The Marietta & Ernie O'Byrne Garden (Eugene, Oregon)

Another road trip, this time to Eugene, Oregon (about 3 hours from Vancouver, Washington), to visit the garden of Marietta and Ernie O'Byrne. They and their gardens are well-known and they also operate a nursery, Northwest Garden Nursery, on site. 

One of their specialties are hellebores and every year, they have a sale, usually in February. Back in 2020, I drove down for that, but I've always wanted to return and see their garden in spring. I would also love to see it in autumn. It is a fantastic garden! And one more plug - they wrote a wonderful book called "A Tapestry Garden" that I highly recommend. 

Speaking of hellebores, I saw this one in the garden, and I must find it. I don't know if this is one of their introductions, but it is very unique -

It was another beautiful, sunny day. When we arrived, Marietta and Ernie, as well as other workers, were busy in the garden. We chatted briefly with them and then went out to explore the garden. Above, in the treetops, was a boisterous symphony from a flock of Evening Grosbeaks. 

A long driveway divides their house and main garden. A small creek runs alongside the driveway. The side opposite the house is a shady, woodland garden. Towering above, and providing the shade, are massive Douglas Fir and Norway Spruce trees. The Douglas Firs were planted in the 1970s from small seedlings found in their forest that surrounds the home. The Norway Spruce was a transplanted Christmas tree. 

Trails bordered with shade-loving plants, like ferns, trillium, epimedium, etc. are packed. There is no ground uncovered in this garden!

I was excited to see their 'Esk Sunset' Sycamore Maple (Acer psuedoplatanus). We have one in our garden. Had I read their book before planting it, I would have taken their advice and put it in a shadier spot. Ours eventually acclimated to full sun, but the first couple of years, it wasn't the happiest.

After leaving the long shade border, we walked across to the back of the garden, to the Chaparral Garden. This is a dryland garden with pines, manzanita, yucca, and plants that grow with limited water. 

There were many iris in the Chaparral Garden, including this beauty that I would love to find -

Adjacent to the Chaparral Garden, beyond the fence and the pasture - peacocks! I could not get a photo of the colorful ones, but I did get one of the spectacular white one. I know a lot of people don't like their cries, but I do. 

Heading back to the main house and surrounding garden, I began to notice the pebble mosaics that were made by the artist Jeffrey Bale. The largest one is in the photo at the beginning of this post. There were also smaller ones -

And this one close to the house. I think this was might be new, as I don't recall seeing it in their book -

The house is surrounded by perennial borders, conifers, heathers, rockeries and alpine troughs. 

An elevated platform, with a spiral staircase, offers an aerial view. It also appears to be a favorite spot for the cat -

They also had several Corgis - 

A goldfish pond and resident frog on the side of the house -

The Shade Garden -

A bamboo forest resides on a berm. They control them from spreading by digging a deep trench around the berm. 

I'm so glad I finally got to see this garden in spring. I hope I can return to see it in the autumn season. I know it will be wonderful. 

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Text and photos by Phillip Oliver, Dirt Therapy