A Special Garden in Hood River

Sheila Ford Richmond is the kind of person that brings charm wherever she goes. I count myself lucky to not only know her, but to count her as a friend. She is a loyal reader of Chickadee Gardens and we have chatted in passing over the past few years about native plants, birds and art.  She has given me an open invitation to visit her garden out in the Columbia River Gorge, and so I finally had the opportunity to visit. A couple of weeks ago our mutual friend and artist Sharon Bronzan and I took a lovely drive out to Hood River in Oregon's scenic Columbia River Gorge to visit Sheila and her not-so-ordinary home and garden. Wow, was I in for a surprise. Allow me to take you along for a ride.

What I had pictured was a heavily shaded woodland garden. What we drove up to was a Mediterranean-style gem of a native garden with pollinators everywhere. Her house is special, too. It is energy efficient with solar panels, triple-pane windows, Lifebreath heat recovery for fresh air exchange and humidity mitigation, low-flow plumbing, Feng Shui principles throughout (you can tell when you're there), artists worked on custom murals and plaster work and..and..and..cork floors, hardwood floors, no wasted space. Native plantings, a bioswale which Shelia helped develop, and a veggie garden for fresh produce are all part of her paradise on the west end of Hood River. Oh, and did I mention she is an artist, too? Her own tile work and other art can be seen throughout her home. There is a wonderful article in The Oregonian about her home and garden. You can read about it here.

At the front door, a great pond with a fountain feature welcomes you. I believe I heard her mention frogs. I would not be surprised and, frankly, if I were a frog, this is where I would want to live.

A sculpture of Quan yin greets you at the front door.

Epipactis gigantea or chatterbox orchids out in front, in full bloom. Just lovely. This is a native orchid preferring wet locales. We caught them at their peak.

At the front walkway, a carpet of thyme and lavender greets you. Sheila's home is made of stucco and painted in bright shades of yellow, two shades of purple and a more neural taupe color to calm down the bright tones.

Fragrant dill scents the air near the front door.

From the street level, looking down into the veggie garden where Sheila and Sharon explore what was ripe on this sunny summer day. I believe they were picking sweet peas.

Some very jeweled-toned nasturtiums.

More of the veggie beds, with a view of the outer garden on the upper embankment on the right. This is where Sheila has a lot of her native plantings and has sourced many of them from one of my favorite nurseries, Humble Roots, not far from her home.

Sheila tells me that the sunflowers in her garden were all planted by birds. They did a lovely landscaping job, I'd say. Planted by birds and later enjoyed by birds. It's a lovely world.

Wide shot of the home from the street with yarrow or Achillea millefolium on the right.

Achillea millefolium detail. Although it does not show up in this photo, the pollinators went crazy for this plant. I mean there were all kinds of bees and tiny bee-like insects just buzzing all over, this is a winner if you want to provide sustenance for pollinators.

This is a Eriogonum compositum or heart-leafed buckwheat.

Myrica californica or California wax myrtle.

Eriogonum niveum, or snow buckwheat, another tough, sun-loving native.

Amelanchier alnifolia or serviceberry. A very valuable food source for wildlife. These were highly esteemed by Native Americans as the berries would improve the flavor of other berries when mixed together. A great deciduous tree/shrub for full sun with little maintenance once established. Yes, it's native to these parts, too.

Isn't this a fabulous leaf? It's a native too, Penstemon barrettiae or Barrett's penstemon. I had one for several years but it eventually pooped out on me. Purple flowers. I LOVE this plant and will get another. Needs great drainage and sun. Stunning plant.

Spiraea betulifolia or birch leaf spiraea, one I have highlighted from my own garden. They can handle much more sun than I give them.

A broader look at the outside garden with some sun-loving natives that help to support wildlife and build healthy soil. Down below is the bioswale Sheila helped to create. Just on the other side of this part of the garden is her veggie garden.

Earlier I mentioned that Sheila's home is solar powered. See the panels here? Hers was the first home in Oregon to have angled panels; that is to say that they fit the contours of the roof line so they aren't obvious. How clever and visually satisfying is that? I love it. I didn't even notice them, to tell you the truth. She had to point them out to me.

Here is a shot of them from inside the home.

Here's another shot with the extended garden facing south with a view of the neighborhood beyond.

The outer garden with a field of Gaillardia aristata or blanket flower, another pollinator favorite.

From the veggie garden, there is a trail around towards the west side of the house (garden shed on the left), towards the back of the garden and home.

A tucked away shady picnic spot. How lovely...nice Doric columns, too.

Here's the north of the home and garden with multiple bird feeders and shady areas.

Birdfeeders and shade...something she can see from outside her window. Blue elderberry or Sambucus nigra in the background with the white flowers.

Ginger or Asarum caudatum, a lovely native groundcover for shade. Pinkish flowers are Bletilla striata.

Maidenhair fern or Adiantum pedatum.

View looking north across the river to Washington from inside the house. Wow.
So, speaking of inside the house:

Light, airy and open. It feels good to be in Sheila's home, filled with bright colors, carefully chosen fabrics, floors, textures and a lifetime of artwork. Books, lighting, paint colors - it all blends seamlessly in a functional dream of a sunlit home that makes you want to linger.

Her garden and utility room. How sweet would this be to work in? Notice the floors, made of cork, good on the feet and the environment.

View of the main room with the kitchen, the living room and dining area.

A work of art by our mutual friend, Sharon Bronzan, with whom I traveled to Hood River to visit Sheila. This is a new work of Sharon's from an exhibition titled Luck at a recent Augen Gallery exhibition earlier this summer. Sharon is an amazing artist, one of my very favorites EVER. You can see more of her work on Augen's website here.

Her sweet kitchen and custom table and chairs, hand-made and quite comfortable - made for sitting..in other words, "butt friendly" no, it's "bun friendly"...I have it right now... is how she put it, if I remember correctly.

Details.

More details. This is actually a Little and Lewis (of Bainbridge Island, WA) sculpture filled with tadpoles and duckweed.

Thank you, Sheila for a wonderful day out. It was an honor to spend time together and to visit your incredible, thoughtful, beautiful and artful home. Your garden is a bountiful paradise full of native plantings, and you quite surprised me with the sun-loving plants! Yours is a garden for the birds and insects, for people to enjoy visually and through taste and smell. Your home is a joy to be in, I wished all homes were as welcoming and warm and energy efficient.

Thank you for making a difference and for leading the way. You have had a profound effect on how I think about building and creating and how I want to live my own life.

That's it this week from Chickadee Gardens, until next time, thank you for reading and happy gardening!