Lonesomeville

Last weekend I went to Lonesomeville Pottery Company's open garden and sale. The sale is held annually inside the collective's beautiful old farmhouse in Southeast Portland. We were there by 10:45 and the main floor "showroom" was already stuffed with people buying Lonesomeville's unique art pottery and seconds available that day only. I could hardly get inside to look and I didn't get any pics of the pottery as a result (it's worth a look at their website to see the selections.)

Outside was a different matter. The week had been wet (no surprise) and may have deterred a few garden gazers, but while we were there it was dry and the sun actually came out a few times. It wasn't very crowded so we wandered around the grounds.

Flowerbeds surround the house and grounds, and I love the way they find inexpensive and creative ways to separate them from the lawn.

Their hostas are surprisingly intact for as much rain as we've had.

Someone has built great structures and seats for birds and people.

If it had been a little dryer, I would have been in one of these chairs for a while.

Clematis "H.L. Young"at its peak of bloom.

 Fun art was everywhere.

Don't you think Longview Ranch needs a tiki?

The workshop was also open. I'm always curious to see how ceramic studios function.

The glazes and samples make a great still life.

Everything was super tidy for the open house. It can't be like this every day, right?

I have no idea what Tall Texas is, but I love the name.

Back out into the garden.

A blush pink rose was just coming into bloom on this arbor.

The garden had a number of small vegetable beds, some covered by these protective screens. These would be great for strawberries, although I didn't see any. In fact, I wondered why the specific veggies planted there needed protection. The screen frames appeared to be movable, but you'd need a couple of strong backs, I think.

These succulent plantings had fabulous color and texture.

Throughout the garden we found trowels stuck seductively in the beds: Was this a convenience for the gardeners, or a suggestion to their visitors?

They like birds here and there were plenty of sparrows around that morning. Lonesomeville has created such great habitat, especially in the hedges at the back of the huge lot, that they probably get lots of other birds when there's not a crowd around.

There's a hidden quality to so much of this garden.

And they know how to have fun with simple materials. This is an upside-down tomato cage, and an idea I'm going to steal.