11 October: a tiring project and a reward

Thursday, 11 October 2018

Long Beach

At last we had time to do a project that had been weighing on my mind: dig out the wire vine, Muehlenbeckia axillaris, from the planter in front of Stormin’ Norman’s.

I planted it years ago, thinking it was a cute little trailing house plant that would not make it through the winter.  After a very few years, it had done this:

before: a great splodge of Muehlenbeckia axillaris (wire vine)

It had been cute and then had gone suddenly berserk.

We dug it out, but did not take all the soil out because we thought we could control any wire vine that popped out from pieces of root. (And oh, how we had tried to sift through and get all those pieces.)

Today:

before

The wire vine has returned throughout the planter despite semi-diligent attempts at control.

We were incredibly lucky during the digging out stage to get a parking spot right next to the planter.

Allan moves the trailer closer in.

such a lucky spot!

Before:

Allan’s photo

cleaning the perennials

After all the plants were out, as Allan removed the soil in the wire vine planter, I pulled the Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ from the next planter.

before

after

Most merchants don’t like tall plants in front of their shops. The Wind World Kites guy loves the crocosmia and jokes that he now has nowhere to hide.

After much digging and removing all the soil and the tattered years-old landscape fabric that separates soil from gravel, we found roots down IN the gravel.  This is ominous.

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

We hauled the heavy debris to city works and dumped it in an inhospitable spot and returned with buckets of the last of the mulch pile and some landscape fabric from the works shop.  It was utterly exhausting, heavy work, especially because this time we had to park half a block away and haul everything

My back was panging, so I answered some garden questions while standing straight against a wall.  Part of the job is to be friendly to tourists.

The woman in blue was from England and had lived there till 1958.  I asked her if she had heard of garden writer Marion Cran.  She had not.

with new fabric to keep the soil from migrating into the rock

I had had rather a stroke of genius; we also brought the last two hanging basket innards and used that soil to extend what we had.

Allan’s photos

putting plants back in

Allan deadheaded a block worth of planters while I re planted.

Allan’s photo

Upon his return, the planter was done.  Many bulbs were also replanted.

Last week:

Stormin’ Norman’s

Today, after:

I was able to salvage all the perennials by carefully inspecting their roots.  I will be watching closely for any sign of wire vine emerging from them; if it does, out they will come.

Across the street is a planter I quite like (even though the matching santolina was stolen).

I have enjoyed Cosmos ‘Xanthos’.

pink gaura

I used the pink gaura to replace the bad agastaches in the Agastache Catastrophe (a batch with diseased leaves).  The gaura has been good and has bloomed longer, with no deadheading, than the agastache does.  I will use it again next year, along with perhaps the shorter white one, ‘So White’.

colourful Long Beach

After our project, we deadheaded and tidied a few more planters.

chrysanthemums

a rogue white flower stem

Geranium ‘Rozanne’ and yellow chrysanths

pink chrysanthemums starting to fade

I love the chrysanthemums that have perennialized in some of the planters.  They take up too much room to have them in every one.

The Shelburne Hotel

We had time to tidy up the back garden at the Shelburne.  Chef Casey had found akebia fruits on the south fence.  I sought them out under cover of the vine.

the akebia vine that I planted years ago

akebia fruits…I saved one to try out but I have forgotten to do so.

(I did try it a couple of days later.  The insides have a sweet pulp that is so full of seeds that there is little food to offer.)

Asian pears on the west fence

Someone had filled the bird bath with bean seeds. (Allan’s photo)

The beans in pots are well past their prime.

I picked off some moldy old beans….

…and then realized I remembered the hotel’s Halloween event and realized I should leave them till after Halloween.   I then decided to leave the old Joe Pye Weed and some other plants to add a spookier ambiance to the front garden.

spooky Joe Pye weed

“Get ready to sit, sip, and talk to the spirits at the Shelburne Hotel. Will be having Chariot reading Tarot cards by appointment (starting at 6pm on 10/26), Adrift Distillers Amaro release (10/27 from 5pm-7pm), seasonal cuisine, and cocktails that represents the spirits at the hotel.

Will be playing the Shining in the Inglenook both nights as well.

COSTUMES ENCOURAGED.

So join us for our haunted gathering at the Shelburne. Dine and drink with the ghost…maybe even say hello?”

