BLOOMTOWN

Bloomtown - a garden vignette

This year, I've re-worked this scene to the left of my front steps as you approach the house. Earlier this spring I removed a much-loved, but poorly-situated Stipa gigantea because it was spilling over onto the steps at the front entry creating a bit of a hazard and, more generally, looking unkempt.

Last year, in preparation for this renovation, I removed the ultra-pink Rosa 'Gertrude Jekyll' and replaced it with the equally fragrant and statuesque Rosa 'Abraham Darby' whose coloring is less insistent and more in keeping with my current color palette. He's not showing his bloom yet in this photo but will be a major player as the season unfolds. Other key players, counter-clockwise from the bottom left, include Anemanthele lessoniana, Lonicera 'Baggeson's Gold', Helianthemum 'Henfield Brilliant', Taxus 'Sentinalis' and Physocarpus 'Diabolo.'

I added the container this spring to showcase a favorite cordyline called 'Pink Sensation' that I picked up last year. The container contributes strong, all-season structure, bringing the entire scene into sharp focus. Voila!

A good year for Alliums

It's shaping up to be a great year for the alliums in my garden. They've been very happily increasing and multiplying in my sunny and hot parking strip with its yummy, free-draining soil.

This shot, taken earlier today, marks the beginning of the "show." This is Allium 'Purple Sensation' which will be followed by a succession of blooms from several other species and cultivars, which include A. 'Globemaster', A. 'Mount Everest', A. christophii, A. schubertii, A. giganteum, and A. sphaerocephalon. They bloom in approximately that order in my garden, so I have a succession of blooms that last until about mid-July.

I posted about the alliums a couple of years ago here.

Acer p. 'Sango Kaku' showing it's fall glory at Bloomtown

Took this photos just moment's ago; my coral bark maple (Acer palmatum 'Sango Kaku') is looking stunning! Fall is truly my favorite time of year and I've tried to design my garden for a lot of fall interest. If you like to see more photos of my garden in fall check out my photo album here or check out the Better Homes & Gardens publication described in the next post - photos for that spread were taken just about this time last year!

Secret Garden at Night

We are so much enjoying this area of the garden this year ... the first photo was taken as the light was just fading, then the second, later that night giving you a sense of the full effect.

2007 Metro Natural Gardening Tour

OMG what a day! My best estimate is that I had just shy of 800 visitors through the garden between 10am and 4pm.

Intense? Yes.

Invigorating? Yes.

Tiring? Well, I must confess, yes to that too.

It’s worth it though – I really believe in exposing people to my garden, which is created naturally, yet is lush, exuberant, and exciting. It helps people understand that you really can do a wow! garden without relying on chemicals. Metro is doing great work to raise people’s awareness about how what we do on our piece of land impacts our larger environment. Anything I can do to help is time well-spent.

Kitchen Garden

A photo showing the overall layout of the kitchen garden is posted above.

The planting beds are raised. In addition to providing an ideal growing situation for a variety of edibles, the changes in elevation coupled with the angular lines contribute to a more interesting space.

The back "wall" is an open wire mesh suitable for supporting tomatoes and vining plants. The top of the fence is embellished with an iron, stone & glass element fabricated by Keith Yurdana of Taproot. Some detail photos of the finials are posted below.

A photo sampling of our current garden bounty:

 

Plenty of Basil, several varieties

(shown here is Genovese Sweet Basil)

Lettuce, of course!

Cherry Bomb Hot Pepper

Japanese White Eggplant

Thai Green Eggplant

Yellow Boy Tomato, shown here with Purple Ruffles Basil

We've also got several varieties of cherry tomatos going strong.

All this and more; lots of zucchini & yellow squash, various peppers and eggplants, cucumbers. We're really enjoying the fresh food we're getting from the garden!

I've moved in ...

I moved into the studio about 6 weeks ago but have been busy with client work and getting the nursery ready for the season so I have not had a chance to update the photos on this site. I'm posting a couple of shots of the studio (taken on our "snow day" in mid-March) and will get some photos of the garden remodel up soon.

My workstation.

 

Vaulted ceiling with skylights lend a bright, spacious feeling to the space.

Not fully furnished at this point, but you can see how open it is to the garden.

Bloomtown Nursery - Open for the Season!

The nursery opens Saturday, April 1st, so I hope you'll drop by and see us. We’ve brought in a select group of perennials, grasses, shrubs & trees that are sure to please. From the downright common to the outright extraordinary, we offer a range of plants that will assist you in creating dynamic combinations in your own garden; combinations that rely on form, color & texture.

DIRECTIONS: You can enter the nursery via one of the following ways: 1) via 50th Avenue (a short, unimproved gravel road off of NE Fremont) or 2) via our display garden located in the courtyard outside Jim & Patty's Coffee Shop, at 5015 NE Fremont. We can be tricky to find the first time, but well worth the effort!

HOURS: APR - OCT, Wed - Sat, 9 am - 5 pm; also by appointment

DINING PATIO is well under way!

© Darcy Daniels Bluestone Squares & Recs

Rectilinear bluestone was selected for the floor in the dining area to complement the underlying geometric pattern of the hardscape surrounding the new studio. (Click here to see the garden plan). The apparent formality of the pattern will be toned down by exuberant plantings lapping at its edge.

In preparation for laying the stone, the area was excavated to a depth of approximately 8”and a layer of coarse gravel was installed. Next a thick layer of sand was brought in, on which the stone was laid. That is the phase of the project that these images portray.