Garden visits here and there around town

I made it to my first HPSO Open Garden back on April 26th, the garden belongs to Mark Griswold Wilson and Ellen Burr. Along the public sidewalk...

And the view from the front.

That sidewalk arch included a trellis with quotes.

The front garden was divided into a woodland planting to the left of the home's sidewalk (below) and a prairie planting on the right. The back garden wasn't open to visitors, 

I loved the simple bird bath.

And the bight Lewisia, I mean how can you not love such happy flowers?

The garden's owner wrote this Meadowscaping Handbook for the West Multnomah Soil and Water Conservation District.

Camassia

Tellima grandiflora, aka fringecup

Standing in the driveway looking back at the front of the home. I didn't get a chance to ask what was going to be planted in the raised metal planter, maybe vegetables?

I particularly loved the softening of the driveway's hard lines with gravel and large containers.

This next garden belongs to Mary DeNoyer. I've shared many photos of her garden over the years, but it's so good that I can't not take photos whenever I visit, I was there last week for a plant swap. An orange Hoover Dish planter hangs near the back patio.

One of many arisaema in the garden.

Saxifrage!

And another arisaema, maybe A. ringens?

The largest/happiest clump of Athyrium niponicum I've ever seen in a garden.

Sunny peony that I can't name.

Embothrium coccineum

Echium wildpretii (one of two in Mary's garden).

Podophyllum peltatum I believe, although the leaves look different from mine.

I'm jealous of every monumental Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Wissel's Saguaro' (on the left) I see, since mine refuses to "saguraro" and just sits there looking like a boring green pillar.

The next garden isn't really a garden, but rather a bit of commercial landscaping in front of a cannabis dispensary, Electric Lettuce. There was once a trio of picturesque Agave ovatifolia (previous blog post here) but now there's only a pair.

One of which is fixing to bloom. Well, make that two of which. This particular plant was damaged pretty badly with the winters of 22/23 and 23/24 and it looks like it compensated by developing two growing points, both of which are sending up bloom spikes.

I'm not sure what happened to the third plant, but I can report there are lots of hosta new on the scene. I was amused at the idea agaves and hosta are growing in the same planting. Very Portland don't you think?

The development of the bloom spikes will be fun to watch.

While visiting the Dirty Diggers of Lovewood Plant Sale last weekend I visited Don's garden again since he's in the same block. I've previously written about his garden here and here. 

Agave montana there at the bottom of the photo.

Doesn't it look a little like that upright conifer is trying to imitate the Trachycarpus (palm) with it's flopped out bits?

Check out those fabulous Agave parryi!

Not to mention the shrub-sized Opuntia.

If I remember right that's a Yucca schottii?

A fun garden to visit, and it's all visible from the public sidewalk!

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All material © 2009-2025 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

The crevice garden at Far Reaches and my fern haul (aka Pt 2 of an excellent adventure)

Last Friday's post covered the ferns at Far Reaches Farm, today we we take a walk around the crevice garden and the area around Sue and Kelly's home.

This collection of crevice garden mounds was completed in two different builds and was done by the "Crevice garden maestros Kenton Seth, Paul Spriggs, Ty Danylchuk, and Chris Dixon" read all about it over on the Far Reaches Botanical Conservancy page, here. If Kenton and Chris' names sound familiar it might be because I recently wrote about their work at Diary Creek.

If parts of the garden look a little bare it's because they're not rushing to fill, but rather planting as funds (and plants) allow.

I didn't manage to find the label for this saxifrage, but I've received gift  packages with curly ribbon bows that look quite similar.

I see the label there, but I didn't pull it out and snap a photo, another saxifrage I believe.

I think these may be some sort of draba, perhaps D. hispanica (guessing!).

Perhaps Acantholimon halophylum? (saw similar at Illahe Rare Plants).

There were dryland ferns tucked in the crevices as well, Cheilanthes argentea.

A Myriopteris.

Myriopteris CF. wrightii

Aspidotis densa

Pellaea sp. Tonto National Forest

I'm not sure if this is the same Pellaea sp. or a different one.

Love that creeping mound of green.

Bigger mound, with cute pup.

Walking around the front of the house now...

The coyotes keep the bunnies in check. In my garden they've munched the Burkeya purpurea to the ground.

Perfectly shaggy nolina and yucca.

Eryngium  maritimum (jealous!)

These two! It looks like someone took the shears to them, but I suspect the odd growth was due to transplanting?

I'm back home now and took a shot of my very ferny haul. Of course the big leaves/fronds on the far left belong to Pyrrosia sheareri.

Working clockwise from there, the pot at the top contains a Caiophora sp—about 65 species of annuals and perennials including climbers from Patagonia to Colombia, predominantly in the Andean zone. (source)

Here it is blooming at Far Reaches, that's Kelly's hand.

Kelly took me to see this plant and tried to find seeds to offer, but when he couldn't he gave me the plant. Why did I need to have it? Well it's rather "dangerous": "First and foremost it is essential to say these plants sting. The degree to which individual humans are allergic to the chemical irritants varies considerably. For some it wears off in seconds and is much less of a nuisance than nettle-rash. Others are affected for days afterwards and may even suffer ulceration. Unfortunately there is no way of knowing except by trial and error and it is essential when handling plants to use gloves." while Kelly was looking for the seeds (with no gloves) he repeatedly said "ouch" and shook his hand. This is one plant I will be very careful with.

Next up, Davallia perdurans PMD, squirrel’s foot fern. 

This is not a plant I would have grabbed solely based on the foliage. It's not the type of fern that makes my heart beat faster. 

So why did I buy it? Because of those fuzzy feet! (pics of the plant growing at Far Reaches)

My plant is just getting started.

Another impulse buy (meaning not one of the plants I'd ordered ahead of the visit), Deparia lobato-crenata. I'd seen this one on their website but it just didn't do anything for me there. In person I loved it.

Lepisorus cf. macrosphaerus MD 15-09 (now known as Lepisorus rostratus MD 15-09). I "needed" this one for a project I'm working on...

And finally, Bommeria hispida. I have one I got from Cistus years ago, I love it and jumped at the chance to plant another. This is likely from the same collection as the FRF website says: "Collected by Oregon's Finest, Sean Hogan, from the Pinaleno Mts at 6200' in SE Arizona". That's my haul!

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