We’re thrilled to welcome Loree Bohl, Portland gardener, author, and the creative force behind the popular danger garden blog, as the featured speaker for HPSO’s Annual Meeting on November 9th at PSU’s Hoffmann Hall. Before her upcoming talk on container gardening, we chatted with Loree about her garden influences, the plants that shaped her, and why foliage always takes center stage.   HPSO: Let’s start at the beginning—what’s your very first gardening memory? Loree: I’ve heard many other gardeners answer this question, but I’ve never stopped to think back to mine. My first memory of being really aware of plants… 

We’re counting down to PlantFest 2025, happening October 4th at Clackamas Community College, and this year, we’re thrilled to welcome Lisa Graff, founder of Lux Perennials Nursery, as our featured speaker. Lisa’s talk, “The Power of Fall Planting: Long-Blooming Perennials for Color from Spring to Fall,” will dig into how smart fall planting choices can set your garden up for vibrant success the following year. Before the event, we sat down with Lisa to talk about her favorite plants, what she thinks is underappreciated in the perennial world, and where she finds her own gardening inspiration. HPSO: Lisa, let’s jump… 

Jill, let’s start with inspiration. Which garden has influenced you most and why? I am drawn to designers who think big. I may not love the gardens they create but I admire their experimentation and verve: Roberto Burle Marx, Charles Jencks, Edward James’ Los Pozas, Martha Swartz, Isabelle Greene, Andrea Cochran, Richard Hartlage, and Beatrix Farrand’s amazing work at Dumbarton Oaks to mention a few. That’s a great list of a “few”! Seeing what makes you tick, we bet you’ve had some big plans, too. Could you tell us about something you thought would work but failed miserably? I have… 

Dawn Redwoods (Metasequoia glyptostroboides) and Giant Redwoods (Sequoiadendron giganteum) were native to the Pacific Northwest before the last Ice Age. Though now considered endangered in the wild, they have demonstrated adaptability to a range of urban sites, soils, and moisture levels. At PlantFest Norm will cover the differences between the species’ tolerance of challenging conditions.  There will be a discussion of the availability of their dwarf and unusual conifer cultivars which present interesting and attractive options for the home gardener with the hotter and drier summers we are experiencing with climate change. Norm will also discuss how he and wife… 

The current resurgence in peonies is no accident. After being overlooked for nearly half a century, peonies have been rediscovered as a perfect perennial for today’s modern gardens. Available in a broad spectrum of vibrant colors, many newer cultivars feature strong stems on compact plants. Variations in foliage color and texture offer multiple seasons of interest, while exceptional drought tolerance and deer resistance make them an excellent choice for low maintenance gardening. Lorē Sampson is one of three speakers who will be presenting on 09/21/2024 at HPSO’s fall event — PlantFest — to be held at Clackamas Community College (a… 

Our upcoming speaker from Sweden, Henrik Sjöman, will discuss how trees are among our best allies in the fight against climate change and biodiversity loss and how we urgently need to rethink tree selection for our parks and gardens. This presentation will explore how to find and evaluate the “trees of tomorrow” based on travels all over the world to study natural environments matching urban environments — to create first-hand guidance for finding the right tree for the right place and function. You can see this presentation in person in Portland OR on March 10, 2024. Register here. What is… 

HPSO is proud to present its 2024 Winter Program Speaker — Bill Thomas of Chanticleer Garden in Wayne, PA How did you become interested in gardening? When I was ten, my parents said I should take over the vegetable garden. I loved growing the plants from seed and soon even began eating vegetables.   What would you tell a beginner gardener? Learn the rules and then break them as you wish. Favorite tool? Felco number 2. I love to prune and it does the job well. What would you tell your younger gardening self? Learn more, try more, and be… 

Meet Sue Goetz. In this profile, Sue shares excellent advice and tells us a little about where she gets her inspiration. Check it out below! What type of garden do you have? I call it my eclectic muse- an experimental ground for what works in design that I do for others and what inspires me! I ripped out my front lawn to plant a perennial community after visiting the High Line in New York, the Lurie Garden in Chicago, and the works of Piet Ouldolf. This part of my garden has taught me a lot about designing naturalistic meadows for clients…. 

Preston Pew of Cistus Design Nursery speaks about his inspiration and gives us some advice. Check it out below! How did you get interested in gardening? Growing up my family always grew a vegetable garden in Summer. I remember growing my first cherry tomato from seed and all of the wonderful red tomatoes it gave and how that gigantic plant grew from a tiny seed really made an impression on me. Aside from my love of hiking around the Cascades growing up near Mt. Rainier, and being in nature in general, I had no interest in gardening until I was… 

Meet Amy Campion. In this profile, Amy shares her experience creating a space for NW native plants and the insects they support. Where do I garden? I gardened for 17 years in the Cincinnati area, and I’ve gardened for the past 10 years in Portland. My current garden is in Northeast Portland on a sunny, flat, 7,000-square-foot lot. How would I describe my garden? In Cincinnati, I mostly planted things I thought were pretty or interesting. I didn’t care where they originated from. In Portland, I continued that practice. You could say I had a collector’s garden. Then, a couple…