Today's photos are from Jeanne Cronce (See her garden HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.) She says, "My husband Robin and I went to the Bloedel Reserve a couple of weekends ago. I took these pictures thinking of sharing with all of you. This was a beautiful day right after a few days of heavy rain so this makes everything so fresh and clean. We thought the colors of the deciduous trees would be bright and colorful but we have had an extended summer! Bloedel Reserve is on Bainbridge Island in Washington state. This is a 150 acre estate with beautiful old growth forests, meadows, trails, sweeping lawns, Japanese gardens, and a beautiful old French-style home. If you are ever in the area this would be a nice place to experience!" Wow, Jeanne, what a beautiful and stately property! How relaxing it must have been to stoll the grounds. So nice. Thanks for sharing it with us.
SEND ME PICS OF YOUR GARDEN! Email me at [email protected]. Thanks! –Michelle
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Comments
I love the Bloedel Reserve, I'm sure these photos are lovely but on my ipad I can't view the sideways ones very well since when you turn your ipad the photos flip again. I hope Michelle can turn them to make it easier to view. The Birch grove is one of my favorite parts of the garden,your photo is beautiful Jeanne.
Jeanne do you and Robin belong to the NPA maybe we will meet on one of the garden tours next Spring,I would love that. If you two don't belong it's a great way to meet new gardeners and view the many gardens.
Hi Nurserynotnordstrom! That's great that you have enjoyed this place before. So as you know there is so much more to see! Yes, the birch gardens are so beautiful. Pictures just cant quite capture the beauty of it all. I sure would like to plant a birch area here. We do have two river birches that are nice but I sure like the white trunks ! My husband tells me that I cant have it all and he is right! Its getting to be where I cant take care of it all and we have just made a new berm!
My husband really isn't into gardening. He loves to fish and fish! Also he likes bike riding on his Harley. But he helps me out sometimes with his little tractor by digging up areas to plant or picking up large plants that wont fit in our Subaru. He is a great guy. He is retiring this next May so maybe he will enjoy things around our home more and find out that he likes gardening!
You know, I had tried to join the NPA in Gig Harbor but after my first meeting with them they dropped me because they had too many members in that area. So I didn't continue on with them. So now I have more time in the garden anyway. But I sure do enjoy meeting other gardeners and see their gardens! Well good day to you and enjoy the season!
Good heavens, it never occurred to me that a garden group wouldn't want to have as many members as possible. One can only say, "Hmmph, their loss!" I have never joined a club myself because I am always too busy gardening but I do enjoy when our area has open gardens to tour. Come to think of it, I guess gpod is my garden club.
Hello Meander ~ I really do agree with you, gpod IS a garden club isn't it, and a wonderful one to be a part of. Aren't we just so fortunate that Michelle has created this great outlet for all of our garden lust. ^_^
Yes...this is the best! We get to see gardens from all over the world! What a fun job Michelle!
Jeanne when you join the NPA you don't have to belong to any group once you pay your money you get your catalog of all of the gardens and a membership card and a discount of 10% at participating nurseries. Be sure to put your husbands name down with yours because the price is for two people. It is so worth it we have seen some amazing gardens. You could have yours on one of the tours also because it is garden tour worthy. I have never heard of a group not wanting a new member that's seems crazy to me.
It's a space thing. The NPA neighborhood group I belonged to was closed from time to time when they reached capacity for meeting in each others' homes. The larger organization is always open to all, of course. I agree with you that the open gardens are a terrific benefit. Full disclosure--I'm a new board member. And to get back to today's featured garden, I am very tempted to go over to the Bloedel this weekend to finally see it for myself. Just lovely!
The first time I posted the pics half of them were sideways so I went back in and fixed them. Maybe you saw the first version? Are they upright on your screen now?
Yes thank you so much Michelle,I appreciate you fixing that for all of us.
What a lovely place to visit, reflect and enjoy nature.
Hi Perennially Crazy! Have you not been here yet? It is so nice to visit here. They do have educational tours, music events, garden parties and other events as well. It is probably about a one and a half hours drive from the "Narrows Bridge". You should see the Japanese gardens! Not all the pictures made it thru the email. sorry about that. But if you would like to go let me know! Have a great day!
Not yet but would love to visit one day. There's always something nice to see in Washington state when we visit and we try to line up a couple of sights when we get a chance to visit. It would be great way to meet up too! If not, perhaps we can meet at the Flower Show one year? Have a great week. Thanks again for sharing this wonderful sanctuary with us.
i do really love the old estate gardens and a peek of life back in the day. It's all beautiful and I especially like the huge tree trunk/buttresses along that path but my favorite pic is the one of you and your husband. it's so nice to put a face to the gardens we have enjoyed/// makes it more human and gives a feeling of "knowing" each other.
Hi Jeff..Yes, I have been wanting to post a picture of me and my husband but can you believe that this is the only one I have! It is great to place each of us with a face for sure. This old estate is so beautiful. These pictures don't show enough of how it really is. The Japanese gardens were so beautiful but a lot of the pics I sent in didn't make it thru the email. I guess iam not so smart on the silly smart phone! It has always fascinated me on the past lives of these kind of areas. I sure would love to go back in time for a couple of days to experience it and see what the country looked like. There was one pic I had sent that didn't make it of a nurse log with about three other trees growing out from it. The nurse log had to of been at least 5 ft. across. Its a great place to see. The house is so nice and simple inside. French doors going out onto a patio. They have talks and music events and garden parties as well. Well enjoy the day. Oh and I heard that the east coast is already getting snow!
