How Green is My Garden?

It's a good thing I like green because there's plenty of it showing in the garden right now.  There are other colors, too, but today I'm mostly focused on the green.  It's so welcome in the springtime.

Pictured below is one of several Hostas I have planted in pots.  This one is in a large orange pot sitting in the shade of the Purple Smoke Tree.  Not all color comes from blooms.

The hedge is fluffier than usual for this time of year and it takes Rich longer to trim it these days.  I still marvel that he manages to trim this behemoth at all.

Looks like somebody -- me -- needs to trim the barberry.

My favorite azalea spills spectacularly over the garden steps.  I don't trim it as I prefer its natural shape, but I do see a couple of straggling branches I'll snip off after the flowers fade.

LuLu has found a cool, shady spot at the foot of the stairs.

Several different plants are allowed to grow and mingle at will along the steps.

Orange deciduous and deep pink evergreen azaleas.  I saved this slip of pink azalea from the deer.   They ravaged four bushes one winter.

Walking into the backyard --  wind chimes hanging from the maple tree.

 Another Hosta in a pot.

Pictured below is a Rhododendron in the backyard.  It starts out dark pink and fades to this delicate shade.  Blooms are bell shaped.  The white flower spikes below it are a wildflower which is very invasive and some may call it a weed, but I rather like it.

There's that ground cover wildflower/weed again, growing along the backyard path.  I've just recently planted a few annuals and you can see a pot of Impatiens nestled into the ground cover.  I'm looking forward to its summer color.

We're staying home this Memorial Day weekend, which is nothing new because we always stay home on holiday weekends.  Oregon has opened some parks with restrictions -- bathrooms and gathering areas are closed, for instance.  It's going to be a madhouse out there, I think.  We'll let things settle down before we venture out with the motorhome.

This is a weekend for honoring our veterans so let's not forget that, even though most of the usual activities have been curtailed.  The thought is still there and we can all observe in our own way.  Wishing you a good week as we continue to navigate these unusual times.

A Day Out

Oregon's parks are slowly reopening, but only a few at a time.  For last Friday's outing we visited a county campground where we often go in the winter when everything is routinely closed.  It's a good place to let the dogs run around while we treat ourselves to a picnic, doing picnic things.

I rather like how it looks with the grass grown tall and the wildflowers having the run of the place.

We've been very good about social distancing, but we thought if we can visit on the street with the neighbors, then we should be able to visit with our dearest friends in The Great Outdoors.  We haven't seen them since the beginning of all this, sniff sniff.  We took separate cars and tried our best to keep apart, but there may have been some moments...  For the most part I think it worked out pretty well.

Wildflowers were everywhere.  I could fill an album with photos of each species in bloom, but there were just too many:  Bleeding Heart, Cranesbill, Heuchera (Coral Bells), Buttercup, Forget Me Not, English Daisy... just to name a few.

Here's LuLu in the Buttercups:

Wally in the Forget Me Nots:

Lucy, our friends' mini-Pomeranian, in the English Daisies:

Later in the afternoon we walked into the woods near the park.  You can almost imagine alligators lurking in the water and snakes dripping from the trees, but it's just our spring-damp Oregon coast woodland... nothing scary here at all.

We're about to pick our way down a trail along the creek.  That's Rich and our friends in the photo below.

We did not have to cross this foot bridge, but I requested Rich do it for a photo.  The idea was to have the dogs stand with him, but Wally was not thrilled with the idea.  LuLu stayed on this side.

It was a beautiful day, then the rain came back and stayed for a few days and we were only able to get out for the briefest periods, but we always manage at least a little walk.  We're doing fine, living life.  Hoping you're fine, too.