2024: The Year in Review

Grateful for the year that was, hopeful for the year ahead. The year that was had its challenges, sadness and delights just as they always do. Looking back on what grounds me the most, the garden, is an excellent exercise for me to ponder what went wrong and what went well in any given month. Here then is 2024 at Chickadee Gardens in a snapshot. It's long post so buckle up.

One of my favorite images from the year was taken in the labyrinth garden looking south with late summer sun warming the color palette.

JANUARY

On the whole, January stank. We had a record-breaking ice and snow storm with extreme low temperatures mid-month. The storm came during my birthday, too, to add insult to injury with a steady four-day temperature of about 15 degrees, probably a little colder here. At least we didn't have the east winds like Portland. 

Penstemon cardwellii, pictured here, handled it like a champion. Its reddish winter tones are another layer of its beauty.

Evergreens, no matter how wispy, are always a relief on the eyes in the middle of winter. Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Imbric Weeping'

Cue the damage. Melianthus major took a hard hit. It eventually rebounded but not to its original glory.

FEBRUARY

More reasons to plant manzanitas or Arctostaphylos sp. - winter blooms for the bumble bees, evergreen and gorgeous. Arctostaphylos 'Howard McMinn' pictured. For February it's a cheerful scene. Pretty much all the manzanitas were undamaged by January's nastiness.

Eucalyptus pauciflora ssp. niphophila, snow gum looking rather brown. It is usually a totally hardy eucalyptus in my region but the cold took its toll. Still, it rebounded and completely refoliated with fresh new leaves by late spring and looks fine today at year's end.

Muhlenbergia rigens, deer grass, is normally an evergreen grass with silvery inflorescences in winter. The cold took a toll but these rebounded nicely after a severe haircut in early spring. So plants that have been evergreen up until recently might now have a dormant period, the same can be said for summer dormancy in plants that cannot handle increased heat and drought.

No huge surprise here, Phormium tenax 'Atropurpurea' was fried as well. It received a complete cut back this year rather than fussing with a leaf here and there and while it took a while it bounced back. Many people have expressed they don't wish to look at a bunch of stubble for weeks on end while waiting for it to regrow and have thus removed this plant all together. I totally understand.

Baccharis pilularis, coyote brush, has done this the past three winters. It is also one of the quickest plants to recover. It can handle a very hard prune and besides doing this is a very durable shrub that is again, normally evergreen.

But then there's this - a super-tough shrub, Spiraea 'Ogon' which really only goes a couple of weeks without any visible life. It is so early to form leaves and as you can see, small white flowers. Plants like this keep me sane in winter.

This is why I love evergreen plants. It would be a rather dismal scene if these Teucrium chamaedrys weren't here fronting the herbaceous meadow behind. They eventually got a light trim of the old flower stems but other than that, they are little to no maintenance.

February was difficult in the garden for there was a lot of winter damage clean up and a lot of brown and gray. It's a difficult month for me in a good year but this past winter was especially gloomy.

MARCH

Early flowering Ribes sanguineum 'White Icicle' is another native shrub that the bumble bees are quick to find. I just counted the number of ribes I have in the garden - 10 forms and for the most part they are all very easy, very forgiving shrubs.

A favorite scene that gets me excited to be outside - Chamaecyparis lawsoniana 'Wissel's Saguaro' with a flowering cherry as a backdrop. This plant took a long time to stand out but it is well worth the wait. Perennials and grasses are barely beginning to wake up at this point.

Polypodium glycyrrhiza, licorice fern that is at its best in winter. While it is completely summer dormant, it is a treasure to have in the shade garden this time of the year when it looks its green, vibrant best.

The very edge of the meadow that was cut back by the end of March. While the deciduous trees have not grown leaves yet, the bright colors of Hebe 'Karo Golden Esk' (Veronica 'Karo Golden Esk') and Erica 'Kramer's Rote' add a little life to this area.

Tellima grandiflora, fringecups, are growing new fresh leaves and will soon show flower spikes with pale yellow-green flowers. A favorite of pollinators, too. I was lucky in that there were a few on the property already, I simply encouraged them and they are now a nice colony.

Winning the award for the juiciest color in March is Chaenomeles 'Hollandia' - flowering quince. A rather slow grower but a lovely shrub.

