Yes it’s a 2 hour drive. Yes, it would be crazy to do and WOW do you really want to be reasonable? Read the synopsis then get your ticket (s), love to see you at one of the gardens!
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The garden tour is being hosted by the Village at the Falls and supports a ‘sister’ village to our own Rainy Day Village (Who you going to call’?). This is a once in a lifetime opportunity, don’t miss it !
2023 GARDEN & ART TOUR, synopsis of the gardens
1. This garden features lots of color and trees in a rural area which looks natural with rolling grassy areas, walkways, and many shrubs, as well as various eating areas and water features. If you would like to bring a picnic, a few tables set up, and their daughter will have snacks out to share. – is also an artist and her garden art and mosaics will be for sale, as will those crafted by other local artists. The Oregon City Garden Club will have some plants for sale.
2. This small farm features a barn (with artists inside), a permaculture vegetable garden, and many flowers and trees as well as a beautiful fruit tree in the front which will have tables and chairs for picnickers. Their daughter is a caterer and will be selling charcuterie cups (think meat, cheeses & veggies in a paper cone cup).
3.For pure fantasy you can’t beat B’s garden! Can you even imagine walking through a garden of Bowling Ball Trees, fairy houses, and even a Sasquatch family? This garden is complete with three water features, hostas and ferns, all on one acre. There will be plenty of artists here, too.
4. – – and her partner own one of the historic homes in older Oregon City. From the curbside the entire neighborhood admires her brightly flowered front entrance area, as well as the Heritage Sycamore Tree which dominates the front yard. The back yard has a great arbor and many plantings and shrubs, but what catches your eye are the two CATIOS that they have placed there for their cats to enjoy the back yard with them!
5. In the front stands a huge 120+ year old cedar tree which is lighted day and night now. As you proceed to the back you will see the makings of a basic English garden with with many perennials combined with colorful annuals. A large pergola and interesting fence will give you some ideas on how to take a small area and make it into a great backyard outdoor space to share with neighbors and friends.
6. As we talked with – – about his home being on the Garden Tour we kept looking next door and seeing a brand new garden emerging from bare ground. It was so fascinating to see new plantings every week that we thought there may be people looking for new ideas on how to just “start” their garden and get it looking very nice in less than a year. Be sure to talk with A and R to get some ideas on what might work for you, and maybe even what NOT to do. There will be hot dogs and chips for sale at this garden, as well as artists and crafters doing their thing.
7. At this house you can’t help but think you have walked into a secret rain forest with all of the huge ferns growing right out of sheer basalt rock. R and her husband spent 33 years turning a beautiful but inhospitable pile of boulders into the most beautiful garden imaginable. Artist Ben Dye contributed sculptures and a wonderful fence made of recycled steel. Artist Jean Chapin’s ceramic art populates the garden, and Kate Simmons’ metal mesh piece, “The Ripped Bodice” grace the the back of the house. Mirena Oberg and her whimsical ceramics will be the featured artist at this location, along with Tanith Yates. Parking is limited, so please see shuttle information below.
8. S’s garden overlooks Willamette Falls and is a miracle to behold! She and her husband carved over 30 different garden rooms out of the sides of the cliff that was previously her back yard, carrying dirt and rocks by wheelbarrows up steep paths themselves over the years. Each garden room is uniquely different and this is a garden to see once in your lifetime. Much of the area has steep pathways, so probably not a good choice for those who are physically impaired, although there is much to see in the flatter area near the house. Parking for this garden is limited, so shuttles are provided from the parking lot on the corner of Center and S 2nd Avenue, the old location of the Oregon City Public Works Offices.
