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I've got a couple of gardening disclosures to trust you with. Both require some effort on your part, so fasten your seat belt and hold on tight.
Sorta secret No. 1
Oscar de la Renta, Nancy Kissinger and Martha Stewart share a fabulous secret. Of course they've never discussed this driving passion among themselves, and they don't know that we know. If you know what I mean.
So what is it?
They all buy their dahlias right here in Oregon, at Swan Island Dahlias. (Which isn't on Swan Island at all but outside Canby.) I got to thinking about this the other day while I was delusional about my own dahlias and smugly reassuring myself that it validates my overindulgence.
This is the time of year to partake in a lust for dahlias, because the flowers are in full bloom. One of the easiest places to overindulge is the dahlia festival that runs Saturday, Sunday and Monday and the following weekend, too (for information, call Swan Island Dahlias, 503-266-7711, or visit www.dahlias.com).
As you walk along row upon row of them, you'll be amazed at how many kinds of dahlia flowers there are. Oh, and if you have allergies, this is the flower for you, because they have absolutely no scent. Eye-popping beauty, yes. Fragrance, no. In any case, you'll probably come home with armfuls of flowers.
Sorta secret No. 2
If you make it to Swan Island Dahlias in Canby, perhaps you can also swing over to Salem to see the garden at the Oregon State Fair. What an amazing piece of work. Ten thousand new plants have been added to the "Hart of the Garden District," a 2 1/2-acre garden that Doug Hart installed for free.
"I want people to walk through there and get the feeling I had as a kid and give the whole family a beautiful place to recharge their batteries between rides," Hart says.
It's so well-planned and-planted, though, that once you get there, you may find it hard to get up and leave.
Hart will give free garden seminars daily, and I'll be there several days as well. Show up at 1 p.m. or 2 p.m. Wednesday, and you can be part of the live audience for my gardening show that runs every Saturday night at 7 on KGW (8).
Then at 10 a.m. Saturday, we're giving away 2,500 plants. You wouldn't believe how fast those plants fly out of there. Maybe you can stick around a little later, and I'll show you how to build a really easy fountain out of a terra-cotta pot. That's at 1 p.m. Saturday. Or, we'll share the joys of "Clamoring for Climbers" at 2 p.m. Sunday.
So, if we've never met, come by and say hello. Maybe we'll even get a chance to enjoy the "Hart of the Garden" together and answer some gardening questions along the way.
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