Lovely pictures, Jeanne, and the ones with the pond/lake are particularly picturesque.These grounds look so serene and beautifully cared for. Did you and your husband have the place pretty much to yourselves? Hard not to have fantasies of life in earlier times when surrounded by such elegant beauty.
Hi meander1... When we got to the pond we had just come out of part of the forest of trees and huge rhododendrons. It was a grand entrance to the manicured lawns and the big pond area. Sure wish I could of captured the sense of that for you. There were not very many people there when we were but as we were leaving the parking lot was getting quite full. Mornings are best for sure. Talk about fantasies! I sure would of enjoyed staying there at the house! It has tall French doors leading out to quiet little patios. It is really a modest little place. Very serene and peaceful. When we go catch shrimp or crab off the shores you can see this place from the water as a tiny little place amongst the trees. Have a wonderful season!
Sounds like the original owners had their priorities right...more beautifying of the land and less house.
Wonderful ....looks so lovingly cared for ....thank you so much for letting a far away eager European explore alongside you ....
Hi Christiane.. So glad you enjoyed these! When it comes to gardens or gardening the distance between us seems so close! A universal language I suppose! Have a wonderful season!
Thanks for sharing great photos of one of my favorite places in the universe! I wish I had planned more time to visit. It really is a wonderland and a must-see.
That's great Tim that you were able to see this beautiful estate. It is a full day of looking and walking. Enjoy your day!
What a gorgeous estate. So much property beautifully landscaped and gardened. Would love to see this in person. Thank you for sharing your photos.
Hi NC Yarden... if you are ever in the Seattle area you should check this out. If so let me know. Its a fun place to explore.
Hi Diane... It is a gorgeous place. An old log barren used to own it. They would come from Seattle by boat and spend time here. But now of course it has been turned over to all of us to enjoy! The pumpkins or squash that you see in these photos were grown there which totally surprises me because I didn't know we could get huge squash like that in our area. But they did! They were placed all around and thru the woods. I wish all the other pics would of made it thru the email process. There was so much more to see in the Japanese gardens. You could probably look it up on line to see more. Well enjoy the day!
Thank you for that beautiful garden tour.
You are so welcome, VikkiB! It's fun to share...
A lovely place. The first photo reminds me of Longwood. We are blessed here in Maryland to be only 2 hours away. Plus we have Winterthur and Chanticleer close by as well. A dream of mine to travel around the states and see all these beautiful gardens. Is there an RV in my future? I go to Longwood once a year or more. It seems central MD and that part of Pennsylvania are very close in growing conditions. If it grows at Longwood, then it's a good bet I can grow it too. So I do a lot of plant research by going to Longwood, reading plant labels and taking lots of photos.
Thanks, really nice photos, I feel like I just walked around there.
Hi HellofromMD...that is wonderful how you live close to those gardens! Some day I would love to see the east coast and all the old estates and gardens. Even small gardens are a real treasure to experience and meet the gardeners. So glad you enjoyed the pictures!
Thank you Jeanne! This looks like a wonderful place to wander around and enjoy beautiful vistas and the majesty that is only possible in large-scale old gardens. I'm also a big fan of massive old trees and of birch groves. Thanks for including the photo of Robin and yourself, maybe we'll meet in person at the Seattle flower show next February.
Hi Grannymay! Yes, there are some beautiful trees and canyons too. I would enjoy so much to meet up with you and others in Seattle for the show. Hope it all works out to do that!
Thank you for sharing this! It is now on my list of gardens to visit. You must have had a wonderful time.
Hey Kathy...glad you enjoyed them. There is so much more there to see. Pictures just never seem to show what it's really like. There are also a couple of great nurseries around there!
How incredibly beautiful, Jeanne. Thank you for introducing those of us that have never been to the Bloedel Reserve to a remarkable estate... and to you and Robin! What a treat to be able to put face to words.
There are so many things to love in the photos you posted, but I have to say I am a sucker for Harry Lauder's Walking Stick. (It is a HLWS, right?) The container filled with those insanely curvy branches dripping with moss and lichens sent me over the moon! Thanks ;)
Hi sheila...yes aren't those wonderful containers! Sure wouldn't mind having a couple of those around my house! They are the walking stick.. It is nice to have a face to the name for sure. We finally got a picture of us together. Well have a great holiday!
I was just there yesterday. Great photos.
Jeanne, thank you for the tour. Would you believe we have lived here for 46 years and have never been to Bloedel Reserve! I can see I should adjust my priorities! Love the water vistas and the birches and the great old trees. Thanks for the picture of you and your husband too - now I feel like I almost know you. Love this blog! I agree - this is our garden club, and there is no size limit or meeting time. We can just enjoy at our leisure.
I also agree with Michaela - too busy gardening to join a club and go to meetings. Altho I made an exception for Master Gardeners- it's a great service organization. As February gets closer, we will have to coordinate all our schedules and meet at the F&GS in Seattle. That would really be great. And Jeff and David, if you ever get out this way, let us know you are coming and we can plan to meet.
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