Monday, October 7, 2024

Owl Creek Farm in West Chester, Pennsylvania

Today we visit Steve and Ann Hutton’s Owl Creek Farm (another Philly Fling garden), on a very wet Saturday in September, 2023. The bus dropped us off at the end of a long driveway and we walked up to the house. This shot was taken on that walk...
I took this next photo up near the house. An odd combo of foliage textures.

Looking up other posts online about this garden (to see if they'd provide anymore info I could share with you, which they did not) I came across--this one--from Dallas Garden Buzz. Holy Moly! Did we see the same garden? I love the different photos and memories we all take away from a garden visit. No two people see the same thing, or want to share the same photos.


The fenced veggie garden, and maybe a cutting garden too?

A sleek and modern scarecrow?

I started out to explore the path through the grass next to the veggie garden and heard talk of ticks. That's a hard no. I turned around.

Multi-trunked Magnolia macrophylla.

I'm low-key jealous whenever I see a patch of short tetrapanax, mine are all so tall.

The rainy weather made for really dark photos.

Yes that's an Agave geminiflora in a large pot that's sending up a bloom spike.

A tree fern, with bromeliads, in Pennsylvania, will the surprises never end?
I thought maybe the screened porch might double as a place to store some of the non-hardy plants over the winter? (if they have glass to go in?)


That's a sweet patch of asarum sp.


I loved this bit of drama around the back of the house...


Once you passed under the plant covered trellis you entered a gravel patio area.



So many containers!


Fellow Flinger, Lori Daul.

And look, a gravel garden within the gravel garden...


Tropical in Pennsylvania, who knew?!

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18 comments:

  1. These vast lots are incredulous. Making an overall plan would be imperative, and not go out willy nilly like I am so apt to do. I love the containers in/on the gravel area. Much like when I visit Portland, I find myself saying "it's SO GREEN" over & over. *In a good way.

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    1. It's a whole different world out there, wide open spaces and (gasp!) summer rain! Anytime we fly to the East Coast I am shocked at how green everything is.

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  2. All that saturated green color is wonderful, although I can almost feel the wet chill in my bones just viewing your photos. I'm not overly fond of the art I see in most gardens but I was unexpectedly charmed by the personality of that scarecrow (maybe due to the looming approach of Halloween). And I'm envious of all that garden space (even if I recognize there's no way I'd have the time or the energy to care for it).

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    1. Ah yes, that wet chill is not to be underestimated. It eats at you. I didn't know this about you and garden art, although I guess thinking about your garden that makes sense.

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  3. There are a lot of different areas in this garden. I do love the scarecrow but I am with you on avoiding the tall grass due to ticks. Just read a garden rant where Marianne was talking about Lyme Disease. Think I'd just stay indoors.

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    1. I guess you get used to the presence of ticks and the need to give yourself (and you loved ones) a once over, but I feel so lucky we don't have to worry so much about it. (I read the same story)

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  4. This is like a mini botanical garden with a bit of everything tied together. All very healthy. They must have a place to keep all those tropicals. Why aren't those blue palm trees more hardy? Envious of all that pretty redheaded grass, not of their ticks though. They can keep em.

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    1. I seem to recall that the male half of the ownership works at a large wholesale nursery and takes the containers there for the winter. Maybe?

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  5. Beautiful with the rain bringing out all that luscious the greenery and those gorgeous red impatiens! I loved the "traffic cop." Such fun!

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  6. This isn't the 'Old MacDonald had a farm' kind of farm: it feels more like an estate. Because my garden is in city lot, I have difficulty grasping the enormity of gardening on such a large scale.
    I love the mowed path in the grass. Would it be safer (from ticks) if it was doubled in width?
    The tree fern bed is spectacular, nicely positioned so it can be enjoyed from the lounge area.
    Chavli

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    1. Definitely an estate. Yes, I think anytime you can keep the plants from touching you, you are less likely to have ticks on you.

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  7. OMG, I had no idea there were ticks in the grassy area! I wandered all over the lot with Paula Rothkopf @citygardenlane at that garden, and as far as I know, neither of us was nabbed. I liked that garden in a different way from most; it seemed so peaceful and remote.

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    1. I'm sure the danger wasn't high, but I am a worrier!

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  8. Loved that patch of Asarum as I've given up trying to create one. Keep losing pricey plants. But I must say that garden has so many different styles going on that I find it confusing and distracting. A lot of space isn't always a blessing (at least to my eye).

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    1. Perhaps the confusing/distracting element was the way I shared the garden? I don't remember it feeling that way. Good to hear from you Linda!

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  9. This was such a showy garden with its potted tropicals and masses of color. I enjoyed the full exploration, including the meadow path, although I fretted about the risk of ticks too. On the owner's recommendation, I did a tick check that evening and was relieved to find none, but yeah, that's not a worry I usually have here in Austin. Anyway, what a good garden it was!

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    1. I am tick paranoid after finding one on me during the Toronto Fling, yikes!

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