Conifers, Japanese Maple, The joy of trees

Its been one year.

July 2015, my family and I packed up our worldly belongings and headed north to Portland Oregon. Claire, Goldie the goldfish, Suzie Q our dog and I in the car. Mark and our bunny Amelia in a Uhaul. It felt like a mad dash to get on the road but once we did the miles slipped by and we fell into travel time with Goldie the first to shout out “Are we there yet?”.

We spent the 4th of July in Marin County with fine friends and a killer view.
We spent our last California 4th of July in Marin County with fine friends and a killer view.
Goodby Lyon Avenue. You taught us much.
Goodby Lyon Avenue!

A few weeks before the move I loaded up the truck with my pruning ladder and 30 trees. I had big plans for them in Oakland and now I have big plans for them in Portland! I covered them with burlap and they made the drive with only a few burnt leaves and lived happily with my sister in Portland until I could catch up to them.

There are 30 trees packed into the bed of that truck. Mostly conifers and a few maples.
There are 30 trees packed into the bed of the truck. Mostly conifers and a few maples.
We were pleasantly surprised by the view outside of our new apartment window. We had definitely arrived in Oregon. Land of big trees to say the least.
We were pleasantly surprised by the view outside of our new apartment window. We had definitely arrived in Oregon. Land of big trees to say the least.
The Great Northwest.
The Great Northwest. Our journey begins!

The rest of the summer flew by in a whirlwind of unpacking boxes, keeping Claire busy and getting use to the hot summer weather. In September I was off to The American Conifer Society national meeting in Petaluma CA. It didn’t take long for me to go back to California! In October I was off to Durham NC to participate as an instructor for the NAJGA regional workshop at the Duke Gardens in the newly installed Pine Clouds Mountain Stream garden. Before long the holidays descended and Claire got to play in the snow and eat ice off of the fir trees.

Fir Ice
Yum?

We made it through our first winter and enjoyed the crazy growth that comes with a North West spring.

This maple has been sheared into a ball for quite a few years. This is the resulting spring push. It now belongs to me and my family so keep a look out for future progress photos.
This maple has been sheared into a ball for quite a few years. This is the resulting spring push. It now belongs to me and my family so keep a look out for future progress photos as I attempt to return it to a natural form.
This is the view of that crazy maple from inside. Beautiful trunks framed by the window.
A view of that crazy maple from inside. It has beautiful trunks framed by the window. This is the primary viewpoint for this tree.

This brings me back to July. One year later. It has been a wild year. I miss everyone in California, my home for 15 years. But Portland has welcomed us with open arms and we are so happy to be here!

Maple and Moss
Maple and Moss