In this episode, I’m joined by horticulturist Maggie Rutherford, someone who shares my obsession with the weird, wonderful world of uncommon edible plants. We talk about blending ornamental and edible plants in the garden, the joy of preserving to capture each individual season, and how small-batch preserving can be a source of creativity and delight.

Maggie shares why she can't stop talking about her Quince tree, and we dive into the weird and wonderful world of Medlars.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How moving into a blank-slate yard sparked Maggie’s love of growing and eventually led her to return to school to study horticulture
• Our shared love of jamming weird little fruits, and preserving as a creative, artistic expression
• Why we love blending edible and ornamental plants in the garden instead of separating them.

Plants Mentioned in This Episode:

• Quince (Cydonia oblonga)
• Medlar (Mespilus germanica)
• Sloes (Prunus spinosa)
• Luma (Luma apiculata)
• Szechuan Pepper (Zanthoxylum simulans)

If you are looking for unique edible plants, we highly recommend Raintree Nursery

Books Mentioned in This Episode:

• Saving the Season: A Cook’s Guide to Home Canning, Pickling, and Preserving by Kevin West Jam Bake: Inspired Recipes for Creating and Baking with Preserves by Camilla Wynne

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on YouTube
• Follow Maggie on Instagram
• Visit Maggie's Art Website

If you enjoyed this episode, send it to a garden-loving friend who loves learning about weird edible plants in the garden.

Until next time, I hope you find something in your garden to truly relish.

This week, Stevie and I are talking about one of my all-time favorite low-effort, high-reward garden moves: dividing and transplanting perennials in the fall. Whether you're trying to fill out a new bed, edit what’s not working, or just want more of that one plant that always thrives—this episode is all about using what you already have to grow the garden you want.

If you’ve ever wondered when to divide, how to do it, or why it’s worth the effort, you’re in the right place.

• Why fall is an ideal time to divide most perennials
• Simple cues to know when a plant is ready to be divided
• How transplanting helps you edit and expand your garden with intention
• The satisfaction of “shopping your own garden” instead of buying new

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on YouTube

Plants Mentioned:

• Hakonechloa macra: Japanese Forest Grass
• Cyclamen coum: Persian Violet
• Miscanthus sinensis: Dwarf Maiden Grass
• Araucaria Araucana: Monkey Puzzle Tree

Resources mentioned:

• University of Minnesota: Diving 125 Most Common Perennials
• Hardy Fern Foundation
• American Fern Society
• History of the Monkey Puzzle Tree in Seattle

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on YouTube

Fall is an ideal time to consider adding trees to your garden. It also happens to be one of the best planting windows, giving roots a head start before summer heat kicks in.

I can’t tell you the perfect tree for every site, but I can offer the kinds of questions and considerations that lead to better decisions, both aesthetically and horticulturally.

In this episode, I walk through the criteria I use to select and place trees in a design, and I encourage you to look beyond the usual suspects.

We’ll explore how to assess your site, lean on design principles, and think through four-season performance so that your tree supports the bigger picture of your garden for years to come.

If you’re feeling unsure about where to begin, this episode will give you a solid starting place.

What You'll Learn

• Why fall is a great time to purchase and plant trees
• How to evaluate site conditions like sun, soil, and space before making a selection
• Common tree-picking mistakes and how to avoid them
• Why we keep seeing the same trees everywhere and how to choose something better
• Using line, repetition, and texture to support your garden's design
• How to borrow from the larger landscape to create a sense of place
• Questions to ask about what you want your tree to do and how the right tree can simplify your maintenance load

• Crape Myrtle (Lagerstroemia)
• Persian Ironwood (Parrotia persica)
• Cornelian Cherry (Cornus mas)
• Japanese Umbrella Pine (Sciadopitys verticillata)

• Raintree Nursery
• Great Plant Picks
• OSU Department of Horticulture Plant Finder
• Dirr's Encyclopedia of Trees and Shrubs

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on YouTube

If you’ve ever found yourself dreading garden maintenance or wondering why it’s starting to feel like a burden, you’re not alone. In this episode, I’m talking about what happens when we shift the way we think about maintenance and why it doesn’t have to feel like a never-ending to-do list.

Instead of aiming for perfection or pretending you’ll suddenly have hours every weekend, I want to help you build a garden that works with your life as it is now. We’ll talk about setting a maintenance budget, how to limit high-maintenance plants, and why focusing your energy in just a few high-impact areas can free you up to enjoy the rest. With a few smart swaps and honest expectations, you really can reduce the overwhelm and still love what you see outside your window.

