Spring Day Garden Tour

HAPPY SPRING!

Whoa....Spring is here finally...YAY!    Yup...I am sick of winter and this winter wasn't even that bad here.  I am so excited I had to go grab the camera.  Come on, lets go see what is happenin' in my garden!  Oh and bring a cup of coffee...its chilly out and this might take a few minutes.

Licorice flavored very pretty leaves

Yumminess is happening in the back yard...and some flowers too but I'm hungry so where is that kale?

This buds for you...yummy!

Hey this isn't cheating, they are doing the sowing not me

I am not an addict...I am not an addict

Garden shame...we all have it...here's mine.  That bunch of pots...all the stuff I bought and never got planted and some that I dug up...and never got replanted. 

Last year's Pansies thriving and blooming again

Lets see what the Prims are doing....(moving a chair)...LOOK!

A plant from my past as a propagator

Wanda never disappoints and is so easy to grow

Let me show you a weed over here that you don't want going to seed...Galium, or Cleavers as a lot of folks call it.  The seeds are like velcro and it sticks to everything...especially sock, cat's tails and curly haired dogs.  It is a useful plant but just don't let it get out of control.  I call it Velcro weed because the leaves and stems have little hooks on them.

Oh and one more...yup...Labrador Violet...it goes everywhere...pretty and pretty invasive, at least in my garden.

Oh look...LETTUCE SEEDLINGS!  Nope...they are from last year's seed.  They wintered over so now I will have fresh lettuce without sowing a thing this year.  (I am right on task with my no seed sowing aren't you proud of me?)

Lets to out to the front...here we go down the side yard...oh look at that...red violets...I love violets.

I like getting up close and personal with my plants

If I ever am without this next plant I will be sad...David Ward is a man from my past...er a plant from my past.  I adore this plant.  Those leaves lighten up the shade and the flowers are such a sweet salmon pink.  Be still my beating heart!

Another plant from my past

Historically favorites in the garden

Oh no...more garden shame...actually it's not really shame its just the garden being itself.  That's what happens when you can no longer whip it into submission. (lol)  Sword Fern, Carex, Scilla and Orris root all fighting for land rights.  I wonder who will win?  Oh and yes I made the hyper tuffa planter.  Nice moss huh?

"Out of my way." "NO out of MY way!" (You mean you can't hear that?)

You gotta see this Hellabore...its just the sweetest little thing....here she is.

The sweetest seedling in the garden.

Well here we are at the front porch...yeah the Ribes is pretty isn't it.  The humming birds just go nuts over those ruby red flowers.  I like it because it blooms over my birthday...oh and we really needed something against this white wall and this worked great.

Thank you for taking the time to humor me and take a look at my garden.  It's funny writing this post because I am really doing nothing in the garden but letting it do it's own thing...proof that there is still beauty to be had when things are taken out of your control and that different doesn't necessarily mean bad...it's just different.

~Happy Spring and Happy Gardening ~

Peeking Into Viscaya

The Container Tent at Viscaya

Like most plant lovers there is nothing I would rather be doing than nosing around a nursery on a sunny afternoon...especially if it is a brand new one.  Just a mile from where I live a brand new plant nursery opened for a little preview peek inside and shopping if one so desired.  I was not going to miss this opportunity and headed there right after church with my camera and a few coins in my pockets to see what I could find.

William working it on Sneak Peek Day

Viscaya is owned an operated by William McClenathan who has already made a name for himself as the a part of the friendly expert team on Garden Time TV and as a garden guru at Portland Nursery.  By the way, aside from all of that, he is also one of the sweetest guys you would every want to meet.  He has been dreaming of opening his own place for a while now and finally, on Mother's Day, it will open to the public.  May I tempt you with a sneak peek of your own? Follow me and I'll show you around.

Sculptured hedge next to the container tent.

The concept of shopping in a garden...very cool idea.  It feels like such an adventure yet so peaceful.  All the lawn pathways and hedges and beds throughout really make it quite the adventure.

One of several fountains on the grounds.

Rusted metal sculpture greeting visitors

Perfect pairing of rusted pole and a sturdy

Inspiring simplicity that calms the soul.

