Visiting the Garden at the Palmer Visitors Center

Palmer (website with interesting history here) is a town in the Matanuska Valley in  south central  Alaska.  This is the area of the state renowned for growing giant cabbages and other vegetables. The combination of fertile soil and summer days with 19 hours of daylight encourage rapid growth.  Just to the south of the Visitors' Center is a wonderful garden showcasing plants grown in Palmer from it's colonial beginning through the present.    

 

So, not a lot of green this time of year but there's  loveliness  to be found in this special garden. 

The varitey of  browns, tans, and golds seems endless and the bluegreen of the evergreens is beautiful.

 

The plants are all well labeled so that both local and visiting gardeners can learn about plants hardy enough to live through the winter in this harsh climate.

There's even a crevice garden. 

And raised area for alpines.

Plant graveyard I assume:-)

When colors and plant choices are limited, one really appreciates the winter color contrasts available. 

 

With background scenery like this, you could temporarily forget the garden.

There were a few minutes of sun - yea.  I tend to think of frost as a fleeting thing that melts off at sunrise.  Here, the frost just stays until spring. 

Bless the saxifrages for providing some of the only green other than the small conifers.

These are tough little buggers!

The Bohemian Waxwings and Pine Grossbeaks will be glad for these crababble and mountain ash snacks!

 

My niece was disappointed that there weren't a few feet of snow on the ground during my visit.  There was snow in some areas but not a lot in others.  The average first snowfall in Anchorage is October 17 but it can happen as early as September.  The last snowfall is typically in April but in one out of every four years, it's still snowing in May.  It's certainly a gorgeous place to visit.