Gardening in Eugene ? Any opinions??

Any comments on the gardening outlook in and around Eugene? I'm looking at a job in Eugene OR. Talking about a relocation from SouthEast Zone 9a to I believe Pacific NorthWest Zone 8. Of course I hear alot about rain, rain, rain. Any gardening frustrations or pleasures out there?

What rain? It's 95 or so today. Humidity lower than what you probably have in Fl. No hurricanes so gardens are not blown away. The Willamette Valley is a mecca of horticulture. Loads of nurseries. Coast, mountains, hiking etc beckon if you are into that sort of thing.

PARD,
SSHHHHHHHHHH!!! for crying out loud. You will be over run by californicators and other assorted out-of-staters!! , lol.

Best;
blue

But I didn't mention the active volcanos and sandstorms. And field burning. Maybe I should??

PARD,
GOOD save!! ;) ;) lol

Best;
blue

Oh! And sneaker waves!

I LOVE Eugene. My husband and I have always talked about retiring there. It's a great college town too. I think gardening will be fantastic there. There are a lot of things you can grow there that you can't grow in FL (and there will be things you grew in FL that won't grow in OR) so fun new things to learn about!

Gwen

Don't forget forest fires and possible tsunamis....I cannot tell a lie, though. I went to college in Eugene and then moved WAY up north to Portland and haven't left since. I wouldn't want to live ANYWHERE else than the Willamette Valley, except maybe the Yamhill Valley. But, please don't spread that around!

Well - I'd been warned about rain but not tsunamis, volcanos and sandstorms! How curious although after the last two hurricaine seasons that doesnt sound too bad. I used to live in Philadelphia (zone 7) where I did the peony, rhodedendron, hydrangea thing and really enjoyed it. Then, in Florida, I needed a few years to get up to speed and the learning curve was fun. Nice to know there are lots of nurseries. Hows the soil?

Clay. Heavy, gooey clay in the spring...

Barksy, this Willamette Valley is a bit of heaven on earth. I am not a native Oregonian but not from California either, bluelytes. I came here over 40 years ago. Today was uncommonly hot and miserable but it never lasts too long. Tomorrow is supposed to be better already. Nurseries, it is the number agricultural crop in Oregon. Lots and lots of em and really some great stuff.

LENJ,
Pheeewww!! GLAD to hear THAT re: NOT from CALI. I was worried there for awhile!! :P :P ;) :)

Best;
bluelytes

barksy, If the northwest doesn't sound good to you, look for a job in California! True, there are a lot of people here, but we're open-minded, we always make room for one more, and you're welcome here!

was that a PNW putdown? hehehe, you might not be able to grow the jungle you do in Fl. unless you have a heated greenhouse, no gators in the swimming pool.
I love the PNW, not real familar with the climate in Eugene, but here in Tacoma is prefect... most of the time... even in the rainy season,,,, thats what we have... rainy season,,, and not rainy season.... awww anyway, I have to go move burgs.... and hanging baskets... and get my hands dirty...


later
Viv

Vizz8,
No, sorry, it was a welcome
Sherry

gypsy no sorry needed... J/K around.. I must say, that there is nowhere quite like the PNW (western wash) the weather is great, rain or shine. only nice snakes, not too many natural disasters, (volcano every now and then) I love it here...,

Viv

This message was edited Jun 28, 2006 8:35 AM

VIZZ,
Will you PLEASE HUSH!!!?? You are gonna attract the californicators!!!! And we have TWO seasons here: Winter = Cold Rain; Summer = Warm Rain.

best;
bluelytes

OH SO TRUE, I like the warm rain best..... liquid sunshine.. :)


Viv

LOL makes me think of my SIL, he is working for a OR. based roofing company... two weeks ago he worked for a total of 8 hrs. because of the rain. Western Wa. based companys work in the rain... if they didnt they would'nt work.!!!!! DH worked in Calif for awhile... everyone thought he was crazy working in the rain. He just put on his raingear... and kept working. Everyone else went home. OK back on topic... still think its a great place for gardening....


Viv

Don't forget earthquakes. And greenies. And virgin sacrifices in the volcano.... lol

Vizz8, yes, I love it there ,too. Have lived in Washington, built a house on Whidbey years ago.

wc - your reference to being open-minded reminds me of that little thing about "if you are too open minded, your brains fall out" - but of course, I know it has nothing to do w/ you - esp. if you lived on Whidbey at some point in your life!

No, ladies, you are going to make Barksy think we don't want her here, and we can always used another enthusiatic Oregonian. After all, until we get a few more we'll always be second class to the Eastern Half of our great country just because we aren't packed in like ants. (Not to mention, we made need more volcano fodder and I'm sure an newby would be much safer?)

