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Waterwise Gardening - a book review

Waterwise Gardening: Everything You Need To Know About Efficient Watering to Grow a Healthy Yard by Richard Restuccia Published by Rizzoli, 2025 I would guess that watering is the major issue that most gardeners grapple with, especially novice gardeners. I know from working at the nursery that the majority of questions and issues we get stem from either watering too much or not watering enough.  Many people in our area have sprinkler systems and I'm sure that can be a good thing if used properly but I feel that they primarily keep the lawns green but fall short for landscape plants. Especially when it comes to trees and larger plants, the timing and amounts are not satisfactory for many plants. I often hear people say that their sprinklers are set to come on every day - yikes! And there are those who did not water because it "rained" when it actually drizzled.  The best thing to do in this situation is to have a xeric garden but that would mean sacrificing favorite plant...
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Heronswood

 
What a thrill to finally get to see this garden! After a ferry ride (another first for me), we arrived in the beautiful town of Kingston. Heronswood was the home and nursery of Dan Hinkley and Robert Jones. They started the garden in 1987 and lived there for thirteen years. The nursery was eventually sold to Burpee who filed bankrupcy shortly after that. The abandoned garden was purchased again in 2012 by the Port Gamble S'Klallam Tribe who have been working since to restore the gardens.


The garden is filled with many rare plants that were collected by Hinkley from all over the world. 

Our tour was conduced by Assistant Director Ross Bayton who was wonderful. Here he is telling us about the fern table in the woodland garden -
 

 
The woodland garden (a newer section) was the first garden we toured -






Leaving the woodland garden, we walked back past this totem pole with the iconic Heronswood logo -



Entering the original part of the garden. This area is also a wooded area with many shade-loving plants and a renowned collection of hydrangea, like this one -

And the largest hebe I've ever seen -

 


The towering trees were covered with climbing hydrangea-



Moving into a sunnier area, there were many Dierama ("Angel's Fishing Rod"). I loved this combination and unfortunately do not remember the name of the plant in the background. A purple oak?



 
A series of gardens lead around the original house -
 



 









Moving back away from the house and back toward the parking lot, we made our way through another series of shade gardens -





Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

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  1. danger gardenJuly 22, 2021 at 9:12 AM

    Wonderful! I haven't been since the early days of the tribe's ownership. When they were just starting to put the garden right again. I really need to make it back up there soon.

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  2. chavlinessJuly 22, 2021 at 10:11 AM

    I'm glad you finally to your first ferry ride (aren't they fun?) especially when you were on your way to Heronswood, it is an inspiring garden. I visited just once, for a spring plant sale, shortly after the tribe took over. I believe Dan Hinkley is still serving in an advisory capacity. I wonder if visiting 3 amazing gardens in one day leave you dizzy... your post motivates me to visit again.

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  3. GRACE PETERSONJuly 22, 2021 at 4:49 PM

    That piano...every time I see photos of it, I can't help but chuckle. I have never made the trip up there. Someday... Thank you for sharing.

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  4. Lee@A Guide to Northeastern GardeningJuly 27, 2021 at 4:59 AM

    Fabulous photographs and tour! The woodland garden is wonderful!

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  5. CanadianGardenJoyJuly 27, 2021 at 4:00 PM

    This would be my idea of heaven Phillip .. you took wonderful photos of this amazing place.
    I can't imagine almost losing such stunning plants set in such a perfect back drop.
    I have a weakness for woodland gardens and this was chicken soup for my garden soul, thank you !

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  6. AlisonAugust 3, 2021 at 2:52 PM

    I'm so glad that you got to tour Heronswood. I absolutely adore Heronswood!

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