“Pink Rhody”
Heatherwood Japanese Garden
For many years, rhododendrons have held special places in our various gardens. Our first house in Seattle had a giant 10 ft. pink rhododendron guarding our front door. It came with the house and was the star of our front yard. We later moved into a new house without any landscaping. The first plants we put in were rhodies. When we moved to Washington, DC we fell in love with the rhododendron and azalea garden at the National Arboretum. And of course, we planted several in our new landscape. Moving back to the Northwest, we chose a home in Covington that was surrounded by rhododendrons in a woodland garden. A couple of years later we moved north to Woodinville into a new home that had a new landscape with several rhodies. During our 11 years there, we planted a separate rhododendron garden and also added several species into our back woodland. Then off to Philadelphia we went. Rhododendron gardens abounded all around us. And again we had to have ours as well. We had a large pink one like the image above along side our back porch. It was one of our favorite plants in the garden. Seventeen years later I moved back to the Northwest, this time in the dry Eastern Washington area. Rhododendrons have a difficult time in the dry, hot, and cold environment here. But they can survive if planted in protected spots. And once more, we have added several rhodies in our Heatherwood garden.
Over the years, I have so many happy memories of sharing enjoyment of rhododendrons with loved ones in various gardens located across the country as well as in our own personal gardens. They hold a special place in my heart.