Ceanothus 'Italian Skies' took another bad hit, having been unhappy with several brutal winters. Eventually it was removed all together though I had hope as there was new growth for several months. Alas, it did not survive in the end.

March is a tease. It's usually a lot colder than I think it should be. In my 8 year old brain March = spring, but really, it's mostly winter. Still, by this point we are on our way to fresh green leaves and spring flowers.

APRIL

April is frilly flower month. This is a new addition given to me by Sean Hogan, Fritillaria affinis, chocolate or checker lily, a native lily that is dormant in summer months. I have seen these growing in my local park in Saint Helens as an understory for an oak habitat, and they are charming.

Trillium albidum, giant trillium is also new this year, also from Cistus Nursery, a gift from a friend.

Ribes aureum, golden currant, is another fantastic ribes with clove scented flowers. These appreciate more summer water than R. sanguineum and will drop leaves if unhappy with high temps and low water in summer.

A project FM took on was rebuilding walls in the veggie garden. He took out the metal wall, shored it up and put it back with a new reinforced wall behind the metal. He also built a new south-facing wooden retaining wall to replace rotting logs he had used when we first began the garden. These should last for years and help with erosion.

From the top of the berm garden looking east, Ceanothus 'Blue Jeans', one of the earliest ceanothus to bloom, kicks off the season of flowers. Juniperus communis 'Compressa' adds vertical points of interest.

My blue garden shed is on the left, while looking southwest through the garden many trees are now clad in soft greens of spring.

Looking past an Arctostaphylos 'Austin Griffiths' toward the edge of the labyrinth garden with a new bed just visible on the left.

Vaccinium ovatum Scarlet Ovation™ is a compact form of our native evergreen huckleberry. Its new growth is redder, too. A nice little plant that has basically been the same size for six years.

The eastern end of the berm garden pops to life this time of the year.

A tapestry of green textures in the shade garden including Saxifraga x geum 'Dentata', Polystichum munitum, Maianthemum stellatum and a Brunnera 'Candy Sea Heart' seedling.

What's remarkable in this photo is what's not here - between those four Douglas fir trees on the left there used to be a wood pile. FM removed it and put gravel down in preparation for this:

MAY

The new pavilion! It was by far my favorite addition to the garden for 2024. FM used redwood for planks and built the roof from corrugated plastic. Note the disco ball in the center. Very important element for a successful seating area.

The light in May is my favorite. It is often diffused but bright and with the addition of fresh green leaves it makes the air feel fresh, cool and green. In the background you can just see a Cornus nuttallii, our native dogwood, blooming. I fear this was its last year for it defoliated rather quickly in May and never really recovered. Too bad, it's a spectacular tree when healthy.

Limnanthes douglasii, Douglas' meadowfoam is a delightful annual native wildflower that has rather taken over several areas of the garden much to my delight. I keep expanding its reach by sprinkling seeds about. Here it spills down into a gravel path.

Penstemon davidsonii is an evergreen mat-forming little penstemon that appreciates a rock garden type of environment. Give it excellent drainage and sun and it will spread to form a lovely patch in time.

Polypodium scouleri is a sweet and small evergreen fern that is a rather slow spreader. 

In an ongoing effort to clarify edges in the garden I used the last of some old recycled bricks to define some of the shade garden paths. While it will take some time to look its best I'm excited to have some of these projects crossed off the ol' list. Hopefully the mossy path will continue to grow downhill and carpet the blank areas north of the bricks.

JUNE

As far as lushness and color in the garden, June is the month around here. This is the labyrinth garden with flowering Phlomis russelliana, Ceanothus 'Marie Simon', Heuchera 'Firefly', Eschscholzia californica, Digitalis lutea and more. I appreciate the many layers and how it's all filling in.

And here with Baptisia australis, Lupinus albifrons, Phlomis russelliana again and Eschscholzia californica in both orange and creamy white colors. There's a Diplacus 'Jeff's Tangerine' in the mix, too.

The southern edge of the labyrinth garden was expanded several feet and planted with Agave parryi var. truncata, Diascia 'Coral Canyon', Artemisia versicolor and other sun and heat lovers.

In the shade garden, Aruncus dioicus, goatsbeard, is the tallest most impressive perennial. Completely deciduous, it amazes me how big these get every year at over 6' easily.

