Early Spring

Flat, gray skies spread out in front of me. Right on track for spring. Also right on track are weather anomalies. We had two record-breaking warm days last week - Portland hit 81 degrees. In March! While slightly cooler out here in Columbia County, you get the idea. That burst of heat, perhaps indicative of a changing climate, was still a three-day sunshine celebration to get outside. Plants were jump-started into their "green dot phase" as I call it - brown branches are suddenly covered with little green dots and don't look quite as forlorn. Flowering currants are in charge and are ahead of the game being in both in full leaf and flower. The hummingbirds are happy. I know sunshine shall return in full force very soon, so gray skies or sun, the garden makes me happy, too.

It's time for a look around in late March and early April here at Chickadee Gardens:

Ribes sanguineum, flowering currant, now large multi-stemmed shrubs throughout the hedgerows and shady areas of my garden.

Same plant with backlighting. Lighting is incredibly important as to how a garden is seen. Photography in morning or evening light is best with a whisp of cloud cover to filter the sun. Of course, that is fleeting and not the reality, but we do what we can to capture the garden in photos.

In the shade garden, Pachyphragma macrophyllum in full bloom which will last for some time.

The mossy path and pavilion.

A new to me plant given as a gift from Sean Hogan, Rhaphiolepis x eriobotrya, already has a presence. The new leaves are blushed with bronze and are a great color contrast to the spring greens of Oxalis oregana.

More of the shade garden waking up.

Aucuba japonica 'Rozannie' in a newish shade area recently reclaimed from blackberries. This is a fantastic evergreen shrub for shade and though it's slow-growing, it is drought adapted and that makes it one of those golden plants that tolerates dry shade and tree roots.

Geranium macrrorhizum also waking up. Under trees, this is an excellent groundcover competing well with tree root competition and tolerating an awful lot of shade. Plus, its semi-evergreen nature makes it one of my favorite solution plants. The foliage smells spicy and its flowers, though insignificant in my mind, do attract bumble bees.

Still a favorite small evergreen grass, Carex conica 'Snowline' is starting to flower. I've never had a seedling from any of my 20 or so plants, in addition to that it's evergreen and long-lived, case in point I've had three since around 2013. The variegation lightens up shade gardens, too.

Oxalis oregana and ferns. Saxifraga x geum 'Dentata' spilling onto the path, all of these plants are repeated throughout the shade garden which is some 200' long.

Sanicula epipactis (syn. Hacquetia epipactis) is a petite woodland plant from the Alps. Just one tiny little clump in my garden, I have hopes it will get a little larger. Still a charming plant as it is.

Leading into the shade garden from the east end, FM dug out crummy sod and created another gravel path making this part of the garden flow so much better. Every year we discover little tweaks to the garden but it takes time. And often money, as in the case of gravel. It does keep it exciting, though - the thought of seeing bits and pieces in a new light with new energy.

On that same note, this is the east end of the mossy path where it fizzles out into weeds and mud. I've been weeding it which is key to a successful mossy path, and keeping it debris free. I decided to extend it a little to eventually meet up with the new gravel path, but having a big bare area of mud needed a kick start. I gathered moss from fallen branches and mushed them into the mud. Some will take and others won't but it will spread eventually. I also made a short paver path, also to help with the flow of this part of the garden, just seen on the lower right. Muddiest job ever. Chicken coop area is on the right where the woodpile sits.

Moving on to sunnier areas, Azara microphylla is spectacular. The chocolate brownie-scented flowers are intense and powerful, especially on a calm warmish day. If you know you know.

Arctostaphylos 'Howard McMinn', now that a nearby large grass was taken out, has room to spread and shine. Around this arcto (and many others) I observe hundreds of bumble bees feeding and then returning to the shelter of large grasses nearby. They burrow into the center and disappear. They are also drawn to nesting in the ground under leaf and debris litter. Having a place for shelter that is undisturbed has helped with bumble bee populations in my garden. I've never seen so many.

Along the retaining wall, Leptospermum ruprestre (prostrate form) kind of spills over, surrounded by Erica 'Rosalie' and Agave parryi ssp. neomexicana.

Chaenomeles 'Hollandia' gets a little larger and juicier every year. Though in a tucked away part of the garden behind the greenhouse it can be seen from a good distance and draws me near every time I see it in bloom.

Narcissus, unknown variety in the orchard.

Edgeworthia chrysantha, very near to the quince, is also getting better with age. Slow-growing but amazing and worth the wait.

Tulip praestans 'Shogun', a species tulip I had in another part of the garden (sent to us by our dear friends in The Netherlands), was so good I bought more for a new-ish area near the labyrinth. Bright colors in spring are wonderful for drawing me in and getting me excited for the season and doing a little daydreaming.

Juniperus conferta 'Blue Pacific' spilling over the edge of the retaining wall. This evergreen beauty is so useful and easy, very versatile.

Arctostaphylos 'Saint Helena' shining in the afternoon sun. Bumble bees all over the three of these we have, too. They kind of run into the hummingbirds who also love this plant.

Polygala chamaebuxus, a weird and fascinating little shrublet. Very slow-growing, I forget it's there most of the year. But as with the quince and tulips, the bright color combination of this, though not really my favorite, is lovely and cheerful and draws me near.

Two Arctostaphylos 'Saint Helena' in full bloom, Hebe (Veronica) 'Karo Golden Esk' and Anemanthele lessoniana at the edge of the gravel garden.

Rosemary hedge near the Himalayan mounds received a haircut last week. As many of you know I planted this Rosemarinus 'Huntington Carpet' to be a low, hugging draping groundcover-type rosemary to gracefully spill down a short ledge. It has been anything but low. Still I accept it now that it's well-established and seemingly happy. It just needs a haircut up top every year to keep it from blocking the path. A pain to be sure but the alternative of taking it out is not really an option right now.

More arcto love! Arctostaphylos pumila with an awakening cast of perennial characters at its feet.

Muhlenbergia rigens exploding next to an Arctostaphylos pumila and Oscar, the Agave parryi var. truncata.

The gravel garden which is fairly unchanged throughout the year save for some creeping thyme and flowers of Diplacus aurantiacus (syn. Mimulus aurantiacus) and Calluna v. 'Spring Torch'

Tulipa turkestanica, a new to me species tulip. 

Primula 'Cowichan Red', a little chewed up but a bright cheerful spot in the understory of hazelnut trees.

Stachyurus praecox, a plant I have had for five years. While it's not much to look at, it is exciting as this is the first time it has bloomed.

Closing out this post with a peek at daily life around here. FM imitating a cartoon character? Not sure but having a goofy fun time all the same. Don't get me wrong, he works hard (and naps hard, too), always building a new retaining wall, improving the chicken coop or shoveling gravel. FM, I appreciate you.

Let the sun shine in, we're ready. I can hear the leaves popping open from their green dot phase as I write this and oh, the sun just came out. Time to head outside. Also, a couple of housekeeping notes, our first plant sale of the year is Saturday May 3 from 11 - 3. It's at the same place, 334 N. Baldwin in Portland. Bunches of us will be there, hope you can come say hello! Also we have a date for an open garden for the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon in early June. Look us up if you're a member and hopefully you can make the trek out this way.

That's a wrap for this week at Chickadee Gardens. As always thank you so much for reading and commenting, we do love hearing from you!