Tuesday, June 25, 2019

Janice and Richard DeVore’s garden, from the 2019 Garden Bloggers Fling

It was Friday afternoon before we visited the first private garden as part of the 2019 Garden Bloggers Fling. By then I was getting a little twitchy. I hadn't been in my garden for over 48 hours. I was in serious need of a little garden time...thankfully I got it.

Janice and Robert moved into their Ft. Collins, CO, home, and garden, in 1986. From our Fling brochure: "the back yard was a gigantic 3/4-acre wasteland of dead grass and an Aspen tree. Richard decided it was too much of a challenge for me and fenced off a smallish portion nearest the house to garden. We had the rest of the yard designated a Wild Life Refuge. After one season of this I (Jan) bought a smallish, flat, stainless-steel shovel and started digging up sod on the other side of the fence. Basically, my garden evolved, year after year, foot by foot, by how much sod I took out and made berms with, until, VOILA! Except for the rock work, I created the whole thing myself."

This private little patio was just off the side of the house, in the front garden. I'm not sure we were actually supposed to tuck into this part of the garden, but you know me. I've got to explore.

After working your way along the side of the house you enter the back garden and this shade-house is one of the first things you see.

Along with plenty of interestingly shaped hypertufa (or something similar) containers.

I swear we saw blooming Echinocereus triglochidiatus in every garden we visited. I almost stopped gasping at the sight of them, almost.

Looking backwards at the gate through which we entered the back garden. Oh, and more pots...

More pots...

The shade-house was almost empty save for a few containers and these interesting hanging pots.

There's some inspiration to be had here.

Moving on...

There's the shade-house again, and look! A balcony from which to view the garden...

Making our way to the balcony now. There were so many peonies in the Colorado gardens and this one was no exception. This one photo representis at least seven or so other plants in the garden.

There were a few potted plants near the base of the stairs to the balcony, this striped cactus was particularly handsome.

More potted treasures along the lattice house wall.

There were several bonsai-esque skeletons in the garden.

The view from above...

And now we're back down on the ground, admiring a few of the many sempervivum in the garden.

Initially my eyes were focused on the containers, but then I spotted that powder-blue, dreamy, conifer.

I'm rather conifer ignorant, but I think this may be an Abies concolor?

It was glowing, lit from within...

Look at that cute little pot full of semperivivum, and of course the big verbascum (I think that's what it is?).

Another verbascum and that dark euphorbia I lust after but never find in a nursery.

Another pot of sempervivum! Do you see why I said they were the "it" plant of this Fling? The pots are also really growing on me. I have no desire to tackle the art of hypertufa, but I'm really warming to the look.

More pots of similar style...

And a rock garden...

Or should that be a crevice garden? I'm not sure.

This garden was an interesting mix. The pines towering above, along with the needles and cones on the ground below, had me mentally back in Spokane, Washington, where I grew up. The places we visited in Colorado definitely had an Eastern Washington feel to them, many of the plants would be perfectly happy there as well. Both Denver and Spokane are USDA Zone 5, with a few parts squeaking in at 6. Interestingly the average annual rainfall in both places is similar too, Denver 15.5" and Spokane 16.5", of course most of Spokane's precipitation falls in the winter months and summer is very dry, the opposite of Denver. This photo could have been taken in either place.

Okay, that's it for this garden...

Weather Diary, June 24: Hi 72, Low 51/ Precip 0

All material © 2009-2019 by Loree Bohl for danger garden. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

25 comments:

  1. This is a very natural looking garden throughout, and the hypertufa planters add to the organic feel: they look really good in this setting planted up with cacti and succulents. I keep wanting to make such containers but it seems like so much work...
    I was surprised at the private patio; not because you snuck in but because it was bare... as was the shade-house. I suppose the balcony is the main area for relaxing and viewing the garden.

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    1. Yes I was surprised the patio was so bare, and ditto for the shade house. I think the only way it makes sense to make hypertufa containers is with a small group. That way you can mix up a much of "slop" and not have to use it all yourself.

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  2. I would love to tackle making hypertufa containers some day, it's one of those things on my bucket list. Hers were very nice, but there were sooooo many, and they seemed to be placed all over, kind of chaotically. It felt unsettling to me. I, too, was itching to see my first private garden on Friday afternoon. Nice shots of the Semps, the gorgeous Semp carpets are one of my best plant memories of this Fling. I want to know why so few were blooming -- could it be the lack of rain? Mine are already flowering and fixing to leave huge holes. It's frustrating.

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    1. For some reason I thought you had made some hypertufa containers. I agree they were kind of random in their placement around the garden.

      As for the nonblooming sempervivum I wondered the same thing. It's a mystery!

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  3. Colorado seems to be the land of crevice gardens. I wish I'd been there to gather inspiration for the renovation of my bromeliad bed but I look forward to future posts from you and your fellow Flingers to help me out. I've been stealing rock the crew dug out in preparation for our kitchen extension from the dumpster already...

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    1. Yes, it's definitely the epicenter of the CG movement. Is it stealing when it was your rock to begin with?

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  4. That silvery blue conifer was such a standout. Really nice garden to explore.

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    1. I'm glad I wasn't the only one to appreciate it.

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  5. I'm in love with those blue conifers too. And the crevice gardens, which we saw in such profusion. I enjoyed your tour (you saw areas I missed), and as this garden is my next-up Fling post, it was great to get a different perspective.

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  6. That was an impressive garden to create on one's own. I am with Alison on the number of pots. I kept thinking about watering them but then I realized she probably has them planted with plants that don't need much attention. That striped cactus was gorgeous. I've never seen anything like it before.

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    1. The striped cactus was still in its nursery pot so I took a photo of the label, hoping to get a name. No such luck.

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  7. An herb garden club here had a hypertufa workshop that was one of the most enjoyed and memorable club events; the successful results were a feature in members' gardens for years. It's definitely more worthwhile to gather the supplies and equipment for a group.

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    1. That's what I was thinking! (a group) Perhaps someday I'll get around to arranging such a thing.

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  8. I was thinking that it looked very eastern Washingtonesque too. Nice to know that there are other gardeners out there who are addicted to pot(s.)

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    1. You and I are not a lone in our pot addition.

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  9. The rock gardens and red sempervivum are great. It must be a bit of a challenge to garden in that climate, but there must be some great natives from the alpine regions.
    BTW, I have lots of that dark euphorbia. I usually cut it back so it won't set seed, but I can send you seed or some bare root plants if you want some. Easy enough to do, I'd be happy to share! Email me your address (find mine on my About page).

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    1. You are very kind Eliza! I'll message you directly.

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  10. The really intriguing aspect of this Fling was that so many gardens required you to look close.The Semps,the tiny Dianthus and all the other rock garden plants that are complete strangers to me were so compelling.

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    1. I agree, so many plants that I had no idea what they were.

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  11. I agree: The rock gardens/crevice gardens and hypertufa pots full of succulents were inspiring. Your views of this garden are so different from mine--I always find that fascinating...how we can all cover the same gardens and notice different aspects, angles, and highlights. So many grand views, mid-range beauties, and tiny details in these Colorado gardens!

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    1. I was thinking about this when I edited down my photos. I would be so easy to share a completely different view of this garden. All the iris and peonies for example. We all see, and appreciate, such different things!

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  12. A love little natural garden. As you know i played a little bit with hypertufa pots a couple of years ago, I was thinking of doing a couple more for semps, but got to find the time, it is quite a lot of work.

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  13. I loved the mix of pillowy and carpeting plants in the rock garden - they made it colorful and exciting.

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  14. I love all of the rock work, really wonderful garden!

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