Lake Oswego open gardens last June

The last weekend in June I visited a pair of Hardy Plant Society of Oregon open gardens in Lake Oswego, an upscale suburb about seven miles south of Portland. It was a rainy cold weekend—which might explain why the third garden that was supposed to be open in the area cancelled—and I only ran into a couple other people touring these two gardens.

The first garden as billed as "Rita’s Private Garden" and the description said "Tropical-Mediterranean best describes the vibe of Rita’s numerous garden rooms". I asked Rita how many palms she had, if I remember right the number was 13, including this one supporting a very happy Clematis.

Looking back across the cul-de-sac at the other homes.

And the same, only across Rita's front lawn.

Into the back garden now, with its blooming black bamboo.

And explanatory signage; "Our black bamboo is flowering. It's NOT pretty but it's a once in a century occurrence."

 

This small shed roof is what I was most captivated by during my visit, Sempervivum!

Sempervivum, aka houseleek. I remember reading years ago that Sempervivum species historically grew directly on thatched or tiled roofs in Europe.

Of course this roof isn't thatched or tiled (it looks to be some sort of rubber coated material) but it is gathering moss and debris witch gives the Sempervivum a nice place to take hold.

From Wikipedia; "The common name "houseleek" comes from the Anglo-Saxon word leac, meaning "plant", since these are literally plants that grow on houses. Some Europeans believed it would ward off fire and lightning strikes. A Welsh tradition holds that having it grow on the roof of the house brings health and prosperity to those who live there."

On the back side of the roof was another spectacular Clematis. Because why not, I mean if you can grow them then why not grow them everywhere?

I really do want a Sempervivum covered roof...

I finally tore myself away from that marvel and walked over to the patio and it's many containers.

Including this amazing mossy business...

And another Clematis, with more Sempervivum!

The property backed up onto a greenspace, what a nice borrowed view.

One more palm (Trachycarpus fortunei) and Clematis combo before I leave this garden.

The next garden was a bit of a head-scratcher in that there was nobody there to great visitors or answer questions about the garden. I came, I walked, I left... and never saw the gardener. I figured those big windows were looking at a view...

 

So I was sure to climb up the back side of the garden in an attempt to see what they saw...

Back down to the beginning now. A nice big Loropetalum.

And a NoID Magnolia. I planned to ask the gardener which one it was, but since I never saw them...

Yes, you guessed it. Another Clematis, this one growing on an arch over the garden gate.

This garden was sort of carved into a steep hillside. Everything was up, up, up.

The curvy vegetable beds were at the very top of the garden.

And this was in the corner behind them. I don't know what to think.

One last photo before I returned to my car and headed home.

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.

The Post Industrial Landscape of Silo City

Our lunch destination on Saturday of the Buffalo Fling was Silo City; "a unique post-industrial landscape that holds the world’s largest collection of historical grain elevators." Or as Visit Buffalo writes, it's just "your average, everyday historic grain elevator complex that doubles as a music venue, theater backdrop, poetry site, and industrial film location." There are also apartments in the complex.

That's the restaurant where our lunch was served...Duende.

Unfortunately the post-lunch restroom line was so long that by the time I was out, the group had already left to tour the greenspaces and nursery, and to learn about the onsite ecosystem restoration. I started out in the direction they'd gone...

(hmm, this looked like a scene from The Walking Dead)

By the time I got about here I lost my desire to try and catch up. Part of it was the fact I was already behind and who knew where they were headed, if I could find them, and what I'd already missed. And part was the warning we'd received the day before about how to dress for the tour to minimize tick exposure (including closed toe shoes... like I packed any closed toe shoes!?). I'll admit I am rather freaked out by ticks, having grown up with them in Eastern Washington and knowing how small and insidious they can be—and ours didn't even carry Lyme disease or trigger Alpha-gal syndrome!

So I turned around and headed back towards the buildings, thinking I'd just spend my time getting a few atmospheric photographs (shout out to Heather who was with me on turning back).

I wish there had been an alternate (tick-free) tour of the buildings.

Artsy art.

Behind the restaurant there was an outdoor seating area, with a few plants.

