Euonymus ‘Emerald Gaiety’
I’m going to backdate the next few posts in order to seem like someone who is organized and on top of things when, in fact, these posts were written back in January. Between hunting for a new job, settling in after the move and generally getting my feet back under me, I’ve left Plant Propaganda more than a little neglected. But I’m glad to see that traffic to the site is as high as it’s ever been, which warms my heart on this rainy Oregon evening. I promise your faith will be rewarded.

To start, here are a few photos from a trip I took to Portland Nursery shortly after moving back. Believe it or not, I had never been to Portland Nursery in the 18 years I’d lived in the city. No wonder this place is a local legend – it’s a gardener’s paradise, and even in the middle of winter I was surprised to find a wide assortment of beautiful, cold-tolerant plants, and beautiful large-scale landscape arrangements that made me long for a house of my own. After my visit, I can’t believe anyone would ever settle for a barren garden in winter! See some of the treasures I found below, and be sure to check out my Winter Garden board over on Pinterest for a plethora of plants that look good this season.

Pieris japonica
The red branches of coral bark maple, Acer ‘Winter Flame’.
Euonymus fortunei ‘Emerald N’ Gold’

Gold atlas cedar, Cedrus atlas ‘Aurea’.

Orange winter foliage on evergreen huckleberry, Vaccinium ovatum.
Variegated Japanese Aralia, or Fatsia japonica.

The bright yellow blooms of witchhazel, Hamamelis virginiana.
In love with the natural rust color of Thuja ‘Fire Chief’.

Purple scallywag holly, Ilex ‘MonNieves’.

Beautiful pink-veined leaves of Helleborus ‘Penny’s Pink’.

Phormium ‘Tricolor’ and Euphorbia ‘BlackBird’ – both frost tender.

Photos © Plant Propaganda

I have to admit. Maybe it’s the hipster in me, but I feel a little possessive and just a little smug when something alternative that I’ve been into becomes mainstream. I know I shouldn’t care, but I can’t help it. The feeling is impulsive. So when I opened the new October 2014 issue of Sunset Magazine to a spread featuring carnivorous plants and crested cacti, I felt a lot of different things.

Mostly, though, in spite of my selfish tendencies, I felt excited. And a little validated. Here were these marvelous plants that I collect and care about, with their own spread in a magazine I idolize. Beautiful, haunting photographs shot by the talented Aya Brackett accompany the piece, written by Johanna Silver. I’ve got to credit the folks at Sunset: they even recruited Rob Co of The Pitcher Plant Project to provide plants and insight. Which makes me feel, like, totally jealous.

All that being said, I did manage to snap a few photos to tantalize you guys. See, I can share. Right?

Original article, photos and content © Sunset Magazine

Photos of the magazine in action © Plant Propaganda

If you need to know more, be sure to buy the October 2014 issue before it’s too late!

Jonas Wood is an artist with a BA in Psychology and an MFA in Art History. A transplant from Boston to Los Angeles, he paints the various interiors that he visits and inhabits. Which, coincidentally, contain a lot of houseplants. His work has been called Modernism and Pop Art, likened to everyone from Matisse to Picasso. To me, the flat, slightly askew interiors remind me of Richard Linklater’s rotoscoped films, like Waking Life. What I love about these works is how simple the geometries are, yet Jonas includes enough detail to be able to identify some rather unusual specimens. I spy three Dorstenia foetida, for example – see if you can spot them all!

Art © Jonas Wood

After visiting the Organic Mechanic and Matt Gil Sculpture Gardens, the Flingers headed over to Annie’s Annuals for a fantastic catered lunch and a sponsor talk from Dramm. I had never given Dramm much credit as a manufacturer of garden supplies – anything produced in a shade called “Berry” seemed to me more gimmicky than functional. But after watching and handling a few of their watering products, I came home and ordered some of their Touch N’ Flow rain wands and revolvers for the nursery. We abuse both these products like there is no tomorrow, and have destroyed just about every brand Home Depot has to offer. So I’ll be sure to put up a review of how the Dramm products hold up in comparison.

After lunch, the Flingers were released to roam Annie’s 2.5 acre growing grounds. I had been before, but I doubt if it’s even possible to get bored there, what with the ever-rotating crop of seasonal plants. For those who don’t know, Annie’s Annuals is a mostly mail-order nursery specializing in selections that are often hard-to-find, and always guaranteed to thrive in the Mediterranean climate in which they are grown.

Read more…

Last weekend, I had the good fortune to attend the 2013 Garden Blogger’s Fling in San Francisco. It was my first Fling as a blogger, although many who attended had been to all or almost all of the five Flings held since 2008. I can’t say enough good things about the event, the attendees and the women who organized it. Over the course of three days we were bussed to various gardens, private and public, throughout the Bay Area. We had delicious box lunches and catered dinners, did lots of shopping, talking and even a little drinking.

I was nervous that I might come across as too much of a novice, or “not a real garden blogger.” But, although I was the youngest Flinger, the mix of gardeners from around the world meant that we each had things to share and things to learn. And the concept behind Plant Propaganda seemed universally well-received, which meant a lot. I consider these individuals my peers, and some I follow with fervor. It was great to get a chance to sit down and chat with them in person.

All that being said, I can’t wait for the Portland Fling next year! Until then, I’ve prepared a few posts outlining the highlights of the trip.

On the first day, the buses dropped us outside the facade of an enormous high-rise just a few blocks from Union Square, right on the edge of the Tenderloin. Never would anyone aboard have guessed that, after winding down stairwells and wandering through dark, mildewy tunnels we would emerge in an enormous courtyard, shaded by a spreading canopy of trees overhead. The Organic Mechanic garden is the creative brainchild of Sean Stout and James Pettigrew, and features a lush palette of just about everything you could want. There are aeoniums, cacti, dracaena, euphorbia and other drought tolerant varieties growing in beds alongside shade and water-loving perennials like ferns, impatiens

The garden was full of various reclaimed and mechanic art, like the face sculpture, driftwood mobile, mounted staghorn fern and gorgeous Hindu statue pictured above. And in addition to mechanic finds, there were lots of organic treasures, too. Above left is a Ceiba speciosa, or silk floss tree, planted in a large pot and mulched with corks! Right, I spotted a group of carnivorous plants growing at the edge of a pond, including a butterwort, sundew, flytrap and this pitcher plant.

Read more…