As it states in its brochure, Iseli Nursery sits at the bottom of Mount Hood in Boring, Oregon.  The views surrounding the nursery are inspiring, and in the clouded light of midday,  the effect was magical.  However, I wish I could bring you "smell-a-vision."  The scent of pines, cypress, and cedars hung in the air. The staff at Iseli were friendly and helpful.  As we disembarked from the buses, they were all standing with signs for different areas or zones.  Oklahoma was part of the Lower Plains. You could wander and take photos or you could follow your designated employee and learn more about which trees were best for your area. You can guess which I did.  I tried to follow.  I really did, but there was so much to see, and I didn't want to miss anything.  I soon found myself wandering off on my own. Iseli is the...

A perfect, early fall day bathed in blue.  The sun is shining.  Only a few marshmallow clouds gliding across the sky.  Standing in the middle of the garden, feet firmly planted on solid ground, turn your face toward the sun with your arms flung out at your sides.  Palms turned upward.  Eyes closed in reverence for all the simple miracles we're afforded everyday.  The autumn sun, no longer angry and hot like its summer counterpart, is warm upon your face and shoulders. If you've never done this, go outside and give it a try.  If you were to stay out there all day without fear of sunburn, and rotated slowly always following the sun's rays, you would resemble a young sunflower.  Borrowing slightly from that famous yoga pose, the Sun Salutation, let's call ours a Sunflower Salutation. Both are about gratitude.  I'm a few days back from the Garden Writers...

A misty fog sweeps in from Puget Sound enshrouding plants with a cool fall blanket.  Established shrubs and perennials rarely need watering even at the height of the summer season. Sounds like garden paradise doesn't it?  It is. Regular visitors to this blog know my dear friend, Wanda F., as my second garden mentor.  When she told me over a year ago that she'd bought a house in Washington State, I broke down and cried, knowing that there was no one else locally who loved plants as much as I did.  I've missed her terribly. So . . . . Because we were already traveling to the Garden Writers Symposium in Portland, Oregon, only one state away from Washington, HH and I decided to make a stop at her house along the way.  I thought Anacortes was near Seattle, but, instead, it was like driving from Tulsa to Oklahoma City...

Rudbeckia 'Goldsturm' As you may have noticed the site has been up and down all week, a metaphor for my week in general.  ASW and I have had a stomach virus which is still lingering.  I'm dealing with site issues, and I'm trying to leave town for the Garden Writers Syposium in Portland where I can't wait to show you everything I get to see. This morning, as I was trying to pack, HH called and was stressed.  He's always stressed when I leave town.  If he's coming with me, it's worse.  Our house is very long and neither set of phones can be used in each end.  Going from the kitchen to the bedroom, I lost the signal. HH started saying "Hello, Hello?" Hurrying, I turned to go where he could hear me.  I stepped upon a piece of luggage sitting on the floor.  This particular piece has rollers. ...