Wednesday Vignette: Collapsed Flowers

The blooms on the Star Magnolia have flopped over, fully saturated from the rain. A wind storm is tousling the garden. And I feel like a crazy person, out photographing her collapsed flowers in the pouring rain. The Crony Brothers worry about me.

But, isn't this bloom simply marvelous?!?

All the flowers look like porcelain sculptures. I'm dazzled by their beauty and disarray. On Saturday mornings, I take a pottery class and I push a piece of clay around with my clumsy fingers attempting  to create sculptures. My sculptures are thick humble masses and make me appreciate the dazzling array of shapes and sizes of the plants in my garden, even the beauty of a rain soaked Star Magnolia blossom.

Anna's posting about the whole picture today.  Take a look and a deep breathe. 

Wednesday Vignette: Saying Goodbye

My Crazy Sadie, nicknamed The Assistant, crossed over the Rainbow Bridge, one month ago. She lived to a cranky ol' 13 1/2 years. We are all grieving her loss including Barnaby. 

From the first moment that I looked into her puppy eyes at the Humane Society, I was hers and she was mine. I named her Daisy, but she quickly earned the name Satan. I split the difference and renamed her Sadie. She was a trash sorting, plant throwing, and hole digging menace.

But she also kept me on time with my daily schedule and snuggled up against me and helped me heal from four knee and ankle surgeries. 

She adored bread and butter and would steal it off the counter when I wasn't looking. I never once caught her in the act. It simply disappeared. 

Sadie's favorite toy was the red laser. She would chase it around the whole yard while I laughed. It was a great party trick. Once she saw the red eye flash on my camera and from that point on she hunted the red light while I took pictures. The tip of her tail is in most of my back garden pictures.

One year, Sadie helped us with our Christmas pictures. If I set a camera timer, she was always in the way.

This shot captures Sadie's Corona beer smile. She adored a sip of cold beer on a hot summer afternoon. 

She had a wonderful last day. I allowed her to steal Barnaby's food, fed her 2 McDonald's cheeseburgers, snuggled with her, and baked her a butter cake. I even let her lick the butter wrapper. She snorted with delight as we fed her warm bites of butter cake. And she died in my arms, while being told she was a good girl. 

Sadie was my constant companion for 13 1/2 years. She helped me through surgeries, remodeling a Portland bungalow, a move, raising My Kid, holidays, parties, projects, countless cooking adventures, and helped me in my new garden. And she kept my toes warm whenever I sat at my computer. My toes are cold as I write this. I miss my friend. I'm so grateful for the time we spent together and for her patiently teaching Barnaby the basics like how to select a stick and chew on it. 

I am including this post in Anna's Wednesday Vignette meme. Stop on by and get inspired.

Wednesday Vignette: Cattails

Today after I stepped out of the greenhouse at Heritage Farm, I was struck by the beauty of the cattails in the afternoon sun. What is the saying?

Old gardeners never die, they just go to seed.

Please go visit Anna's new WV - in pursuit of grey and everyone else's contributions. 

Wednesday Vignette: Taking Flight

This morning at the Heritage Farm, I filled six pack trays full of planting mix and my friend, Barbara, planted Showy Milkweed, Asclepias speciosa, seeds into each square. (We'll be selling them at the Mothers Day plant sale!) The warm greenhouse and the smell of soil felt heavenly. When I stepped out of the greenhouse back into a January afternoon, I realized that my gardening season has taken flight. 

A female Anna's hummingbird taking flight off of a torch holder.

The Dictator, the bossy hummingbird that had claimed dominion over my garden and den has also taken flight. The garden feels empty without him. The demure female Anna's hummingbirds continue to sip at the feeders and birds feast at the seed feeders. But, Dick isn't around to kick the bushtits off of the suet feeders and to threaten other hummingbirds that dare come into our space. I wonder what happened to him. Did he find greener pastures? Perhaps a garden with a mister and a swing for him. Or did he get hurt in the ice storm? Wherever he is, I hope that someone took him in and is enjoying the ruckus.

Please stop by Anna at Flutter and Hum to see her latest Wednesday Vignette and all the other blogger participants.  

Xera Plants Winter Grow Site Tour

My January is filled with master gardener project meetings, creating garden lessons for my community education classes at Clark College, and building design plans for our front and side gardens. Even with all the garden planning, I've been struggling to find some inspiration and gardening mojo.     

So when my friend, Anna over at Flutter & Hum, asked me to join her on a last minute trip to the Xera Plants grow site, I jumped at the opportunity.  We both love Xera Plants and needed some fun girl time. The last time I toured their grow site, I forgot to bring my camera, but this time I was prepared.

We met up with Greg Shepherd and Paul Bonine, my favorite plantsmen and co-owners of Xera Plants, in their propagation greenhouse. Greg gave us a tour of their propagation house while Paul continued to work, stabbing cuttings into root hormone and then prepared trays of potting mix like a Zen master.

Greg showed us the box that they start seeds in. Any guesses why they need a screened top for the seeds and seedlings? Mice. They devour fresh seedlings and damage young plants. 

Paul looks over Greg's shoulder as he shows us new seedlings.

The second step of the process is to move each seedling into their own cell in large cell packs. 

So many plants!

Greg thoughtfully checks the root structure on this young succulent. 

Then, we moved through a curtain into the cooler portion of the greenhouse where they harden off the young plants. Greg showed us a healthy batch of Metapanax delavayii. They grow to become an eight foot shrub with fine evergreen foliage that thrive in full sun to part shade. I plan on adding several of these to my front garden this spring.

Greg holding a Metapanax delavayi.

Can you imagine tending so many different young plants with varying needs?

Anna made friends with Miles despite his original suspicions of our motives and plant lust.

Anna and Miles making friends.

At the end of the greenhouse, by an old swamp cooler, Greg showed us the misting bench. It has taken years of experimentation to determine which plants thrive in this space. 

Greg points out the misting bench.

Look at all of these plants! I can't wait for my first shopping spree at Xera Plants this spring. The shop reopens in February. 

We returned back to the front and warmer part of the propagation greenhouse and found Paul still hard at work in a meditative state. Go, Zen master, go!

When we stepped outside, I admired their yellow horned poppy, Glaucium flovum, growing as a weed. Even Xera Plants' weeds are cool.

I stepped out the propagation greenhouse with my pupils dilated with a bad case of plant lust and a deeper respect for their process. Thank you, Greg and Paul, for giving us a tour and letting us interrupt your work. 

Then, Anna and I went and explored the other greenhouses filled with plants that are hardy down to at least nineteen degrees. I photographed a nice shopping list for myself that I hope to share here later. With each greenhouse we walked through, I felt more and more inspired to play in my garden. By the time we left, I had a bad case of spring fever in January.

Then we hopped back into my car with Barnaby and he sniffed us over wondering about that Miles character. Thanks, Anna, for a fun adventure and for helping me find my winter gardening mojo.