Music in the Gardens 2015: Real Living Garden

Saturday, 18 July 2015

Music in the Gardens Tour, Long Beach Peninsula

a benefit for the Water Music Festival and music programs in local schools

ticket tour map

Garden 7: Marla’s Real Living Garden

Marla’s urban farm overlooks Willapa Bay and benefits from her early years of living on a Washington farm.  She says, “I am still amazed at nature.  You plant a seed or start and an awesome plant grows.”  In just two years, she has grown and built quite a bit, including fencing, lawn, landscaping, irrigation, flower and vegetable beds,  hanging baskets and a chicken coop.  Her pride and joy are the beautiful hens and the eggs they lay.

I wrote about Marla’s garden a year and a month before this year’s tour.  Garden Tour Nancy and I previewed it this year on June 1st.

Lavatera outside the south fence, June 1st

driveway

tour day!

photo by Bob Duke

in the driveway

front gate at SW corner of the house

a landing spot for baby birds

Allan’s photo

inside the front gate

to the left just inside the gate, south wall by back steps, photo by Kathleen Shaw

clematis seedheads

by the stairway

perennial sweet pea

the glorious porch, photo by Kathleen Shaw

pre-tour visit, June 1st

pre-tour visit, June 1st

containers packed with perennials and annuals

pre-tour visit, June 1st

tour day, with the porch gate open

I love the porch, all its adjacent plantings, its art and decor and the way it wraps around two sides of the house.  I’d like to pick it up and put it right down next to my house!  So we’ll explore the porch first, and then the garden.

view down back porch steps, with Marla’s mother in pink top, seated

Marla’s colourful flower baskets (Allan’s photo)

Allan’s photo

walking along the porch, looking down at the garden

Over the fence, we can see the garage of the next door house, which is also on the garden tour. photo by Kathleen Shaw.

looking north toward the Charles Nelson B&B next door

on the porch

On the east side of the porch, Portland guitarist Terry Robb performed for tour guests.

Terry Robb (Allan’s photo)

Terry Robb

While I listened to him, Marla’s mom (left, in pink) was still up on the porch sitting next to him and enjoying the music.

Terry Robb

Allan’s photo

view to the east

over Willapa Bay

looking down at the north side of the garden from the porch

Now we’ll walk return along the porch to the back steps.

south side of porch, photo by Kathleen Shaw

porch wall (pre-tour visit, June 1st)

down the stairs we go, with a nice strong railing to hold onto.

porch decorations at top of stairs

ornamental grasses skirting the porch

looking down from the porch to the entry patio

patio corner

Marla’s next door neighbour, whose garden we’ll visit next, gave her this sign for the fence by the patio.

on the patio table: Marla’s grandchildren had painted these sand dollars (photo by Kathleen Shaw)

farm whirlygig

Allan’s photo

tags made from cut, painted yard sticks, photo by Kathleen Shaw

Allan’s photo

looking east from the patio, pre-tour visit, June 1st

north side of house, photo by Kathleen Shaw

ornamental grasses skirting the porch

looking back at the patio

astilbes

SE corner of house (Allan’s photo)

SE corner, Alliums, pretour visit, June 1st

east side of house, pre-tour visit, June 1st

pre-tour visit, June 1st

cosmos, tour day

cosmos

over the fence

east side of house, pre-tour visit, June 1st

photo by Bob Duke showing east and north sides of house

photo by Bob Duke showing north side of house and chicken domain (lower right)

north side of house

pre-tour visit, June 1st

hostas in shade, photo by Kathleen Shaw

fuchsias, photo by Kathleen Shaw

deck on north side of house

Plants were for sale by Marla’s brother in law, Greig Warner, who supplies orchids to Portland Nursery!

That explains the orchids in the garden! photo by Kathleen Shaw

I want to get to know this fellow better as he is a true CPN (Certified Plant Nut).  I missed out on a way cool plant here, as you will see in the next garden tour post.  I met him briefly at the tour and learned that he is moving to the beach so I hope we will get to know him.

looking toward NE corner of garden, pre-tour visit, June 1st

gunnera by back deck, looking west

in the NW corner of the yard: the chicken coop and veg garden

Gunnera, June 1st, looking east

photo by Kathleen Shaw

gunnera flowers and lawn clippings to help retain moisture (Allan’s photo)

the hens’ domain

on the north deck

Erysimum ‘Constant Cheer’, photo by Kathleen Shaw

Eryngium ‘Jade Frost’, photo by Kathleen Shaw

painted yard stick plant tag (Allan’s photo)

Allan’s photo of the making of the plant tags

view east from the henhouse corner

raised vegetable beds and chicken yard

pre-tour visit, June 1

On tour day afternoon, because of the unusually hot weather, the chickens were in the shade of their coop.

not a chicken to be seen!

Fortunately, they had been out and about on June 1st when Nancy and I visited the garden for sneak peek photos.

Marla’s beloved flock

the coop

Marla’s garden was a close contender for my favourite because of its intensive container plantings, its whimsical decor, and the chickens.  While I don’t feel that I have time to care for chickens, I would surely love to incorporate a barnyard corner like this into my garden someday.  And the wrap around porch.  And the nice, friendly neighbours.  When Nancy and I visited earlier, Marla just matter-of-factly put the exciteable galloping dog into the fenced yard of the neighbour to the north.  And her neighbour to the south will be our next garden tour visit.