Twice a year I go to Sonoma to help some old friends with their garden at their second home that we designed in collaboration. It's a big property and each year the gardens are refined while they expand. So, today like most times that I'm up here I went on a little nursery trip with Scott for some plants and ideas. We decided to hit a local nursery and we were not disappointed.
Thirteen years ago I made a pilgrimage to the best public gardens and nurseries of the Bay Area using the Where On Earth guide . During that trip I visited California Flora Nursery. It was much the same as I remembered, a nursery on a large lot surrounded by stately oaks and a good selection of native plants. One plant stands out in my memory, Sisyrinchum 'Quaint and Queer', which was new to me at that time. It seems cleaner and more organized today. While the nursery does not carry a huge variety of plants, it has a great selection of mostly native plants and some fun exotics. The plants feel well curated, like they were paired down for the ease of the shopper, and no where did I find a single weed in any of the pots.
In several places throughout the nursery there were some fun raised planters that had a rustic charm, one with a handsome cork oak as a bonsai. Others had more of an alpine garden feel which brought me back to my days at Wisley.
Our haul (in the yellow convertable):
Clematis montana 'Grandiflorus'
Angelica hendersonii
Darmera peltata
Filipendula ulmaria 'Aurea'
Satureja douglasii
Fragraria vesca
Philadelphus coronaria 'Variegata'
Thirteen years ago I made a pilgrimage to the best public gardens and nurseries of the Bay Area using the Where On Earth guide . During that trip I visited California Flora Nursery. It was much the same as I remembered, a nursery on a large lot surrounded by stately oaks and a good selection of native plants. One plant stands out in my memory, Sisyrinchum 'Quaint and Queer', which was new to me at that time. It seems cleaner and more organized today. While the nursery does not carry a huge variety of plants, it has a great selection of mostly native plants and some fun exotics. The plants feel well curated, like they were paired down for the ease of the shopper, and no where did I find a single weed in any of the pots.
In several places throughout the nursery there were some fun raised planters that had a rustic charm, one with a handsome cork oak as a bonsai. Others had more of an alpine garden feel which brought me back to my days at Wisley.
Our haul (in the yellow convertable):
Clematis montana 'Grandiflorus'
Angelica hendersonii
Darmera peltata
Filipendula ulmaria 'Aurea'
Satureja douglasii
Fragraria vesca
Philadelphus coronaria 'Variegata'
Philadelphus coronaria 'Aurea'
Penstemon heterophyllus 'Blue Springs'
Elevated trough
Another fun raised bed
Handsome cork oak in planter
"Mini me" trough
general look of the nursery
Angelica hendersonii. Handsome!
Yellow convertible with Scott
Those troughs for succulents look wonderful. All the drainage without all the little pots everywhere, raised up so the plants can be closely admired. Add wheels to move them around to the right light...you've given me a great idea. Thanks!
ReplyDeleteLot's of possibilities right?
ReplyDeletei like this place!
ReplyDeleteI have always wanted a cork oak and now I think I'll grow one in a container. I've got time...
ReplyDelete