Building a Show Garden: Gathering of Plants!

Days leading up to the show we begin to gather up plant material from all of our sources

Here's my buddy Matt helping load up the car with plants from Ian Barclay at Desert Northwest.

They were probably the prickliest plants we had to deal with. Luckily, there was no blood shed!

Here I am selecting a specimen of Rhododendron fulvum at Chimacum Woods. It may not be flowering, but the foliage undersides are absolutely stunning and will add a lot of interest to the garden.











Friends Jeff Benca and Pete Macias load up Pete's truck to get a HUGE Norfolk Island Pine and the hardy banana, Musa basjoo, over to the convention center! My thanks to Linda at Edmonds Community College for letting us use these spectacular specimens!






So, let's get pumped up and ready for Move-In,




R

Where do I even begin to pick up where I left off...

bad garden blogger...BAD GARDEN BLOGGER!!!   Ugggggghhhhh....

I guess I could say, in my defense, that I was actually gardening and not sitting on my ass blogging about every event that's garden/plant/flower related. The problem is, just about every aspect of my life is related to plants, flowers and garden and I can't even begin to choose what to share.

Plus, I've also just been so overwhelmed with work. It is FALL after all! Clean up is endless and preparations for the winter, plus TEACHING; the weeks go by so fast and, olly crap, it's almost NOVEMBER!!!

So, here's are some events that took place over the past month. Why don't YOU choose which topic I should do a full blog post on:

-My cousin Jocelyn got married (yes, another wedding, but I didn't do the flowers this time, but there's still something plant related that's cheesy and hilarious)

-A wedding also means a little family reunion. I had cousins stay with me and see my garden which included grapes my grandfather planted that ripened just in time.

-Just got back from my first ever trip to the Northeast hitting up New York City, New Jersey, and the Philadelphia area to visit family, friends, and, of course, GARDENS! I'm sure there will be a post on this no matter what. Hahaha...it was pretty incredible!

-Finished my design for my show garden for the 2013 Northwest Flower and Garden Show.

-Filmed the second episode of the "Next Generation Gardener"  (currently being produced and edited!)

-Presented my first talk called "Travels of a Garden Foodie" to a local garden club.

-Started teaching a class on Nursery and Greenhouse Production at Edmonds Community College. 

-Landwave Gardens in the fall is always a treat as the landscape really lights up.

-It's that time of year where I'm preparing for the winter and digging, dividing, and transplanting all sorts of plants.

I'm sure this isn't all of it, but take your pick(s) and I'll get another post up.


R

Back in School!

So I finally took my first baby step in what may be the next chapter of my horticultural career by enrolling in school to 1) figure out if I'm really on the right track with my current business endeavors with RHR Horticulture and Landwave Gardens by taking a Horticulture Business course through Edmonds Community College and 2) see if I have the drive to continue with schoolwork and look further ahead towards an advanced degree.

These were things that I've mulled over since finishing undergrad in 2006. I stuck with my plans to continue to work until I was financially capable of paying for the next phase (which I thought would possibly be a Masters), but these past few years have lead to a secure, but only part-time gardening position with the University of Washington Botanic Gardens, growing exposure and clientele and wonderful networking opportunities through talks, conferences, lectures and teaching engagements. Many around me felt like I didn't need another piece of paper. I still feel like it could hold me back somehow if I didn't pursue it.

Time and time again, I think of the title of this blog and how I represent it. Who is the "next generation gardener"? I know it's not just me, so how do I channel what I do to represent the next crop of avid individuals who love and appreciate the environment and love to see and nurture things to grow, bloom, and change.

In a way, I'm coming to realize that it doesn't fully matter what I do, but its how I do it. Does the passion and desire still burn inside to work in a field that I've loved since I was very little, but yet continues to baffle me as to what the next step should be to find a career that will sustain my humble and meager lifestyle during this very tough economic climate.

If I'm to represent the next generation of gardeners, I need to stick to my guns and instill a positive outlook for the future of my industry by simply doing what I love and that's sharing information and my enthusiasm for the wonderful aspects of the work I do. If people can see me thrive and be happy in an otherwise dismal field that's been ranked as the "#2 most useless degrees" by Newsweek, they will begin to explore and discover aspects of their life that don't have to cost a lot of money, but can be exceedingly rewarding.

Gardening needs to be fun and fulfilling, but when you do it professionally, it can easily burn you out as pressure from oneself tends to take over as you're constantly trying to figure out how it all really works for you. Taking this business class is just what I need right now just to be in a classroom where I'm not the one lecturing. Many of my classmates are former students of mine and I've really been good about keeping myself in check and focused on the task at hand and this quarter, it's my BUSINESS PLAN!



Riz

Hort programs struggling with enrollment.