• How to shift your mindset around garden maintenance so it feels less like a chore
• What a maintenance budget really means and how to plan your garden around the time you actually have
• Smart plant choices and placement strategies that help reduce ongoing upkeep
• How to prioritize high-impact or high-traffic areas for the most impactful use of your time
• The role of editing in garden design and why removing what’s not working creates more ease
• Why only 10 percent of your plants should be high-maintenance divas, and smart swaps to hold a space with less work

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on YouTube

If you loved this conversation, make sure to subscribe. We’ve got new episodes every week.

And if you know a gardening friend who’d love this, send it their way. Sharing the show helps grow our little garden-loving community.

Until next time, I hope you find something in your garden to truly relish.

Have you ever stood in your garden and thought, “Something feels off" or "This just isn’t working anymore”? Whether it’s subtle discontent or full-on frustration, that nagging feeling is often a sign that something needs to shift. In this episode, we’re diving into how to observe your space more critically, using both aesthetic cues and horticultural data, to understand what’s not serving you and what to do about it.

You’ll also hear from Stevie, one of our longtime Relish horticulturists, about how we assess gardens in the field, from overgrown chaos to subtle color clashes. Together, we’ll walk through how to look with intention, ask the right questions, and start making meaningful, doable changes.

• How stepping back and observing can shift your perspective and make more analytical decisions in your garden.
• Practical ways to evaluate plant health, layout, and color palette so you can make confident choices in your garden
• How life transitions often trigger the need for a garden reassessment
• How we use data and observation in the gardens we care for.

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on Youtube

If you loved this conversation, make sure to subscribe—we’ve got new episodes every week.

And if you know a gardening friend who’d love this, send it their way. Sharing the show helps grow our little garden-loving community.

Until next time, I hope you find something in your garden to truly relish.

Welcome back to The Relished Garden Podcast. Today I’m joined by Stevie, my right hand and a horticulturalist at Relish Gardens, as we talk about why fall isn’t the end of the gardening season, and is actually the start of next year's garden. We’re sharing insights from the gardens we care for, how we approach seasonal transitions, and what you can do now to shape your garden for next spring. Think of this as your nudge to not head inside just yet. Fall is the time to assess your space while it’s still fresh and make changes that will set you up for a garden you love next year.

• Why fall is "go time" in the garden and how it sets the foundation for seasons ahead
• What maintenance tasks we focus on in the fall, from mulching and transplanting to editing and assessing your space
• How we like to refresh our containers in the fall
• The seasonal rituals we love most this time of year, from dried flower arrangements to turning garden harvests into soup, and how these simple acts can bring people together

• Get our Free Fall Gardening Guide

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on Youtube

If you loved this conversation, make sure to subscribe—we’ve got new episodes every week.

And if you know a gardening friend who’d love this, send it their way. Sharing the show helps grow our little garden-loving community.

Until next time, I hope you find something in your garden to truly relish.

Welcome to the very first episode of The Relished Garden Podcast! I’m Claire, and I’m so glad you’re here.

In today’s episode, I’m sharing the path that led me to start Relish Gardens, where we build and maintain beautiful gardens in the Seattle region. In this episode, I reflect on how early creative obsessions like building Barbie dream houses, rearranging my bedroom, and watching Martha Stewart shaped what it means to create a beautiful life. I walk through how beauty, food, and community shaped my philosophy of living a garden-centered life, and why gardening still feels like a form of play.

• The way a childhood love of fashion, design, and creating beautiful spaces eventually led me to garden design
• What it was like growing up in Northern California with access to homegrown food, and how that sparked a lifelong love of edible gardening and seasonal eating
• Why gardening feels like play, and how it gives me the same sense of satisfaction I got from playing as a kid
• How reading Animal, Vegetable, Miracle by Barbara Kingsolver helped reshape my ideas about homesteading and led me toward a more community-sufficiency approach to growing food
• Why creating beautiful spaces has always felt essential to me, and how early influences like Martha Stewart helped me see the power of everyday aesthetics

• Relish Gardens Website
• Follow us on Instagram
• Follow us on Youtube

If you loved this conversation, make sure to subscribe—we’ve got new episodes every week.

And if you know a gardening friend who’d love this, send it their way. Sharing the show helps grow our little garden-loving community.

Until next time, I hope you find something in your garden to truly relish.