Salem, Oregon: Adelman Peony Garden

We visited the Adelman Peony Garden on the same day that we visited Schreiner's Iris Gardens. The two locations are only a couple of miles apart, on opposite sides of I-5.

They nonetheless have very different approaches. While Schreiner's had multiple iris beds in orderly rows, Adelman's has a more diverse set-up. They may be better for getting general ideas for your garden.

Peonies are the stars, and they grow more than 500 peony varieties...

... but you will also find arrangements of rocks and fountains, and trees and shrubs of different heights.

The nursery is open to the public at bloom time at no charge. Bloom time lasts from late April through early June. We saw some flowers fully open, and some still in tight buds.

The showroom and two acres of display garden is set among 25 acres of production fields.

If you find varieties that you like, you can order for fall shipment.

There is plenty to like, in different sizes and colors and even in the quantity and arrangement of petals.

Some are a lot like roses, but others reminded me more of camellias.

Adelman's has both herbaceous and the woodier itoh peonies available. Both types are perennial, and some have been documented to live for 50 to 70 years. You may find something that will look beautiful in your garden for years to come.

Ideally, this could be how you feel about your own garden.

https://peonyparadise.com/

Salem, Oregon: Schreiner's Iris Gardens

You'll be noticing a lot of garden posts over about a five week spread (starting with Duniway Lilac Garden last week) because it is spring: spring to early summer flowers are blooming!

The next two subjects were quite close together and visited on the same day. Though their specialties were different, both of them had many lupines.

The lupines were there as accents and complimentary colors and textures, but this post is really about the irises.

Schreiner's Iris Gardens are open through May 31st. Purchasing from them is one thing, but having the opportunity to walk among the display beds allows you to experience a very charming spot.

In addition, it smells fantastic. That is not something I can convey in the blog, but it smelled so good!

They also breed and sell allium, which were also displayed in the bed.

The variety of colors was amazing. If you are very particular about what specific color will fill out your garden bed, you should be able to find it.

For us, it was just about being out in the fresh air and taking in the beauty.

We did miss the entrance on the first pass, but this allowed us a nice view of the growing fields. Those would be too vast to explore productively, but the show beds are a nice introduction.

Then you have the option to order flowers for your garden, or to bring home cut flowers, or look at other selected products.

There are only nine days left! Do purchase tickets in advance through the web site.

https://www.schreinersgardens.com/

(If you go, you may wish to combine it with Adelman Peony Gardens, as we did. They are only 2.6 miles away. https://peonyparadise.com/)

Portland, Oregon -- Duniway Lilac Garden

I have been wanting to check out the lilac garden while it was in bloom since around 2012. Walking down Terwilliger Road to where it joins with Sam Jackson Parkway, I noticed this sign.

The garden dates back to 1935 and contains hundreds of lilacs. Even a utility box can look fancy in that setting.

I had been wondering about parking. Certainly TriMet is an option, with routes 8 and 68 both stopping nearby, but there is a lot across from the Shell station, on the opposite side of the street. I think the majority of the visitors were parking there.

I actually started from Barber (Route 12), going around Duniway Track and Park, which has a path connecting. There is more park, with several horseshoe pits. I would not recommend that route, except that the area is so beautiful.

Around the track there are many dogwood trees, and then as you come up more around Marquam Gulch there are taller, greener trees. Then, as you approach the lilacs themselves, even before you see them there is the heavenly scent.

Then you get there, and there are so many lilacs.

There are shrubs of different shades and heights and thicknesses.

They are clustered in small groupings, and in a large circle, and spread out.

I have no idea how carefully planned the arrangement was, but I found it very pleasing.

It is really a fairly small section of a larger green space. For most months of the year, it would just be more green space.

Sometimes timing is everything.

Other plants are around and add some nice accents, but you cannot forget the real star at this time of year.

There should be at least some blooms up through June. I used the Facebook page to check.

Actually there are two Facebook pages. Neither are great, but not a lot of information was needed.

https://www.facebook.com/pages/Duniway%20Lilac%20Park/123640401048353/

https://www.facebook.com/pages/The%20Lilac%20Garden%20at%20Duniway%20Park,%20Portland%20Oregon/218622388525645/ 

For more on the history, see https://www.portlandpf.org/the-lilac-garden-at-duniway-park.

Beaverton, Oregon -- Jan's Paperbacks

We decided that Independent Bookstore Day would be a great day to make it over to the new Jan's Paperbacks location.

Perhaps "new" is not exactly the right word. The move happened in 2018, but given that Jan's opened at the Aloha location in 1981, downtown Beaverton still does feel a little new. However, this location allows for an adorable reading dragon sign.

I don't know if this is supposed to be the exact same dragon, but I think we can agree that a lot of people who like dragons like reading, so it seems like a good combination. If not all of those dragon fans are into Science Fiction, well, some are, and might appreciate this display.

Obviously there are changes under COVID, where cozy reading corners are temporarily on hold, and while multiple customers can browse, they need to do so in different sections.

It is nonetheless enjoyable to browse, and the guiding was done in a friendly and efficient manner.

In chatting about the pandemic, we were told that a lot of customers have said this is their first stop post-vaccination. I think that makes sense. It is familiar and comforting, and full of books.

There will be something there for you.

https://www.janspaperbacks.com/

Oregon Ag Fest

Maybe it is not sheer luck to find something when you are always looking for something, but we literally discovered the night before that a COVID-safe version of Ag Fest was happening in Canby. We decided to go.

Not being familiar with the area around the Clackamas County Fairgrounds, we initially missed the entrance, because one large lot was set up with queuing. It was like being in line at Disneyland in your car.

Obviously the fest is to celebrate and promote Oregon agriculture. One of the first displays was a long table with settings for every person fed by the average family farm.

Ag Fest represents both the history and the future, with many displays of technology.

The rough order of the displays were farm crops, followed by forestry, with orchards in between. Here are our hazelnut samples:

Of course part of forestry is also salvage and replanting, as was shown.

Then it was time for livestock, for which we are the biggest suckers.

Because of the car situation there was no petting, but it was still fun to look.

Sheep have some of the most storied history in Oregon, but we also have some newcomers, like llamas.

Of course, it can be hard being around dairy without getting some kind of taste of dairy.

And, it's important to participate fully to write a good review. Obviously we had to get cones AND grilled cheese sandwiches.

Normally Ag Fest happens at the State Fairgrounds in Salem, and thousands of people attend. We were told that a lot of people bring wagons because there are so many samples available.

I know it's not the same, but they did a good job of recreating it. We had posters, crafts, color sheets, young plants, Bob's Red Mill bars, a nice tote bag, and -- of course -- the hazelnuts.

We were very happy that we got to go.

 https://oragfest.com/