The Shelburne’s sister hotel, Adrift, suggests something about a ghost in the garden!

Hmmm.  I’m not saying whether or not I have ever seen Annie May in the garden.

front garden, looking north

and south

Halloween is a good reason to leave the long, draping wisteria till November before a preliminary pruning.

We rewarded ourselves for an exhausting day with a tasty meal and drink in the Shelburne pub.

As diners arrived at the pub, Brian O’ Connor began to sing, as he does every Thursday.  You can sit in the living room to listen and dine, or sit in the pub with the music as ambiance.

His deep and distinctive voice has an emotional quality that draws a regular audience on Thursday nights.

We heard part of the performance during our relaxing meal.

chop salad with fried chicken, fish and chips, cranberry cosmo

The bartender and I agreed that even though we are not usually fans of fried chicken, the version offered at the pub is delectable.  (I get it as a side on the salad.)

so good

fish and chips (Allan’s photo)

My favourite dessert on the peninsula these days is the pub’s cheesecake tart with blackberry topping.

On the way home, we checked out some Halloween decorations in Ilwaco.

Lake Street

Spruce Street

Lake Street (Pirate Lucy Dagger’s house)

We have accomplished all our little work board projects other than mulching.

accomplishments still don’t include the indoor at home projects left over from last winter

I enjoyed the partial emptiness for a moment before adding Bulb Time.

That list is even missing two small job.

Tomorrow, the bulbs come and the sorting begins, a rather dreaded task that hurts my brain.

 

 

 

 

 

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28 Sept: mostly Shelburne

Friday, 28 September 2018

 

the temperature when we left for work

Last year I swore I would not work if the temperature was over 75.  But needs must…

Shelburne Hotel

We watered the Shelburne garden just in case the predicted rain did not come.  The hotel was hosting a big weekend of food and music with a band called The Super Saturated Sugar Strings.  One of the band members, a chef, was going to prepare the Friday dinner in the Shelburne Restaurant.  I like the name of the band and it all sounded very interesting but I had no energy to attend, just to get the garden ready for guests.

The Sugar Strings event sounds fascinating as I read about it now.  I have regret at not making the effort to dig deep for a bit of extra evening energy.

“5-course dinner and Parlor in the Round music featuring members of SSSS

Sugar Strings frontman Carlyle Watt will be crafting a multi-course dinner at the historic Shelburne Hotel in Seaview, WA. Carlyle studied at the Culinary Institute of America at Greystone in California’s Napa Valley, and he is currently the head baker and executive chef at Alaska’s award winning bakery, Fire Island Rustic Bakeshop. In 2017, he was nominated as an outstanding baker by the James Beard Foundation. Carlyle’s ability to merge baking, pastry, and culinary techniques creates a unique and memorable dining experience. When the Sugar Strings go on tour, Carlyle brings his passion for food along, hosting pop-up dinners, guest-chef appearances, and generally keeping the band well-fed to sustain their high energy shows. 

Collaborating with Carlyle in the front of the house will be The Sugar String’s bassist, Kevin Worrell, presenting his hit Alaskan singer-songwriter showcase, Parlor In The Round. This dinner theater will feature local favorites Pretty Gritty and the Strings’ own Kat Moore, taking turns with songs and stories inspired by the evening’s bill of fare. As host, Kevin will select written submissions from the audience as prompts for musical improv games, and as fodder for his quick-witted banter.”

I don’t think I could have dug deep enough for improv energy, though.  As long as no audience participation was required, I would have been ok.

A different event was taking place in the pub tonight (the hotel has a pub and a dining room).  We think that is the event for which Todd was bringing flowers.

Allan’s photos

As Todd hurried off to another obligation, Allan and I had time, for once, to do a thorough job of weeding, deadheading, and tidying the paths without rushing off to another obligation of our own.

in the Shelburne back garden

front garden, 82 degrees F.

Japanese anemones

one of two matching planters at the front entry

Not only did we have time for a nice garden tidy (except for big projects like battling the aegepodium or houttuynia), we took time for a tasty pub lunch of two new menu items.  Because we rarely take a break for lunch during a work day, our lunch is usually some sort of home made sandwich scarfed down while we work.  This was a special reward for working in hot weather.

