Cherry Allee
Heatherwood Early Summer
Two weeks ago, I posted a similar image with the start of our perennial bloom. In the time that has passed since then, the whole Cherry Allee is full of summer blooms. As the summer progresses, some blooms will fade, others will take their place. The nickname for this perennial bed is “Bright and Shiny”. It fits its name.
Lower Garden Path
Heatherwood Japanese Garden
Choices, choices, choices … which way do I turn? I hear rushing water to my left. I hear a plethora of bird songs ahead. I glance and see a dense packed pathway of shade loving trees and plants to my immediate right. A Goldilocks pine points its extended yellow branches to my different choices. Which way do I turn, or should I take my time and explore all three.
Up Through the Garden to the Ridge
Heatherwood Late Spring
Bright blue skies, ground covers in bloom, yarrow ready to bloom … summer is right around the corner. Our Heatherwood garden is starting to burst out in bloom everywhere. Temperatures are in the 70’s approaching the 80’s. Summer seems to be coming a little early this year.
One of the driving factors when I purchased our Selah property was the surrounding ridge. It feels a little like we are in the center of a half circle amphitheater. Looking through the garden, the ridge stands above acting like a guardian. It is a wonderful backdrop leading up to the bright eastern Washington blue skies. As I gaze up at it, my mind wanders to contemplate the wonders of nature and what is good about the world around us.
Path of Learning
Heatherwood Spring
It is the time of the year when something is changing every day. I have a difficult time keeping up with all the changes. This week, the pink ground phlox is reaching its peak as the blossoms of our weeping cherry are fading. Each year the plants cover more and more of the ground and the shrubs and trees grow. Just 5 years ago this was a grass hillside.
Our garden path curves up around the stepping stones of the path to never-ending learning.
Emerging Daffodils
Heatherwood Crabapple Grove
Today we change over to Daylight Saving Time. Spring is just around the corner! These emerging daffodils are harbingers of what will soon come.
We are far behind on our winter clean-up to prepare for spring. New growth is starting everywhere, but we have not started cutting back last years spent grasses and perennials. I have started a little pruning, but have a long, long way to go! We also have a lot of transplanting to do before we start our spring planting. The new plants are scheduled to be delivered in mid-April. I’m getting a little nervous.
Grass Lined Garden Path
Heatherwood Winter
A grass-lined garden path wanders up from our meadow’s center circle. The path is bordered with ‘Piglet’ fountain grass. Red twig dogwoods and columnar Taylor junipers separate the path from the rest of the garden with contrasting colors and textures. During the winter, I can catch a glimpse of the garden beyond.
Spent Hosta Leaves
Heatherwood Winter
During my winter walks in our garden, I constantly look down at my feet. Interesting patterns frequently emerge from fallen leaves and spent perennials. These spent hosta leaves topped with fallen crabapple leaves caught my attention. My first thought was that I should really clean up the mess. I turned my head and then thought that this was an interesting pattern of leaves that would make a nice image.
Meadow Grasses
Heatherwood Winter
Remember that brown is a color. Heatherwood is full of various shades of brown in the winter. Grasses and spent perennials grace our garden with various tones of brown and textures during the winter months. The various grasses in the meadow have different forms, colors, and textures. Throughout the winter, they keep my interest peaked. Very soon, they will all be cut back to make room for spring’s spurts of new growth. The meadow will soon look bare.
Autumn Leaves, Sedum, and Thyme
Heatherwood Winter
Even the ground is covered with winter color and textures in our garden. Purple woolly thyme provides the base of this vignette. The red new growth of Tri-color sedum highlights the image, while the fallen autumn leaves create a gentle overlay.
Enjoying this little scene provides a stimulus to add more and more ground covers to our spring planting plan! Spring is less that a month away.
Abstract Art in the Garden
Heatherwood Winter
Garden art is all around me as I walk through Heatherwood. I just need to discover a way to display it. I saw this combination of ornamental grasses in the foreground, red twig dogwoods in the mid ground, and yellow twig dogwoods in the background peeking through the red twigs. I thought of an abstract watercolor painting of beige, red, and yellow brush strokes. I played with a series of multiple exposures and “voila”, an abstract painting appeared.
Have a happy day!