SEASIDE Gardener Pam Fleming, who plants all of the sidewalk gardens in downtown Seaside, as well as around the citys public buildings, including City Hall and the library, chose an appropriate name for her business: Natures Helper.

Its a lot of work taking care of about 100 pocket gardens and landscaping other public areas, but Fleming enjoys the challenge of giving Mother Nature a little assistance.

I love being outside, creating yards, taking care of gardens and talking to people who stop by, Fleming said. A licensed landscape contractor, Fleming has been in business since 1992 and has had a contract with the city of Seaside for 17 years.

I love it when the truck comes and I have all these new plants to put into the ground, she said.

She enjoys gardening so much that, even when the coastal gales and rains set in, it doesnt take too long for Fleming to get antsy when shes inside too long. So, she puts on what she calls her space suit and continues to work outside, although everything takes twice as long to do.

But it feels good to accomplish something, she said.

Although the plants she uses come from a Willamette Valley nursery, Fleming makes sure they can withstand the coastal climate.

Downtown has tons of micro-climates, Fleming said. What does well on one side of the street wont work on the other side.

Every sidewalk garden has a theme. One plot may be edible, for instance, while another might reflect the colors used by the business next to it. Knowing the gardens theme makes it easier to select plants, she said.

Her ideas come from the flower shows she attends and through looking at books.

Im constantly looking for new combinations, she said.

When she discovers a new plant or a new variation that will withstand ocean breezes and salt air, Fleming is enthusiastic. The African Daisy does well, she said, and now more colors are available. She also pointed to the Argyranthemum for its hardiness.

I have stopped trying to push the (climate) zone; its kind of depressing, Fleming said. Were not tropical, and we might as well stop trying.

Fleming is a big advocate of container gardening, especially when the soil is too cold to plant in the ground or gardens are too shady.

Thats why Im so excited about this shop, she said about Back Alley Gardens, a small garden store behind the Natural Nook florist shop on Broadway. Fleming and Natural Nook owner Kathy Cates recently opened the shop, which offers plants, pots and the space for customers to pot their plants.

To keep track of everything she puts in her gardens and how they fare, Fleming keeps a notebook, but she admits that many of the notes she takes are about what she hears people saying when they dont notice shes working in a garden nearby.

I always think Im going to write my memoir, Fleming said, laughing.

She finds that photos are a better way to evaluate her gardens than keeping notes.

When I look at the garden the way the camera looks at a garden, I see things I dont see otherwise, she said. I might see something specific when Im just looking at it, but the camera sees it as a whole. Its not as personal, either.

Fleming also offers an annual tour of the public gardens in July. She first shows a slide show of the gardens and then discusses them on the tour. But even in the summer, sometimes she is stymied by the weather.

There are some years that we havent been able to take the tour, Fleming said.

She said she tries every year to make the gardens bigger and better.

I say, This year will be the best ever; theyre going to be amazing, she said.

But Fleming isnt the only one who takes pride in the sidewalk gardens. Residents and business owners watch out for those who might want to snip some blooms to take home.

A lot of people in Seaside feel they have ownership of the gardens. They police them. I do think people take care of the gardens, Fleming said.

Nancy McCarthy