All of that to say that nature really wants a chance. She just keeps trying. And if we give her space, help her out a bit, she’ll make amazing things happen right in front of our astonished eyes.