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The Gardens of Mien Ruys - a book review

I don't know how I missed her, but I was totally unfamiliar with Mien Ruys. A beautiful new book The Gardens of Mien Ruys details her life and work. Born in the Netherlands in 1904, she was the daughter of Bonne Ruys, who founded Moerheim Nursery in 1888. She grew up in a liberal atmosphere and encouraged to learn and study. She found great comfort in the natural world around her and learned all the plants in her father's nursery at a young age. After leaving school at the age of 19, she knew that she wanted to work in the garden center. The Moerheim Nursery, in addition to selling plants, had an on-site design studio where they published a detailed catalog and sold landscape design plans to customers. It was in the design studio where Ruys first began to work and she was soon encouraged to venture beyond her country and study abroad. Her father's connections helped her secure a traineeship with Wallace & Sons Nursery in Tunbridge Wells in England. There, she met Gertr...
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HPSO Garden Tour: Dragonfly Hollow


Fun day today. Michael, Rebecca, McKenzie and I visited two beautiful gardens on the HPSO (Hardy Plant Society Oregon) Garden Tour. There were five gardens altogether, all located in Vancouver. It was nice and cool, with temperatures in the 60s. It did come a brief shower when we got to the second garden but not enough to deter us.

First up was Dragonfly Hollow, not too far from where we live. This lovely garden was located in a heavily wooded area and chock full of interesting plants, spectacular plant combinations and artwork. It is the garden of designer Vanessa Nagel. Lots of inspiration and great ideas!

I will share photos of the second garden, Matsu Kaze (Wind in the Pines), in my next post. If you like conifers and Japanese maples, you are in for a treat!




























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Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy
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Comments

  1. rebeccaJune 11, 2016 at 9:01 PM

    Such fun!

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  2. AlisonJune 11, 2016 at 10:16 PM

    Looks like a lovely garden, with some beautiful stone mosaics.

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  3. Lisa at GreenbowJune 12, 2016 at 2:55 AM

    Wow. This is inspirational. I love all of those yellow-green grasses. I can't seem to get them to grow here. It must be our dry hot weather. I love the stone circle too. Lovely.

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  4. MulchMaidJune 12, 2016 at 6:09 AM

    So glad you got to see Vanessa's lovely garden. She has such a good eye for plant combinations, and the whole garden is beautifully designed. And practically in your backyard!

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  5. RebeccaJune 12, 2016 at 3:35 PM

    What a great garden! The rock mosaic path and steps are absolutely gorgeous - and the plants, SO large and luscious...

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  6. ShoalandaJune 15, 2016 at 12:15 AM

    Dragonfly Hollow? I love that name!

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  7. Hoover BooJune 19, 2016 at 3:12 PM

    Yet another fabulous garden? Must have been a great day. Your photo of the Hakone grass, hostas, and...the other plant--just perfect.

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