SUMMER TURNS TO FALL

As I prepare to write the latest entry to our blog, many happy memories of our adventures together this past spring and summer are flooding back to remind me how much I appreciate this wonderful group of fellow Golden Years Gardeners.

We've encountered things to laugh about and some to cry about, discovered new plants, shared our gardening experiences, and offered support to one another in our quest to continue pursuing our passion.  Plants left our gardens while others found new homes there.

Over the last couple of months, as summer gave way to fall,  we enjoyed meetings in Dru's and Lisa's  gardens; had fun on group visits to a couple of great nurseries; and Lisa shared her creative sense of design with us in a class at her garden in September. 

Now, the time has come to prepare for a seasonal shift. We say goodbye to daily doses of sunshine drying the soil until we sense that the plants must begging for more water. We give up discussions about how hot we think it might get and whether the tomatoes will actually ripen before the first frost. We begin to welcome fall’s misty mornings, cooling temperatures and free irrigation. Our conversations switch gears - turning to discussions of the vibrant colors of fall, curling up with catalogs, and how we'll dispose of fallen leaves.  Our wardrobes switch to warm, comfy shirts, toasty hats and gloves, weather resistant shoes, and rain gear that once again tops off the look. But the trees are holding onto their leaves and we can still enjoy the fading memories of this years' spring and summer gardens.

I hope you enjoy looking back at our late summer memories.  Thank you for enriching my life and helping create wonderful memories for another summer. I'm looking forward to sharing time together at our next meeting. The announcement should already be waiting in your email boxes.

OUR TRIP TO POMARIUS NURSERY

Unfortunately, my new computer must have eaten the pictures that Lisa sent along. I have been struggling to transfer everything from my old PC to this new Mac. Although I find that I like the Mac's features, I am also finding that getting "more golden" has me longing for things to remain constant and learning new applications doesn't fit well with my routine. After spending a good part of the day searching for the location of the pictures in both computers, I've given up and hope that your imaginations will be in top form as you read this. You can also go to the nursery's website and see actual pictures. :-)

Located in the center of the northwest Portland industrial district, this nursery is a very pleasant surprise. It is a place to find special treasures of all kinds, enjoy a relaxed and informative visit with the owner, and find a touch of country with the free-range chickens that also call this their home. Thanks to Lisa for making the arrangements for our visit. Here is their website address to see pictures and find more information:  http://www.pomariusnursery.com/

OUR TRIP TO BUCHHOLZ WHOLESALE NURSERY

Thanks to Jane Coombs', we were allowed to visit and given a tour of this nursery that only sells wholesale and most of those sales are in shipments to other areas. It would be nice if more of our local nurseries carried some of the plants I found myself salivating for, but maybe I can find them online. I remembered my camera this trip. The display gardens are magnificent with mature, tall specimen trees framing the smaller dwarfs and younger plantings. The location among gently rolling hills on the way to the coast range provides beautiful views in every direction.

SEPTEMBER IN LISA'S GARDEN
A stroll around Lisa's expansive garden provides just about any aspect that we would expect in our beautiful Pacific Northwest location. She has taken a diamond in the rough and transformed it into a woodland paradise, filled with the lush, green understory we all expect when we take a casual walk along a path toward the stream. It is wonderful to see all of the progress she has made while carefully laying out and executing her design so that it flows seamlessly from sun to dappled shade to wetland below. The plants seem to be beaming joyfully in their newly reclaimed home where they are obviously loved and appreciated.

After our meeting, Lisa shared her florist's background with us, teaching how to take natural materials from our gardens and using it to create wonderful decorative pieces to enjoy in our homes. The audience was captivated as they watched, listened, and learned.

...................................Thank you, Lisa!