Working the Farm

This week, pictures will say it better than words......
Every week my grandson and I walk to the farm just down the road, where a vast array of animals enjoy their days in an idyllic country setting. We help feed the chickens in enchange for eggs that he has learned to gather from the hen house. He also feeds the pigs....and sometimes, the goats, and Llamas! It is a magical time.


We have a farm of our own here at Cloudrest, but it is a farm without animals at the moment. I, instead, fertilize and weed my vegetable beds, and tend to the many grapevines that we have in the vineyard. At this time of year it's a chore just keeping up with eating and preserving all of the food.

Garden Bouquets and Country Rides

After a cool down and a day or two of showery weather, everything is looking refreshed! The dust has been washed off the leaves and colors are brighter. On my morning walk around the veggie garden I was entranced by the 'garden bouquets' that emerged around every corner. It's really hard to pick the deep purple Russian Kale when it looks so beautiful with the Basil and tall yellow Helianthiums. Nearby Echinacea sits among Queen's Ann Lace.

There is lots of produce to pick now that Summer is on the wane. It's been a busy week....I finished up a large landscape design and tried to fit in some bike riding so I'd be ready for the annual Vineride, which took place yesterday. Mid-week I had taken a 20 mile ride and was caught in a deluge of both rain and hail that fell out on a country road where I had no place to take cover. I was so wet that I decided to just continue on. When I finally got near home the sun was out and it appeared that our area hadn't received any rain at all!

Yesterday about 500 people cycled through the Oregon vineyard country of rolling hills dotted with farms and vineyards. The weather was overcast and only in the 70's which made for perfect conditions. My husband did the 100 mile route, leaving the start in Newberg at 6 am. I started with a friend around 9:30, and we did about 38 miles, going through the farm towns of Carlton and Yamhill. Near the end my legs and hands ached a bit and my neck muscles were tight, but on the whole, it was a great ride! The money raised goes to help children with cancer.....a truly worthy cause. ( http://www.vineride.com/) This ride takes place every August and is a great way to see the countryside just South of Portland.

Today I plan to do some garden puttering, and make sure everything is well watered. I also have a big bag of beans from the garden to blanch and freeze. They are predicting another change in our weather...with a swing back to the mid 90's and maybe even another 100 degree day! Hope that doesn't happen. The poor plants are having a hard time adjusting to these wild swings in the temperature. This past week we had night temps down in the low 50's and I had to get my fleece shirts out again!

If it does get hot again I'll make up some batches of Gazpacho soup...since we'll have all of the ingredients. It's the best on a hot day: Take 4-5 ripe tomatoes, a cucumber, 1 garlic clove, 1 onion, 1 red sweet pepper, 1 cup cold water, 1/2 cup olive oil, 1 Tbsp red wine vinegar, plus 1 cup of diced bread and salt and pepper...then put them all into your blender and churn until you have a slightly chunky texture. Voila!...dinner.

I'm anxious to get out riding again now that my legs are broken in! It's such a great way to really see things up close. Just the ordinary dry grasses and weeds along the roads were beautiful. Perhaps I'll tuck a camera and sketch pad in my pack and make a few stops along the way. Next week we'll be heading for the Oregon coast while my husband takes a photography workshop.... so I'll have another area to explore!

Celebrating fresh vegetables

Did I say it was going to get a bit warmer? Try 10 consecutive days above 90.....and four days over 100, topping out at a record 107 degrees! That was Portland.....up here at Cloudrest we were slightly cooler....at 103 for a few days. The grapes loved it, along with the hot peppers and tomatoes. Everything, as long as I watered, seemed to be growing as I watched. I did have to cover the lettuce with a sheet everyday, and worried that the grapes might get sunburned. We had put off 'hedging' the vines so at least they were partly shaded by the long arching canes. Once the heat wave broke, we had Gilberto come with his machete to do the needed trimming. So aside from a rather brown lawn ( we don't go overboard on that since we have a well ) and a few plants that suffered some scorched leaves, we're looking pretty lush around here. The veggie garden in particular is a jungle...and we're eating well!

