I got a phone call this morning from a lady down around Olympia who had come across my wildflowers website. She hadn’t found a plant on the site that she’d seen on a walk near her home and asked if she could send me a JPEG to identify it for her. I get these requests pretty frequently, but usually by e-mail, so I said “yes” and she sent a file while we were still on the phone.
It only took a glance to know that her mystery plant was the very common garden groundcover, Vinca minor. The common name is periwinkle. It’s a plant I learned as a small child because my dad had it in our garden. It’s native to southern Switzerland and south to the Mediterranean. continue reading »
April 17, 2012 | Gardens and Native Plants and Photography and Weeds | No Comments »
Comfortable, attractive outdoor living spaces never go out of style. Ideas from one part of the country can usually be adapted to other regions, so a photo of an inviting space makes a great magazine cover.
Gardening How-to March 2012 Cover
I photographed this deck at the home of Ginny Crump, co-owner of Kent’s Garden and Nursery, back in the summer of 2008. continue reading »
March 2, 2012 | Gardens and Photography | No Comments »
I’m a sucker for waterfalls. There’s just something about the patterns of flowing water that draw me in. They’re not a subject that’s been lucrative but I can’t resist photographing them anyway.
Chuckanut Falls
This is Chuckanut Falls, on a tributary to Chuckanut Creek in Arroyo Park just south of Bellingham. There’s a new trail, just built in the last year, leading to the falls. The falls trail takes off from the trail heading up from the Interurban Trail toward Lost Lake. The signed junction is just downhill from the top end of California Street. continue reading »
February 28, 2012 | Photography and Waterfalls | 2 Comments »
I continue to be drawn to Chuckanut Mountain trails for my winter hikes. Last weekend I headed up the Fragrance Lake Trail from Larrabee State Park. There’s a lookout over the bay just over a mile from the trailhead and Fragrance Lake itself is only about 2.2 miles with less than 1000 feet of elevation gain. I carried my Canon G12 pocket camera and a small tripod. continue reading »
February 24, 2012 | Bellingham and Native Plants and Photography | No Comments »
As sure as February rolls around so does the Northwest Flower & Garden Show at the Washington State Convention Center in Seattle. It’s a time to oogle the display gardens, shop for cool new plants, and visit with friends. This year’s show ends ended on Sunday, February 12.
Twistin' the Night Away display garden
The cavernous fourth floor exhibit hall comes to life with more than twenty exquitely designed and constructed display gardens. The one above was called “Twistin’ the Night Away” and featured a corkscrew willow graphic as a backdrop to an arbor-framed patio. Each of the garden designers worked within the Floral Symphony show theme, coming up with some musical connection. continue reading »
February 11, 2012 | Gardens and Photography | 6 Comments »