Allan’s photo

crab cakes with apple and fennel cabbage slaw and roasted red pepper aioli

beer battered fish and chips

and that oh so good blackberry cream cheese tart

looking north into the front garden as we depart

We thought because of the heat that it would be a good night for a campfire dinner.  Allan bought some hot dog buns at the grocery store across the street while I did a tiny bit more gardening.

Ilwaco

As soon as we approached Ilwaco, we decided the campfire idea was not a go.  Between Seaview and Ilwaco, we drove into a cool and breezy fog, so welcome after two days of heat.

I worked for awhile on the boatyard garden while Allan watered the Ilwaco planters, we fervently hope for the last time in 2018.  The Long Beach parks manager spoke this week of winterizing the LB planters because of rain being predicted, and yet the forecast only calls for slight chance of minimal rain.  I would love a good rain at last once a week now.  We are so tired of watering.

fog at the end of the boatyard

Allan’s photo

Cosmos in the boatyard that looks like ‘Happy Ring’ (which I did not plant this year).

I like Cosmos ‘Happy Ring’ very much, just have not seen it for sale anywhere lately.

solidago, sweet peas, lavender, Allium christophii seedhead

tall pink aster, possibly ‘Harrington’s Pink’

looking north

I walked home via the post office and the fire station to weed and deadhead those two small volunteer gardens.

Ilwaco Fire Department

This time, the day had been well planned enough that Allan was not out watering in the dusk.

 

 

 

 

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12 Sept: first official fall clean up post

Wednesday, 12 Sept 2018

Fall clean up actually started at KBC yesterday.

For a brief and tempting breakfast time this mid-morning, I thought we might have the day off.  Dark Sky app suggested rain through the afternoon—reading time! joy!—and then it changed to no rain after noon.  So by noon, we were off to work.

Passersby kept telling me it was going to rain any minute.  It did not.  We have a pretty good feeling for weather, especially if the sky is light around the edges.

The Depot Restaurant

Deadheading only! No watering! I hope this trend continues.

We drove over to the east side of the highway in Seaview to drop off a good Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ at Sarah’s cottage.  (We have two Sarah friends now; I will start saying Seaview Sarah for this one.)  On the way, I photographed a Seaview garden that I like very much.

tantalizing entryway

from my passenger window

Long Beach

Now that darkness comes at 7:30, I removed the cosmos that were blocking the lights at the welcome sign.  As I am sure you know by now, the darn plants were not blooming anyway.  When we planted them, the lights had been stolen and were capped off and I did not think they were going to be replaced.

We then parked downtown and, while Allan focused intensively in the area by Fifth Street Park, I walked four and a half blocks of planters, clipping back many plants that I had left past their prime to help protect the planters from Rod Run planter sitters.

Allan getting started at my request that he pull all the beach strawberries out of a tree garden; they were smothering other plants.

Allan’s tree and park project photos:

before

after

cutting back lady’s mantle before

after

I think the alchemilla should have been cut back that hard during the shearing after the flowers went brown.

Allan also dug several big clumps of columbine out of a planter for me.

horrible aquilegia foliage (Allan’s photo)

I did not plant the columbines.  They have been in three of the planters since volunteer days. After making the mistake of getting soft on removing them, I cut the foliage back hard after the flowers bloom. It comes back fresh and clean and then gets columbine leaf miner again.  (“Insecticides are of little help in controlling columbine leafminers and may do more harm than good by eliminating existing natural enemies. The practical control is to ignore them…”) I cut the ugly foliage again, it comes back nice…and back comes the leaf miner.  No more columbines in the planters!  (I’ve said this before.  I mean it this time!)

One of the most tatty looking batches of California poppies was at the Fifth Street intersection.

before

after

Although there was a fair amount of this sort of smashing in the corners of the planters…

….I think my thick foliage strategy had paid off, just as it did last year.

Where California poppies still look fresh and happy, like in this planter….

…I will leave them for awhile longer.

I am also leaving the Geranium ‘Rozanne’ trailing, even if it looks sort of tired, as long as there is some blue.

In the NE quadrant of Fifth Street Park, the BadAster reigns right now.  Nature wins.

Aster douglasii and lots of it

The BadAster in my garden, too, in one area.  And at the Shelburne.  (I had pulled a lot of it there and was hoping for a better aster.  It is the same old BadAster, unfortunately.)