I hadn't grown Broccoli in awhile and am amazed at the size of the heads. The plants, along with my purple kale, Japanese eggplant, and rainbow swiss chard are almost too gorgeous to pick. Fresh veggies right out of the garden are hard to beat for tenderness and flavor. The kitchen counter top is filling up with bowls of ripe tomatoes ( I love the bright orange variety) and piles of too many zucchini. Italian flat beans and French stringers add to the global mix. There is something very soothing about wandering about a vegetable garden on a warm summer morning or evening. The produce may feed the body but it also feeds the soul. Everyone should experience it. When we have decidedly urban guests for dinner I make a point of having them help me pick the vegetable that we'll be having for dinner that evening. It's amazing how many people have no idea how their food actually grows!

Besides the vegetables, my garden also contains roses, herbs, and perennials like rudbeckias, echinaceas, helianthiums, phlomis, lavendar, geranium, and alchemilla, along with annuals like sunflowers, and verbena bonariensis. The bees are everywhere doing their thing. On a large coneflower plant, nearly every flower often has a bee working diligently....providing a fascinating science lesson for my 7 year old grandson. Once the heat wave was over I was forced to wade into the jungle and hack away at the encroaching rose branches that were leaning into the tomato patch ( 22 plants). I also discovered that the winter squash plants had woven their way through the tomatoes, making it quite a challenge for picking! It was a good thing that we had

put in drip soaker hoses before the plants had gotten too big. Needless to say, a vegetable garden is serious business and does require both time and effort. You can't just leave it for a week. Here in the Portland area there has been a concerted effort to encourage small edible gardens....even in front yards, where there is often more sun. It's amazing how many raised beds are popping up. Large pots and containers, lining the front walkway or porch steps, can also house an amazing amount of produce.

On another note....having been inspired by the colorful garden beds that I saw during the recent APLD Conference here in Portland, I decided that my 30 year old border just south of the house could use an overhaul. The Geranium macrorrhizum, golden oregano and alchemilla had engulfed many of the prized plants. Three days and many sore muscles later, I am excited with the new textures and colors that were added. It will take a season or two for the plants to fill in and achieve the look that I want. Now I just need to stay on top of it and keep up a more regular maintenance schedule. This winter I'll heavily prune back both the Viburnum 'Spring Bouquet' and Viburnum davidi, which have gotten way too big over the past 30 years. Luckily, they can even be cut down almost to the ground and like rhododendrons, will grow back to a smaller scaled shrub. When you live somewhere for over 35 years, you will need to do some major editing!

I may not have done much bike riding during the heat wave.......but my muscles tell me that my gardening chores gave me plenty of exercise. I look forward to a more relaxed August where I can reap the rewards that the natural environment can give...both spiritually and physically. Next weekend is the 'Vineride'...a charity ride through Oregon wine country where you can pick 35 to 100 mile routes. I'll do the 35 and hubby will be doing the 100! ( he's been in training for the big Cycle Oregon ride in September) There's nothing better than a summer in Oregon!

Seeking Shade

As predicted..... Summer is flying by! And the weather appears to be making headlines again. We are headed for another heat wave with temperatures into the triple digits during this last week of July.

I'm just recovering from a very successful week long design conference put on by the Association of Professional Landscape Designer's here in Portland from July 12- 19th. During that time we had temperatures in the mid 90's, which surprised a lot of people coming from other areas. Our last rain was back in early June, when I last posted, and we've had no rain since. ( this is very typical for us, but many people think it rains here all year long) Talks were scheduled for the morning hours, with garden tours in the afternoon. Our private gardens, as well as the numerous parks and commercial projects, seemed to be surviving the heat pretty well..... it was the people who were wilting! Now it appears that we're headed for even higher temps. And on the East coast, where rain and cooler weather have been the norm, I'm sure my friends and relatives are wishing I could send some of our heat their way! Extremes of weather do seem to be more frequent....a product of Global warming?


While touring the gardens and urban parks, it became apparent how important structures are to the garden. They not only help to connect the garden to the house, but also can offer up instant shade, (pergolas, arbors, and shade houses) and bring in cooling elements such as water, sound and the colors of a refreshing oasis. Our own house has a deck on the West side covered by a wooden trellis. Honeysuckle vines cover the top and hummingbirds hover overhead while robins nest in the large rhododendron below. It's our outdoor dining room, complete with an antique iron chandelier, and framed views looking out over the garden.


