-

-
Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Thursday, May 14, 2015

Next On The After Hortlandia Nurserry Hop: Cistus Design Nursery

After Heronswood was sold, (2000ish)  someone told me about a great nursery for collectors near Portland.  I don't remember where I heard about it but somehow we found our way there. (Before G.P.S. before Mapquest, before the lady in the phone.  However did we get around?  That first visit was so amazing that the car was filled with plants and they gave me a free Cistus T shirt. Since then I've visited this amazing nursery at least twice a year.  In the beginning, going to Cistus and coming home was the extent of my experience in the Portland area.  (All those scary bridges going every which way.)  With the advent of the bossy lady in the phone, finding the many treasures of Portland is a breeze!  I digress - Cistus, a long-time favorite nursery was our next stop after Cornell Nursery.  See previous posts here.

One of the many things to love here is driving through the garden on the way to the parking area.

The many seating areas come in handy if you have a non gardener along!

Wish you had a nursery this fabulous nearby?  The good news is that they do mail order so you can visit anytime!  Check it out here.

Spiny creatures!

Those large Yucca rostratas are stunning!

Colletia hystrix is also known as Barbed wire bush for good reason.  This is a seriously dangerous plant!

Pseudopanax discolor, an evergreen New  Zealander is gorgeous but only hardy to zone 9 and my green house is already quite full in the winter!


The charms of Myrsine africana 'Scarlett Marglin' made me rethink that too full thing...

Wisteria is a grand plant in other people's gardens!

So many great plants. Lots of Fremontodendron in the foreground!

Blue and gold, a classic combination!

If you visited during the Portland Fling last Summer, you know that this is a place that sometimes makes it difficult to believe that it's in the soggy Pacific Northwest!

Musa basjoo from Japan, Rhodocoma capensis and Melianthus major from South Africa among others.  Isn't it amazing how many plants are available to us these days?

And, um, this...

Alison and Vickie  resting for a moment.  

But then it was time to pack our purchases in the plant mobile and take off  for more nurseries!

27 comments:

  1. I think we sat on that exact same bench! Brings back so many great memories Peter :) and that place is a paradise for a plant lover!

    ReplyDelete
  2. It was hot inside the Big Top that day! Where is that seating area at the top of your post? I don't remember ever seeing it.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The big top does get a bit toasty! That seating area is in the hall of interesting shade plants that functions as an exit from the big top (opposite the cash register) and the entrance to the rest of the nursery.

      Delete
  3. I have a photo of you guys Mark and Gaz on this same bench. What a great nursery and great memories of the Fling. Thanks Peter for the tour!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's always a pleasure to visit Cistus. Actually, I went there looking for a plant I saw in your post about going to Cistus with your mom.

      Delete
  4. All those great plants in equally great setting makes Cistus a must-see if I ever make it up that way. It amazes me to see more Yucca rostrata in nurseries there than here.

    You have so much fun on these adventures.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm surprised to hear that there are more Yucca rostrata here than there! Isn't that interesting.
      What could be more fun than visiting nurseries with other plant enthusiasts?

      Delete
  5. Brings back memories. Mail order yes, but I want bigger plants (which cost a lot to ship)! My memory of that place was *hot*, both inside and out. So much to love, and seeing wonderful plants for the first time (like plume poppy -- cough, cough)

    I think the "um" cactus looks a lot like organ pipe cactus Stenocereus thurberi but I'm no expert.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. That area can get pretty hot in the summer! They're always at least ten degrees hotter than it is at my house! (I've got the box, the tetrapanax is dug and looking good, just need to rip some of those plume poppies out of the ground. I'm really far behind in the garden this spring.

      I knew it looked like some sort of organ!

      Delete
  6. At first glance I thought Alison was picking thorns/glochids out of her palm! Now I see she's probably looking up a plant on her phone.

    Your photos make me want to hop in the car and drive out there right now. It's been a month since I've been there!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Wow! A month? Time slips away so easily in the busy spring season!

      Delete
  7. I visited Cistus 8 years ago, before I knew of any of you PNW garden bloggers. Was very impressed at such nicely-done zonal denial...the highlight of a day-long Portland visit. Such variety to be sure.

    ReplyDelete
  8. I tend to visit on days when the weather will not allow actual gardening to take place. Note to self: visit Cistus on a fair day.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The big top can get quite toasty on hot days so fair and with mild temps is the best combo!

      Delete
  9. Cistus looks as though it belongs here, in sunny, dry SoCal. They need to open Cistus South. I know, I know: mail order. It's not the same, though.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I was hoping for a Cistus North somewhere in the Seattle/Tacoma Area! Maybe it should become a franchise...

      Delete
  10. I am with Alan! I have ordered a few must tries from Cistus and David has been so helpful and they are all thriving! But I really wish I could just go shopping and drive home with a big specimen. Bit of a road trip! from Houston : ) Thank you for bringing back happy memories!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. We're so fortunate to have so many exceptional nurseries in our region! The fling was great fun!

      Delete
  11. So much temptation in one place. Now that I'll have a greenhouse, it's even worse. That thing is going to be full the first winter.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Will your parents have any room in the greenhouse? (Silly question, I know!)

      Delete
  12. I have absolutely no idea how we lived before GPS either. Actually I do - I got lost all the time and kept tons of maps in my car. But I digress, too :) What an amazing looking nursery! I also did a double take, as in, this nursery is in Portland?! Such extraordinary desert looking plants! I can see where it would be difficult not to leave with treasures from such a place!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's so true about life before GPS. Stopping for directions, wasting all kinds of shopping time trying to find places. Crazy! It is a great place and always has lots of tempting plants!

      Delete
  13. I hope to get to Cistus sometime in the near future, if and when I get that Portland field trip figured out. I am not a collector of rare and unusual or tropical plants like you are, but they are fun to look at.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Cistus is worth a visit! They sell a lot of very hardy things as well.

      Delete
  14. Aaaah, what sweet memories! With any luck I'll be able to go back this summer--and maybe drive home with one of them Yucca rostratas, provided there's enough room in the car. Knock on wood!

    ReplyDelete

Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.