I'm forced to admit it...with Spring comes "PLANT LUST." I went to Southern Oregon Nursery to get a few odds and ends or "fillers" as we call 'em, including some dwarf Japanese garden junipers and a couple of sedums. Harmless enough. But of course, you...well I,... can't go to this wonderful nursery without treating myself to some aimless wandering among the offerings. I had just congratulated myself about not succumbing to anything in "Temptation Alley"...that's the area at the entrance where they put together a display of currently blooming or good looking plants. "Nope," I said to myself, "I'm above all that!" So indeed I wandered for a good half hour, stopping by the koi pond to greet the huge denizens of the deep who always come over to see if I have anything for them.
It was at the very back end of the nursery next to the lattice house where they keep the bonsai plants that I spied these little bushes.
I loved their conical shape and the bright yellow/green color of their new growth. The tag said "Chamaecyparis lawsoniana Treasure Island." It was then that PLANT LUST hit me! I HAD TO HAVE THEM! I even knew just where I'd put them. It was just after that I noticed their little price tags...Oye! For plants sooo small (about 10" tall) they commanded $19.99 EACH.
So I petted them but passed, making my way back to the sales counter. I purchased my plants and went home to dig away.
But I couldn't forget these little guys. I did some research in my trusty Sunset Western Garden Guide and found out that since the plant breeders had gotten a more disease resistant chamaecyparis rootstock (developed by OSU...Oregon State Univ) they had breed lots of new varieties.
The very next day I returned to the nursery for some dwarf boxwood (I told myself). I visited the little chamaecyparis and ran my hand over their soft yellow foliage. I put 2 of them in the cart (it was like a slow motion action, as if I were hypnotized...uh huh).
When I got to the check out area I asked the plantsman/owner of this family owned business WHY these little gems were so expensive. He said it was because they were very rare yet...a new dwarf variety that would only grow a few inches a year.
To seal the deal (he knew I was a good customer and he recognized that glazed look in my eyes) he said, "Oh, look at that...those other plants (3 boxwood) are mis-marked...they should be only $7.99, not $9.99."
So I bought my "babies" because I "needed them"...just like I "need chocolate."
They mark the entrance to a seating area and offset the heron beautifully, don't you think? I even had the perfect square blue pots for them, which lessens the cost, right, since I didn't have to buy pots! They will get shade in the afternoon which will be much kinder to them in the heat of the summer. Now where did I put that little foil- wrapped piece of chocolate?
