Wordless Wednesday: A Long Walk Before Dark...

The Little Foster Boy Who Loved Seeds

Last weekend I was surprised by a 9-year-old foster respite boy—but it was a pleasant surprise. 

False Yucca Seeds, Hesperaloe parviflora.

Usually on Friday nights kids don't want to watch me sitting at the table sifting through seeds. Our kids are usually fairly emotional and like to have us right there with them, watching a program with them, or participating in their play.

Cardinal Flower Seeds, Lobelia cardinalis.

Last weekend I was left alone in the evening. It felt kind of odd and a twinge of guilt crept up, but then I squashed it because I liked being able to work quietly after dinner without any major interruptions.

False Freesia, Anomatheca laxa.

I was sorting and sorting and didn't notice when the room became silent.

My little helper hiding behind the lamp to preserve his anonymity. 

Then I felt his eyes on me and he drew nearer. There were a few questions about how to do it, and why I do it, and then he sat his toys down. He was mesmerized by the process and before I knew it he was sitting beside me sorting too.

And that was Friday night! Ahhhhh.....

Elms in the Park Blocks of Portland, Oregon.

Due to his anxiety issues, running errands for my upcoming trip required some planning, but all that really meant was that he needed park breaks in the city so that he could forget about all the people. Near Powell's he as able to run around in this playground in the park blocks. I admired the elm trees while he let it all out.

Licorice Ferns, Polypodium glycyrrhiza.

Before we left to go to the store I showed him how the epiphytic Licorice Fern grows on trees whenever possible in our area. He stood there on the sidewalk staring up at that tree for much longer than I'd expected.

This lily at a flower stall captivated my little weekend visitor. 

At the market in NW Portland we stopped to buy flowers for my daily Ikebana.

Pumpkin Stick Tree, Solanum integrifolium. 

I let him pick what he wanted for a Halloween theme and we talked about the flowers he really liked.

Monkshood, possibly Aconitum carmichaelii.

This was the first Monkshood he'd ever seen and he couldn't stop looking at it. He wanted to call it a Hoodie Flower and that made me laugh.

Once we were back home he posed with our purchases and then we started working on Halloween cookies. Until he left on Monday he continued to sort seeds with me and he asked me many questions. He opened up a lot during this time and when he left it was hard for me to say goodbye. Part of me felt ashamed though to have been so biased in my feelings for him just because he loved seeds but I totally fell for him.

I am currently still sorting outdoor plants before I take off for my next plant and seed hunting trip in California.

I wanted to post that I have many winners and losers and these are examples of each. Both are hard to find plants, but only one made it. The Dicentra would have made it if I hadn't neglected it, but so it goes...

DIG Floral & Garden (Vashon Island, WA)

A few weeks back I promised pictures of DIG Floral & Garden out on Vashon Island and I have failed to provide those up until now. I am sorry for the cursory visit, but my ongoing hand injury recovery has really slowed me down.

Lobelia tupa.

Happiest dog I've seen all summer.

I have seen tons of blown glass balls and baubles galore at other places but this arrangement is just right.

If you're going to put a large round object in your garden make sure it's big and heavy. 

A few years ago these gabions inspired my husband to make his own at the family vineyard in California. His is much smaller but he loved that he could use rocks he'd been digging up in the vineyard to fill it up. (Note too the metal "picture" frames. They are actually recycled metal grates.) 

I think this is safely described as a bit surreal. The dissimilar objects remind me much of Lautreamont's famous quote concerning the beauty of a chance encounter between very different objects. Sometimes the odd couple pairings really do work!

If my mother-in-law enjoyed gardening, I would have to buy her one of these little handsome devils. 

I have seen simple tiered planters before but admittedly I've never really liked them. This one is completely different though because the pottery appears to have morphed its shape. It seems more alive somehow.

I have a sedum filled birdbath too so I am a bit partial to this one. 

Chuckle. 

Smile. 

Possibly a Tweedia.

Fuchsia 'Chang'.

More glass balls and this color pathway is maybe a bit less jarring. 

Surprising combination. 

These are aluminum banded planters that can be used many different ways. 

Their take on the Mediterranean theme meshes far better with my relaxed and not-so-technical side. It isn't Anglophilic or part of the Tuscanization of America. It find that refreshing. 

Now I want a totally new garden and it will have a special name inspired by this scene: Glaucous. I would even get my husband a well-trained Glaucous Macaw and train it to act like Kermit the Frog. The silliness of the idea makes it seem plausible. 

De nada!

Just in case anyone cares, that's a Beschorneria 'Ding Dong' blooming in the terracotta pot. (If you're reading this, I got that name just for you.)

This white chicken should stand beside my red wheelbarrow. I need some white concrete chickens right? That's not a want, but a need. Clearly.

The white glass baubles were also a nice touch. I still can't decide which colors I liked most though so that's why you get to see them all.

Nothing makes me happier than an Asparagus fern in a serene formal planter. It floods me with memories of the Alcazar in Seville.

This is meant to remind myself and others that if you have a Staghorn fern living unhappily in a small plastic planter, set it free!

Begonia maculata var. wightii. 

The DIG tour had to be quick because we had a ferry to catch. Two of our regular foster respite kids were waiting back in Portland for us so we had to dash off the island. That morning, the ferry had looked so mysterious and moody in the fog, but by the time we'd packed up, and arrived at the nursery, things were looking much better.

As we waited for the ferry, I sat and watched the Madrone trees.

Madrone, Arbutus menziesii.