My Blog List

Saturday, July 23, 2011

THE SEATTLE FLING 2011

Yesterday morning 75 garden bloggers, from all parts of the country and even as far away as England, met in the lobby of a Seattle hotel. I was one of them, embarking on my first 'Fling' thanks to the hard work of Debra Prinzing, Lorene Edwards Forkner, Maryann Newcomer and Marty Wingate.

Two buses arrived at the door to transport us on a 4 day extravaganza of garden visits. The weather was set fair for the weekend. The cameras were at the ready. Let's begin.

SHELAGH TUCKER'S SEATTLE GARDEN

Shelagh was inspired by the gravel gardens of Beth Chatto. I knew immediately I was going to love this garden because it is in my own style, although the plantings are quite different.

The house is elevated from the street, and reached by a series of steps and landings. The first is a circular garden laid with stone in between which thyme grows.

The plants in this garden require little in the way of fertilizer or water.

Large expanses of gravel are softened with stands of Stipa tennuisima.

In the back garden, Shelagh gardens organically with liberal use of compost which has resulted in a rich soil and very happy plants. There are several old apple trees on the lawn above the rear patio.

Plants are perfectly placed.

Around every corner a new wonder.




Here is one plant that grows well in Texas. One I always have room for in my own garden too; the mullein.
Besides being an artist in the garden Shelagh is also a fine water color artist. I caught up with her in her studio along the garden path. Thanks Sheila for opening up your exquisite garden for us all to enjoy.
Imagine having two wonderful gardens like this on one street. Shelagh's next door neighbors, Suzette and Jim Birrell' s garden, was next on the tour.

11 comments:

  1. Beautiful shots of her front yard and all the rock work.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Sounds like fun, looks fantastic. Can't wait to see what else you saw!

    ReplyDelete
  3. Oh my!
    I am so glad you took pictures for those of us stuck in the Texas furnace.
    The round stone patio with the green plants growing prostrate is exactly what I'm aiming for in my garden. I've got a few natives that are taking the challenge. I'll tell them about this patio.:-)
    Send more photos...if you have the chance.
    David/ Tropical Texana/ Houston
    P.S. Say Hello to Cindy from My Corner of Katy. We are friends.
    Tell her to bottle up some cool air and bring it back in a jar. I want some. ha ha

    ReplyDelete
  4. What a delightful garden. I love that round stone patio, with all the greenery around it. Enjoy yourself up in Seattle as we are all getting heat blasted down here in Texas!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Thanks...great front garden. And sounds like a great group of people!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Looks and sounds like so much fun. And, the cool weather is not bad, either.
    Looking forward to more reports.

    ReplyDelete
  7. I loved that garden too, and I thought Shelagh Tucker was charming. It's fascinating to see another person's take on a garden you've both visited on the same day. Look forward to seeing more!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Great pics and description. I look forward to your next post.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Beautiful post. I love seeing the different angles people used taking photos of the same area idea. Usually much better shots. I'm learning.

    ReplyDelete
  10. You've captured her charming garden wonderfully.

    ReplyDelete
  11. I see you were as captivated with that charming single rose as I was. I wish I had followed you around and got to see Shelagh's studio.

    ReplyDelete

I love your comments unless they are spam comments which will always be removed in comment moderation.