Category Archives: garden visit
beam me here
Actor Zachary Quinto, probably best known for playing the young Spock in the JJ Abrams’ Star Trek movies, on the evidence of his garden, seems to be a well-grounded young man. It’s not very often that a house for sale … Continue reading
a garden wedding
When someone who works in landscape design gets married, even the agaves are dressed for the occasion. Congratulations to Mary True and Cheryl Fippen on their recent wedding in Berkeley, California. Thank you both for your kind permission to use … Continue reading
supergraphic Deborah Sussman
When I visited Los Angeles’ Grand Park for the first time, I didn’t know that environmental designer Deborah Sussman, who passed away last week at age 83, was the force behind those shocking pink chairs and benches, a color Ms. … Continue reading
Posted in artists, design, garden visit
Tagged 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, California, Charles & Ray Eames, Deborah Sussman, Design Boom, environmental design, Frances Anderton, Grand Park, KCRW's Design & Architecture, Los Angeles, Pacific Standard Time at LACMA, photographer Jim Simmons, Sussman/Prejza & Co, World Landscape Architecture, WUHO Gallery
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meeting plants in person for the first time
By now you’re probably wondering will this blog ever stop dining out on the Portland garden bloggers meetup. Just one more for now on the plants that really had my number. Which is undeniably an odd number, but the heart … Continue reading
Posted in garden travel, garden visit, plant nurseries, Plant Portraits
Tagged Acacia covenyi, Acanthus sennii, Achnatherum calamagrostis 'Silver Spike'', Aechmea recurvata, Aeonium 'Zwartkop', Asphodeline lutea, Berkheya purpurea, Bupleurum spinosum, Cirsium occidentale, Cistus Nursery, Crambe maritima, Dancing Oaks Nursery, Eryngium maritimum, Garden Bloggers Fling 2014 Portland, hardy scheffleras, McMenamins Kennedy School, Potentilla calabra, Potentilla gelida, Potentilla hippiana
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got flowers?
Some photos of Portland, Oregon gardens visited mid July that welcome flowers to varying degrees. Procreation is messy (to paraphrase a former secretary of defense), and zero emphasis on flowers and their disheveled aftermath is the answer for some gardens. … Continue reading
contain your enthusiasm
Creating a small, plant-rich garden in zone 8 can be a brutal business. Faced with so many tempting choices in such an agreeable climate, a small garden runs the danger of sinking into visual chaos. Wielding the power of refusal, … Continue reading
garden chairs
“A chair is a very difficult object. A skyscraper is almost easier. That is why Chippendale is famous.” – Ludwig Mies van der Rohe Continuing my monomaniacal, object-specific tour of Portland gardens, which brings us around to chairs. Because I’ve … Continue reading
Portland Pots It Up
There’s so many reasons for plants to spend some or even all of their lives in containers. Aside from the practical reasons — fine-tuning sunlight, better drainage, more moisture, less moisture, special soil mixes, protection from chewing and digging creatures, … Continue reading
Posted in agaves, woody lilies, design, garden ornament, garden travel, garden visit, pots and containers, succulents
Tagged Aloe plicatilis, Begonia boliviensis, Bella Madrona gardens, Cistus Nursery, Ernst/Fuller Gardens, Euphorbia ammak, garden designer Laura Crockett, garden designer Sean Hogan, Gomphrena 'Pink Zazzle', JJ Sousa Digs Inside and Out, John Kuzma's garden, Joy Creek Nursery, Oregon, Pomarius Nursery, Portland, Potted For Outdoor Living, Westwind Farm Studio
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impressions of Portland gardens (in the zone of filtered sunshine)
Since returning from touring gardens and nurseries in Portland last week, I’ve been haphazardly researching what makes the Pacific Northwest so full of great gardens and nurseries. Not expecting any definitive answer, just scrounging around for clues. Portland’s enviably soft … Continue reading
Posted in climate, garden travel, garden visit, Plant Portraits, pots and containers
Tagged 2014 Portland Garden Bloggers Fling, Cistus Nursery, Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web', Joy Creek Nursery, Modern Jackass/This American Life, Oregon, Pomarius Nursery, Portland, Rhus typhina Tiger Eye Sumac, Solanum pyracanthum, Willamette Valley
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notes from the CSSA plant sale at the Huntington June 28-29, 2014
Aloe cameronii from the Cactus & Succulent Society of America show and sale at the Huntington this weekend. An aloe famous for the deep coloring of is leaves, which requires harsh treatment to maintain, full sun and minimal water. I … Continue reading
Posted in agaves, woody lilies, clippings, garden visit, pots and containers, succulents
Tagged 29th Annual Intercity Show at LA County Arboretum, Agave bracteosa, Aloe cameronii, Cactus and Succulent Society of America, Cephalocereus urbanianus, Huntington Botanical Gardens, Notocactus magnificus
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