I mentioned Darcy Daniels last week as one of our areas many talented garden designers. Well, lucky us–members of the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon (HPSO)–Darcy held her garden open last week, giving fellow gardening enthusiasts an opportunity to ogle her collection in person.
HPSO is $35 to join. It’s a non-profit, volunteer-run organization open to all. The opportunity to visit open gardens alone makes for bargain entertainment, and there are myriad year-round programs and activities. Whether in PDX or another city, do yourself a favor and check out you local gardening organization. You’ll like it, I swear–all the time!
Drama begins at curbside with the hellstrip. I discovered this garden prior to meeting Darcy. I lived a few blocks away before we moved, and I came across it on one of my daily treks.
In defense of my good taste, I coveted Darcy’s garden right away.
A Rosa glauca trained into a tree. What, who said you could do that? Fabulous results.
Great texture from an unexpected source–at least unexpected by me.
Top to bottom, this Rose is cool. Apparently, not allowing it to eat the whole garden is a exceedingly viable option.
I never thought I needed alliums, but the gardeners all around are starting to get to me. Pretty good, don’t you think?
I need to up my game on conifers. In the beginning, I thought looking for “dwarf” was good enough for indicating a smallish shrub. Sometimes though, that means, it’s only 20′ instead of its regular 60′. No garden is complete without a few–for year-round interest and sheer beauty–but do your research!
More conifer beauty. Black Mondo Grass paired with a gorgeous ?. It looks coniferish, but I was scratching my head on ID. thanks Evan Bean for the i.d. Cunninghamia lanceolata ‘Glauca’.
I saw a similar plant at Boring Bark in their display garden. I planned to ask about it when I made a return trip, but they’d dug it up and sold it to somebody else. So there’s another thing to keep in mind. If you like it, ask!
Who doesn’t love rocks?
I LOOOVE these woven metal edgings.
I realized only later than I didn’t take many wide-angle shots. I was too busy sticking my nose in the plants.
Hardscaping weaving through lush plantings. Hey, wait a minute. Is weaving a theme here?
Loved the myriad paths and dividers found throughout Darcy’s yard. These pots define the space, and provide screening. That’s a clever idea.
The zig zag raised bed add visual interest. It seems to speak, in a sophisticated Mad Hatterish way: come on in.
More great plants out back. And a lovely studio, but I was too busy talking to manage a shot. I bet we can count on other bloggers to give us that shot. Won’t that be fun, to see the garden through multiple camera lenses.
There was this fabulous Fatsia.
And, Oh là là, this stunner. I super need this, which I think is Fatsia japonica ‘Camouflage’.
The Phormium is a perfect partner, no?
Layered texture implemented by a pro. Doesn’t this look fantastic? Every bit of foliage is distinct.
Now here’s a Rhododendron to lust for. And as soon as we find out the species, we can all add it to our lust lists. Again thanks to Evan Bean for the i.d. R. roxieanum var. oreonastes.
And finally, a perfectly placed empty pot. Dear dog, I need a bigger budget.
Thanks for sharing your garden, Darcy. It is an inspiration.
Cheers.