I'm preparing for my upcoming teaching gig at Edmonds Community College and following a faculty meeting last week to discuss the upcoming school term, it was discouraging to hear that enrollment was poor. As one of THE BEST horticulture programs in the State of Washington, it was kind of shocking. Yes, we were encouraged to promote our own classes and this blog post is an attempt at that, but more importantly, I want to share with you just how broad and extensive their course offerings are.

Spring is THE season with so much coming into growth and bloom, instructors and students can't help, but be enthralled, inspired, and yes, be overwhelmed by it all.

Our course offerings include a spring vegetable gardening course, introduction to restoration ecology, Horticultural Plant Science, insects, pest management, landscape studies, field sketching, nursery and greenhouse, construction and, of course, the plant identification courses, which I feel quite honored to have been asked to teach one (Hort 160 Woody Plants for Gardeners) as it's probably the best exposure anyone interested in plants will get.

You really can't get this kind of training in our region outside of our local community colleges. It's not just Edmonds, but Lake Washington Technical and South Seattle Community Colleges, just to name a few, have excellent programs that are nurturing the future leaders, managers, and skilled workers in the landscape industry.

Even if you're not a professional nor intended to be at all involved in the industry, but you enjoy gardening and plants, THERE IS SOMETHING FOR YOU !

Check out the course offerings from the three schools I mentioned and take a class or two to broaden your knowledge and also meet like-minded people who love what they do and share in the experience of learning to manage and oversee the environment that surrounds us.

Edmonds Community College



Lake Washington Technical College



South Seattle Community College

Honoring A Horticultural Guru!

Last Friday was a gathering for an event I won’t soon forget. After 41 years, Walt Bubelis is retiring from full time teaching at Edmonds Community College’s horticulture department. He basically started it from the very beginning and helped spearhead it as one of the best horticultural programs in the region.

I’m trying to remember how I was introduced to Walt as I ran into so many people I knew that night. The lobby of Brier Hall was decorated with fresh flowers and plant material from various home gardens and a remarkable diversity of food. It was also inundated with colleagues, fellow faculty, Walt’s family, friends, and most remarkably, so many of his former/current students all there to honor and reminisce about not only an instructor, but a nurturing mentor to so many people.

Walt is certainly one of a kind. He excelled as an instructor, but what really sets him apart from everyone else is his humble quality and faith in every student who is eager and willing to be challenged and learn. He genuinely cares about his work and his pupils. Many big names in Pacific NW Horticulture worked under Walt’s tutelage. The most famous probably being plant explorer, Dan Hinkley.



We were asked to write down our “favorite Walt moment” for a scrap book and after touching words and an emotional ovation after his speech, he created a moment for me as I never was a student of his, but to see everyone stand, applaud and hold back tears as he graciously acknowledged everyone in attendance and even those who weren’t able to make it, I looked up in admiration and my own eyes began to fill up as I witnessed a brilliant man be acknowledged for his dedication and passion for what he loves most.



I am in debt to this man for taking my career to another level by asking me to teach at Edmonds and believing in my abilities to share my knowledge, experience and love for plants and horticulture.

My sincerest best wishes for all of his future endeavors.

R

BTW, A Horticulture scholarship will be established in Bubelis' name through the Edmonds Community College Foundation. To contribute, call 425.640.1274 or email foundation@edcc.edu.

Learn more about the Hort Program:

What hort students will endure to see a famous garden!!

So tonight wraps up what has been a fun summer quarter with Edmonds Community College's horticulture program. I took a group of 25 students around to meet avid plant collectors and see their extraordinary landscapes throughout July and August.

Our grand finale is the exuberant and quirky Ciscoe Morris, his wife Mary and their amazing garden in Seattle.

It was such a treat and a real honor that Ciscoe agreed to have my class visit his garden. Not only were we treated to his over the top enthusiasm for his plants, we learned so many new facts and tips on cultivating a lot of the rare treasures he pointed out to us.



Before this tour, I got a phone call from a group of my students who were carpooling in the same vehicle saying they were running late because they had just been in an accident.

"Oh dear, is everyone okay?!"

"Just a bit sore. We were rear ended. We'll be there in a few minutes, they're just finishing up the police report"

"If you need to rest and just want to head home or if you need medical assistance, please go ahead to the hospital!!"

"Oh no no....WE ARE NOT MISSING CISCOE'S GARDEN!"

15 minutes after that conversation, they quietly joined our group and Ciscoe's tour.

I can understand their commitment and desire to see this garden and meet Ciscoe in person, but I couldn't get over the fact that THEY DECLINED A MEDICAL VEHICLE and actually told the officer to hurry with the police report because they were headed to Ciscoe Morris's garden for a class!!! hahahah

I certainly hope it was worth it for them. Ciscoe has such an amazing assortment of plants and a wealth of tips and information. I was amazed how far his voice carries! I wonder how his neighbors tolerate this! LOL

Here are some highlights:


A lovely specimen of Eucomis 'Oakhurst' that just looks smashing with a yellow-leafed Caryopteris.