Fifth Street Park, NW, where Allan did a lot of good weeding:

more BadAster

The high up light post baskets have been taken down. The lower ones by the restroom, gazebo, and police station are still up and blooming.

While I trimmed up planters in the two south blocks (where only three needed attention), Allan took Crocosmia ‘Lucifer’ out from under a tree, as I had done with two trees at the north end.  Usually I leave it a month longer just for some interest.  This year, the leaves looked rusty.

before

after

We had a large load of debris to dump at City Works, where I scored all the rest of the hanging baskets! (Not the baskets themselves; those go back to the Basket Case.)  Last year, I only got half of them before the rest got buried.

Got ’em ALL for my compost this year.

This is clean compost makings, no weeds or disease.  It is not organic compost makings because these were fertilized all summer with Miracle Gro.  So if I had a certified organic farm, I could not use this stuff to make mulch.

The pond behind city works is almost completely dry because of drought.

When I read the local paper, I was glad that we had not been in Long Beach for the Rod Run event.  (Slow Drag is a different and happy story.)

The Shelburne Hotel and Pub

I had generously brought a half bucket of my own soil to fill up a hole where Allan had dug a clump of rampant Spirea douglassi out yesterday.  Gardeners will know it is the utmost generosity to give up precious soil.

looking north

Violas are putting on a second show.

We decided to have a work reward dinner at the pub, and we each had the chopped salad topped with their delicious fried chicken.

The pub was almost full, I was glad to see.  It seemed many locals had reemerged now that tourist season is over.  (The wisest tourists come in late September and into October, a beautiful and quiet time here.) We had a corner table behind the bar.

view of the enclosed bar space

The food was so satisfying that we decided to put off dessert till a late lunchtime tomorrow, after we do some more Shelburne garden tidying.  Allan must try that cream cheese tart with blackberries.

Must decide tomorrow whether or not to give up on more cosmos.

By dark, we managed to get all the hanging basket stuff unloaded and dumped back by the compost pile to be processed on my next day off.

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8-10 Sept: days off, with visitors

Sorry for another long post; we’re trying to catch up.

Saturday, 8 September 2018

at home

I slept long and thoroughly, exhausted from a stressful week and from Slow Drag.  Last night, we had gotten only about half of our Slow Drag photos processed and posted to Discover Ilwaco before getting too punchy to continue.

I was not going to give up a gardening at home day to processing more photos, though. They got done (and yesterday’s blog post written) after gardening.

Skooter also slept in:

I woke quite late to hear happy voices in the garden.  Julez from Salt Hotel, and his son Flynn, and Jessika from next door, along with Scott, also from next door, were picking apples for cider pressing.  I love that they take our apples, which would otherwise mostly go to waste.

In the back of their truck were the apples they had picked earlier in the day in Chinook.

So they would not have room for all of ours!

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo

Flynn and Julez

Jessika and Matt

a clever apple picking device

a good harvest

Flynn and his friend Skooter

I made them all walk back to the bogsy wood to see my new path.

It is thrilling, really. (Allan’s photo)

a truck bed full (Allan’s photo)

I was pleased to see that we had had a good rain overnight….

rain barrels full

The harvesters did not even get to the Cripp’s Pink:

(also known as Pink Lady because it is more salable)

They know they are all welcome to come to get eating apples any time.

After they departed, Jenna arrived, at my invitation, so we could debrief about Slow Drag. I was pleased to delay a garden project that I had almost begun.  Some coffee and cookies and a good long conversation gave me energy.

After Jenna left, I did my project, one of those that had suddenly occurred to me even though it was not at all on my mental list.

The elagrostis (weeping love grass) along our little driveway had gotten tatty looking.  And they were too big and tended to tangle our feet as we unload the work trailer.

looking out from the garage

before

after

after regaining six inches of the driveway on each side

Allan does most of the trailer unloading.  This will make his life easier.  He helped me to remove the most difficult grass (the last one, when I was out of steam).

I kept weeding in the front garden till dusk and accomplished much. As I watered toward sunset, the fragrance of brugmansia by the greenhouse was intense.

This would normally have been the day that we went to the Cannon Beach Cottage Tour.  I was glad to stay home and felt no regret.  I had thought that Allan would go to the Rod Run up in Ocean Park.  He also was content to stay home and work on his book about local kayaking or canoeing sites.

