This nice big green glazed pot has been migrating around the garden, looking for a home. I keep siting it where it seems to fit, and the surrounding vegetation slowly engulfs it.

Up close, not so bad, but as we back up, it begins to disappear.

Here it is, seen as walking from the parking area to the front of the house.

In my determination to be more methodical about the whole thing, I backed slowly away from the house.

Trying to pick a spot where it would have the desired dramatic effect when approaching the house.

It had always remained empty, but now is planted with Yucca aloifolia, or Spanish bayonet, from Cistus. Rather than filling the whole pot with soil, I stacked nursery pots to a level where they could support a large nursery pot whose rim is perfectly positioned slightly above the rim of the ceramic pot. I figure I can always remove it if things get too gnarly in the winter months.

A trip to Scappoose Sand and Gravel was in order. We line up 8 of those five gallon buckets in a double row, and the attendant positions his big scoop right over them and lets fly. He has very good aim. Everything that falls outside the buckets get swept up and deposited into a ninth bucket. This is the gravel (1/4-10, crushed basalt that has been washed to remove any dust that might rise to the surface and form a crust) that gets incorporated into the planting soil mix and also used as mulch.

And here’s the soil mix: 1/3 garden soil, 1/3 gravel, 1/3 dark hemlock mulch. The blue handles are on heavy duty metal cutters to use on the roll of metal mesh (from Noami’s at $6.99 per roll) that gets put down to deter the evil gophers.

In an effort to compensate for my tendency to overplant, I’m extending the bed by laying down cardboard, followed by metal screening held down by rocks.

So here is the pot in its new situation as seen from a distance, coming in the drive.

And looking the other way.

I have no illusions that this will be its final resting place, or that I will suddenly change my ways and resist the temptation to plant too many things around it and once again bury it under a deluge of plant material. Still, it was fun to take a more measured approach than my usual slap-dash. Another year or two should tell the story.

Well, those of us who thought the gardening season had begun sure got smacked down, didn’t we? Instead of doing, we’re reduced to dreaming of our perfect gardens. A while back, The Oregonian ran an article comparing the typical flower border to one relying on foliage for its impact. Excuse the quality. This is a scan of a newsprint photo, so what can I say?

This appeals to me for many reasons. I love the layering of the many shapes and textures. Many of the plants will bear flowers, but there are none in this photo and still it holds one’s interest. Having been through spring and fall cleanup of perennial-heavy gardens, not to mention the deadheading through the summer, the ease of this approach is no small part of its attraction. We already have a number of Italian cypresses in place to provide those exclamation marks, and the driveway curves much like the path in the picture.

Which is not to say that we haven’t a long way to go, but then that’s half the fun, don’t you think? This photo was taken early in the season last year, after a number of the shrubs planted in the fall had been wiped out by the harsh winter. Some new things went in and seem to be making it through this latest blast, but only time will tell. I will post another progress report in a couple of months, when we can see how everything has fared. But as long as we are dreaming, why not go for broke and take a look at another border:

This one in Oaxaca’s ethnobotanical garden. Can you imagine strolling down this white sand path lined with towering cacti?
Then spending the rest of the day exploring the extensive collection of cacti, agave, tropical plants and succulents? Dream on!