Dig! A vendor prepares for the Northwest Flower and Garden Show

You may remember this post from last year showing Dig Floral and Garden getting ready for the Northwest Flower and Garden Show.  I decided to visit Vashon Island again this year to see what Sylvia, Ross, and the rest of the creative team had conjured up to delight show attendees this year.

Regardless of the time of year, Dig is a delight for the senses.  On a cool winter day, visiting the greenhouse seems even more inviting so let's go in and see what we can see.

Sansevieria kirkii var. pulchra ‘Coppertone’ is seriously drool worthy!  Sylvia says the secret of the color is to grow it in a sunny location.  

More masterful combinations.

Hippeastrum!

Esther pots

Turtle/tortoise planter with a groovy plant combination!

Speaking of groovy...

Hover dishes, tentacled planters, and others make a red statement! 

More combination pots.

What's the hot new offering at this year's show?  Kokedama!  Here, the production lead is giving another member a lesson which I got to listen in on.  I learned that the moss chosen for the exterior of the root ball is one or ones that share the same moisture preferences as the plant itself.  It makes sense but I wouldn't have thought of that.

The plant is removed from the pot and wrapped in what is surely a specialty fabric.  Moss is affixed using fish line. and voila...

Here are some on rolling shelves, ready to catch a ride to the big show!

Wouldn't it be grand to work in such amazing surroundings?  

Do you see anything here that you can't live without?  

The purples in this combination speak to me.  Isn't it adorable?

More succulent goodness just for fun!  

Here we are at the show!  See anyone you recognize?

By some sorcery, the Dig team is able to compress the magic of the nursery into this tiny space.  

I can see a few things that might need to come home with me today!  See you at the show!

And all  the other suppliers of our plant addiction desire to grow beautiful plants beautifully.

This just in from Vashon Island

Sylvia and Ross, the owners of Dig Nursery and Floral, have an exceptional  private garden around their home which has been featured in Horticulture Magazine and the Seattle Times.  Now, one can have the opportunity to actually stay in this "live-in garden."  There are a few extras that come along with the rental of this superb get-away  including a 25% discount at DIG! 

The following images and links are from a DIG! email:

Vacation Rental: Weekends and long stays in July, August & September

Click to download the flyer for dates and rates. Click to view availability

Hey, Dig this!

What's not to love about Vashon?  A 15 minute ferry ride from Point Defiance (very close to Jungle Fever) transports you to this island community of bucolic views, groovy art galleries, shops selling local creations from books to jewelry, farm stands operating on the honor system (great local, organically grown produce) and numerous antique places.  You may want to spend a weekend...or two.  For me, no visit to Vashon Island is complete without a visit to three nurseries, Colvos Creek & The Country Store (the two are on the same grounds), Kathy's Corner, and Dig.  Each one is well worth a visit and each deserves and will get in the future its own blog entry.

Today, we'll stop at Dig floral and Nursery.  It must have been about 14 years ago that Stephanie Feeney's book The Northwest Gardeners' Resource Directory  inspired me to make my first visit to Dig.  With delight, I have visited several times each year since. 

As you turn off Vashon Highway and enter the nursery, there is a border all along the drive to the parking area.  This shot was taken from inside the fence (the other side of the entry border.) Cardoon, echium, lobelia tupa , and hollyhocks are but a few of the treasures in this section.

As you leave your car and approach the nursery you are greeted by this.

Walking in, you may spy these.

It's hard to miss these. 

Or your eye may be caught by the huge gabion pillars that surround you.

Perhaps you'll want to say hello to Sophie, the friendly dog who rules the place

From this far - out castle.

Sylvia and Ross, who the dog allows to do the work of running the nursery, always amaze me with their boundless creative energy, horticultural acumen, appealing, unique displays, ideas to borrow, and wide selection of cool plants. ('cause it's all about the plants, right.)

Water plants anyone?

Did you say you were fond of succulents?



 Or Yuccas?

Running a nursery as wonderful as this takes big...

ingenuity.  (What were you thinking?) 

Speaking of spheres, look at this faboo Idea that Sylvia came up with.

Random shots

After all this shopping, perhaps you'd like to sit a spell.

Love this one!  Dig those crazy holey stone cube seats!

This is to die for which is probably why there's a murder of crows on it!

Like these guys, you could just sit on the ground.  Is that cute or what?

Sylvia is a master of container combinations!

But wait, did you know there is also a garden to explore?

One last bit of coolness before we...

Head inside to pay for our plants.

I love the vibe of Dig and always leave with my own creative energy renewed and with the balance of wallet to empty car space altered.  In reviewing these pictures, I feel I've only touched the tip of the iceberg of wonder that is Dig!  One word:  GO!

Here's what followed me home from Dig: back row left to right: Euphorbia stygiana, Impatiens 'Congo Cockatoo', Coronilla v. ssp. glauca 'Variegata, Acacia pravissima.  Front row: Circium occidentale, Agave bracteosa, and a 4 pack of Aeonium 'Kiwi'