Auntie Robin loves palms

I've followed Auntie Robin on Instagram for awhile now and met her in person while standing in line at Hortlandia last year (or was it the year before?). I knew the woman loved palm trees but I was not prepared for this...

I visited her garden in person last month and was blown away by the sheer number of palms.

Her garden is large—more than 4 times the size of my lot—and Robin says she's planted 19 different palm varieties and 48 total palms! I'm always curious about the roots of people who live in the Portland area but grow plants that aren't typically found here, so I asked Robin about that: "I am from Oregon but have traveled the world. I love the architectural way you can use palms. I am a sculptor and working with shapes and forms is my element. Throw in my love of plants and my nerdy side and I am a happy girl."

Those raised planters aren't just for looks, she uses them to create a custom planting soil mix and... "I build the raised beds with heat cables. I know I am on the edge of zonal denial. Plus, online there's a bunch of us that share data on winters challenges. They have taught me a lot over the last couple years." you read that right, she can heat the root zone of these plants!

A few more photos of the front garden...

And then we move to the back garden...

There's a large deck off the back of Robin's home, where you get a great view looking down on the back garden...

As you might imagine, when you've got a thing for palms, you also go all in for tiki culture...

The tiki lounge is tucked under the deck, perfect for enjoying the garden year-round.

I love these three tall planter bases, raised planting bowls are always the right answer to more plants!

Naturally there are big bananas, wherever there are palms, there are usually bananas.

Another covered lounge spot.

Do I see another palm? Yes of course I do...

Schefflera taiwaniana (Heptapleurum taiwanianum) with a Sinopanax formosanus on the left.

Looking back over my shoulder...

And up towards the house.. pretty amazing, right?

Robin was adamant that her garden isn't ready for prime time viewing yet, as she's still working on it (aren't we all?). I appreciate her letting me share these photos as they show just how much work she's done already, and I'll have something to compare to when she has her first big open garden. Thanks Robin!

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