Tag Archives: AGC Garden of the Month

April 2023- AGC Garden of the Month

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344 Helman Street

While all the rain and snow we’ve enjoyed this winter bring hope of a fabulous spring and along with it fabulous gardens, it does mean that the season of renewal is running a little late this year.  Last year at this time, the garden at 344 Helman Street—home to Suzan and Marshall Malden—was blooming gloriously and lush with plants ready to burst forth.  It’s obviously poised to do that again, but perhaps a little later than usual.  This is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for April 2023

When the Maldens purchased the property in 2001 the cottage was smaller, and both front and back yards were little more than lawns with a few trees, including the wonderful mulberry.  After completing a beautiful sunny addition to the house in 2006, Suzan set about establishing lovely gardens with help and advice from family friend Dave Mizerak.  The bones of that design remain much the same, but Suzan has fun adding and subtracting plants as conditions change over the years or as enthusiasm strikes her.

Lilacs and grapevines at the perimeter contribute to a feeling of privacy in back.  A delightful water fountain is visible from most spots around the yard as well as from rooms at the back of the house.  Among Suzan’s favorite plants are peonies, rhododendrons, daphne, and azaleas.  Fig trees in back not only produce delicious fruit but are gorgeous sculptural plants.  The Japanese maple in front is stunning all year.

A tall flag pole in back features an ever-changing display of flags, some to honor countries where the Maldens have lived (such as Sweden and Norway), some to honor countries of origin for visitors, and some to honor events

Suzan does almost all of the gardening herself, averaging a half-hour to an hour a day in the busiest seasons, with occasional help from Nathanael Brees on the biggest projects.  She sees the garden as her sanctuary and gardening brings her great joy.  As she says, “life is beautiful in the garden.”

September 2022: Garden of the Month

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453 Tucker Street

This time of year, many Ashland gardens are starting to look little tired, victims of prolonged excessive heat and thirst.  Ornamental grasses do particularly well in these conditions and those gardens that feature them continue to thrive.  Elizabeth and Gerard Boulanger’s gorgeous front yard at 453 Tucker Street is a great example and is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for September 2022.  It requires only a modest amount of water to put on a beautiful show year-round.

The Boulangers moved here in June of 2021.  They tidied the front yard, particularly giving room to the Japanese blood grass, the leaves of which are currently a stunning dark purple, so it wouldn’t get lost in the thicket.  Their display of ornamental grasses highlights the varieties of colors (some of which change seasonally), blooms, shape, and blade structure. The large green grasses directly in front of the house turn a bronze color in Autumn.

They have done a lot of work on the side yards during their short tenure here, including a massive restructuring on the western side, terracing the space to make it more usable by creating a bocce ball/horseshoes court and pleasant patio on different levels.  The handsome block retaining walls were created by Jorge Regalado and his crew from Firststone Masonry.  Elizabeth credits Gerard for the design of this area, but admits to making some suggestions.  Dwarf gingko trees border the wooden stairs on one side and buddleia shrubs border the other side.  They have started a hedge along the fence in back, along the north side of the property, to soften the near part of the nice view toward the hills.  Trees include juniper, maple, and ash.

Elizabeth and Gerard personally work in the yard when they can and clearly enjoy the plants.  Particular favorites are Pacific northwest myrtle, hydrangea, sweet peas, dogwood, and lavender.  Christie Mackison of Shooting Star Nursery has advised the Boulangers on plant choices.

Photos by Larry Rosengren

Article by: Ruth Sloan, AGC Garden of the Month Chair

July 2022: Garden of the Month

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128 E. Nevada

The garden of Kim Larson and David Minter at 128 E. Nevada is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for July 2022.  When they purchased the property in 2002, the front yard was almost entirely huge juniper bushes and the back was dominated by a large concrete pad with a laundry line plus a photinia hedge.  David tore out the junipers by tying a line to the roots and dragging them out with a truck.

