Is There a Doctor in the House (and Garden)?

Are you ready for another trip back in time to last summer's opulence? We're going back to a garden that was open to NPA members in mid-June of last year, so given that it's now already early April, that's nearly an entire year ago.

Who should we take with us on our trip? Who better than Doctor Who? He/she has more experience with time travel than anyone. But which incarnation?

The Many Faces of Doctor Who

Doctor Who Title Sequences

I've always been rather partial to Christopher Eccleston's version of the Doctor, even though he only spent one season playing him.

I'm The Doctor, By The Way

I liked David Tennant's stint as the Time Lord too, but I'm rather proud right now of the current female version, played by Jodie Whitaker. Can they all come with us? They'll have a grand time romping through Laurel Harrington's West Seattle garden.

The Garden of Laurel Harrington

Here's the description from the NPA booklet.

Laurel Harrington's very large, tumultuous garden covered a series of vacant lots set on a hillside. You entered it from the lot above the house, rather than from the street address, and slowly made your way down the hill through a series of terraces.

This path was the garden entrance, past raised beds filled with flowers and underneath a large dead, dinosaur-like snag.

I might have been tempted to plant something in that maw-like hole

This rose appeared to glow from within

Do you see the hummingbird in the upper left quadrant of the photo? I stood for quite a long time taking photo after photo while he sipped from this large swath of Salvia 'Hot Lips'

Another opulent yellow rose against a clear blue sky

Just beyond that area you enter a rectangular meadow of grass ringed by rich but chaotic flower borders.

The way down to the next level is between those two red barberries on the right, but it's not time to go quite yet, there's too much to see!

The view, with just a glimpse of the house on the right

Looking back toward the snag

On each side are narrow paths, but I was too awkward to dare trying to make my way along them, I just continued further down

A classic combo

Another rose, a single flower rather than a double like the others

Another path with a see holly self sown into the gravel

A rose campion with a double flower

Nearly down to the street now, we're beside the house, in the oldest part of the garden

Looking toward the side of the house

At the back of the house was a much shadier and more contemplative area, with this quiet water feature bubbling away.

All that remained now was to climb back up the hill to the car.

In 2016 when this garden was open for the NPA, my blogging friend Linda Reeder visited and blogged about the garden here.