Every year since 2008, I’ve been lucky enough to attend the annual Garden Fling, a gathering of bloggers, Instagrammers, YouTubers, and other gardeners on social media, held in a different city each year, where for 3-1/2 days we tour gardens, socialize, get a flavor for a new gardening region, and generally have the best time ever. This year we headed to the Pacific Northwest for the Puget Sound Fling, based in Tacoma, Washington, and ranging from Vashon Island to the South Sound and from the Kitsap Peninsula to Seattle. What a marvelous Fling it was!

But let’s back up a bit. I flew to Seattle on July 10th to meet up with my husband, who that very morning had stood atop Mount Rainier, the tallest mountain in Washington. He was already off the mountain by the time my plane dipped a wing and I caught a glimpse of the towering peak — an active volcano, by the way. It felt surreal to be cruising at altitude past the spot from which he’d texted a triumphant summit photo only a few hours before.

Rainier is not the only snow-capped volcanic peak in Washington — far from it.

But Rainier — or Tahoma, its indigenous name — was a regal daily presence at the Fling, majestically floating above the horizon, teasing with veiled glimpses through the morning marine layer…

…or gleaming under the moonrise as I gazed, transfixed, out my hotel window each evening. I would see much more of Rainier/Tahoma and other beautiful scenery the week before the Fling began, as David and I visited all three national parks in Washington. But for now, let’s jump ahead to the first day of touring at the Puget Sound Fling!

That morning, two buses of Flingers squeezed onto a ferry for a short cruise across the Sound to Vashon Island. We eagerly trooped up to the open-air deck to enjoy the view. There I reconnected with far-flung friends, including Claire Jones from Maryland, Janet Davis from Ontario, and local Paula Rothkop, one of the dauntless co-planners of the Puget Sound Fling (the other being Camille Paulsen).

Fellow Austinites Nancy Fortner and Cat Jones were there too. Nancy was enjoying her first homecoming since leaving her beloved Sweetlife Farm on Bainbridge Island a few years ago. (Here’s my tour of her new garden in Austin.)

The best part of the Fling is all the interesting people you meet, like brand-new Flinger Wyatt Emig, a horticulturist from Longwood Gardens‘ celebrated conservatory in Pennsylvania.

I was happy to see Canadian Helen Battersby again, one of the organizers of the 2015 Toronto Fling.

More happy Fling friends: Lori Daul with Cat Jones of Austin and Heather Tucker of Portland, Oregon

And always smiling Judy Seaborn, organizer of the 2019 Denver Fling

The two buses split up for the first two gardens, and we headed for the historic town of Dockton on Quartermaster Harbor.

Halstead-Robinson Garden

Here we explored the charming garden of mosaic artist and topiarist Anita Halstead and her husband, Kelly Robinson, who built many of the garden’s structures.

Anita’s topiary skills are showcased in a circular garden in the driveway. A topiary pig — I think — made me smile.

As did a tile mosaic mailbox spelling out a desire for love letters

The 1908 Craftsman house faces the harbor…

…a blue backdrop to a front-yard garden with a stone labyrinth…

…and a chessboard lawn.

Paths wind around the home and into a long garden beside the drive, where pink hollyhocks greeted me.

Red ones too

A doorway cut into a screening hedge offers a glimpse of a vintage truck.

As you meander under a weeping tree, colorful accents — a blue ceramic ball on a pedestal and red flowers atop a purple chair — draw the eye.

A different angle

Always the view of water in the distance, as art objects and colorful flowers give you a reason to pause

A mosaicked shovel leans against the lattice fence.

At another entry point, guarded by a massive hosta, twin wire cages acting as gateposts support twining sweet peas.

An enticing view, purple echoing purple, with a bench tucked into the border

While these tuteurs are welded, I think you could use pieces of galvanized cattle panel wire, wired together, for a similar effect. How to rust it though?

The view from the opposite direction, with a tile mosaic set into the gravel to catch the eye

Purple glass flowers rise from the shrubbery.

A cheeky note to the visitor: Pull a weed before you leave!

A birdhouse wedged into the crook of a tree is underplanted with yellow flowers. Please don’t ask me to ID any plants from such a different gardening region, y’all.

This swirling rebar sculpture was hard to photograph, but I liked it. Ornaments hang from it, inviting the visitor to imagine the story they tell…

…like this little airplane.

A saucer filled with sea glass and pieces of broken bottles makes an impromptu mosaic.

Another garden room is marked with simple gateposts topped with pink finials.

Hydrangeas were flowering not just here but in every garden we’d see in the coming days, wowing me with their size and rich color.

The blue globes of echinops caught my eye too.

I coveted this airy scrim of a flowering grass — giant stipa, I believe.

Another birdhouse perches on a chunky post.

A bench displays a pleasing arrangement of potted plants and upturned pots.

A ceramic-and-glass totem harmonizes with pink hydrangeas.

A green metal dining table under a red umbrella is enclosed by “stacked” topiaries.

In a shady spot, bear’s breeches complement purple hydrangeas.

More of those glorious hydrangeas

Lacecap hydrangea

On a round brick patio, a seafoam-green bistro set offers another sweet seating area.

Corner vignette of potted fern, Buddha planter, and Japanese maple

So many cute accents at every turn

Like this — beach pebble flowers set in the gravel path

Reddish succulents echo the red porch post they sit on.

On the porch, a pan blows his flute over a collection of beach pebbles, shells, and glass.

Driftwood and shells adorn a round mirror.

And a mossy snail sets the pace for relaxing by the sea.

A pot lady wearing flowers in her hair bid us farewell as we headed to the next garden.

Up next: The art-filled woodland Carhart Garden on Vashon Island.

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Digging Deeper

Come learn about gardening and design at Garden Spark! I organize in-person talks by inspiring designers, landscape architects, authors, and gardeners a few times a year in Austin. These are limited-attendance events that sell out quickly, so join the Garden Spark email list to be notified in advance; simply click this link and ask to be added. Season 8 kicks off in fall 2024. Stay tuned for more info!

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