Skip to main content

Search This Blog

Chickadee Gardens

Gardening on two acres in northwest Oregon with a love of native plants and sustainability

Press and Services and Products

Services & Products
November 2021 Better Homes & Gardens Article
HPSO Article: Working for Joy Creek Nursery
Pacific Horticultre Article: Creating Place: Outdoor Sculptures of Michi Kosuge
Garden Design Article
Winterbloom Landscaping Visits Chickadee Gardens

Posts

Posted by Chickadee Gardens November 23, 2017

The Evergreens: Shade Plants

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens November 16, 2017

The Evergreens: Sun Lovers

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens November 09, 2017

Observing November

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens November 02, 2017

A Few Small Before & Afters

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens October 26, 2017

Autumn Color

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens October 19, 2017

Living the Dream: Mindy's 12-Acre Farm

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens October 05, 2017

Finding Land: Two Years Later

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens September 28, 2017

Facilities Manager Fall Report

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens September 21, 2017

The End of Summer at Chickadee Gardens

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens September 07, 2017

Farm Life: Gardening with Chickens

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens August 31, 2017

Let's Go! The Oregon Garden

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens August 17, 2017

The Sun Lovers

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens August 10, 2017

The Veggie Garden

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens August 03, 2017

Mid-Summer at Chickadee Gardens

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens July 27, 2017

Nursery Visit: Xera Plants

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens July 20, 2017

Let's Go! Mount Saint Helens

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens July 13, 2017

The Shade Garden

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens June 29, 2017

June Flowers

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens June 22, 2017

Progression of a Project

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens June 15, 2017

The Vegetable Garden

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens June 08, 2017

Bring Out Your Dead! (I'm Not Dead Yet)

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens May 25, 2017

Here Comes the Sun

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens May 11, 2017

The May Garden

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens May 04, 2017

Trees Come Down, Trees Go Up

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens April 27, 2017

Native Wildflowers of McCormick Park, Saint Helens

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens April 20, 2017

Nursery Visit: Little Prince of Oregon 2017

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens April 13, 2017

Farm Happenings, April Edition

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Posted by Chickadee Gardens April 06, 2017

Before and After: Moving Soil, Making Paths

Get link
Facebook
X
Pinterest
Email
Other Apps

Newer Posts Older Posts Home

Powered by Blogger

All material ©2013 - 2026 by Tamara Paulat Chickadee Gardens. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited

Get new posts by email:

about Chickadee Gardens

Chickadee Gardens started as a small, green oasis in the urban center of Portland. Now it is a two-acre garden in Saint Helens, Oregon about 40 minutes northwest of Portland. We incorporate native plants throughout and practice a low-impact, sustainable approach to this land. Much of the garden is a summer-dry garden and we love experimenting with what works well in our ever-changing climate.

--------------------------------------------Bio: Gardening is an obsession for Tamara. The major impetus was in 2010 when the Backyard Habitat Certification Program caught her attention and her small Portland garden eventually gained platinum status. She began blogging about her garden at chickadeegardens.com to share what she was learning regarding sustainable practices, native plants, successes and failures. A year later, wishing to expand and challenge themselves, Tamara and her husband David purchased a home sited on two acres in Saint Helens.

Transforming what was field grass and blackberries into a thriving, diverse ecosystem these past nine years has been a labor of love for Tamara and David. The property is bordered on three sides by Douglas fir trees and mixed hedgerows, between these boundaries is a dry, sun-soaked garden with a heavy dose of West Coast native and summer-dry adapted plants. A half of an acre of the property was cleared to plant a vegetable garden and orchard. Additionally there are chickens, one turkey and mason bees loving their home, not to mention the native fauna.

She worked for Joy Creek Nursery in Scappoose for several years as the photographer, social media creator as well as helping customers choose that perfect plant up until it closed its gates in late 2021. She currently works for Cistus Nursery part-time and is having a blast learning about a whole new plant palette. As a member of the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon she has written for that group’s magazine as well as for Pacific Horticulture. She is the newest member of the Great Plant Picks selection committee, a non-profit through the Elisabeth Miller Botanical Garden in Seattle. With access to so many fantastic plants and two acres to experiment with, sharing her passion at chickadeegardens.com is a joy.

contact Tamara at chickadeegardenspdx@gmail.com @chickadeegardens.bsky.social

Blog archive at Chickadee Gardens

2026 15
- August 1
  - Summer Vibes
- July 2
- June 2
- May 1
- April 3
- March 2
- February 1
- January 3

