Another garden tour two-fer (Puget Sound Fling)

After visiting the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden and the adjacent Pacific Bonsai Museum, the Flingers landed in Milton, Washington to tour two private gardens, also adjacent.  The first was the Andersen Garden, inspired by the time the owner spent working and traveling in Italy.  Many of her garden's most prominent features brought back memories of my own, all-too-short, visit to Italy almost three decades ago.

I loved this long colonnade topped off with Wisteria on one side of the house

This pathway along another side of the house was also framed by a colonnade of sorts

Classic Roman and Greek imagery was conjured using statuary.

While I can't claim this is my style, it definitely underscored the Italian theme

Some segments of the garden reflected more personal themes.

This Remembrance Garden was developed by the owner in honor of her mother.  I understand that the plants were selected based on their names, variety and color. 

 

The owner also dedicated a section of the garden to pets loved and lost, which brought tears to my eyes.  I have the ashes of 4 cats I need to do something with.

Ample trees provided comfortable shade.

This patio had a bench that offered a place to sit and enjoy the garden

Water features added peaceful notes.

I'm not sure I've ever seen a pond with a birdbath/fountain in the middle but I liked it!

There was a stream too.  Every time I see water features like these I wonder about incursions on the part of raccoons but perhaps those critters are more courteous in the Pacific Northwest - or the owners have dogs to keep them at bay.

There were plenty of spots to sit and relax.

I can imagine plunking down to read here, something I rarely do in my own garden.  It was kind of the owner to offer bottled water to her visitors too.

I didn't ask if this was a fire pit or a spot to toast marshmallows or something else but it looked nice

There was a very large sports court/event space at this end of the garden

Although I'd have been seriously tempted to replace the sport court with plants, there were plenty of nice ones to admire.

Top row: vibrant Crocosmia, dark-leafed Hydrangea, and a Hydrangea grown as a standard
Middle: gorgeous lime-leafed Cotinus (maybe 'Golden Spirit'?) with flower closeup
Bottom: Potted Osteospermum, Pericallis, Fuchsia, Begonia and Calibrachoa 

The front of the garden along the street side had a giant hedge of what I believe is Magnolia grandiflora

The next garden was just steps away.  The boundaries between these gardens were fuzzy in a few cases so it's entirely possible that photos from one garden slipped into my summary of the other but I hope I sorted most of these out.  The guide we received described the Risdahl-Pittman Garden as an "eclectic plant playground" and I loved it for just that quality; however, I was chagrined to find how few photos I collected during this visit.  I can only blame low blood sugar as our lunch stop was pending.

Like the Andersen Garden, the Risdahl-Pittman featured a good deal of lush lawn and shade provided by trees.

Mixed border containing what I think was Ceanothus and Hydrangea among other plants

 

More large Hydrangeas

Narrow paved pathways under the trees

And a lovely pond

There were art pieces here and there but they were more subtle and abstract than those in the prior garden.

The Seattle-Tacoma area is Chihuly country so decorative glass art was relatively common in the gardens we toured

As I indicated, plants were my central focus.

Getting an early start, Eriocapitella hupehensis (aka Japanese anemone) looks beautiful in the shade.  The last of the plants I inherited with my garden is scorched almost beyond recognition.

This is the lily I went gaga over during this Fling (shown in the first photo with Persicaria 'Painter's Palette').  An Instagram commentator identified the lily as Lilium 'Zeba'.  I've already pre-ordered the bulbs, intended for delivery next February as I recall.

Clockwise from the upper left, my best guesses: climbing Hydrangea, Hypericum perfortum seedpods (aka St. John's wort), Astilbe with other flowers, cool moss on a rock (that'd never happen here), Inula magnifica or Telekia speciosa (none of the ID apps agree), and a groundcover Persicaria

Lunch at VanLierop Garden Market was next up.  That was the only lunch I ate rather than inhaled.  The food was great, as was the company, and I think I simply needed a break.  Unfortunately, that meant that I never took the opportunity to meander through the market area and I failed to take any photos.  To make up for my omission, you can find good coverage of the market from Pam at Digging and Loree at danger garden here and here.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Filling in the Gaps in my Day One Coverage of the Fling

It's been a busy week as I struggled to catch up with delayed housekeeping and garden demands.  I've made only dents in both but I decided this was a good opportunity to catch up on my Day One coverage of the Puget Sound Fling in mid-July.  I skipped two gardens, both which we visited relatively briefly.  My photographic coverage of both is also woefully incomplete but I can only share what I have.

The first of these is the Halstead-Robinson Garden on Vashon Island, which my bus visited after Carhart Garden and prior to our lunch stop at Froggsong Garden.   We had half an hour to explore the half-acre garden, located in Dockton overlooking the Quartermaster Harbor.  My own garden is just over a half-acre in size and, even knowing it as well as I do, I'm not sure I could photograph it effectively in half an hour!

I snapped this shot of the harbor and a restaurant directly across the street from the Halstead-Robinson Garden when we dismounted the bus.  I have to say that a restaurant that close to home has appeal!

