May Happenings

Mark Twain and I must share some of the same ancient DNA because I think he was talking about me when he wrote this:

“My mother had a great deal of trouble with me, but I think she enjoyed it”

I certainly did my best to keep my mom on her toes and appreciate her best efforts. Like the fantastic Merle Haggard song momma tried “Mama tried to raise me better, but her pleading, I denied, That leaves only me to blame 'cause Mama tried” So speaking of Mothers, if you are in the East Portland, Troutdale, Gresham, Sandy, maybe Vancouver folks or Washougal folks and you are looking for something to do on Mothers day. Illahe Rare Plants will be one of a hand selected group of vendors at the Historic McMenamins Edgefield’s Mother Earth Plant Sale and Eco Fair. click here for details

Come and see us and the other amazing vendors and walk the absolutely fantastic gardens and grounds, enjoy some food and beverages and with a line up like this there is something for everyone! We will have some of our best drought tolerant, long blooming and tough plants for the summer ahead at this sale!

Lot’s of plants propagated from our self created “hell strip” the sand bed in front of the greenhouses is in blazing hot sun most of the day and we selected plants that thrive in these tough conditions and look absolutely stunning! Stop by Edgefield to have a look at our selection.

Edgefield is a special place for me for sure, I loved working at the R.S. Berry Garden but as a small non profit they couldn’t supply decent health insurance and while I was working there we got pregnant with Anya. I left the Berry for the assistant Garden Manager position at Edgefield mostly for the better benefits that I had to find as a young father and that is where I really learned gardening. Up to that point most of my school and career had been either massive specimen palm tree production, running around my grandparents orchard and beautiful rhododendrons, some university grade horticultural science and then rare plant propagation. I feel like even though it was a short stint the rounding out of the skills that learning real hori-hori knife in the soil, dirt under the nails, raingear on all winter gardening was huge for me. Kim Kincaid is an absolutely gifted gardener and what she has built over several decades at Edgefield is really something special, how she managed to cope with those icy east winds all these years is beyond me. I appreciate the jack of all trades that plants person that it forged me into. Speaking of Jacks, my mentor Jack Poff lived some of the last years of his life out in Troutdale and he would stop by the Edgefield to look over the massive concrete trough planters that reside just up the hill from the Greenhouse. They have gotten a bit eaten by conifers and other large woody plants over the years but back in those days they were filled with tiny treasures from Jack bringing little rooted fragments of Penstemons, Willows and Romanzoffias from his Halcyon days of plant hunting up in the gorge. One thing about Edgefield is that it has a garden component for just about everyone, from troughs to shade gardens, magnificent orchards and veg gardens, to collectors plants tucked around historic buildings hell, there is even a golf course if turf is your thing. This sale will be a fantastic way to spend a Sunday with mom or just out and about enjoying the plants and the now seemingly abundant sunshine. In case you missed it here is the link to click to learn more: Edgefield Mother Earth Plant Sale and Eco Fair

Trough Planter at illahe with Erigeron leiomerus, Lewisia serrata, Lewisia ‘Norma Jean’ and Androsace villosa var. jacquemontii

So if you have a trough or container to plant up for some summer enjoyment on your patio, the McMenamins Edgefield Mother Earth Plant and Eco fair will the be the perfect opportunity to get the plants for that! Hope to see you there.

But wait, there is more!…………Save the date for our Annual Illahe Nursery and Gardens rare plants open house, Saturday May 16th. We are featuring a primo early shopping experience for members of the Columbia-Willamette Chapter of NARGS who get in at 10am! Click here for details on how to join this fantastic group of rock gardeners and you can learn how to make and plant up troughs like the ones in these photo’s. If you can’t join the early group enjoy the sale from 11-2, we will have fantastic deals going on, as well as another of our super fun illahe scavenger hunts with local wine and free plants and more! More details on that coming soon, but save the date!

We love to soundly reject the notion that you “don’t have any more room for plants”, the best thing about illahe rare plants, is that you can tuck them just about anyware and every gardener has an empty pot laying around or better even an unused strawberry pot! Those are perfect for our plants.

We are busy shipping out those online orders and propagating for next years catalog as well as out pulling the inevitable weeds in the garden, it’s that time of year where we are so busy there is hardly a moment to sit in front of this computer (thank god!). So I probably wont’ be back with another reminder until we get closer to the open gardens. In the meantime, I will leave you with this: Maybe not everyones mother tried, but if yours did and mine certainly did, I wish them a Happy Mothers Day. Get mom some plants from illahe and you bet it will be the gift that keeps on giving.

P.S. The story goes that the reason the dead didn’t show up on the woodstock movie was because they hated the performance, they were apparently ‘intoxicated’, but also the equipment was struggling to stay grounded with the weather and they were getting shocked the whole time. Still, sometimes it’s best to see the outtakes and the cuts that didn’t make it to the final show. There are some treasures in this one for sure.