While I was enjoying the APLD Conference, my hubby was busy redoing the curved steps that were first installed over 30 years ago around the deck. The main treads were aggregate, surrounded by the then popular
'railroad ties'....which had rotted away to the point of being unsafe. Once the wood ties were removed, new forms were built to enclose the remaining aggregate with a new aggregate edge. Our old gate, brought from Pennsylvania, was given new posts and installed at the top. The path looks wider and brighter! Now I just have to keep the ground covers from creeping onto the path.


When you live on 12 acres, there are always projects to be done. Having neglected my garden for most of June and July I had a bit of catching up to do. Perennials such as Alchimilla mollis, Geranium, and Oregano had taken over some of the beds, covering up the smaller gems. Other plants needed to be deadheaded and trimmed. Needless to say....I've filled up my compost bins and lost a few pound in the process! The veggie garden is also producing an overflow of produce.....and so far the deer have kept away. We have seen a mother and two fawns return to the property lately, but there aren't many new fresh leaves available to them at this point, and the garden is securely fenced.

On a sad note...our little 'Kitty', who was 20 years old and grew up sleeping on top of both of our Rottweiler's, succumbed to old age last week. She enjoyed spending her entire life on our property under the protection of our two dogs, and particularly loved to follow me around as I worked in the garden and flower beds. She never wandered too far away, which probably accounts for her longevity! She was buried under the trees next to our new Pagoda Fountain. ( A topic for another post)

Back to Normal

June has proven to be it's normal, fickle self....the sunshine left the day after my last post as the Portland area was hit with a violent thunder and lightening storm accompanied by high winds. These storms always bring back memories of my childhood days growing up on Long Island, not far from New York City, but they are not a common occurrence here in the Pacific Northwest. It was downright scary watching our large trees bend and twist in the wind, seeing branches flying through the air, and hearing the cracking of limbs. It bought the temperatures down and left a lot of debris. Anyone want to play 'Pick Up Sticks'? Luckily our grapevines had just been 'tucked' under the first row of wires so the majority of the new growth remains intact.



My weekend on the Oregon Coast, where I attended a fabulous sketch workshop, was even cooler and wetter than Portland....a typical phenomenon. The Sitka Center for Art and Ecology is truly a unique place. Located on Cascade Head, it is surrounded by lush rainforest and open meadows opening to views of both the Salmon River estuary and the wild Pacific. I stayed at a pole house right across from the cluster of buildings housing the art studios. For two days I sketched and was inspired by Ken O'Connell, a Professor from the University of Oregon, who has over 64 sketch books under his belt. His enthusiasm was catching! Aside from coming home with a filled sketchbook and new ideas, I gained a new appreciation for our natural environment and what it can offer. The beauty of a simple meadow, with long grasses and wildflowers laying over one another as deer and elk wandered through, will remain with me. I woke up to this image, for the bed was pushed up against tall windows looking out over the large meadow that came between the house and the estuary and ocean below. The house, a small cabin, had no phone, or television, or radio, or computer!



Back home, somehow refreshed and rejuvinated, I am waiting for the sun to reappear! It will.....for July is just around the corner, and that is when Oregon's Summer truly begins. I am happy for a bit of indoor time now....having a few designs to concern myself with. The clouds, with a few periods of fine drizzle, aren't hurting the garden, and actually make it easier to do some of the clean-up needed. And the Rose Festival just wouldn't be the same without a little of that
'liquid sunshine'!



















I look forward to starting another sketchbook and incorporating some of what I learned into my August workshop here at Cloudrest. I have come to feel that art, in all it's forms, is an ingredient of life just as important as food and drink! It can nurture the soul, slow you down, and sustain you when life becomes too complex.

We need this in today's world. We need to go back to a simpler time when things didn't seem so frantic or hurried. As we get older .....we need to stay busy and active doing the things that truly matter to us ....and not what is expected!

June is HOT!