Initially, Kim, who loves to work in the yard, created gardens in both front and back without an overall plan but discovered they were very high maintenance.  Bonnie (Criswell) Engelhardt of Shooting Star nursery advised the couple, who have two children, on plant selections that would prove much easier for maintenance and require less water.  Sage Hill Landscape installed much of the hardscape from a plan developed with Jane Hardgrove. Kim and David average less than two hours per week now, doing all the maintenance themselves.

Among favorite plants are older hellebores that line the walkway beside the house on the eastern edge of the property, autumn ferns, coral bells, and hardy euphorbias.  Kim has transplanted shoots from a passionflower vine that they thought had died, and was pleased to discover them doing well in their new location.

They keep chickens in a charming coop and use their droppings in the compost they regularly manage.

Kim, especially, finds joy in gardening.  She says that it is therapeutic even to weed and prune, but planting too to make things beautiful.

Article by : Ruth Sloan, AGC Garden of the Month Coordinator

Photos by Larry Rosengren.

Garden of the Month: September 2021

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85 Winburn Way

Stephanie and Bryan DeBoer have an unusual degree of interest in the spectacular garden of their home at 85 Winburn Way, as well they should.  This is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for September.

The DeBoers see their property as a visual extension of Lithia Park which sits across the street.  Bryan has a special affinity for the park:  His maternal grandfather was a gardener there and, as a boy, Bryan would help him and be rewarded with ice cream from the shop that once sat where the DeBoer home sits now.

Meant to look long-established and thus better to complement the park, the garden was actually installed in stages over 2018-19.  The initial planting took 11 days and required a large crane.  One tree weighed 7000 lbs.  Using mature plants was the key to making the garden look as if it had been there a long time. 

Bryan & Stephanie were very much involved in carefully planning the garden and selecting plants.  Bryan and Stephanie went from room to room inside the house while plants were being placed outside, to assure spectacular views from every vantage point.  Laurie Sager & Associates of Jacksonville were the landscape architects and steered the DeBoers through a fun and creative process.  One of Laurie’s many ideas was creating a beautifully landscaped light well to brighten a lower level bedroom, and created an amazing overall result.  The building’s architect, Carlos Delgado, took an active interest.  Dieter Trost, of Southern Oregon Nursery in Medford—and a family friend, aided in procuring the specimen trees, all grown right here in Oregon.

Mostly the garden is in the Japanese tradition and has many conifers and maples.  Bryan has a special fondness DeBoer5.jpegfor the Chief Joseph pines, “Lovers” Japanese maple, and the ice breaker firs.  It’s a good thing Japanese maples are among Stephanie’s favorite plants because there are 29 Japanese maples on the property comprised of 25 varieties including red filigree lace, green cascade, and contorta weeping.  A full list of plants, with pictures, is available on PlantsMap (www.plantsmap.com – search on Winburn).  Bryan has installed PlantsMap tags at the foot of many of the plants.

Unique sources were found for many of the treasures in the landscape.  The Iseli Nursery in Boring, Oregon provided many of the special trees and is world renown for mature specimens found in their Gallery.  The gorgeous rocks placed strategically throughout the garden were imported from the Netherlands where a Japanese garden was being dismantled.  The giant mid-century modern urn on a pedestal near the front door came from a Frank Lloyd Wright building. 

Both Bryan and Stephanie work in the garden and Bryan, especially, has been mistaken as a professional gardener by passersby while he was working outside.  He can identify every plant from memory.

Article by: Ruth Sloan

Photos by Bryan DeBoer

Garden of the Month: August 2021

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House of Thai – 1667 Siskiyou Blvd

The August 2021 Garden of the Month from the Ashland Garden Club is the front of the House of Thai restaurant at 1667 Siskiyou Blvd.  The restaurant opened in May of 1989, after remodeling the building and starting the garden.

In the mid 80’s, Jit Kanchanakaset, a single mother of five came to Ashland in search of a safe, peaceful life her for family.  A strong-willed, energetic, and hardworking woman, she recruited her kids to help establish the eatery, and then later its garden. 

Ten years later, she met and married Phil Crompton.  They spent much of their time doing what they enjoyed most, gardening and giving back to the village in Buriram, Thailand where she grew up, by donating to schools, hospitals, and underprivileged families.  Jit passed on in April 2020.

