danger garden

Friday, December 4, 2020

The basement garden...

I wrote myself a note to remember to take photos of the plants in the basement for this blog post. Not thinking, just writing, I wrote: take photos of the basement garden. Ha! The basement garden, I suppose that's what it is.

Here's what you see as you come down the stairs into our unfinished basement.

The "green wall" is where many of the bromeliads that spend the warm months outdoors hangout for the cold months.

Looking towards the westside...

Towards where I started—years ago—with this insane basement garden business. Back then all I over-wintered was a few nonhardy agaves, cactus and other succulents. I still think of this as the xeric side of the basement.

Whereas the other side (where we started this tour) likes it a little more humid.

Of course if I'm being honest, some of the bromeliads have infiltrated the dry side. It's a space thing.

The hanging staghorn trashcan lid planter...

And one of the ceramic hanging leaves with tillandsia and Lemmaphyllum microphyllum, aka bean fern.

Taking a few steps east, back towards the bromeliads, I turn north and you see our guest "bedroom".

Not really a room, so much as a corner.

Did you notice the Tillandsia usneoides in the above photo? It's much happier indoors when in a hanging situation, rather than lying on a flat surface.

So this year I'm trying it on a belt hanger. It's an easy way to hang it, then take it down to let it soak, and rehang it when it's almost dry.

Standing next to the bed now I'm taking this photo facing south, back towards the laundry area and to the left of that, the half bath we added. This is not a glamorous basement, but rather a hard working one.

Turning towards the plants at the foot of the bed.

The hanging trashcan lid planter is hooked over the front of an old armoire. I take it down to soak it, and then hang it back up. The old towel keeps it from scratching the wood.

Close up of the plants to the side of the armoire, including a couple tall Pachypodium lamerei.

Plants on the metro shelving unit...

And now turning to look east, at my desk.

It's a pretty nice place to work, surrounded by plants.

I've been working on the PowerPoint presentations that will accompany the book release, thus the book is near at all times!

There is a plant peninsula that juts out between my desk and Andrew's work space against the east wall. We'll look at it from the other side in a bit.

Walking back around and over to the laundry area, this utility sink comes in very handy. When I took these photos a trio of bargain ($5) bromeliads were getting a soak, they're destined to be part of the holiday mantlescape.

Adjacent to the sink, leaning up against the outside of the bathroom wall, is the expanded metal piece that hangs on the side of the garage in the summertime.

Moving over to look at the plants gathered around the bottom of the hanging green wall. The Nepenthes alata that over-winter here, on the cement floor, seem to be much happier than the one that hangs.

It must stay more humid here? These plants retained their pitchers all through last winter.

Whereas on this one, that hangs, they started to dry up.

I suppose I should move it lower on the "wall".

The "wall" is actually a section of wire fencing hung from a 2x4...

There's another 2x4 at the bottom for weight. Here you can see I finally bought a humidifier, well two actually. I was hesitant to run them in the basement because we already live in an environment prone to mold, but the plants seem to like the extra moisture and so far it doesn't seem excessive.

A quick look at Andrew's workspace...

Back at the green wall...

And then around the corner, at the peninsula, which unfortunately is right in front of the heater, but lower part is strictly an air intake so it's not blowing hot air out at the plants.

Looking west, back towards my desk and the xeric plants on the far wall.

And one last shot, from the same angle, but a couple of steps backwards. Hope you enjoyed the tour!

I also took a video tour of the basement, ~~but since I have no way of knowing if the Blogger software wants to play nice with the video or not, it will be a surprise for both of us if it works!~~ It works!

Weather Diary, Dec 3: Hi 48, Low 35/ Precip 0

Thursday, December 3, 2020

The Gardener, a film

It was quite sometime ago that I made a note to watch The Gardener, a 2017 film about Frank Cabot—the founder of the Garden Conservancy—and his garden Les Quatre Vents, a twenty-acre English style garden and summer estate in Quebec. I finally made the time.

If you're curious, you can watch the trailer here, and the Garden Conservancy website lists multiple ways that you can watch the film, I watched on Amazon Prime. If you're looking for something to do this winter I recommend watching it yourself.

I do love listening to people talk about gardens and gardening—even if the garden being talked about is very different from those I typically enjoy—and there is a lot of that here. Equally interesting is talk about gardeners. In the film Penelope Hobhouse (British garden writer and designer, among other things) says this about Mr. Cabot..."I don't know what a genius really is, but very often geniuses are a little mad as well, and if he hadn't had a lot of money, you might have said he was."

