Thursday, January 12, 2012

Back on the sidewalk

One afternoon last week it was so nice outside that I found myself driving to a new part of town in which to take an extended, extra-long dog walk. Knowing I might see a few things worth recording I brought along the camera. I was quickly rewarded with these lovely, old, cement ‘things”… Ya, I have no idea what to call them. Along with the chain they are making a sort of fence, or at least a marker for the property line. I love them. Here we have a gardener that loves Coral Bark Japanese Maples, they had several planted in their hell-strip. They also want passer-byes to know what they are, and how much they cost. Strange garden art. A low cost/low maintenance Portland green-roof! And a great lawn alternative... And wish I would have seen it when it was newly planted, so I knew how long it took to grow in. Stucco houses are few and far between here in Portland (naturally), I’ve always wanted to live in a stucco home. Can you see the vine growing over the neighbor’s driveway? I love that too. The stucco house has a very nicely pruned Pieris japonica on the corner. I’m so glad I didn’t tear out the two we inherited with the house. These can be beautiful shrubs. I vow to keep maintaining mine so someday they’ll hopefully look this good. One more look at the house… Can't you just about get lost in the spirals of Euphorbia myrsinites? I rarely see a Monkey Puzzle tree (Araucaria araucana) with branches all the way to the ground. Wow this looks like the perfect set up in which to grow some front yard food. And the Rosemary Lithodora diffusa 'Grace Ward' (thanks Brian) is incredibly lush. Finally almost back to the car I came upon a small shrub filled with sweet white Camellia blossoms. So pretty…

16 comments:

  1. Looks like a fun walk, excellent finds. The moss is always so amazing to me.

    Interesting how things look in a different context. Lots of stucco around here, including the house next door. We have some stucco on our house and it's not fun to paint. When we priced stucco for the new garage we found it's almost the same cost as stone because it takes three coats. Never would have thought of it as more labor intensive than stonework.

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    1. I had no idea stucco is so expensive! As for the moss it is everywhere this time of year, carpets of green...

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  2. I especially like the euphorbia and the camellia. Just east of the 39th roundabout (now I can't remember if it's Glisan or Stark or Burnside -- I'm thinking Burnside; anyway, it's right near Laurelhurst) on the south side of the street there was a house that had an enormous monkey tree. I haven't been there since we moved to Colorado 11 years ago, but I used to drive past that tree several times a month. I hope it's still there.

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    1. It's Glisan and I drive through that intersection all the time. I don't remember a Monkey Puzzle tree there but I'll be sure to look next time and report. Andrew (husband) has joked about starting a Monkey Puzzle tree inventory list.

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  3. Hi. I love your blog! It has to be my favorite of the couple dozen or so blogs that I follow on a regular basis--really! I want to bring something that caught my eye to your attention. I think your rosemary is not a rosemary. It looks more like Lithodora diffusa 'Grace Ward.' It's something you can look in to should you get the opportunity. As always, I look forward to more "danger gardening."

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    1. Thank you so much Brian, for the kind words as well as the correction. I assumed, based on the small blue flowers, that it was Rosemary. I should have touched it to smell and make sure!

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  4. I have planted a number of plugs of Irish moss, and they spread fairly quickly (I realize that's pretty vague). After seeing your pix I am going to plant a lot more of them. That monkey puzzle is fuller than any I have seen (also probably a lot older). I like them sparser, so I guess it is a good thing that I couldn't possibly live long enough to see ours reach that stage.

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    1. I bought a few 4" pots last summer and cut them into thirds and planted between the pavers to the patio (the ones beyond the lawn). I was a little surprised how slow they were too fill in. Maybe I just have unrealistic expectations!

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  5. I'd *love* to find something this interesting in walks around here. Sigh. I guess I'll just have to keep trying to convert neighbors and see if it spreads. :-)

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    1. I really am fortunate to live in such a garden minded city. Plus our growing conditions are such that a lot grows without any help from the gardener/homeowner.

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  6. I read once that Auracaria auracana first came to Portland during the 1905 Lewis and Clark Exposition. That would certainly explain the size of many of them if it's true. That white camellia is lovely. Although I have a pink Camellia japonica 'April Kiss', I really like the sasanquas and white ones best. Our three 'Winter Snowman' are looking great due to the continued drier weather!

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    1. Yes that bit of Auracaria auracana trivia is true! Sean Hogan remarked once that people were moving here from elsewhere (I want to say California but don't want to put words in his mouth) and cutting them down because they weren't "pacific northwest enough" for them. So sad!

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    2. AnonymousMay 03, 2012

      I live in California in the Bay Area to be more precise and always liked to walk to a local park in the city of Sunnyvale with my dog. I used to go every night with him and would always notice the incredible bird activity around these Monkey Puzzle trees planted in Raynor park. It seemed there were thousands of small birds living in them chirping away. They are large trees and I don't know how long it took them to grow so big but they definitely were receiving moisture from the sprinklers that watered the grass under them. What a great tree! I've even drove over there to check on them a few times now that i don't live so close to them!

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  7. I HEART the mossy "lawn"! I wonder how it looks in summer...if they have to water it much. Price tags left on trees...ugh, ugh, triple ugh ;-)

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    1. Oh good question! I'll have to do a walk-by in the summer to see how it's looking. It's a pretty out in the open (meaning not shaded) area so it might be a concern. The same garden had a huge Callistemon bush and Loquat tree next to the house, I just couldn't get a good picture of them!

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  8. I'd call the cement thing a "bollard." Bollard fixtures are those things you see in front of stores, malls, pedestrian accesses--anywhere that cars must be stopped from driving thru. Sometimes they look like a post, sometimes like a sphere...

    Emily

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