The garden has evolved over time with gradual improvements.  There are large, well-established ponderosa pines along the eastern edge.  Gorgeous rhododendrons bloom beneath the pines in May.  Much smaller crepe myrtle trees line the western edge and bloom in August.  In between are a small fishpond and waterfall that were constructed by the contractor who was remodeling the building.  Blue herons have been known to visit the pond, hoping to catch the elusive fish.  Also there is a small lawn, plus a stunning Buddhist shrine. 

The colorful concrete and steel shrine, said to weigh 1000 pounds, was installed a little more than twenty years ago. Jit’s legacy lives on through her family as they continue her traditions while carrying on the restaurant. The family and staff offer respect to the shrine every Friday morning, honoring the house spirits and summoning goodwill.

Article by: Ruth Sloan, AGC Garden of the Month Committee Chair

Photos by Larry Rosengren.

Garden(s) of the Month: June 2021

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The Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for June 2021 is unusual.  It’s unusual because it is three gardens and unusual because they are back gardens.  Gardens selected for GotM honors must be substantially visible from the public right-of-way (street or sidewalk ordinarily) so that usually means front gardens.  These three back gardens qualify because they are visible from Ashland Creek Park (on Hersey near Oak) and these three are all in a row. 

Directions: From Hersey Street, walk along the right (east) side of the park about half way from front to back and watch for signs.  Please stay in the park.  You will see some gorgeous gardens.

The first (geographically) of the selected gardens is the furthest south of the three; the back garden of Deborah and Jeff Wihtol of 589 Oak Street.  They started their garden with a rounded patio and gently winding path that Jeff designed.  Then in 2017 the Wihtols had Solid Ground Landscaping plan and install most of the plants.  Since then, they’ve made changes on their own.  The recent loss of a large box elder tree brought more sun to the south side of the garden than it had in the past, to which they are adjusting.  And most recently they arranged for Jane Hardgrove to refresh the landscape and accommodate the new sun situation.  Among Deb’s favorite plants are hydrangeas, daphne odora, cape fuchsia, and orange sedge.  Routine maintenance is by Juan Guerrero.

Wihtol Garden
Wihtol Garden

The second selected garden belongs to Ursula and Marvin Webster of 603 Oak Street whose historic 1897 home influenced plant selections.  Sage Hill Landscape installed the hardscape and initial plantings in back following guidance from the Websters.  As Ursula put it, “What would grandma do?” was her guiding principle.  A massive trumpet vine, stone walls, ivy, and treasured perennials survive from the house’s earliest days.  Among her favorites are plants that she considers “romantically old fashioned” such as hydrangea, peonies, erigeron, and catmint.  The hillside setting dictated stairs, and aspen trees thrive in the lowest parts of the garden, nearest the park.  Their quaking leaves add movement to the garden.  Ursula handles routine maintenance with assistance from Juan Guerrero.  The small building at the back of the garden is a straw-bale office built by EcoNest.

Webster Garden
Webster Garden

The third selected garden belongs to Susan McKennon of 615 Oak Street.  The yard is dominated by a huge old oak that some believe is the tree for which Oak Street was named.  That mighty tree is a picture of health thanks to Susan’s care and Canopy’s regular maintenance.  Her dazzling stand of iris stems from an early gift from Schreiners, friends of the family—well known for iris cultivation. Susan brought the iris starts from a previous home.  Solid Ground designed the landscape in 2013, bringing in tons of boulders to stabilize the steep terrain and installing stairs to help people negotiate the hill between the house and the park.  Solid Ground brought in many trees except the old oak, including Japanese maples and a dwarf gingko.  A friend’s gift of an elderberry bush draws attention at this time of year with its dark purple foliage and pale pink flowers.  Rudolpho Ramirez and his crew maintain this garden.

McKennon Garden
McKennon Garden
McKennon’s Tree viewed from Webster’s Garden

Article by: Ruth Sloan, AGC Garden of the Month Director

All photos by Larry Rosengren