You should really see Cistus Nursery in the winter if you're in the area. It's transformative and paradigm-shifting to walk in one dreary Pacific Northwest day, where you might be used to seeing bare branches and bald spots where dormant plants lie sleeping around...
Every time I take the drive south from Portland on Interstate 5, I'm reminded in living technicolor, that I really do live in the Willamette Valley. You see vast stretches of pastureland, mountains, sheep with requisite guard Llama--and a veritable menagerie of birds....
I'm a one-of-everything type of gardener, but I love obsessive collectors. People who can spend their lives completely fascinated with a specific genus or color or family. That's dedication. I never like to count a plant out, even if I don't get it, because somebody...