We received several, and I mean at least four, giant Chip Drop loads of woodchips this spring and summer. Here the new crow garden received a mighty layer while Teucrium chamaedrys and Eriophyllum lanatum, Oregon sunshine, fill in.

The bulk of the wood chips went to the veggie garden where we switched to completely no-till this year. The results were great, though a little tweaking will be needed. There were about 90% fewer weeds, that alone was worth the many (hundreds?) wheelbarrow loads of chips. On the far left FM's other veggie garden wall/fence can be seen. This really tidies up the look of it all and keeps the soil in situ.

Near our home, silvers of Dorycnium hirsutum, grasses, Callisemon viridflorus and Eryngium giganteum feel cooling on a warm summer day even though our house faces south and that's metal siding, so it can get quite hot.

A tale of survival - Eriogonum compositum, planted in probably 2016. Purchased from the fabulous Humble Roots Nursery in Mosier, Oregon (at a local plant sale), it performed ok until a nearby Ceanothus 'Italian Skies' took over and shaded it out. I didn't see any trace of it for years until the ceanothus died and was removed. A year or so later it popped up, resurrected from the roots and now it's in full sun with good air circulation.

Northern edge of the labyrinth garden with Cotinus 'Pink Champagne' on the left and center is Baptisia 'Wayne's World', a white form of false indigo with dark purplish stems.

Flowers of Leptospermum namadgiensis.

More color on the edge of the labyrinth garden.

The new pavilion got an upgrade via my dear friend LaManda who generously loaned us these fantastic chairs from Crescent Garden, outdoor chairs with Sunbrella fabric and a plastic base that really looks great. We love them and enjoy hanging out here, I found myself taking many breaks this summer while sitting in the shade. Taking breaks is a goal, I think I did well this year.

This is the month for Stipa barbata and its silvery plumes to steal the show.

We have a lot of Pacific tree frogs around here and this year someone found the small fountain on our deck. I had just cleaned it out so it was sparkly and fresh when I noticed what turned out to be frog eggs on the bottom. OK, off went the pump and in went green grass, roots and a couple rocks to help these little ones along. Eventually they were all gone, I hope they grew and left the nest but you never know what happens at night with raccoons and other critters lurking about. At any rate it was fun to have them though my fountain was a muddy mess for six months while waiting for them to grow up and leave. Kids.

JULY

I finally had success with growing cauliflower after two or three years of great looking plants, no flowers. Turns out I was probably growing the wrong variety. This is Goodman, I believe.

The meadow garden gets a little better every year and changes, too, as seedlings shift about. We had a lot of Digitalis ferruginea that stand very tall and create height. In autumn when the flower spikes turn chocolate brown they add a lot of winter interest.

The edge of the meadow garden where spent flower spikes of Sidalcea campestris and Stipa gigantea make it fluffy this time of the year.

Grevillea 'Neil Bell' had an epic year, loaded to the brim with flowers. Many hummingbird battles over this beauty.

The other edge of the meadow garden where asters, creeping thyme and volunteer Nassella tenuissima front several Hebe 'Karo Golden Esk' (Veronica 'Karo Golden Esk').

Mirabilis multiflora, a completely deciduous perennial (this is one plant, stemming from one spot) that is totally drought adapted. A really pretty thing, and a winner for its low water (no water?) requirements.

Lupinus albifrons didn't skip a beat through winter and all of them have grown substantially and still look great even in late December.

Detail of plants in the meadow garden. July is really peak season for this part of the garden, however there is interest right through autumn and well into winter.

Romneya coulteri looking pretty good after a rough winter.

Veggies continue to grow, be harvested and eaten. Full harvest season is around the corner, but this time of the year we enjoy broccoli, cauliflower, lettuce, beets, berries, green beans and more.

July was an extremely busy month for me. I attended the Puget Sound Garden Fling for four days with 100 other garden writers/content creators. The following weekend my dear friend Maurice (of Joy Creek Nursery fame) and I drove back up to Seattle for the Great Plant Picks field days where we explored several incredible gardens and exchanged ideas as a group. I did not post photos of either of those weekends on this post, but each garden is getting an individual post. I'm about half way through them so more to come during the cold gray months ahead.

