For the inaugural episode of “Gardening with Ciscoe” last Saturday on KSQM 91.5 FM, Ciscoe Morris — the Seattle-based gardening expert, TV and radio personality — welcomed any and all questions about gardens.

“I have never been stumped once,” Morris said. “Maybe 100 times, but never once.”

The new program with Morris is something that came up in recent weeks, KSQM director Jeff Bankston said. Organizers set aside 9-10 a.m. each Saturday for Morris to answer listeners’ questions and share anecdotes with KSQM’s Susan “Sassy Susan” Sorensen.

Listeners can check out the show at 91.5 FM in Sequim or at ksqmfm.com. They also can call or email questions in advance or during the show to 360-681-0000 or office@ksqmfm.com. More information is also available at facebook.com/KSQM91.5FM.

Morris said a friend from the area knew he had lost his radio show with KIRO after 30 years, and she loves KSQM and “thought it’d be cool to connect them.”

“I’m so honored and proud to be a part of the family,” he said.

He fielded numerous questions from local listeners and fans from the I-5 corridor including concerns about hydrangeas, lilies, slugs and snails, zucchinis and much more.

With hydrangeas, Morris recommends not pruning them until February or March and about an inch or two below the pom pom. He said it’s common that people cut all the stems all the way to the bottom, but he only cuts about one-third to half of the old canes down to the ground for a strategic look so that “Every flower will be twice as much next year.”

For concerns about slugs and snails, Morris said they’re “the worst I’ve seen for a long time.”

He joked that one solution is to find a “French guy and have some escargot.”

But in seriousness, he recommended gardeners stay away from anything with metaldehyde because it can hurt wildlife. He recommended products with iron phosphate and only using a little bit.

After his first show, Morris was surprised there weren’t any lavender questions.

Day-trippin’

Morris said he’s been visiting Sequim since the early 1970s when he used to scuba dive in the area. For his first radio show here he said he considered staying in a hotel and hiking Hurricane Ridge, but since the hotels were full he instead opted to hike the Dungeness Spit for a day trip.

For several years, Morris opened the Sequim Lavender Festival in a special ceremony, and on air he told listeners that one year he went to hike the Spit after the festivities. Figuring it was warm enough, Morris opted to hike without a coat. He soon discovered it was colder than he thought.

“By pure miracle, I found a red potato bag drifting by (in the wind) and put it on my head,” he said.

When he got back to the parking lot, he wondered why he was getting so many funny looks.

Last Saturday he swore to bring his coat “even if it’s nice out.”

More Ciscoe

Along with his new radio show on KSQM, Morris appears every-other-week on KING-5’s “Evening Magazine” and “New Day Northwest” programs. He has also taken up conference video calls to companies and groups.

For more information about his latest endeavors, visit www.ciscoe.com.

Contact KSQM 91.5 FM at 360-681-0000 or ksqmfm.com.

Ciscoe Morris started visiting Sequim in the 1970s to scuba dive, he said. Now, he’s hosting his radio show “Gardening with Ciscoe” at 9 a.m. Saturdays on KSQM 91.5 FM. After his first show, he was surprised listeners didn’t ask any questions about lavender. Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash

Ciscoe Morris was presented a KSQM 91.5 FM hat on Saturday by Susan Sorensen after his first show of “Gardening with Ciscoe.” Sequim Gazette photo by Matthew Nash