Friday, September 8, 2017

The garden of Ellen Ash, a stop on the 2017 Garden Bloggers Fling

I could look back at the Fling itinerary and tell you what day we visited this garden...but does it really matter? No. It's all a blur now, just warm, fuzzy happy memories.

Recently Andrew and I were talking about what's important to us — as far as how we spend our money — and we both rank travel way up there. Now granted Garden Bloggers Flings aren't like visiting other parts of the world and immersing yourself in their culture, but for me — as a gardener and garden writer — they're invaluable. I get to experience (up close and personal) how people garden in climates vastly different from my own. It's a wonderful thing.

So anyway, back to this garden in Virginia, here's the description from our brochure...."The front garden features a spectacular variety of azaleas, rhododendrons, hydrangeas, flowering trees and a dry river bed, in addition to a large perennial bed containing spring bulbs, lilies, small blooming shrubs, clematis and over 100 different perennials giving bloom throughout the spring, summer and fall. The highlight of the property is the almost 2 acre woodland garden with paths carved among the tall American hollies, oaks, maples, hickories and dogwoods that are native to the property."

What that description doesn't mention is the owner and gardener had a serious lust for garden art. Objects of every style, material, shape and size. It was a bit overwhelming for me. The photos I took, and will share, greatly downplayed that aspect — that's the way I chose to record this garden.

Notice the pool, a bit of blue, under that Japanese maple. That's the pool house (and maybe a guest house?) just beyond.

The main house is seen beyond the urn, but of course the most important element of this photo is the Opuntia...

Fabulouso!

A closer look at the pool...

I have no idea what these are, but thought them absolutely stunning growing up in the cracks of the stone.

Speaking of stone. Those aren't soft pillows...

Love the bricks in the moss...

Buckeye?

The same tree with fun metal fiddle-head-ish shapes.

The mossy pathways in this garden were exquisite.

Variegated Liriope? (best guess)

Yes, I do have a soft spot for pink flamingos. They will always be appreciated.

The way different materials meet up is always interesting to me.

A clear look at the pool and the main house.

And this!!! This garden was the first time I spotted my 2017 Fling crush, Cephalotaxus harringtonia 'Prostrata', aka Spreading Japanese Plum Yew.

It was grown wonderfully here...

An entire swath!

Weather Diary, Sept 6: Hi 83, Low 66/ Precip 0

All material © 2009-2017 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

25 comments:

  1. Your fav looks like a cross between a grevillea and a cycad! Very cool. Could that stepping stone plant be antennaria?

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    1. Exactly! I'm glad you see the Yew that way too, it's fab. And yep, Kylee confirms the Antennaria ID).

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  2. This place feel huge, like they could rent out rooms (I'd love to stay). My favorite picture is that of the fens and "metal fiddle-head-ish shapes", and how they use fallen leafs as mulch. You down played the art in the garden quite well, but a "soft spot for pink flamingos" begs an explanation :-D

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    1. It was huge! You could probably camp there for days and nobody would know. Re: the Flamingos I've just always thought plastic flamingos were fun. I used to have a couple in the window of my 10th floor dorm room, you could see them all around campus.

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  3. I just posted on this garden too. (For the record, it was day 2, 6/24.) As usual, you did a better job than I did with your photos. I never noticed the cement pillows - I have one of those in my own garden, a gift from a friend.

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    1. I wouldn't say I did a better job, I just took more photos. I seem to go a little crazy with the camera...

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  4. The plant between the stones looks like Antennaria (also known as pussytoes)to me. I've grown it for years and look forward to watching the American lady butterflies use it as a host plant. I've watched them lay eggs and see many of their caterpillars as they wrap themselves up in the leaves for protection when they aren't feeding. It's very cool!

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    1. Thanks for the ID, and backstory. I think I like it better in its non-blooming state. I'm no fun...

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  5. I loved seeing this garden on the same day through the eyes of both you and Kris! You each featured different and interesting aspects and I'm really enjoying the armchair visit to the fling. The concrete pillows are made in California and used to be available in Seattle at Fremont Gardens (alas it is no more) but they can be ordered online. http://www.cottagegardensofpet.com/cgtuffits.htm

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    1. I wish I could say Kris and I planned to post on the same day, wouldn't that have been fun though?

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  6. I have a soft spot for pink flamingos too. I love the mossy paths too. I know Pam must have posted about this garden, but none of your photos are ringing any bells in concert with hers. It just goes to show how different bloggers focus on different things at the Fling.

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    1. Hmmm...she must have, now you've got me wanting to go look. You probably did see Kris' post today though?

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  7. I missed the cement pillows too. And I'm delighted to know that I have your Fling-crush plant growing in my own garden. Mine isn't that big yet though.

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    1. Maybe I'll finally be able to acquire that plant during the Austin Fling? (since it seems to be grown here in OR and then shipped out to the rest of the world).

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  8. Yes, a buckeye: Aesculus pavia. Gets really big eventually -- twelve feet or more wide, and six or more feet tall. The white spires light up a shady spot, as does the clear yellow fall foliage.

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  9. Update comment on the buckeye after reading the rest of the post: This one has a different form than usually seen, apparently having been climbed up and kept to a single trunk. More often, the garden effect is like what you'd see if you removed the trunk and sat the canopy on the ground; some of the width is achieved by suckering. This tree form is attractive and might make the white buckeye more of an option for gardeners reluctant to commit that much ground space to one plant.

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  10. I get a little faint thinking about the amount of weeding needed to maintain those restful expanses of moss, but they're gorgeous and ecologically sound.

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    1. Thank you for the Buckeye info, and gosh...I hadn't even thought about the weeding. You're right...that would be quite the task...

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    2. Correction to my incorrect ID: this bottlebrush buckeye is Aesculus parviflora. A.pavia is a red-flowering one that makes a naturally small tree.
      (hat tip to KrisP's post on the garden)

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  11. A little garden art goes a long, long way, though the turtles look very natural in that rocky place.

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  12. I loved the moss paths , and regret now that I didn't slip off my shoes and take a barefoot stroll. I had several conversations with Ellen as we progressed along our Fling itinerary -most of them brief, but I have to say I just found her incredibly pleasant to talk to-sincere and completely without artifice.

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    1. I don't even recall seeing Ellen on the rest of our adventure, and I think I would have recognized her as I watched her face fill with horror as our bus driver tried to get us out of their driveway...(narrowly missing cars and plants).

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  13. Aesculus pavia (red) or Aesculus parviflora (white)???

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  14. I love the details you've chosen to highlight here, Loree. Stone pillows, wow!

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