Allan’s photo, self publishing

Sunday, 9 September 2018

at home

Skooter had another lazy morning.

I had hoped for a rainy reading day (and for a good rain so that we would not have to water much this week). The predicted quarter inch of rain did not materialize, so I went out to putter aimlessly in the garden.

Devery stopped by and we had a long visit, sitting on the patio.  I was offered three more cats, age ten, all Siamese. Their person is not well. However, Siamese cats and I are not especially compatible.  Blue-eyed Frosty is part Siamese and has their talkative nature and inability to just settle down on my lap.

Of course, I made Devery walk back and look at my new path.  “I’d walk on that!” she said gratifyingly.

I then weeded and did some pruning and clipping and layered green and brown clippings (never weeds) in my compost bin. Not a single photo was taken.

In the late evening, we watched an episode of the new season of My Cat From Hell. Despite my longing for a lovey dovey lap cat, it made me anxious about adding anyone new to our current cat quota of two.  I fear that Skooter might act out by spraying in the house.  And yet, while I don’t get lonely for people, I am lonely for a special cat who dotes on me.

I finally found out who left me the great bouquet of Liatris.  It was Steve and John from The Bayside Garden.

still looking fresh today

Monday, 10 September 2018

Again, we did not get the predicted quarter inch of rain.  A light rain in the night had left a few small puddles in the street.

Our Kathleen is here at her beach cottage for a week’s vacation.  We went out to the Shelburne Pub for lunch, while poor Allan was on the phone still trying to sort out his Medicare fiasco.

Kathleen noticed a tiny Pacific Tree Frog on the post that holds the pub sign.

A rock for Ilwaco High School had been placed by the entryway.

I had the chopped salad with fried chicken added:

And Kathleen tried the black garlic fried rice, which she declared as wonderful as I had been saying it was.

chopped salad with fried chicken

A new dessert, cream cheese tart with blackberries, proved to be perfection.

We sat down in the pub at about 12:20 and we talked through lunch, dessert, and long after.  I do believe we spent a good three and a half hours there catching up, as we had not seen each other for several weeks.

At home again, I passed on to her a red leaved weeping Japanese maple that I had in a large pot.  I did not find it exciting enough to keep (although I have four other Japanese maples that do please me).  It will be happier in the ground at Kathleen’s cottage.

She admired my white passiflora along the front fence and gave it an encouraging talking to while she trained its tiny tendrils to grasp the deer-proofing wire.

After she left, I spent some time working on the messaging aspect of arranging a peninsula garden touring day with Ketzel Levine and Beth Holland.  Wrangling three garden hosts and maybe up to four touring gardeners taxed my social director abilities, which are low.  I think I managed to set a date that works for all about two weeks hence, and I very much hope Ann Amato will be able to join us from Portland.

With the hour and a half left of the day, I watered all the containers and a few new plantings with rainwater that we had saved in the green jugs.  This is virtuous, good exercise and much more time consuming than using the hose.

Allan, meanwhile, had watered the Ilwaco Community Building Garden (after getting not very far with the Medicare dilemma) and the Ilwaco planters.

His photos:

maple leaves in the ICB garden

autumn blooming crocus

a new boat in the Ilwaco boatyard

Max buzzing by on his motorized bike. Allan did not have his camera out to catch when Max doffed his top hat in greeting.

In closing, here are a few photos of our garden at the end of the day.

Sanguisorba ‘Pink Elephant’ soaring overhead in the front garden

While touring in Manzanita, Ketzel had said a gardener was brave to have planted passionflower.  I wondered why.

my passiflora

This is why; it is starting to pop up all around:

Uh oh

Skooter

white sanguisorba

Cripps Pink apples

Helenium ‘Sahin’s Early Flowerer’ (which starts early and goes on and on) and Solidago ‘Fireworks’

I could start trimming santolinas if I wanted to.

I do want to trim santolinas, even though I once lost some in a cold winter after trimming them in the fall.

My window boxes have gone all tatty.  I won’t bother replacing the plants this late; I will be switching them out with the bulb inserts next month.

Susie’s window boxes at the Boreas Inn put mine to shame.  She posted this photo today:

photo by Boreas guest Sascha Jennifer Gordon

Next year will be better.