AUGUST

A great golden digger wasp on Bupleurum fruticosum, an evergreen shrub for shade to sun. It's such an easy and rewarding shrub that all manner of pollinators go for. I highly recommend this plant.

The same new expanded area of the labyrinth garden shown in June, here with a bounty of flowers from Diascia 'Coral Canyon' and the annual marigold Tagetes 'Cinnabar'. The border has filled in rather quickly and with plants that really need no supplemental water. The Diascia 'Coral Canyon' has been especially easy and floriferous, others in the garden survived winter with no issues.

A simple, satisfying scene out our front door in quite a bit of shade.

An area of the garden behind the greenhouse that has slowly been planted over the years. It had been overgrown with blackberry and weeds but is being reclaimed. Here, FM's quaking aspen grove, Populus tremuloides, is filling in nicely. Understory is mostly Gaultheria shallon, Polystichum munitum and corylus (hazlenut, we don't know which, could be our native but I'm not sure) but is interplanted with many shade and part shade-loving plants.

August was also very busy as we were keeping the garden going for a September garden tour, a mighty task in one of the driest months of the year.

SEPTEMBER

One of my favorite views with Arctostaphylos pumila right smack in the center. This part of the garden is filling in and becoming more private and mysterious as you can't see everything all at once any more. One of the many advantages of a garden getting older.

Artemisia frigida on the right, Allium senescens ssp. montanum var. glaucum (oy, what a mouthfull), a late blooming allium on the left with Muhlengergia rigens, deer grass, on the left behind it.

This is the time of year that the Solidago 'Fireworks' starts to bloom. An excellent plant for pollinators and color late in the year.

The fire pit area where we often sit for a break but rarely (it's been a couple of years) use the fire pit.

A favorite hardy fuchsia, Fuchsia 'Dying Embers' which, I might add, still looks great even in late December.

Looking south through the labyrinth garden and blooming Hylotelephium spectabile 'Stardust' (syn. Sedum spectabile 'Stardust').

The little gravel path that divides the meadow garden on the right with the gravel garden on the left.

Leptospermum humifusum (prostrate form) spilling down on Buddha's head in what is the center of the berm garden.

Mid-September we had a great tour group from Madison Wisconsin visit (through the Olbrich Botanical Gardens). We enjoyed meeting so many lovely people, even though it rained, the first water to fall from the sky in what had been several months. We really did have fun, though! Also, FM took a vacation in England and Scotland, hiking the Hadrian's Wall Path while I took care of the farm, garden and kitties.

OCTOBER

A new favorite, Monardella 'Russian River' brightening up a corner of the garden in October. This is a tough and beautiful plant, just planted this spring so we'll see how it does over winter.

Looking south through the gravel garden to a few vibrant Cupressus 'Donard Gold' (or 'Golden Pillar') on the edge of our property. The Amsonia hubrichtii are turning golden orange in the meadow foreground bottom right.

Chrysanthemum 'Hillside Sheffield Pink' is so very welcome this time of the year when few other plants are in flower.

In the western woodland area a stand of Polystichum munitum, sword ferns (which were here, we just encouraged them) in a grove of hazelnuts feels very Oregon to me.

Amsonia hubrichtii at the end of its long, golden-orange phase. This completely deciduous perennial is so soft to the touch, so easy once established and so rewarding in autumn.

Baccharis pilularis, having rebounded completely by about March or April, starting to flower.

The significance of this image is what's missing, the Ceanothus 'Italian Skies' that had been here for several years. It suffered from being flattened by heavy snow and ice several consecutive years which I'm sure contributed to its demise. It was in the now-open spot in front of the deck. The area receives so much more sun which is a silver lining, as this was intended as a sunny gravel garden to begin with. I have a small Osmanthus 'San Jose' in its place to simply add a bit of evergreen foliage to help conceal the under part of the deck. Note the Clematis cirrhosa 'Wisley Cream' on the right corner of the deck. Normally an evergreen, winter blooming clematis, it suffered from winter weather and completely defoliated. It has struggled this year but is slowly resprouting leaves and will look lush one of these days.

There was a lot of fantastic autumn color this year, including Hydrangea quercifolia 'Ruby Slippers'.

