On September 8, 2020 the Almeda Fire swept through the towns of Phoenix and Talent. More than 3,000 acres, and over 2,500 homes and 600 businesses were destroyed, including the Blue Heron Park in Phoenix.
In 2021, a grassroots-group of citizens in partnership with local businesses and organizations took on the task of rebuilding this park, and on Monday members of the Ashland Garden Club gathered to see how Blue Heron Park has truly risen from the ashes. AGC members donated pollinator plants to add to the park’s community garden.
Photos by Goly Ostovar, Lynn McDonald, and Carlotta Lucas
The Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the Month for May 2024 is John Schroeder and Debbie Beck’s colorful yard at 719 N. Laurel Street.
Photo by Photo by John Schroeder
While the camellia has put on a beautiful show from late winter through early spring, it is fading out now and the gorgeous bright salvias, phlox, lupine, euphorbia, and candytuft are just coming into their own. The Japanese maple tree and barberry bush provide contrast with their deeper spring colors.
Photo by John Schroeder
John and Debbie have been gardening here since they purchased the property in the spring of 1983. When they arrived, the front yard had only the camellia and a deodar cedar tree that eventually got so large it overpowered the entire yard. Now that they have had that tree removed, the Japanese maple that they planted is thriving. The back yard was steeply sloped toward the back fence. You can see how much they have accomplished in the intervening years, all while working outside the home and raising two children.
Photo by John Schroeder
John is responsible for the overall landscape design and all the heavy work, including terracing the back yard and planning, and often building, walkways, and Debbie says she handles the details, including small cleanup chores such as dead-heading and weeding. John originally constructed the backyard terraces with railroad ties but when those wore out, he had pros install block retaining walls following his design. He built the stone stairs between levels.
View from the akebia vine. Photo by John Schroeder
Among John’s favorites plants are the Japanese maple, akebia vine, and camellia. Debbie favors daphne and rhododendron. They also have vegetable beds and blueberries in the back. The garden design features lovely vistas throughout with Asian touches of stone lanterns and a sculpture. The newish tree on the left side in front is an autumn blaze maple.
John Schroeder and Debbie Beck in a rare moment of relaxation.
Photo by Ruth Sloan
Article by: Ruth Sloan, Garden of the Month Chairperson
Lamium plants, also known as Spotted Dead Nettles, are deer-resistant ground covers that grow in a part- sun to semi-shade. Different varieties flower in white, pink or purple. Flowers are delicate and dainty. Lamium’s two-toned foliage provides interest, when the plant is not in bloom.
Perennial Plant, Height: 4-6″ Width: 15″-18″, Blooms early spring- early summer, USDA Zone: 3-9,
Lamium maculatum ‘Aureum’ is a cultivar with gold to chartreuse foliage.
Elysian Graham and Lou Martinez bought the handsome house at 623 Prim Street in 2020 and promptly set about re-imagining the front landscape. This is the Ashland Garden Club’s Garden of the month for September 2023.
They hired Banyan Tree Landscaping and landscape architect Lucretia Weems to do the job. Among their primary goals were to achieve easy maintenance for their steep yard, conserve water, and be deer resistant. They also wanted a subtle color palette, but color and interest all year, and to be pollinator-friendly. They have achieved all this and more.
Only the large sweet gum tree on the left side of the garden and the thicket on the far right side, which is seasonally favored by deer, remain from the original yard. Overhead sprinklers were replaced by a drip irrigation system. The rock retaining walls and graceful stairs were added.
Ornamental grasses are highlights at this time of year and on through the winter. As the homeowners and designers of this garden have done, the Ashland Garden Club urges gardeners to take care in choosing ornamental grasses that are not fire-prone, and to remove dead and dry growth.
The couple handle all the maintenance themselves and, as busy professionals, they are grateful that their yard is so easy-care. Elysian particularly likes the guara and Lou likes the Japanese maple.
