West Linn: Rogerson Clematis Garden

It took us three tries to be happy with our visit to the Rogerson Clematis Garden. 

They say there is always something blooming. There are other plants there, so this is true. There are daffodils and trees that blossom and all sorts of plants.

Clematis also blooms twice a year. First it blooms on last year's stock in the summer, then it puts forth new growth and blooms again in the fall.

 

But somehow, visiting when there is no clematis blooming feels like you are not getting the full impact.

We finally got it right.

We managed that by checking the Facebook page for updates: https://www.facebook.com/RogersonClematis

We went on July 8th. They had 362(!) clematis in bloom as of July 5th. Timing really is everything.

Brewster Rogerson started with four clematis plants in Kansas, and had almost 100 by the time he moved to Oregon in 1981.

Over the next twenty years, that collection grew to almost 500 plants, residing in North Plains.

Friends of the Rogerson Clematis Collection formed and located the collections current locations at Luscher Farms in West Linn over the next four years, moving 900 plants in December 2005.

One point of that story is about how exponential plant growth and breeding can be. Hobbyists may seem to take things to extremes, but it creates opportunities for others as well.

The grounds are divided into 14 gardens, with different themes like hedges or Baltic plants.

Those arrangements can provide ideas for browsers, but there are also volunteers who can answer questions, classes for home clematis gardeners, and an onsite research library. Along with notifications for events, the bulletin board had an Al's coupon someone was sharing.

The other point is that this location holds a different position on the Oregon's Mt. Hood Territory Heritage Trail.

Luscher Farms has its own history, but would probably not have made the trail on its own, without becoming home to the clematis collection.

Then Rogerson himself was a transplant, and a fairly recent one. However, what he did here drew the International Clematis Society here, making Oregon a destination for clematis fanciers.

With the move to West Linn, the gardens got a spot on the Hazelia Agri-Cultural Heritage Trail: https://www.ci.oswego.or.us/parksrec/hazelia-agri-cultural-heritage-trail-luscher

In fact, Brewster Rogerson is a part of Oregon agricultural history. 

https://pacifichorticulture.org/articles/remembering-brewster-rogerson-1921-2015/ 

If the path moves around more as the history gets more modern, once we started being able to fly and talk across continents, that kind of makes sense.

The gardens add beauty to an already scenic area with walking trails and parks.

It could be could to visit anytime, but I think there is something extra when there are hundreds of clematis blooming.

COVID: Very much outdoors, though if you were to take one of the classes or use the library, that would not be the case. There is plenty to see outside.

Accessibility: Paths are wide and smooth. They are not necessarily paved, but should be all right for most mobility devices.

https://www.rogersonclematiscollection.org/