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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, October 1, 2015

A Quick Stop at Portland Avenue Nursery

I'm cheating a bit here.  While I visited Portland Avenue Nursery earlier this week, missing by one day their big sale (25% off everything) three of the following pictures were taken on an earlier visit in late summer. I was in the neighborhood and was looking for more Carex testacea which they didn't have but ended up buying a couple of lovely Heuchera 'Zipper' and an ornamental cabbage. So I had to go to another nursery (hooray) to find the Carex.

Love this big brugmansia with chartreuse sweet potato vine, Fuchsia 'Autumnale,' and osteospermum.

Looks equally lovely from the other side. 

Notice the immaculately trimmed evergreen hedge on the right. Even when the sales areas are nearly empty in the winter, the  numerous evergreen elements here are interesting. 

The maples were just starting to show their fall colors.  What a show they're putting on now!

More shrubby goodness.

If you'd like to see more of this nursery, you can find several previous posts here. Can you believe that it's already October?  I'm not ready for summer to end and it's almost mid fall.  Yikes!

25 comments:

  1. I don't know where this year has gone, truly.

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    1. It's amazing how quickly the growing season flew by this year!

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  2. Brugs do look better with something to hide their ankles, don't they?

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  3. The brugmansia is impressive (from either side). Could it be planted in the ground? Or is this clever display hiding a pot?
    So happy to be done with summer heat I can hardly contain myself!

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    1. It's in a half whiskey barrel planter which the vines are hiding nicely. While I don't miss the hottest days of summer, I'm not ready for fall yet.

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  4. Impressive brugmansia! So many blooms! The year has gone by so quickly. I have so many plants waiting to go in the ground that I haven't really made it to any sales.

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    1. I can't get one more plant until the ones I have are planted! (Of course, I always say that and somehow never stick to it.)

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  5. I love that nursery... they always have the plant I'm looking for. I'm so happy for cooler fall weather. All of my dahlias went dormant in the heat and every thing was sunburned. Things are looking alive again.

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    1. This was a harsh summer for plants! We're lucky to live in a region rife with fabulous nurseries!

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  6. Even though it's already October, I am still loving the nice fall weather we're having. But a touch more rain would be nice. I may live to regret those words, of course! I planted up my new bed, but I still have lots more in my pot ghetto waiting to get in the ground. I didn't realize you were looking for yet more Carex testacea. They do a bit of self-sowing, so if you just wait a year, you'll have more. There were loads at Valley.

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    1. I didn't know that I wanted more until I started playing with pots and used the one I got. It looks great with blue agaves! Yes, rain would be nice! I don't like the thought of a drought.

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  7. Why do I have the impression that you are constantly visiting nurseries and other gardens, seeing your own garden only during the dark of the night? :) I love visiting nurseries in the early fall!

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    1. It would be the other way around but most nurseries don't stay open after dark...

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  8. October crept up on me too but it seems to be acting more like
    september, so that's OK.

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  9. I guess you have to water Brugmansia regularly to get them to look like that, huh? :(

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  10. We're beginning the fall editing and clean up here. It will be a long process. We removed our 35 year old raspberry patch that had become infested with Asian fruitfly, and the plants had become seriously weakened. Tom planed cover crop on the area today. we'll wait two years before trying raspberries again.
    We removed several overgrown shrubs and have replanted to smaller. more prunable plants in the front of the hose. We're taking down the vegetable garden, but I harvested beets and carrots for dinner tonight. they will stay in the ground for a while yet.
    October is here, and that means lots more work in the garden again.

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    1. Yikes! Seems like we just got the spring chores done. You've sure been busy in the garden lately!

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  11. Love that brug, and what an awesome looking nursery yard! The colors are amazing and it's almost like they laid it out with the aerial view in mind.

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    1. It's interesting how every nursery/plant store does things a bit differently from others but they're all beautiful.

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  12. Oh, I'm glad you cheated so we could see those extra views. No, I can't believe it's October. I'm in serious denial. It was an amazing summer here. I miss the hummingbirds and the butterflies. :(

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    1. The butterflies are gone but we're lucky enough to have hummingbirds year round here.

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  13. That Brugmansia is amazing, good enough to make me want to try again! You visit so many nurseries, I don't know how you have time to see to your own garden!

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