The last week of November is when gardeners give thanks.

Living in Western Washington means we can grow a wider variety of plant material than just about any place in the world. From cacti and succulents to mosses and ferns, our mild winter and summer climate gives us plenty of plant choices. Here is the annual Thanksgiving column to celebrate the season.

Ten Reasons to be thankful you garden in Western Washington

1. Our native plants are beautiful and still plentiful. You can drive through any neighborhood and see sword ferns below and cedar and fir trees above giving our area that evergreen beauty all year long.

2. Our lawns turn green even if we don’t water them in the summer. The return of the fall rains will green up even the driest patch of grass and that’s a beautiful thing to see on a gray winter day.

3. We don’t have to worry about rattle snakes hiding under house foundations or sunning themselves on boulders like our Eastern Washington neighbors.

4. Be thankful that moose don’t trample newly planted gardens. We may have deer issues but gardeners in Alaska deal with moose – and often bear as well.

5. The invasive vine called Kudzu has not been spotted here. This is the tropical vine that has smothered the Southern states. We might be hacking back English Ivy but Kudzu makes ivy look timid.

6. Ants on plants? That is nothing compared to the biting, stinging and persistent ant colonies in the desert states. Our ants are tame and well behaved in comparison.

7. Our native soil is slightly acid – this means plants like camellias, rhododendrons and azaleas will thrive in Western Washington gardens. These are the plants that often astound visitors from out of the area.

8. Western Washington is home to wholesale plant growers and lots of independent nurseries. This means the plants available to local gardeners come in a vast variety of new forms, colors and fresh introductions. We also pay a lot less than if the same plant was offered for sale in the mid West or East Coast.

9. Western Washington is home to the Northwest Flower and Garden Show celebrated this year February 19 to the 23. This indoor show held in Seattle at the Washington State Convention Center has been ranked one of the top garden shows in the Country.

10. And finally, Washington State is the original home and founding site of the Master Gardener. This program has now spread not only to all 50 states but around the world internationally as well. Just one more way we all keep growing.

Marianne Binetti has a degree in horticulture from Washington State University and is the author of “Easy Answers for Great Gardens” and several other books. For answers to gardening questions, visit plantersplace.com and click “As The Expert”. Copyright for this column owned by Marianne Binetti. For more gardening information, she can be reached at her website, www.binettigarden.com.