Savage Plants

On the way home from Dragonfly Farms, there was just enough time to visit Savage Plants and Valley Nursery. Unfortunately, there wasn't enough time to visit Far Reaches Farms, a favorite of mine.  There are only so many hours in a day darn it!  After a wonderful day wandering around the Bloedel Sale and Dragonfly, I was a little weary but If there's an open nursery by the side of a road on which I'm traveling, I simply can't pass  by without a visit.   Fortunately the salmon were running or rather flying.

There's always a lot of great garden art here.  I love the columns in the background and the metal sculpture is gorgeous!   For more garden art from Savage, visit my previous post here.

In the woods, the mushrooms are looking quite shiny.  Do you suppose these are edible?

O.K.  I'm pretty much done with this whole vertical gardening thing but this one is kind of cool.

In the words of  Scott Weber, "For the record, I'm kind of sick of succulents used as decorations. Using succulents has become the gardening equivalent of bedazzling."  When you can't say it any better, why try?  Although succulents are still plants that I love.  A lot.

Although this doesn't appear to be particularly comfortable or very easy to keep clean outside, it looks fabulous and since I so seldom actually sit outside, it would be perfect!  Of course, it would probably help if I had flat and level pavement anywhere in my garden but that's another story.

Perfect use for a fire pit!

 

 

These rusty leaf things are wonderful!

 

These light weight pots look very much like their heavier frost proff clay cousins.  Love the color!

 

Sweet trillium blooming their little heads off. 

There were lots of great plants at Savage but since I'd just been plant shopping all day, there was nothing that I needed.   However, one of these primroses hitched a ride home with me.

And one of these.  This must be the year of the primrose for me as I now have quite a collection of them waiting to be planted.

 

There was also a beautiful Agave 'Jaws' to replace the one below that decided to die this winter.  I'll be more careful with the new one because it's a really great looking plant as can be seen here.

 

Hope you have a great weekend full of gardening!  Lots to do this weekend!  Hardy Plant Society of Oregon's spring plant sale, Hortlandia is happening in Portland, the Old Goat Farm in Orting is holding it's first garden open and plant sale of the year and the Chase Garden, just up the street from the OGF opens for the season.

 

Bon sauvage - The Noble Savage - To calm the savage breast

Or you can come up with your own catchy title for this field trip to Savage Plants in Kingston, WA. 


I always check out this great pond first because it's close to the parking lot and the shade section.  I do love plants that grow in full blazing sun but my garden doesn't have much of that anymore.

 

Also, these columns are close to the pond and I must look at them and drool!  If only they were hollow and could be filled with concrete once put in place.  Unfortunately, they are solid and would make the back of my car drag on the road all the way home.

 

Dig this  plant combo.  Tres cool!

Colletia hystrix was new to me. One of it's common names is crucifixion thorn.  Good to have on hand for those impromptu crucifixions that might pop up in the neighborhood.  This puppy is sharp and only hardy to 23 degrees F. 

This Drimys winteri var. chiloense 'Pewter Pillar' is showing up at nurseries  in the area.  It's a Dan Hinkley/Monrovia introduction. 

 Specialty nurseries like Jungle Fever, Plant Delights, Yucca Do and Cistus have always carried agaves but I don't remember seeing so many of them at large/full service sorts of places.  Is it just my bad memory?  Was I not looking for them before?  I know that there's been recent marketing by some growers of a few varieties.  Are agaves going to be the new 'it' plant?  Is it all part of the new xeric garden movement?  Is Loree Bohl controlling the world?  Inquiring minds want to know.

 

 

Savage has a lot of cool yard art.  Love this sphere.

 

 

Different take on the bottle tree concept.

 The following arbors and gate are gorgeous. If they came home with me, there would be so many plants growing on them that the beauty of the structure would probably get lost in all the foliage.

 Great screens.  I do love the rusty metal!

 

Sea horse made of horse shoes. Clever!

Impatiens  omeiana looking absolutely stunning.  Ceramic flowers are interesting, too.

 

Stone face

 

Every garden needs a kitty & this one won't use your flower beds as a litter box!

This is called "painted tiara."  Might be a little difficult to wear to the opera but it's pretty nifty!

 

A little something for the xeric garden.  I think Loree and Stephen might need these! 

 The idea of a fire pit is very attractive to me.  I've had chimineas and fire pits but so seldom used them that the chimineas are now used to elevate pots and the fire pit has become a sedum bowl.   These fire pits/ bowls are gorgeous.  What could we plant in them?

 

Great foliage is everywhere in this place!

 I greatly admire these cool water-catching rocks.  If I had more discipline in the plant department, my small funky urban garden could maybe support something like this. 

There are always some great things to discover inside the store.  Saturday is the autumnal equinox, the official beginning of fall, and Savage is ready!