Sublime Decay: Autumn in the Gardens of Joy Creek Nursery
Many of you know I work for a fantastic nursery here in Oregon, Joy Creek Nursery. It is a retail and mail-order nursery in business for more than 25 years, growing many hard-to-find perennials, shrubs, grasses, and the like. I am fortunate enough to be the social media eyes for Joy Creek, photo-documenting its 4+ acres of display gardens each week.
Go ahead and say it. I know. I have the best job. As I experience the moods and changes this garden undergoes day-to-day, I understand now after three years that autumn plays a special role in nature. The sun sits lower on the horizon, illuminating details that have been hidden. Leaves begin to lose chlorophyll and turn colors while mist might arise that has otherwise been absent all summer. Leaf litter is a special kind of ground cover and, overall, the garden is quieter (the nursery is technically closed for the season). Blooms no longer dominate this floriferous garden - rather it is a recipe of textures, leaf color, branches, and moss…
Go ahead and say it. I know. I have the best job. As I experience the moods and changes this garden undergoes day-to-day, I understand now after three years that autumn plays a special role in nature. The sun sits lower on the horizon, illuminating details that have been hidden. Leaves begin to lose chlorophyll and turn colors while mist might arise that has otherwise been absent all summer. Leaf litter is a special kind of ground cover and, overall, the garden is quieter (the nursery is technically closed for the season). Blooms no longer dominate this floriferous garden - rather it is a recipe of textures, leaf color, branches, and moss…