I was rather taken with this rebar structure.

And the rebar fence!

We hung out here for awhile, it was a nice spot.

Finally the rest of our group returned and it was time to head to the buses.

There they are! (lower left)

I fell out of line on the way to the buses to get this shot.

Little did I know both Wyatt Emig and Becca Matthews aimed their cameras at me while I was photographing, here's Wyatt's photo. It definitely shows the scale of the buildings!

The Bit at the End

I recently shared Darcy Daniels video tour of Heather Tucker's back garden, but now there's a tour of her front garden too! Agaves... so many agaves... watch it here.

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude. 

Le Petit Matin and Dragon's Den, on the Buffalo Fling

Today's post covers the next two gardens we visited on Saturday morning of the Buffalo Fling in July; Le Petit Matin and Dragon's Den. 

Le Petit Matin (The Early Morning) is the garden belonging to YouTuber Jay Jinge Hu (he's also on Instagram) I believe this is Jay's second Fling, the first being last year's Memphis event—where I heard he made quite the impression with his enthusiasm. 

The garden's description: "This semi-formal garden pays homage to the temporal beauty of life, in appreciation of nature's transitions and transformations. Adjacent to Amherst State Park, the rustic-style home is surrounded by mixed borders, while casual seating and conversation spots create vignettes that invite one to pause and embrace solitude or the company of friends. Look for stylistic repetition and careful bursts of color."

This was my first time meeting Jay. His passion for his garden, and his excitement about sharing it with us was immediately evident. He met our Fling group in the driveway and gave a short introduction before setting us free to wander.

Jay's plant love spills over into that driveway...

I didn't see an agave, but there was an Opuntia.

Into the back garden...

Jay's garden style could not be more different than mine, but we both share a love of plants and a desire to connect people through that love. In fact Jay invited a few of us Flinger's over to his garden for a post-Fling gathering, it was such a wonderful time. Most of these photos from Jay's garden are from that visit, with the evening light rather than the harsher light under which we originally saw the garden.

Oh, another thing Jay and I share, a love for containers.

Such a healthy patch of Begonia grandis!

Looking across the back garden...

A trio of Buffalo Fling Co-Organizer Jim Charlier's art posts in the corner.

Jay seems to have a way with Clematis.

And even has a decorated compost pile!

Jay shared on Instagram that he was reported for not labeling a photo of his flowers as "AI generated," they were too perfect.

Love this, so nice unpainted (as many people do).

Jay grows several sweet bay Magnolia (Magnolia virginiana) and I was lucky enough to catch a bloom of one hanging on...

On to the next garden, that of Beth and Brian Kreutzer, called Dragon's Den...

"When you arrive at the front gardens, you will see interesting trees, a waterfall, and colorful annuals. As you enter the back garden through the gate, be sure to look up to be greeted by our friendly neighborhood dragon, who keeps a watchful eye over the garden. As you stroll along the pathways, you will see...sun and shade perennials, and whimsical garden art...Feel free to sit and relax on the pergola listening to the sounds of the babbling brook or watch the colorful koi from the deck."

Google images identified this as Taxus baccata 'Amersfoort'...

The description of the Taxus from Far Reaches Farm: "A bizarre antler-like sport of the common Yew found in France and moved to the grounds of the Insane Asylum in Holland for which it is named. This is one crazy plant. Open strikingly architectural growth habit with a tight attention to line and form. Very unYew-like and more like some oddly dendritic Podocarpus."

I would hate to navigate that wooden walkway in the dark after one too many glasses of wine...

Another dragon! We heard at least one of them was known to breathe fire after dark.

This was unexpected...

I love that they're experimenting.

More mossy rocks...

And back out to the front of the home.

Where there were colorful zinnia...

And a statuesque tree that I first thought was "Twisty Baby" black Locust (Robinia pseudoacacia 'Lace Lady'), but now I'm questioning that as I don't see any twisty foliage in this photo.

The Bit at the End

Jay is another of the Buffalo Fling gardeners that has appeared on PlantPop, check out the short (5 minute) video with Jay here.

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All material © 2009-2026 by Loree L Bohl. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited and just plain rude.