pathway

I’m lucky to live just five minutes from the Chase Garden. The Chase Garden is the only garden in Washington that is a Garden Conservancy Garden. The Garden Conservancy’s mission is to save and preserve America’s exceptional gardens. The Chase Garden was certainly worth that effort. I know the Garden Conservancy tried their best to make it work since their partnership in 1998.

Front pond

The garden was the lifework of Emmott and Ione Chase, who devoted more than forty years to building and refining the landscape to create one of the finest examples of mid-twentieth century Pacific Northwest design. They created Japanese-inspired ponds and bridges surrounding the house and a colorful meadow filled with drifts of rock garden plants inspired by wildflower fields on Mount Rainier. They planted native shrubs and carpets of trillium, erythronium, and vanilla leaf in naturalistic woodlands of second-growth Douglas fir trees. Their artful, modernist landscape truly captures the unique spirit of the place. 

the view toward the mountain (without the mountain)

When I lived in the city I made the trek out here to see the garden which was about 100 mile round-trip. It was well worth it. Having it just 5 minutes away made it irresistible.

The Chase Gardens future may be uncertain but I can only hope the next caretaker of this special spot will love it as much as Emmott and Ione did (and many of us). As a closing note I plead with all of you to support public gardens because once gone all our lives are just a little less beautiful.                                                     

Spring view = Bergenia

Into the woods

Vanilla Leaf

Alpine Meadow

Front pond

Aquilegia