Melianthus 'Antonow's Blue'. He says to plant it 4" deeper than it was originally growing and to mulch it well.


The short, but smashing Agapanthus 'Graskop' with Crocosmia 'Solfaterre'


A stunning specimen of a rare Nolina species (longifolia)

I'm so glad my students are safe. Now with the class over, I hope they'll rest and recover as they're already asking about a future class for more tours!

Teaching

I never thought I'd reach a point in my career where teaching would be a key element in my repertoire of skills. Is it the wealth of information that I'm immersed in that I'm just eager to share or is it the prestige of being known as an "authority" on a particular subject or topic that drives me. I feel like its a combination of both including the simple fact that I simply love what I do and I want people to take notice!

I had two teaching stints last week that went over very well. I'm teaching again at Edmonds Community College this quarter sharing my thoughts and experiences with "Plant Collectors of the Pacific Northwest" and I had a one time gig teaching a basic plant propagation class through the Northwest Horticultural Society. Both happened on the same day, so you can imagine the tension of running around, getting materials and making sure things well (notice how I refrained from saying "according to plan"). LOL

My class at Edmonds is a field-trip-based course that explores several private gardens to see first hand how rare and select garden plants are utilized in a diversity of garden settings. They have an opportunity to meet these gardeners and learn about their approach towards collecting plants and maintaining them. The first two class sessions were the most challenging as I had them all in a classroom for lectures I scrambled to get together. Overall, despite being a new course that I basically just pulled out of my behind, it seemed to be well received and I felt confident with the information I was able to relay to them. I know certain areas could use more emphasis, but for a trial run, it wasn't too bad.

Now, the class is all field trips, an assignment for each one and a final report.
While I can breath a sigh of relief, there's still lots of work to do to make sure the garden tours run smoothly and that the students are completing their assignments and actually paying close attention to details rather than just strolling along for a pleasant walk through someone's garden.

Our first garden took us to Everett to the garden of Mary and Don Hale. Without ranting on about how lovely their garden was and what wonderful people they were to be around with, I'm going to let my photos speak for themselves.


The students gather as Mary begins a tour of her fabulous garden. Immediately, I was drawn by the stunning weeping willow in the background.


These are most of my students. Yes, they're all older than me! lol


Not only does Mary have a wonderful selection of plants, she pays attention to how they're placed in her garden. This is a fairly steep slope planting with many woody and herbaceous perennials.

Immediately, one plant that caught my eye was that stunning stand of sultry white.


This is Galega x hartlandii 'Alba'. Mary mentioned that it was the cultivar 'Lady Wilson', but my online research shows "Mrs. Wilson" as being a pale lavender pink. Whatever the name, it is absolutely striking and so gently fragrant, it is truly captivating to me.


Being there in the early evening, we were treated to some lovely lighting effects as the sun set.

And that willow....oh wow...I took a few minutes to just sit on the lawn, relax and take in a breath of fresh air to appreciate this image:



Mary took us all around her extensive garden and I was so impressed with her tour and the way she guided my students. She is a retired teacher and the way several of my students just hung on to her every word as she very kindly answered questions and directed our attention towards certain features of their garden was inspiring.



-------------------------------------------------

Before that trip, I has a much smaller, more intimate group that gathered at the infamous Dunn Garden here in North Seattle. It is a private estate garden that's usually open during special events and tours, but somehow, NHS board member and former president, Nita-Jo Rountree managed to convince executive director Sue Nevler and curators Glenn Withey and Charles Price to hold my plant propagation class in their grounds. Boy, what a treat it was and the weather was absolutely perfect.


Photo by Nita-Jo Rountree


Glenn and Charles kindly gave the students a tour of the beautiful gardens they helped design and maintain and just as an added perk, an art exhibition was being installed! While I'm a bit skeptical about garden art, the borders and plantings were exceptional:






They do some of the most amazing containers


One of my most favorite ferns (Polystichum setiferum divisilobum 'Plumoso-Multilobum' used beautifully with a stone sculpture and ornaments.



By far the most stunning specimen is Pachystegia insignis from New Zealand. Lovely felt-like silvery foliage and pretty white dandelion like flowers.


Another striking container composition this time using Astelia 'Silver Spears'


A stunning Pansy-faced Pelargonium called 'Oldbury Duet' that caught Nita-Jo's eyes. Glenn and Charles kindly let me take a cutting.

It really is remarkable what you can learn from touring gardens. Just being in these kinds of settings really brings out a lot of positive energy and inspired knowledge that I'm more than eager to share to those who care to see and listen.


Riz