Adelman Peony Gardens (Salem, Oregon)

We literally stumbled across Adelman Peony Gardens. We were leaving Schreiner's Iris when we saw the sign for Adelman. It was only one mile from the interstate so of course we had to go. We made a wish list for the fall! :)

'Red Charm' and 'Bowl of Beauty'

'Color Magnet'

 

'Garden Treasure'

'Bartzella'

'Minnie Shaylor'

Peonies as far as the eye can see.

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Heirloom Roses (St. Paul, Oregon)

When we first started our garden in Alabama, we fell in love with antique roses. We ended up with a hundred or so and some of them came from Heirloom Roses in St. Paul, Oregon by mail order. Now that we are living in Washington state, Heirloom Roses, as well as many of the other great plant nurseries, are within driving distance.

Last week, we drove down to St. Paul, about 45 minutes south of Portland, to see the nursery and the display gardens. The Oregon countryside is absolutely gorgeous. It is just one farm after another. Fields of fruit orchards, grapes, hops, conifers, blueberries, and strawberries are just a few of the crops that we passed on our way.

It has been a while since I purchased roses. The first thing I've noticed is that they are much more expensive now. Heirloom's roses are $40 for a gallon pot and $27 for a quart sized pot. Actually, if you are ordering by mail, this is a good deal because they do not charge extra for shipping. I was a bit surprised though that the roses at their retail nursery are the same price! We could not find the roses we wanted at the nursery (they had an open house the previous weekend and had sold out of most of their varieties) but after we got home, I visited their website and they were available. I guess they have a separate inventory for mail-order. Anyway, I ordered a few and actually thought that the roses that arrived later in the mail looked better than the ones they had in their greenhouse. So, if you are shopping at Heirloom, I could recommend mail-order.

On the other hand, if you actually visit, you get to see their beautiful display gardens. Here are a few photos. 
  Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Garden blogger's bloom day

It has been ages since I have participated in Garden Blogger's Bloom Day and this is my first time to do it after moving to Washington. On the 15th of every month, garden bloggers across the country take photos of what is blooming in their garden.

We just endured yet another heat wave and dry spell (boo! hiss!) but today there is a long, slow rain (or drizzle rather) and the temperatures are much cooler. Thank goodness. I have planted a ton of stuff, including some large trees, and I was beginning to get worried. Since our yard (I won't call it a garden yet) is virtually shade-free, the sun is pretty harsh out here. It rises in the sky at an odd angle and it always seems to be in your face no matter what time of day it is. A few days ago, I spent the entire day planting and ended up with a sunburn. I was wearing a tank top so I have, what Michael calls, a "redneck tan". But I digress...

Most of the blooms in the garden are from newly purchased plants that already had blooms or were very close to blooming. We are having fun watching how fast the plants grow here! A small clematis that I planted a few weeks ago seems to grow at least 6 inches per day. It is wonderful and amazing.

An Abutilon megapotamicum 'Variegatum' (Flowering Maple) that I bought at a local greenhouse.

Another abutilon that we bought at the Vancouver Farmer's Market. It is called "Red Dragon".

Kousa dogwood 'Wolf's Eyes'

Delphinium

Heliotrope

Honeysuckle (Lonicera americana)

Jerusalem Sage (Phlomis fruticosa)

Orchid Primrose (Primula vialii)

A wisteria that was already planted on the fence leading to the back garden. 

Japanese Snowbell (Styrax japonicus), one of the first trees I planted.

Smoke Tree 'Royal Purple' (Cotinus)

The first rose I planted, 'Lady of Shallot', just beginning to open.

Rose 'Ketchup and Mustard'

Rose 'Gold Medal'

This beautiful rhododendron was already here on the west side of our house. There are no windows on that side so our neighbor gets the most benefit from it.

Check out other blogger's bloom day posts at May Dreams Gardens.

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy

Schreiner's Iris Gardens (Salem, Oregon)

Yesterday we went on a road trip with the intention of visiting one nursery, Heirloom Roses. We ended up going to three nurseries. It turns out that a lot of the great nurseries that I use to mail-order from, are all located in the Salem, Oregon area. Heirloom Roses is located in St. Paul and Schreiner's Iris Gardens as well as Adelman's Peonies are about twenty minutes away, near Salem. All three had nice display gardens but Schreiner's had to be the most beautiful. We hit it at the right time and quite by accident. We decided to go at the last minute. Photos from Heirloom Roses and Adelman's Peonies are upcoming in a day or so.

Iris are the focal point of the garden of course but I was quite enchanted by the
lupines, delphiniums, columbine, clematis and various other perennials as well.

I was also fascinated by the Horse Chestunut trees. You can see a glimpse of the entire tree in the photo above. Below is a close-up of the blooms.



The Fringetree (Chionanthus virginicus) (below) was also quite nice. This is a tree that I grew in our Alabama garden.

Believe it or not, the only thing I bought was a corn dog. I do want iris in our garden but there were simply too many to make a decision, plus the ones we really liked were over $50! 

Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy