Monday, April 20, 2015

I Am An Addict

Hi, my name is Grace Peterson and I'm a hort-a-holic. And I'm not the slightest bit interested in recovery. This time of year, as with all hort-a-holics, I'm at my worst--or best, depending on how you look at it. Immediate is the endorphin rush I feel when I see the words, PLANT and SALE. They magically obliterate any financial stressors that might be looming in some amorphous realm. The hunt is on. I carry my wish list in my purse to keep a semblance of sanity, but I don't stick to it because most of those plants are difficult to find and I don't believe in limiting myself. 

Anisodontea x Tara's Pink' 

This past weekend, I ventured north to my sister Laura's in Woodburn (Oregon). Her birthday is this week and I had some gifts for her. Luckily she too is a hort-a-holic! But, unlike brave hort-a-holics who attended the plant extravaganza known as Hortlandia in Portland, my sister and I drove around the countryside, enjoying the sunshine while in pursuit of those out-of-the-way nurseries we both love. 

Here are some of the goodies I brought home:  

Most of these plants came from Secret Garden Growers in Canby.
The flat of Geraniums are from seeds I sowed in January.
It's supposed to rain later this week which will allow me to plant them out. 

These plants came from various other nurseries.
I was psyched to find this Parahebe again at--of all places--Wilco Farms in Oregon City.
I grew it years ago and loved it. 

One of the nurseries we visited had one gallon perennials for $2.50!
Shut the front door!
I bought these. 

N&M Nursery in Hubbard was impressive.
Of there many plant goodies was this one gallon Fatsia japonica 'Spider's Web' for $8.00.
Too good to pass up! 
They also had this Polygala for eight bucks. It will need winter protection
but it's such a cool looking, continuously blooming plant.
There is a huge one I've admired for a long time growing inside the tropical greenhouse at Dancing Oaks.
My specimen is just about to burst into bloom!

And for $12, this two-gallon Anisodontea x Tara's Pink' It's a Zone 8 so maybe I can winter it over.
That's a huge IF, of course.
At Secret Gardens, I admired this sizable clump of blooming Pulsatilla. 

I bought an Edgeworthia here at Al's Garden Center.
My camera doesn't do justice to this impressive springy display. 

The bees were all over these flowers.
Happy bees make me giddy.

The Digitalis and Scilla were also bee magnets. 

This Ceanothus, blooming in the Oregon Garden parking lot, was the deepest shade of blue I've ever seen. 

My camera doesn't do justice to this container at N&M Nursery either.
Cuppressus 'Wilma Goldcrest' is the thriller while Coprosma does the filling
and 'Angelina' Sedum does this spilling.
Pure genius.
This water bowl is gigantic--I'm guessing at least four feet across. But you can't tell from this
photo I took in the shady part of Secret Garden Growers. 

I was shocked to discover that I didn't take one photo of my sister's garden. 
What the heck was I thinking? Here is one of my favorites from last year. 

Like most gardeners, my sister has since removed all of the lawn for more plants!
Don't you love it? 
So there you have it. My confession. 
Are you a hort-a-holic?

25 comments:

  1. I love nursery hopping! I need to do more of that this year, and garden tours. I need ideas for when the fence goes up and I don't have to worry about deer as much. That ceanothus is beautiful. Definitely need a bunch of those.

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  2. LOL. Wow, look at all those plants! I totally understand your addiction and I have the same one. I guess we're fortunate our addiction isn't terribly harmful to ourselves (only our pocketbooks) and actually helps us and our visitors. ;-) Love, love, love the planter with the evergreen tree and the sedums! I must steal that idea!!!

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  3. I am one of those hortaholics who came down for Hortlandia this past weekend, and we also visited four nurseries, two of which had plants for sale at Hortlandia. So my cohorts and I are all most definitely also addicted to plant shopping. I adore that Parahebe too.

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  4. My name is Kris and I'm a hort-a-holic. It looks as though you did a good job feeding your habit. Spring plant shows and sales are in full swing here too (although SoCal has nothing on the PNW in that department). I attended a succulent show/sale the weekend before last, a sale of perennials and shrubs this past weekend, and have another show coming up at the end of this week - there isn't even time to review and post photos!

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  5. I knew I was an addict when my van was broken into and my first thought was "i hope they didn't take my plant

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  6. Oh Grace - your loot even beat my stash from Hortlandia, and I thought I had it bad!!! But yes, isn't it a wonderful addiction? I can't say I'm exactly longing for rehab either, but I am developing sneaky ways to hide my habit from family members, which - I guess - is less than healthy. Oh well, once they see how lovely it will be, they will understand... right?

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  7. I asked on FB why you didn't just come on up to Portland for Hortlandia, now I know! Looks like you had a great day.

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  8. Oh yes, I am definitely part of this group. :-)

    You got some great plants and I look forward to seeing them in upcoming posts.

    Enjoy ~ FlowerLady

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  9. WOW! What a haul! Beautiful plants. Also great prices! I have some of them. It is finely starting to get green up here. Happy Dance going on! The plants are really starting to put on an appearance. I have prairie smoke, dwarf iris in bloom and soon the daffodils will be blooming. It is so nice to see.

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  10. You did major damage on your road trip, while I came through Hortlandia unscathed. Does that make me a bad candidate for your support group? In my defense, I waited until Sunday, when I'm sure most of the truly tempting stuff had been snapped up.

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  11. Beautiful...I like to think that I am but not growing much because without water it is way too difficult...enjoying your plants thoroughly...thank you Grace (I am incredibly impressed how you remember these difficult plant names).

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  12. What a delightful addiction to have, Grace. Don't ever try to recover, The photos are stunning. Enjoy!

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  13. Good hunting! I seriously can't think of anything more exciting than that first day of hitting the gardening centres. Pretty sure I get giddy. :P

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  14. All hort-a-holics also suffer from hortgasms, and I am sure with this haul, you may have suffered more than one Grace!

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  15. Hahaha, I love that all of your sister's lawn is gone now. You'll have to make another trip back for photos.
    You scored big time. I wish we lived closer so you could drag me out nursery hopping. It's such a rush, my heart rate has sped up and my chest is swelling just thinking about it.

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  16. OMG Gracie you have made one heck of a haul here ... I am in total awe of
    Fatsia japonica, spider's web ... I am in total love with it ... too bad it is so not near my zone .. I love the foliage .. but my rodgersia has a similar structure with rough texture and great colour ... I just hope it made it through the winter alright .. I have it paired with Banana Boat sedge so it is rather striking when they cooperate ? haha
    OK .. now how stupid is Y & R with the fake Jack and Victor becoming partners ... yuck ! LOL
    Joy
    PS ... wish we had nurseries all over the place like you have ..

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  17. Ay yi yi...I'm in love with that Gaura variety and the Saxifraga. And you are right, that shade of blue on the Ceonthus is absolutely stunning. Mine is pretty, but doesn't match that blue. You scored big time Girl! (I was waiting to see if you had gone to Al's....) Happy planting! We've been in California for the week and noticed that succulents have replaced flowers in many gardens due to the drought.

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  18. I am recovering so i wouldn't be allowed to go shopping with you often, but I would have to occasionally....

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  19. Beautiful selections!
    I believe I am turning into a hortiholic. You wouldn't be able to tell yet by looking at my garden as it is still fairly young. I spent my birthday plant shopping, the weekend before my birthday was also spent that way.
    I am also blessed to have some friends who are sharing their abundance with me.
    Gotta go get some of those plants put in the ground.
    I love visiting your blog.

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  20. Welcome Grace. You are at home here LOL. Glad to find other Plant-a-holics like myself. Not too long ago I made a similar confession on my blog. Great plant finds.

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  21. I just bought more plants today! I came home with one more heuchera and 3 pulsatilla vulgaris but have to have 2 more. ;o) $2.50 for a gallon plant? Wowzers! Here they're $10-$15 unless you buy the ones full of chemicals at Lowe's. Plants on the west coast are much cheaper.

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  22. Hello, my name is Peter and I'm a hort-a-holic! Love that your sister has removed more lawn! We were both buying plants last weekend, you all over the place and my pals Alison, Vickie and I braved Hortlandia and some other nurseries. I so want to get to M and N as I always love their stuff at the sales. The other nurseries you mentioned sound great, too. 2.50 for gallon perennials? Welcome to wonderland!

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  23. Well what is April for Grace but for buying plants! You have some lovely new additions to your garden. Hope that they are getting some gentle sunshine and soft showers whilst they settle in to their new homes.

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  24. Being a fellow plant "horeaholic" I totally understand your addiction. I cant go to the nursery for one plant, I always come home with something my garden couldn't survive without.

    That photo of The Digitalis and Scilla, the pinkish lavender one with the tall bell shaped flowers looks just like the plant I bought last year labeled a "Foxglove." Are they the same? I collected seeds from it but none came up. I sent some to a friend in Australia and hers did. Go figure. Beautiful scenes as always Grace.

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  25. $2.50 for one gallon perennials? Road trip! A LONG road trip!

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Thank you for being here! Your comments feed my soul.