Barksy, I'll introduce my self. I'm Dotti and I live about 50 miles South of Eugene. Now, I mostly lurk and thoroughly enjoy this forum. But I do want to let you know that Oregon has more nursery's than any other state except Florida, and that includes several of the top 30 feedbacks in the Garden Watchdog.

As you can see, we also have some of the nicest people in the country who have made their homes in the Great North West. I'm not going to comment on their other personality traits other than to suggest if one suggests you go to Mt St. Helens with her, you find a quick excuse for not going.

Welcome to Oregon. Dotti

When I mentioned volcanoes, I wasn't referring to Mt St. Helens. That one is plenty far enough away from Eugene. But...

http://www.livescience.com/forcesofnature/ap_050906_sisters_bulge.html

Wow pard, very interesting link! It's good to learn something new every day. Now my only problem in my "old age" is remembering what I learned yesterday ...

I'd think we'd need to make some sort of sacrifice to ask South Sister to not blow up. What would you suggest? With that name, I doubt that a virgin would be appropriate. Dotti

I think you would love living here.
Here is an article from our newpaper you might like to read.
http://news.statesmanjournal.com/sp_section_article.cfm?i=89194&s=2712

Ever heard of the MIssoula floods?

Anyway, a huge amount of that good soil deposited in the Willametter Valley, and Eugene is at the south end of it.

It's some of the finest agricultural property in the world.

By the way, Eugene's weather is very similar to Portland's. Do a climate search for those cities. You will see that west Oregon hardly gets any rain at all during all of July and August, and not a whole lot in September.

I married a native oregonian who brought me here from alabama......so far my favorite plants from the south i've had no problem growing here. I cant' leave my hibiscus out all year because of the colder winter i have...i just leave the plants i want to keep that are sensitive to frost in large containers indoors in the winter. the soils can be anything from clay to dark rich forest loam...depending on where you buy. some of the best potting soils come from the old forests in the pnw. good luck with moving..that's the part i can't stand...but oregon is absolutely wonderful, and a heaven for plant lovers!

We can grow more plant species here in the PNW than anywhere else in the world (except the tropical rain forests). This is gardening paradise! The winters are mild enough that we can grow palms and bananas & even get away with some zone 9 plants. However, winter is cold enough here for things like tulips, lilacs, & peonies to name a few. Plus, we get to garden and be outside in the summer instead of running for air-conditioned shelter.

Now if you can just ignore that webbing that starts growing between your toes in the winter, you'll be one happy duck!

ConnieMarie, There are some hardy hybiscus available that stay in the ground here in Tacoma year after year. They do die to the ground in colder winters but come back bigger & better each year.

Thanks for all of the comments everyone. I was very impressed by what I saw in Eugene. What a beautiful community. It's certainly obvious that gardening is popular in the area by the look of the yards. And the public spaces are beautiful. What a brutal plane trip though. Going from one smallish city to another ..hop,hop,hop. And everything was messed up by the weather in the NorthEast. So glad I dont travel much. Have to see if a good offer comes out of the visit. Certainly not worried about the area from the gardening perspective! Volcanos and rain vs hurricaines, humidity and rampant, barely regulated development. Hmm.

By the way, Eugene is close to nice coastal cities too.

Is your profession one of limited positions?

Herpst, when the hibiscus die like that, do you cut them to the ground or leave them be? I lived in Hawaii for 5 years and had my fill of seeing hibiscus and bird of paradise every day, but it would be nice to have one bush. What varieties are you growing?

Yes mdvaden - I am in a fairly obscure medical specialty. It's not always possible to find a good job exactly where you want to be.

Marionslaten,
My current favorite is Kopper King. Nature Hills Nursery has a big selection. Being the sloth that I am, I just leave them until spring when they mark the place of the hibiscus so I don't plant something else there. They are a little slow to emerge. Once the new growth makes its appearance, I snap off the old stems.

The Rose of Sharon (Hisbiscus syriacus) is a woody shrub that should NOT be cut down as it grows larger each year.

Will have to look for the Kopper King, Herpst. Rose of Sharon will end up too big to put in the space I have set aside, but the King should do nicely. Will be very strange to see the hibiscus die back during the winter though, after living in Hawaii and never seeing one retreat from cold!

don't forget the 10" slugs :-)

but some of the best gardening & fishing in the USA :-)

Connie, you didn't bring any Kudzu with you from Alabama did you? That stuff is worse than greenies, volcanoes, and earthquakes all in one!