Patricia of Plant Lust pulled some strings to set up a personal tour of Treephoria, a place that erases the “boring” from Boring, OR. That’s Patricia, with her hand up as if to say “here I am”.

Laura of Gravy Lessons and her pirate, Charlie, met us there.

Here’s our host and tour guide, Neil Buley. He was a fount of information.

They had several specimens of one of my favorite trees, Oxydendrum arboretum, or Sourwood. I wrote about the  s l o w  growth of mine here.

Last year, the poor thing died. That’s the dead trunk (the grey stick). New growth shot up from the roots and soon surpassed the height of the original tree that had struggled for years.

It’s most recent affliction is compliments of the deer, who have nibbled off most of the foliage.

So for a close-up of this splendid tree, we’ll go back to Treephoria. The leaves turn progressively redder and it blooms at the same time, making for quite a show.

Next up: Cercidiphyllum japonicum, or Katsura. I wrote about ours here. We love our Katsura, but the fall color, so far, pales in comparison to the mature specimen above.

Just look at the range of color in those leaves.

I couldn’t seem to stop snapping photos, especially when I saw it with a monkey-puzzle tree in the foreground for contrast.

OK, so that’s it for my favorites, but let’s wander around Treephoria a bit more. Cornus mas the Cornelian Cherry Dogwood was adorned with bright red, shiny fruits.

I’m kicking myself for neglecting to carry a notebook to jot down the names of things like these wavy leaves on colorful stems. Will I never learn?

Maples were spangled with their little wingy things.

Each one prettier than the last.

Here’s something for anyone who, like me, has been smitten with Franklinia but to no avail. Gordlinia Grandiflora is a cross between Gordonia and Franklinia, making it much hardier while retaining those wonderful flowers. I’m game to try this one.

There were some peculiarities too, like this thorny tree trunk. It of course calls to mind Danger Garden, whose earlier post of this place will show you more photos of this spiky wonder and an in-depth tour at a different time of year. Loree is also our host for the favorites meme. Be sure to check in this time, as the format will be changing a bit.

Speaking of hosts, a big Thank You goes out to Neil and Treephoria for hospitality and then some. If you are hankering for a tree and you don’t want to wait for a little bitty thing to gain some stature and presence, this is the place. They will dig, deliver and plant for you, so you know it’s done right.