By LEAH WEATHERSBY

Having trouble with your tulips this year? Kale crop got you down? Well, friend, if you are, you've got no excuse.

That's what I concluded after an hour spent talking with local gardening expert, TV and radio personality James "Ciscoe" Morris, who lives in the Wedgwood neighborhood.

Of course, Morris, who even solved my gardening problems during the interview, would probably never say such a thing, but after hearing his enthusiastic assessment of Seattle as "a paradise for gardeners," I for one couldn't help but feel anyone who's garden hasn't been featured in a magazine could be doing more.

So why does Morris think our state so great for gardening? It all has to do with the mild climate, which Morris likens to that in England. Since the English are almost as famous for gardening as they are for scones and colonialism, that must be good.

Seattle's wonderful not-too-hot, not-too-cold weather is certainly a far cry from Wauwatosa, Wis., where Morris grew up.

Even at the tender age of 10, Morris said he loved to garden with his mom and was able to get a job gardening at a local church. While he gardened he wore his sombrero - a sign of his devotion to the '50s TV western, "The Cisco Kid," which featured a Mexican adventurer. The hat and the show eventually led people to start calling young Morris "Cisco." The name stuck and eventually Morris added the "e" to be different.

It was on a trip to Seattle in the early '70s to visit a friend that Morris, like many before and after him, fell in love with the Pacific Northwest. After moving here in 1972, Morris studied for and received an associates degree from South Seattle Community College in horticulture. Morris also earned a masters degree in public administration and a master gardener certificate from Washington State University. This is part of an extension program, which teaches gardening with environmental information.

All this fits in well with Morris attitude towards gardening. He says one of the things he loves about it is that "you can just keep learning."

Morris has been as energetic in his professional life as in his educational one. He teaches horticulture on and off at Edmonds Community College, is a certified arborist, and estimates that he gives close to 100 talks on gardening a year. Some of those are at elementary schools and he says those are among his most enjoyable.

"The grade school talks are the favorite of all my jobs, and I almost ever never get paid for it," Morris said.

On top of all that, Morris has been the head gardener at Seattle University, and it's that job that has helped him become a radio and TV personality. A Seattle University staff member heard Morris give a talk on gardening and thought he would be a natural for radio. Thanks to the efforts of the university's public relations department, Morris got to do his first radio spot. Others followed. He acted as a substitute for KIRO radio personality George Pinyuh for eight years and went on to do the "Northwest Home and Garden" show on KIRO TV for five years. He also appeared on the noon news on KIRO TV for over three years and for the last seven years he has been doing "Gardening with Ciscoe" on KIRO radio.

Since March, Morris has been doing TV segments on KING TV, during the noon news on Tuesday and Thursday and the morning news on Saturday and Sunday. Morris also has a Web site (www.ciscoe.com) with tips on gardening, recipes and other information. As Morris points out, he's busy.

Since the month of May is upon us, I asked Morris what we, part-time gardeners should be doing on our plots. He said the biggest worry in May is slugs, and recommended a slug bait which goes under several names including Sluggo, Worry-Free and Escar-go. Morris says it is safer for pets and birds.

Speaking of escargot, Morris says snails are also a big problem this time of year.

Morris and I jokingly discussed addressing the snail problem by cooking French cuisine, maybe with a lot of extra butter. Of course, that recipe does not appear on Morris's home page. (