Author Archives: Denise
the view mid-August
Here’s the view of the Oregon Coast back garden through the sliding doors, a view I look at a lot. Like both my gardens, it’s small and densely planted. It’s still exciting to throw back the curtains every morning and … Continue reading
Posted in journal, Oregon garden
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more San Francisco Botanical Garden in July
It’s Friday. We’ve been up to our eyeballs in weird all week. How about a walk through the San Francisco Botanical Garden? At the southern entrance was a searing melange of annuals that was repeated beyond the gates throughout the … Continue reading
Posted in garden travel, garden visit
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crocosmias and smoky skies
Crocosmias bring a freshness to August, particularly in the early bud stages when the whole plant embodies something plump and juicy. Looking at them gives me a craving for nectarines. But we’ve all seen them at their worst, in overgrown, … Continue reading
Posted in climate, Oregon garden, Plant Portraits
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revisiting the Courtney garden June 2026
I first visited Mary and Harlan Courtney’s garden in late July 2022 and wrote about it here. It is a strikingly unique, materials-driven, artfully idiosyncratic approach to managing a slope, where the retaining infrastructure designed by Harlan is as prominent … Continue reading
Posted in garden visit, Oregon garden
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mid-summer miscellany
By the end of July the garden is definitely over the top. A surging, buzzing, no-holds-barred spectacle I’ve been looking forward to since spring. Even Alstroemeria ‘Third Harmonic’ can barely keep up. The Silver Spike grass, Achnatherum calamagrostis, seems to … Continue reading
Posted in journal, Oregon garden
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a garden in the ruins
I was in the Bay Area last week catching up with familiar places, and discovering some new ones too. Immediately upon arriving at the southern entrance to the San Francisco Botanical Garden (free admission before 9 a.m.!), I was struck … Continue reading
Posted in garden visit
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leaving town mid-July for a week
That annoying dream. Shop, prep, cook, plate. And just as you’re sitting down to savor the meal, you realize you’ve forgotten about a very important engagement and must leave the feast and dash out the door. Annoying dream or mid-summer … Continue reading
Posted in Uncategorized
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seductive Orange Hawkweed
Ecological degradation starts innocently enough. On a walk into town, an unexpected jolt of clear orange spotted peripherally doubled me back to the rack of plants always on offer outside the local senior’s center. For sale for $6, and I … Continue reading
Posted in Department of Instruction, Oregon garden, science
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a city garden’s rare trees
On May 30 I visited another fascinating Portland garden through the Open Gardens program of the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon. Sometimes the open gardens are closer to me in the farmland surrounding the city, where they of course tend … Continue reading
Posted in garden visit, Oregon garden
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when color becomes controversial
My compact form of Senecio/Brachyglottis greyi is now shining forth in bloom. And this is after getting frequently trimmed for size to keep it off the manzanita. I love it in the nubby pearly bud stage, which lasts a while, … Continue reading
Posted in journal, Oregon garden, Plant Portraits
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