Thoughtfully places benches with plants for sale along pathways?

Clever use of a broken container.

Unique surprises are everywhere like these pitcher plants

Plants for sale along one of the pathways

I have to stop here and let you know that this garden is "a-mazing"...The garden itself is a maze and inside of it is another small maze made of Arborvitae on the left side just across from those plant benches in the photo above.  How many nurseries have you ever been to with one of those?

A simple yet powerful statement

At the end of the long straight pathway is this wonderful fence made of branches that are attached to a basic board frame that was probably my favorite thing I saw.  But that wasn't all.

What a great use for a leaded window!

(If that window and fence ever come up missing, you know where to look William.)

Indigenous stone wall along the front garden area.

Lewisia looking fabulous in bright pink

Schizophragma hydrangeoides 'Moonlight' looking quite happy

This column caught my eye...hmmm

It took me a while but I finally realized William had used cinder block to construct pillars for his art pieces in more than one place.  I love this idea.  Again, simple, and this time very affordable and sturdy.  These could be mortared together and given a skin coat of mortar to make them look like a square pillar if one wanted to...but I kind of like them just as they are.  Nicely done.

An arbor shrine

This took my breath away.

The pot with variegated Forsythia and white tulips took my breath away.  I wish I could have captured how gorgeous it was.  So airy, clean and crisp...just beautiful.

Classic bowl and column

I was so inspired by what I saw I am going to have to try some of these ideas in my own garden.

Shelf Tower

Viscaya will also be offering bentwood furniture like this shelf tower.  I loved the curly willow this artist used...just loved it.

It's got curly wood!

Sturdy construction with attention to detail

I resisted taking photos of the plant tables, I had to leave something special for you to come see for yourself.  There are some really nice specimens and prices are reasonable.  I know I found some that just begged to come home with me.  Oh I am going to get into so much trouble here.

Viscaya has a Facebook page too.  Give them a like and keep up with the latest news.

Thanks for joining me.  Hope to see you there sometime.



Copyright © 2012 by Patty Hicks
All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review. All reviews must include author's name and a link back to this blog.

When Snow Makes You Grumpy

This morning we were blessed with over an inch of wet snow.  Normally I am over the moon about snow...but not in March and not this slushy stuff that has little of the beauty of it's fully frozen counterpart.

Pretty?  Eh, not so much.

Complaining was not going to make it go away so I decided to grab my camera and take some photos of plants in the white stuff and hopefully I would find something to take edge off this feeling that it is never going to get warm again.  Once I was out in it I was almost immediately reminded that there is always something delightful if I will only take the time to look for it.

Nandina domestica with snow jewelry

The violets look even brighter in the snow

Korean Lilac with an bobble of snow

Now how cute is this?  Hellebore all bowing in a row.

God knows how much I delight in whimsy

So if you have the winter blues I recommend you give this a try.  It did a world of good for my heart this morning, maybe it will help yours too.  Have a blessed day.


Copyright © 2012 by Patty Hicks
All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review. All reviews must include author's name and a link back to this blog.

Gardens Still Hold Beauty

Have you gone searching for little bits of beauty in the garden as it begins it's Fall decline?  You should really.  It's amazing the things we can see when we look past the obvious.  I found a few delights in my own garden yesterday I wanted to share with you.  Come join me for a little tour.

Soapwart still beautiful and in full bloom

Future preserves abounding

Seedheads have color too

Swept back by the east winds and gorgeous!

Bits of color here and there

The Apple Rose that refuses to leave

A sweet flower peeking through the shrubs

Leaves beginning to blush with Fall

Fall sky framed perfectly

Grasses rustling in the Fall winds

Such cheerful hips this time of year

More blooms still promised

Quince fruit glows and entices

Spiders weave diamond strands

Sweetness at my feet

Frogs enjoying the Fall sunshine

Hops is still rockin the post

And that was only in the front yard....

I wonder what I will find in the back yard?

Happy Fall Everyone!

Copyright © 2011 by Patty Hicks
All rights reserved. No part of this blog may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including printing, recording or by any information storage and retrieval system without written permission from the author, except for the inclusion of brief quotations in a review. All reviews must include author's name and a link back to this blog.