Saturday, 14 July 2018
Colorful Coastal Gardens tour
Grayland, Washington
presented by the Master Gardeners of Grays Harbor and Pacific County
Chie and Bill’s garden, Grayland
Gardener’s quotation: “If you want to be happy for a lifetime, be a gardener.”
At first, I thought the house next door belonged to the garden and thought, “That’s not small.” Later, Chie herself told me a lot of people get that first impression. Their 600 square foot little house is tucked so well into the garden that it is not as readily seen.
After touring the garden, I was sure that they could have checked off more of these boxes:
Allan’s photo
beside the driveway
big house, little house (Allan’s photo)
the little house
by the front corner
Allan’s photo
“….the water feature that Bill installed near the driveway, greeting us with the music of flowing water.”
Allan’s photo
I felt delight as we came around into the back garden beside the house.
I loved everything about it!
I love outbuildings, and this garden has two, plus a greenhouse.
garden shed (Allan’s photo)
on the garden shed exterior wall
“The greenhouse is not heated, but look for potted lemons and limes that winter in the shelter.”
Allan’s photo
inside (Allan’s photo)
from inside (Allan’s photo)
Allan’s photo
Allan’s photo
Allan’s photo
lemons and limes
“A playhouse is a structure built by Bill and occupied frequently by grandchildren.” Very lucky grandchildren, who will remember this garden for the rest of their lives.
Note the softly rounded beach rock. Chie says it is comfy to walk in in bare feet.
playhouse porch
side of playhouse (Allan’s photo)
I totally missed this. (Allan’s photo)
Behind the greenhouse is a kitchen garden.
Allan’s photo
and compost bins
A path goes further out into a wild area.
Now we turn back to keep exploring around the house.
side of the playhouse
I like the driftwood and old window frame.
next to the playhouse porch
at the back of the house
I see a shy kitty!
“The garden is designed for family to spill out onto the grounds.” The big comfy deck with lots of seating is a good, warm and sunny extension of the interior.
smooth and comfy driftwood railings on every set of stairs (thank you)
one of so many spectacular clematis we saw today
“…a tumbling climbing rose [and clematis], providing shade to the sitting area.”
Allan’s photo
Allan’s photo
home made rain chain (Allan’s photo)
Allan’s photo
“The cook’s garden, located near the deck…filled with herbs and salad ingredients…abounds in kitchen necessities.”
the beauty of lettuce
Daylily flowers are also edible.
deck from the side
I talked with Chie for awhile about small house living, a topic of interest because I lived in a less than 600 square foot house for 14 years. I would probably still live there had it been as sunny as this one. (Mine was in deep shade all winter.)
Up on the deck:
Allan’s photo
I did not want to leave, but we had three more gardens to see.
Intermission
I liked the look of the little house next door to Chie and Bill’s place.
Its smallness and metal roof appeal to me.
Immediately following is a brief bonus post of two places we stopped before the next garden.
Takeaways: Put my variegated acanthus in a pot for better care.
I saw some stunning daylilies today that are making me rethink them…again….if I can find ones that are immune to daylily leaf streak.
I urgently want an outbuilding for me! (Allan has one.)
