Category Archives: Details

Look Down

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Shapes, Textures, and Tones
Heatherwood Japanese Garden Path

As I walk along our garden paths, my eyes are constantly moving. I look down and see this dwarf hemlock being surrounded and crowded by Japanese forest grass, low hanging viburnum branches, and a little Japanese variegated fern. What catches my eye is the variety and combination of textures, shapes, and color tones. When I stroll around the garden, I usually am not looking or searching for anything specific. I take the time to let a scene or vignette come to me and say, “Here I am, enjoy!”

Have a great day and enjoy each moment!

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Around the Corner

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Japanese Garden Path
Heatherwood Autumn

Walking around the corner of Heatherwood’s Japanese garden path, I immediately am attracted to the fall color beauty of our variegated dogwood. I pause and enjoy the colors, shapes, and textures of the overall garden scene. The dogwood leaves and berries draw me in for a closer look.

‘Cherokee Daybreak’ Flowering Dogwood

Red berries pop out along the branches. Pink fall color takes over the leaf margins. It’s a pretty sight to see!

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Enjoying the Details

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Autumn Moon Maple
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

Walking through a narrow garden path, I brush up against overhanging leaves. I can’t help but stop and admire. I enjoy the leaves at my fingertips as well as the ferns and other leaves below. I reach down, hold a leaf in my hand, and feel the details, shape, color, and textures. After several moments, I continue my walk and look for more details to admire.

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A Little Surprise

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Garden Path Vignette
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

Walking along our secret garden path I look down beneath a crabapple tree and discover this little vignette. Beneath the tree I see a combination of color, tones, shapes and textures with a little bit of garden art. The vignette is comprised of Japanese hollies, Japanese forest grass, white bleeding hearts, and an art piece from a local artist, Michelle Wyles.

Intimate vignettes like above usually cause me to stop and explore details of a garden. I sometimes drive my strolling partners nuts as they wander through the grand views of a garden. They have to wait for me to catch up. Many times, the detailed landscape views are what I recall from a garden or nature walk.

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Spring Is Emerging …

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Jelena Witch Hazel
Heatherwood Late Winter

The witch hazels are the harbinger of spring in our garden. They are usually the first blooms of the year. Soon they will be followed by our Cornelian Cherry dogwood and the star magnolias. We have already seen tiny tips of the crocus and daffodils popping up from the ground. Spring is just two weeks away!

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Ground Covers Add Winter Color

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Winter Ground Covers
Heatherwood Japanese Garden

A touch of frost highlight these winter ground covers. These three ground covers add a little winter flare to the garden. The foreground Siberian Cypress changes from its summer grey-green to its winter bronze color. The Mahonia in the center adds red, oranges, and purples to its winter cloak. In the background, the Blue Rug juniper adds a cool blue to the scene. Winter is not dull in Heatherwood.

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Winter Colors, Textures, and Shapes

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Plethora of Color, Textures, and Shapes
Heatherwood Winter Garden

This small vignette in the lower garden has a little bit of everything. Russian sage and spent rudbeckia display blue and grey with a hint of brown as well as provide fine and course textures. Red twig, yellow twig, and Midwinter Fire dogwoods show a blast of color and texture. The grasses in the background are a break in the color and provide a contrast in form and texture with their flowing seed heads. The vertical conifer trees frame the image with varying textures and yellow, green, and blue colors. The dark green Mugo Pine anchors the center of the image and provides a sharp contrast in color against the dogwoods.

Later this winter the Russian sage, dogwoods, rudbeckia and grasses will all be cut back. In spring, new growth will emerge providing a fresh pallet of color, texture, and form.

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Patterns in Stone

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Pahoehoe Lava Sculpture
Kilauea Lava Flow, Hawaii

Pahoehoe lava flows and cools slowly. It forms ropey type patterns as it cools. Walking over the Kilauea lava flows provides an infinite source of vignettes for creating images. My mind wanders as it gazes over the terrain. I discover pattern after pattern. Each one is unique and my imagination goes wild. I get lost and lose track of time. Each time I have walked the flows with travel partners, they have patiently(?) waited for me with stern faces by the car ready to drive to the next stop.

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Look up!

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Japanese Maple Leaf
Washington Park Arboretum, Seattle

As I walk along a trail, it so easy for me to focus my vision looking forward. I frequently just stop and look all around, up, down, side to side, and backwards. When I am with others, it drives them crazy … there he goes again! All I can say is that I see and enjoy what surrounds me much more.

I created this image when I glanced up and saw backlit maple tree leaves fluttering in a gentle breeze. I stopped along the path and watched the branches and leaves waving back and forth, surrounded by rays of light flickering through the canopy trees above. Before I raised my camera, I had to move aside on the path to let several people whisk by not realizing what they were missing.

Now the work began, I looked and looked to find that perfect leaf. After several minutes, I again realized that nature is not perfect. I closed my eyes and re-opened them, looking for something that caught my eye. I found this one fluttering leaf, moved around to get a good background, then just waited for the breeze to position it just right.

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Here Come the Dogwoods

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“Pink Dogwood”
Heatherwood Spring

As one fades, another springs forward. Our pink dogwoods are now in full bloom! Spring glory is everywhere we turn in Heatherwood. The pink dogwoods were one of the few trees that were already here when I moved back to Selah in 2016. Each year they are getting a bit larger and more profuse in blooms. They welcome us home as we drive up to the house.

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