2025 24
- December 3
- November 1
- October 2
- September 2
- August 1
- July 1
- June 2
- May 3
- April 2
- March 2
- February 2
- January 3
2024 29
- December 2
- November 2
- October 3
- September 3
- August 3
- July 2
- June 2
- May 3
- April 2
- March 2
- February 3
- January 2
2023 36
- December 3
- November 4
- October 3
- September 3
- August 3
- July 3
- June 3
- May 2
- April 3
- March 3
- February 3
- January 3
2022 32
- December 3
- November 2
- October 3
- September 2
- August 2
- July 3
- June 3
- May 3
- April 3
- March 4
- February 2
- January 2
2021 33
- December 3
- November 2
- October 3
- September 3
- August 3
- July 4
- June 3
- May 2
- April 3
- March 2
- February 3
- January 2
2020 31
- December 3
- November 2
- October 3
- September 2
- August 2
- July 3
- June 2
- May 2
- April 3
- March 2
- February 3
- January 4
2019 41
- December 2
- November 3
- October 4
- September 4
- August 3
- July 3
- June 4
- May 4
- April 4
- March 3
- February 3
- January 4
2018 46
- December 4
- November 5
- October 4
- September 3
- August 4
- July 4
- June 4
- May 5
- April 4
- March 3
- February 4
- January 2
2017 43
- December 3
- November 5
- October 3
- September 3
- August 4
- July 3
- June 4
- May 3
- April 4
- March 4
- February 4
- January 3
2016 50
- December 5
- November 4
- October 4
- September 5
- August 4
- July 4
- June 4
- May 4
- April 4
- March 4
- February 4
- January 4
2015 50
- December 3
- November 3
- October 5
- September 5
- August 4
- July 5
- June 3
- May 4
- April 5
- March 4
- February 4
- January 5
2014 53
- December 4
- November 4
- October 5
- September 4
- August 4
- July 5
- June 4
- May 5
- April 4
- March 4
- February 4
- January 6
2013 18

Show more Show less

Instagram

Facebook

Chickadee Gardens

Video Tour of the Garden from Over the Fence Landscape Tours Part 1

Video Tour of Garden Part 1

Video Tour of the Garden from Over the Fence Landscape Tours Part 2

Video Tour of the Garden Part 2

Services and Products

Services & Products

November 2021 Better Homes & Gardens Article

HPSO Article - Hotter, Drier, Wetter: Preparing for Extremes

HPSO Article: Working for Joy Creek Nursery

Pacific Horticultre Article: Creating Place: Outdoor Sculptures of Michi Kosuge

Winterbloom Visits Chickadee Gardens

blogs I read

Digging
danger garden
Garden Rant
Dirt Therapy
Late to the Garden Party
A Growing Obsession
Gods and Foolish Grandeur
GardenRiots
A Way to Garden
Natural Gardening
The World's Best Gardening Blog
The Lents Farmer
Fernhaven
Just a girl with a hammer

Show 5 Show All

links!

Amy Manning - Butterfly Nectar Plants
Amy Manning - Keystone Host Plants for Caterpillars
Backyard Habitat Certification Program
Bosky Dell Native Plant Nursery for Willamette Valley
Camas Field - Liberty Hill in Saint Helens
Chickadee Gardens Facebook Page
Cistus Nursery
Cornell Project Feederwatch
Dancing Oaks Nursery
E-Garden-Go
Echo Valley Natives Plant Nursery
Great Plant Picks
Hardy Fern Foundation
Hardy Plant Society of Oregon
How to start milkweed from seed
Humble Roots Native Plant Nursery
Joy Creek Nursery
Metro Master Gardeners
Native Bee Research
Native Plant Society of Oregon
Plant Lust - Great Search Engine for Plants
Portland Ecoroof Program
Sauvie Island Natives
Soil Survey from the USDA
The Garden Fling
Video Tour of the Garden with Over the Fence Landscape Tours
Video Tour of the Garden with Over the Fence Landscape Tours Part 2
Xera Plants
Xerces Society - Bees!

followers

contact

chickadeegardenspdx@gmail.com

pinterest

Visit Tamara's profile on Pinterest.

All images and content © copyright 2025 Tamara Paulat, Chickadee Gardens

labels

Anna's hummingbird9
Arctostaphylos29
Art in the Garden12
Asclepias13
Audubon Portland7
Autumn color38
Backyard Habitat Certification Program14
before and after61
Bird Creek Meadows4
birds20

Show more Show less