Jackpot! Resources for sustainable planting and wildlife support in Washington State

I had a busy, obsessive-compulsive night. After taking out my planning frustrations on the blog, I started looking around the web for “companion planting” instead of “guilds,” and I actually started to find stuff!

Here’s the list of the best resources I found:


“Companion plants” (vegetables and herbs)

• Long list on Wikipedia

Food plants that grow in the Northwest

• WSU Northwest horticulture

“Plant communities”

• Northwest native landscaping, organized by landscape conditions. (You can research and select plants and have the site mail you the plant list).
• Northwest native plants -- Western Washington, Oregon, and BC
• Northwest native plants -- Eastern WA, OR, and BC
  

Sustainable gardening

• King county site on rain water collection, composting, etc.

Wildlife

• Wildlife management resources on the PAWS site
• “Living with Wildlife in the Pacific Northwest” (book). Information about what supports and attracts local wildlife, and how to care for streams and other important natural features.
• “Wild Neighbors: The humane approach to living with wildlife” (book) How to work with wildlife on your property and in your garden.

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I’m hoping to attract an Ensatina or a Western red-backed salamander – my brush pile and leaf litter beckon – come on little guys! It might not work, though, unless I attract Pacific Tree Frogs too. Darn web of life. I guess I need to pick some grasses for the streamside.

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Here’s an interesting tip from the Northwest native plant alliances plant communities publication: “Propagation of mosses can be achieved by mixing live moss plant segments in a blender with buttermilk. Pour blended mixture on soil during rainy season.”

I once had a dream in which I was told that blending moss with milk was good for dental problems. Maybe there's a multiple use function in here somewhere… (please don't try it --ew).