Frank himself has this to say about visiting gardens: "I see visiting a garden as basically an emotional and sensual experience, as well as something that is filled with surprise." Very true. He also talks about how he prefers people not talk when visiting a garden, you should be focused on taking it all in. I can agree with that sentiment when visiting a public garden. However when visiting a private garden, well then talking with owner and other visitors is half the fun.

The French word "frisson" was thrown around quite a bit in the film, it translates to "thrill." I think it was Frank and Anne Cabot's son, Colin, who said "frisson of delight"... I think that's my new favorite phrase. To be reserved strictly for use when visiting gardens, of course.

I was hoping there would be a bit about the founding of the Garden Conservancy, and finally at one hour and twelve minutes into the film Anne Cabot mentioned visiting Ruth Bancroft's garden, where the idea of the Conservancy began. They also showed a few photos of Ruth's garden, which were a relief for my eyes, after over an hour viewing clipped hedges and lawns, as lovely as they can be.

Weather Diary, Dec 2: Hi 54, Low 44/ Precip 0

Wednesday, December 2, 2020

Wednesday Vignette, circular

I stopped to admire the very defined growth rings on this piece of wood found river-side. It had me thinking of a highly stylized single-burner electric cook top. You know, if one just happened to be sitting along side a river. What do you see?

Weather Diary, Dec 1: Hi 51, Low 31/ Precip 0

Tuesday, December 1, 2020

Christine and Jim Mitchell's garden, 2020 Version

I received an email from Christine with the tantalizing subject line: Pups to give away. Now I know Christine's a dog-lover, but it just didn't seem in character for her to be giving away puppies. That could mean only one thing...agave pups! Because she's also an agave lover...

As excited as I was to get a few agave pups, I was even more excited to see the current iteration of Christine, and her husbands Jim's, garden. We visited last year, for the HPSO's Study Weekend (here) and then also back in 2015, for the Garden Conservancy's tour (here). It only gets better and better! Christine plants out these Agave americana 'Variegata' in the spring, and then lifts them in the fall, overwintering them undercover.

This elevated area is newly created, well, since my last visit. Christine says the blue chalk sticks will be sacrificed this winter. She's taken cuttings and propagated in previous years but is ready to let it go and start over, or not—we'll see.

As you've probably already figured out, Christine has a love for both agaves AND conifers, and she mixes them well.

Agave ovatitfolia...

Another look, pulled back for a wider shot. She's also pretty impressive with the opuntia...

These agaves become so much more because of the treatment Christine gives them. They're not winter hardy planted out in our climate, and left in containers they can't live up to their full potential. Sunk into the garden during the growing season and allowed to stretch their arms they really do shine.

All of these combinations are in the front garden, visible to people passing by. I wonder what they think? A lot of what's planted is not that unusual here in Portland—although it's all grown so well here it might not be recognizable—then you add in the agaves and POW! Something so different.

A couple more wide-shots...

And then we take a peek at Christine's over-wintering set-up. I love seeing how people care for their non-hardy container plants.

These are all wheeled into an attached garage. Chris says the temperatures stay above freezing, but not significantly so. Oh and these planters, aren't they wonderful. They look like metal, to me at least, but they're pottery.

If you're wondering about light, what you see is what you get. There's a window, and if the garage door is open—as it is here—then more light, but otherwise these plants are allowed to go fairly dormant.

Just outside the garage were these big guys, waiting to be pulled under cover.

I'm not sure if they all went in, but at least a few did.

Let's take a quick look at the rest of the garden...

That big beauty is an Agave ovatifolia, the straight species not 'Frosty Blue'.

More Agave americana 'Variegata'...

In the front there is a nice big Agave bracteosa.

And of course Agave parryi...

Another pair...

If you're not an agave lover (what's wrong with you?) there's still a lot to appreciate in this garden. Like these tall tetrapanax...

And that sweet big-leaf rhododendron.

The stylish rebar and wood edging is to protect the plants from dogs and grandchildren.

A very large tree was recently taken down, if I remember correctly that's part of it there. I'm sure Christine and Jim have something creative in mind.

I said how much I appreciated the look of the ferns tucked in at the base of this short retaining wall. Christine laughed... I think they were actually planted by mother nature.