For the past two weeks we've had many days with temperatures in the mid to high 80's and it's felt more like July than late Spring. It is especially unheard of to have warm, dry days during our annual Rose Festival in Portland! (our big downtown float parade is scheduled for June 6th) June is usually a transition month, with our 'real' rainless Summer starting in early July and often extending into October....an important weather trend for anyone with a vineyard!

The high temperatures have caused an explosion of bloom and growth in the garden.....Iris, roses, peony, daisy, rhododendrons and azaleas are all at their peak....and the grass is still green from all of our earlier rain. It is truly a beautiful time in Oregon.

But it's created a lot of work. Just when I've got a full schedule of designs to work on, I'm also having to think about sprinkler systems and daily watering. ( not to mention the burst of weeds that have sprouted and need to be pulled ) The Veggie garden is taking off.....16 tomato plants, beans, cukes, squash, lettuce, basil, eggplant, kale, spinach and swiss chard.... and the grape plants are doing a lot of catching up. The vines have been sprayed with their first round of sulfur and are in the process of having the trunk suckers removed. Every day I make new discoveries walking down the vineyard rows and wandering through the garden spaces.....and it brings both inspiration and renewed energy. It's becoming harder to find places in the garden for the iris my neighbor keeps bringing me....but who can resist? The birds are also singing a virtual symphony during the early morning hours. We've discovered a wonderful Robin's nest built of grasses, twigs and lichen with three robust and hungry babies inside. It was built in a large rhododendron next to our kitchen deck making for perfect viewing. The three babies are growing fast and are having trouble fitting into the nest!

I've come to the conclusion that birds have to work a lot harder than we do when it comes to raising their young and keeping their house in order!

It's not all work and no play....this weekend I'll be heading to the Sitka Art Center on the Oregon Coast for a two day sketching workshop. I'm looking forward to being in the beautiful and rugged Cascade headlands, which juts out into the Pacific Ocean and runs along the North boundary of the Salmon River just above the town of Lincoln City. Nature is at it's best there, and should provide unlimited possibilities for sketching.

I'm wondering what the rest of the Summer will be like.....I only know that it will go by way too fast!

The Color of Spring

I'm back to drawing leaves.....a photo of Fall leaves touched with frost inspired the sketch to the left, but the soft colors are also reflected in the new leaves of Spring. Our typical fickle Spring has brought on a chorus of fresh leaves. It's amazing how many different shades of green exist, but leaves can add more than one color to our outdoor world. Flowers aren't the only vehicles that add additional hues to the Spring palette. Our walnut trees are usually the last to leaf out and the orchard develops a hazy, rusty, burnt umber canopy as the new coppery leaves emerge. Then there's the Tri-Color Beech with its bronze red leaves fringed with white hairs! And the wonderful Cornus Hedgerow Gold bringing flecks of golden yellow, white and green leaves into the picture. Rosa rubrifolia is one of my favorite foliage plants and seems to sprout up in the best places around the garden, showing off blue-grey leaves, followed by tiny pink flowers in June. We can't forget the new leaves of Spiraea Goldflame or Limemound, and the rich reds of Berberis.

I haven't posted in over a month, partly because the garden and classes occupied more time than I realized! We also traveled North, spending a few days in Seattle and then participating in the 'Tour de Lopez' bike event on Lopez Island in the San Juans. I took it easy....only doing 21 miles! Sunny weather but only 52 degrees made for an invigorating ride. Back home I started my Colored Pencil Workshop here at Cloudrest that continues every Wednesday this month. After some warm up exercises with the pencils, my students started out by doing a leaf study.....selecting from a collection of dried Fall leaves that exhibit interesting colors and veining patterns. We'll be moving on to sky studies and more complex scenes over the next few weeks.

Hints of Spring have also brought out interest in renewal.... leading to three new garden design clients. Deb, Izzy, and Adriana are all in various stages of getting plans drawn up. It's always exciting to cooperatively work on design solutions. I'm also hoping to plant out my seedlings in the vegetable garden soon, but the cool nights and frequent downpours have slowed things up a bit. The fountain has been cleaned ( and for some reason, our resident frogs survived the ordeal!)...the grass has been cut.....it's time for Summer!