 

 

 

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22 August: the Wednesday work routine

Wednesday, 22 August 2018

The wildfire smoke persisted, but happily for me, the temperature had returned to a cool 60-ish degrees.

The Depot Restaurant

I did the watering and deadheading this time, while Allan cleared some blackberry from the wheelie bin enclosure.

east side of dining deck

Allan’s project before

after

Long Beach

We added one extra task to the usual routine, a clean up of the NW quadrant of Fifth Street Park in Long Beach: clipping back spent sanguisorbas, cutting the canes of the mildewed Dorothy Perkins rose.

Fifth Street Park sweet peas success

We pruned a mugo pine that was encroaching on the sidewalk.

before

after

Allan found a rock.

A club of Edwardian Ladies were strolling through town.

Allan’s photo

Allan found another rock, a poignant one.

The park after some tidying:

Allan’s photo

I have a new plan for this corner…next year.  The Nepeta ‘Walker’s Low’ (catmint) has almost completely fizzled out all along here.  I guess it has gotten old, as we all do.

With the smoky haze came no wind, so big kites were not evident in the sky for kite festival.

Allan’s photo

The Red Barn

The smoky haze was heavier here.  I could see it drifting through the woods behind the pasture.

Cosmo the barn cat (Allan’s photos)

I want to take him home.

gaillardia (Allan’s photo)

Diane’s garden

Allan tidied the raised bed garden while I worked along the roadside garden, deadheading the sweet peas and doing as much as I could from inside the picket fence (reaching over) before going on the rather scary outside.

Cupcakes cosmos

sweet pea success, thanks to Diane’s diligent watering

I had to go out there to pull the toadflax!

In the back garden, I got to pet my good friend Misty.

Puppy Holly doesn’t hold still long enough to pet or photograph.

the raised box garden

Allan’s photo

statice

statice

a good looking white painted sage, for a change (they are usually puny of late)

Klipsan Beach Cottages

We got to KBC quite late in the afternoon because of the Fifth Street Park project.

I questioned why the Tetrapanax ‘Steroidal Giant’ there is so much bigger than mine, when mine is older!

For comparison, here is mine, taken a couple of days later at home.

The KBC fenced garden is a warm and sheltered place.  My garden is more exposed with a lot of cold wind from the north.

Anyway….

checking with Mary to see if the figs are ripe

at KBC

Deer had accessed the fenced garden. The roses told the story.

sanguisorba

another sanguisorba

birdbath view

It is about an hour round trip to do this one job up north…but I sure will miss this lovely garden when the job comes to an end, due to Mary and Denny retiring, at the end of this year.  KBC as a cottage resort will continue with new owners.  However, we look forward to our jobs being at the south end only for next year.

Long Beach again

We stopped to pull some bindweed in Coulter Park and ended up doing more than I had planned.

Allan had noticed this bindweed as we drove north to KBC.

passersby (Allan’s photo)

so much blackberry and salmonberry coming from next door to the park

the salmonberry that invades the rose patch

somewhat better

bindweed being eaten by something…leaf cutter bees? (Allan’s photo)

We finally had an evening without watering and so we went for a dinner reward at

The Shelburne Pub

those darn non blooming cosmos!

in the pub

cranberry cosmo

chopped salad (Allan’s photo)

pub burger and potato salad

After dinner, in the dusk, I remembered to go to the back garden and look inside the Sunset scarlet runner beans.

beautiful!

Allan noticed that the Evening Magazine van (out of Seattle) was parked there…for dinner, maybe, or staying at the hotel while covering Kite Festival, perhaps.

 

 

 

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8 August: to KBC and back

Wednesday, 8 August 2018

Do you see a repetitive nature to our titles? That is because our work rounds are quite repetitive these days.

The Depot Restaurant

deadheading and watering

lilies

sign of late summer: Solidago ‘Fireworks’ about to bloom

The Red Barn needed watering, and then we went next door to

Diane’s garden

for deadheading and weeding.

In the raised garden bed:

statice (whose foliage rosette looks so much like dandelion that people are tempted to weed it out)

more statice

nasturtium

allium and bee

echinacea

pots by the house:

roadside garden:

perovskia (Russian sage)

I did put some little sedums in front of the water meter area.

pink lemonade blueberries by the house

Klipsan Beach Cottages

As we drove across 227th from the sunny bay side to the beach side of the peninsula, I was thrilled to see fog.