This little area along our driveway (driveway is on the other side of the spiraeas, not visible here) was all deciduous woody shrubs and a little dull in winter. We added five Cupressus sempervirens 'Swane's Golden' for some winter interest and to flesh out this area to make it feel less like a line of shrubs and more like a garden bed. I may add to it eventually but for now I really appreciate the simple addition of evergreen trees.

October was once again very busy. We had Donna from Over the Fence Landscape Tours visit to make a video for her YouTube channel and we had a great time! You can revisit those two videos here and here. While I don't really like being on camera, it was fun to see the garden from Donna's perspective and to also see it from a drone's point of view. Also, FM took a short trip to Idaho to see family mid-month. It's always challenging when one of us is away as we have our respective chores around here and the other has to take on double duty when this happens. FM did it for me several times in July, I for him September and October.

NOVEMBER

Second year for Acer griseum in the garden, paperback maple. This small tree is outstanding for its small size, amazing autumn color, small leaves and exfoliating bark. Pictured in front of another fabulous plant, Rhamnus alaternus 'Variegata', evergreen with red berries, sun to part shade, adapted to dry but ok with water, just pretty all around and the chickadees love hanging out in it.

I was given a Luma apiculata which found a home in the gravel garden, replacing a hebe (unknown species, moved to another location) that looked a little ratty. If it makes it through winter I think it will be a delightful addition. We were also given five Itea virginica and an Acer laurinum, all of which are planted in the western woodland where we removed a very aggressive Lonicera nitida that covered at least 15 square feet. That was a messy, muddy task but time well spent.

A bit of soft yellow color on Salix eleagnos subsp. angustifolia, rosemary willow. Honestly, this holds onto its leaves and autumn color until Christmas.

Proving that natives can have some good autumn color, too, Physocarpus capitatus, Pacific ninebark contributing to the show.

November was challenging as I had an emergency appendectomy followed by hosting Thanksgiving the following week. It was a lot to detour me away from regularly scheduled life but grateful for good doctors and great family and excellent Facilities Manager/Husband.

DECEMBER

A new garden addition via Cistus Nursery, Ribes malvaceum 'Dancing Tassels', a winter blooming ribes! I mean how wonderful is this? A California Botanic Garden (formerly the Rancho Santa Ana Botanic Garden) introduction.

Amsonias after the show on a foggy day where evergreens really stand out.

A definite highlight of the year was receiving this amazing sculpture as a gift from artist JD Perkin with whom I worked at the Russo Lee Gallery. I currently work with his fabulous wife Anne at Cistus Nursery, we are definitely kindred spirits with a mutual love of squash. This is a yoga pose, facing east. It blends well in the shade garden and definitely has a presence. Its cool blue colors feel appropriate here.

The hardest of them all, loosing a furry family member. Here, the graves of Lucy and Hobbes who were littermate siblings are adorned with flowers after Hobbes' passing at 19-1/2 years old. While we lost Lucy in 2018, Hobbes had several more years in him. He was a strong, big kitty who I think held on so long for me, I wasn't ready to say goodbye. Are we ever?

Our boy Hobbes on what was one of his last outings in the garden.

He wore 19-1/2 well, full of personality and strength to the very end.

With his baby sister Annie who, at ten years younger than him, kept him on his toes but also stayed close by her big brother.

One of my favorite photos of him because of the joy he expressed rolling around on warm stones. Paws in the air, melting into a potential nap without a care in the world. This is how I would like to leave 2024 and keep this memory close in my heart. In the end, I am grateful for such a long pet-parenthood with Hobbes and wouldn't change a thing. As I've said before, we love them fiercely and mourn them fiercely when gone.

The year was another year, busy in the garden, busy with travel, busy with visitors to the garden, busy with plant sales, busy with the vegetable harvest, busy with garden maintenance and projects. That is to say it was lovely for so many reasons. I hope this new year brings growth, learning, grounding, purging of stuff and a renewed appreciation for nature. I think that's all do-able. Sharing our garden and adventures with you all is also an ongoing endeavor even as it changes from year to year.

That's a wrap for this week and this year at Chickadee Gardens. As always, thank you so much for reading and commenting, we do love hearing from you! Happy New Year, may blessings be abundant and may your gardens grow beautifully.