Project 365: June 4th through June 10th

June 4th: A standard run to Lowes for stone and a few clearance plants - who can resist a curly filbert for $19.99 at 50% off. The far left closest plant I had to get - a humingbird was going crazy for it in the plant center! June 5th: After doing some shopping Macha lays claim. Would you move her? Seriously - this is what pure joy looks like....not pictured is her kneading the box with her little paw. June 6th: My lupines began blooming in the backyard. June 6th: And I finally finished (after a week pretty solid) weeding the front yard. June 6th: Here is the rest of the front yard which I just finished weeding. June 6th: The front of the house. June 7th: Patrick finished the sun garden and new sitting area. And, believe it or not, those are daisies in the back. June 8th: Running to downtown Portland. June 8th: The courthouse - meeting up with our lawyer. June 8th: Apprently someone was in such a hurry he ran right out of his shoes. June 9th: Our friends Derek and Mike married each other in our backyard. This was their cake topper which represents two sould from different worlds. June 10th: I rescued this rose from my awesome mechanic's yard and now it is looking amazing. June 10th: Look at that color!

The state of the Garden - June 2012

Garden Update May 27th, 2012

The state of things...working in my garden which has turned more into a French potager than I intended.

The former chicken pen now has lattice to hide the veggie garden and our compost from the chickens.

Adding compost and new plantings to the former strawberry patch.

Our hydrangeas and delphiniums are clearly doing great.

The first offerings from the Ebb Tide rosebush.

Why yes, yes I do have black and purple iris blooming.

A kind bird planted this because I sure did not...the amusing part is when planted from seed or start my foxgloves have not survived.

The last of the Spring bulbs are finishing up including this beautiful red anemone.

MY champagne iris.

So last year Beth Adams and I went to Farmington Gardens for some plants. She bought a gorgeous hanging succulent garden and one broke off a tiny fragment which Beth gave me suggesting I shove it into my garden. Less than a year later and this is huge and blooming!

This Lotus maculata is a new favorite ground cover and the flowers which look like flames really are stunning!

Clearly the ground cover is taking well in the front yard. I will probably break this one up a bit but to the right you can see Irish moss which grows wild in our yard so I did not plant any.

Project 365: May 21st through May 27th

May 21st: Dinner at Marrakesh with Jen Earp - and we were the only people there.

May 22nd: Sun garden and fence completion. I also added some new stone, plants and rearranged other stuff.

May 23rd: On our way home from Ikea my little Bernie broke a part which is on order. We got a tow from the nicest guy though - thanks for the lift Wil Kaplan! And, as always, thanks be to my car goddess for finding the problem fast and working to fix it. Ahhh the joys of owning a car two years older than me!

May 24th: Salty’s on the Columbia Willamette Valley Vineyards Winemaker’s Dinner Don Crank the winemaker for WVV, Chef Josh Gibler of Salty’s, Beverage Manager of Salty’s Megann Williams and Derek the sales manager for WVV in Oregon.

First course: variety of cheeses, fruits, breads and Prosciutto wrapped melon paired with WVV Dry Rose of Syrah/Tempranillo 2011. Second Course: Orange and Chili Rubbed Colossal Tigar Prawns with Pinot Gris poached pear, crispy Pancetta and Local Arugula paired with WVV Pinot Gris 2009. Entrée: Pan Seared Copper River King Salmon with Yukon Potato Gratin, Crispy Morels, Proscuitto wrapped baby artichoke and a Pinot Noir Reduction paired with South Block Pinot Noir 2008 (this wine is not available any longer and is VERY tough to find but amazing).

Desert: Ricotta Cheese, orange zest, pistachios and fruit compote paired with Quinta Reserva “Port Style” Pinot Noir 2008 (another wine you can not longer find).

May 25th: More work on the yard. Patrick covered the old chicken pen with lattice to hide the veggie garden and our compost. I moved the evergreen clematis and also rehung the purple clematis and honeysuckle from the new lattice work on the old fencing.

May 26th: New blooms - and here in the front gardens my black and purple iris have started blooming.

May 27th: The last of the Spring bulbs are almost done like this stunning red anemone. I still have a few purple ones left - definitely plant anemones since they provide a lot of bang for your buck!