A plant playground at the Risdahl-Pittman Garden

Susan and Guy Risdahl-Pittman described their Milton, Washington, plot astatine the Puget Sound Fling past period arsenic an eclectic works playground. It’s besides a beautifully designed abstraction with winding paths to research and a naturalistic pond to enjoy, implicit with birch log lying crossed it.

I started exploring the plot connected the acold broadside of the house, wherever paths are shady and narrow, providing flight from the prima connected a bright, lukewarm day.

An etched factual sculpture, vaguely industrial, rises from the ferns — a signpost of the Anthropocene?

Persicaria is 1 of my favourite flowering plants successful cooler-summer climates.

Clematis clambering into a tree

Under a sculptural conifer, a bluish hanging lantern adds a color-echoing accent.

Yellow loosestrife and azalea, I think

Uh-oh, a gardener’s been buried! Pairs of upside-down Wellies were accenting a fewer beds — humorous hose guides, maybe?

Glass creation was a taxable passim the gardens of the Puget Sound Fling, fitting for a spot celebrated for the solid creation of Dale Chihuly.

Astrantia, different Fling favourite angiosperm of mine

This seat caught my oculus for its distinctive Pacific Northwest style.

Pretty foliage combo

The pond successful the halfway of the plot is appealing with its tufts of aureate sedge, birch log, and floating solid spheres.

A modern waterfall spills into the pond astatine the different end.

It’s planted up beautifully astir the edges.

Tall pots are placed to bully effect passim the garden.

A spider lily leans retired for inspection.

I emotion the foliage texture successful this bed, on with the coral-pink daylily.

Inula appeared successful respective Fling gardens, including this one.

Bees emotion it.

Peeling orangish bark

Hydrangeas echoing a bluish partition and pot

Feeling the blues

And pinks

In the midst of my plot exploring, the bluish ensemble of garden designer and ceramic artist Michelle Derviss caught my eye. I had to get a photo!

Look astatine her hat! It’s dressed up with a sprig of fir, a fir cone, and a rhododendron leafage (if I’ve ID’d them correctly), positive a mates of gardening pins. Perfection.

In the sunny beforehand garden, I admired much chromatic plot creation and colorful flowerbeds…

…and much ample pots arsenic accents — 1 of my ain favourite gardening moves.

Up next: The works gait and store astatine VanLierop Garden Market, wherever we had lunch. For a look backmost astatine the Italianate Andersen Garden, click here.

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Digging Deeper

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The station A works playground astatine the Risdahl-Pittman Garden appeared archetypal connected Digging.