The end of the road is the driveway where we go in to park north of KBC.

Unfortunately, the sun soon came out again.

In the KBC fenced garden:

Rudbeckia

This blue hydrangea had been completely covered over by roses.

agapanthus

Hydrangea ‘Izu No Hana’

Long Beach

We finished the day by weeding five sections of the Long Beach Bolstad approach road, preparing for kite festival being there in a couple of weeks.

In the furthest west very dry planters, someone had placed a bird house and someone had taken up residence.

Allan’s photo

a wee chipmunk (Allan’s photo)

So it’s a mouse house.

Someone had beautifully planted up the Lisa Bonney memorial planter.  I think whoever it is is also watering it. I hope.

Allan’s photo

We started weeding and pulling up old wild lupines out of the beach approach garden.

before

after (Allan’s photo)

This garden gets no supplemental water.  We are in a severe drought and there has been only the lightest of rain.

It is satisfying when a lupine comes out in one big clump.  They will have reseeded themselves for next year.

Allan’s photo

before

after (Allan’s photo)

We got this much done in just a couple of hours:

And we have this far to go:

We have done the hardest part.  The closer in to town, the thicker the roses are and the fewer weeds.

roses where we left off

As always, many questions were asked about the hips.

We had time to weed the flag plaza pavilion at Veterans Field, where the flags showed the pleasant lack of wind.

Shelburne Pub

We arrived at the Shelburne Hotel with enough time to deadhead and give the garden an extra watering….

looking north

looking south

…before taking J9 to the pub for a very belated birthday dinner.

tasty vegan nachos

jambalaya for J9 (Allan’s photo)

Allan’s cheesecake with cranberry

 

 

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July 3: gardens with friends, part one

Tuesday, 3 July 2018

I was a little intimidated by who was coming to visit my garden today: our friend Ann accompanied by Evan Bean from Plant Lust AND Paul Bonine from Xera Plants, who had not seen my garden before but whose nursery is the source of some of the plants in it.  I took the day off because they were not sure when they would arrive from Portland.  I did a little more weeding and fluffing of the garden and a lot of blogging about the Hardy Plant tour.

When they arrived in the early evening, my neighbour Rudder walked right into the garden with Evan.  Rudder never does that even though I try cozying up to him.

Rudder and Evan

Rudder in the garden

Rudder going home (Allan’s photo)

Evan, Paul, Ann

Allan’s photo

Ann (Allan’s photo)

me and Paul (Allan’s photo)

Evan and Ann (Allan’s photo)

Ann botanizing

She found seeds on my variegated Azara.

Allan’s photo

Ann always has an eye out for seeds and she sells seeds at her Spiffy Seeds site.  Ann also works at Cistus Nursery and had brought me some plants from there.  Evan brought me some starts from his garden.  I was happy.

Allan’s photo

Allan’s photo, Eryngium pandanifolium var. lesseauxii’ from Xera

Paul, me, Xera tag, photo by Ann Amato

Paul liked the garden.  Whew!

He identified some lost tag plants for me, ones I had bought from Xera via Pam Fleming’s former Gearhart nursery.

translation: Olearia traversii and Rhamnus alaternus ‘Variegata’

We took them for dinner at the Shelburne Pub, and for touring of the garden there, of course.  We were joined for dinner by Melissa and David (Sea Star Gardening).

Ann at the Shelburne

photo by Ann Amato, Nasturtium ‘Caribbean Cocktail’ (mix)

photo by Ann Amato

Paul Bonine at the Shelburne!

jambalaya at the Shelburne Pub

We lingered till after closing time and the staff were kind to let us do so.

after dinner (Allan’s photo): Paul, Dave, Evan, Ann

A perfect evening. To be followed by a perfect day.

Brace yourselves, because there will be four (comparatively short) posts tomorrow.  It will be like going garden touring here on the Long Beach Peninsula with us for all day July Fourth….exhausting and, I hope, fun.  I just can’t let this blog fall five days further behind with two more tour days (Grayland/Markham and, soon after, Tillamook) to blog about.

 

 

 

 

 

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