The borders were full of plants I find impossible to grow, like these Astilbe

I understand that the owners lost 20 large plants due to extreme winter conditions, which required some adjustments

As we learned in virtually every garden we visited, Hydrangeas were in fine form throughout the Puget Sound

A shady vignette complete with a dry streambed

Steps leading to a deck surrounding the Craftsman home built in 1908

It was a playful garden, as exemplified by the artistic features scattered throughout, as well a two areas dedicated to involving visitors in the garden.

Anita Halstead is a mosaic and topiary artist and evidence of her work was evident in many areas.  I don't know if the metalwork black bird was her design but I loved it too.

This chess set in the middle of the front lawn invited play

This invitation to explore meditation while walking through a small maze was also intriguing, although I neglected to photograph the maze itself

There were several inviting seating areas, of which I'll share two.

A short path led to a shaded bench sheltered by tall shrubs

This shaded bench under a tree was backed by Halstead's stylish topiaries

The gardeners/homeowners generously offered plants for sale.

Tempting, but I consistently steered clear of anything I'd have to cram into my luggage and check at the airport

The garden was full of wonderful plants but these 2 caught my eye: Alcea (hollyhock) on the left and Schizanthus (poor man's orchid) on the right.  Unfortunately, the former is a magnet for rust in my area.  I haven't seen plugs or even seed of the latter in years but it's among the top 10 of my favorite flowering annuals.

Although I missed a lot, I took note of the compost bins.  They're unexciting but I consider them as evidence of a hands-on gardener.

They look well-used!

The other stop I skipped over during my earlier coverage was Point Defiance Park, which we saw after Froggsong Park and our ferry ride back to the mainland and before the day's final stop at Gray Garden.  My recollection is that we had less than half an hour there, which when faced with a 760-acre park, required severe limitations on my options.  I saw only the Dahlia Trial Garden and the Fuchsia Garden before we were hailed to load our bus.

I followed a group of locals in the general direction of the Dahlia Trial Garden, just a short distance from our bus

The dahlias were numbered, not named.  This one stood out within the group the park was trialing this year.

I liked these 3 too

These are some of the others that were in bloom

I spent some time chatting so I admittedly captured little of the Fuchsia Garden.

According to the park's online site, the garden's collection features 125 upright fuchsias

Next week, time permitting, I'll get started with Day Two of the Fling.  In the meantime, best wishes for a good weekend!

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

Gray Garden: Artfully Curated

The last stop on Day One of the Puget Sound Fling was Gray Garden.*  The owners not only graciously invited all one-hundred Fling participants into their garden at the same time but also treated us to wine and snacks.

There was a bee line to the wine

As we'd climbed a tall stairway to reach the deck with a clear view of Commencement Bay, it was obvious that the property was situated on a steep incline but I didn't appreciate how steep it was until I wound my way around the house to face the back garden.

This was the sight that met us upon turning that corner

This deeper view shows just how tall the back slope is.  The owners created a rock scree to stabilize the slope with it's natural water seepage.  The rectangular fiberglass panels in assorted colors midway up the slope are installed from spring through summer to add interest.

A small pond sits at the slope's base, fed by a waterfall

One of the most striking elements of the back garden was a creation the owners named "Toadhenge."

"Toadhenge" is a play on Stonehenge, the famous neolithic structure in the UK, and a commentary on the toadstool-like rocks carefully balanced in an upper area of Gray Garden's slope

Here's a closer view.  I think that's Jerry of Botanica Chaotica getting a closer look.  The trail taking visitors up there was itself sloped.

The stone structure looked a little different from every angle

As you've probably noticed, the area was densely planted.  The plants were selected for their appreciation of shade and moist soil.

Gunnera, ferns, and assorted foliage plants in varied colors and textures were everywhere.  Flowers were relatively uncommon.

 

Pops of chartreuse foliage echoed the color of the patio furniture 

Trees included weeping willows, white birches, and a variety of Japanese maples

Rock was used extensively too

This tree looked like a piece of natural art

There were small (and some not so small) pieces of art tucked into virtually every nook and cranny.

I felt a little overwhelmed with the art at time but these were some of my favorites.  The toad stool was a nod to the "Toadhenge" structure.  The little frogs sitting on the steps signaled the need for care walking up those shiny black steps.  And I simply couldn't dismiss a frog belching up flowers.

Even the back gate was artsy

All too soon, it was time to board the buses and head back to our hotel.  I snapped a few last shots of the front garden as we left.

Those big rocks next to the stairway to/from the deck indicate the height of the climb

This was a route through the front garden I didn't get a chance to take

If you look carefully at the upper left corner of this shot aimed up the street, there's another view of Mount Rainier in the distance

I can't speak for everyone, but that was one busy day! 

*I skipped two of the shorter stops made on Day One but I'll come back to them with a later post.  I think I've finally made it around the corner with COVID; however, as I was fooled once before and suffered a relapse, I've promised my husband one more test on Saturday morning before we bring down the walls of isolation we've maintained since I tested positive on July 24th.  The best news is that he managed to evade the virus throughout the process, even if it drove us both a little crazy.  In my case, I'm looking forward to getting back to my normal activities.  Fling posts will continue but may be more sporadic.

All material © 2012-2024 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party