July 26 column: Gardener Randy Palmer

Here is a link to my column in today’s edition of The Spokesman-Review: Backyard oasis. (or you can read my column lower in this post) It is about my featured local gardener Randy Palmer.

Randy and his wife live on a city lot in northwest Spokane. His garden is amazing! I took a lot of photos while I visited his garden, just to give you a sense of how nice it is and also provide some inspiration. Enjoy!

Entrance to his backyard.

Entrance to Randy’s “secret garden.”

Randy’s “secret garden,” behind his garage.

Five raised beds for growing veggies.

Straw bale garden for tomatoes.

Garden column: Gardener Randy Palmer

by Susan Mulvihill

If you live on a city lot and think you have no room for a garden, think again. I recently had the pleasure of strolling through Randy Palmer’s garden. It is filled with all sorts of take-home ideas.

Meet Randy Palmer

As I walked with him down the driveway of his northwest Spokane home, little did I know what was waiting for me in the backyard. Once I saw the entrance framed by a grape-covered arbor, I knew I was in for something special.

“Gardening became a passion of mine after I retired from the military and was able to move into my first home ever,” Palmer explained. “I’ve been working at creating an enjoyable space, which has been an ongoing process.”

He is now employed with the Washington Dept. of Corrections. Palmer has found gardening to be a much-needed stress reliever.

“I love being able to come back to the garden at the end of a day, relax and go to another place,” he said. “I strongly believe that once you allow gardening to come into your life, it will change your whole perspective.”

Features of his garden

The focal point of his backyard is a large gazebo, covered with attractive curtains for privacy and filled with comfy chairs. This outdoor living room gives Palmer’s family and friends the opportunity to relax and visit. The outer corners of the structure are defined by plantings of feather reed grass. What’s more, the surrounding bed of Siberian iris, astilbe and heucheras soften the edges.

The garden features tidy beds edged with basalt rocks and meandering pathways. He grows a pleasing mix of perennials, annuals, shrubs and small accent trees.

On the east side of his garden, Palmer is growing a productive vegetable garden in five raised beds. Crops include zucchini, bush beans, cucumbers, peppers, eggplants, and two unusual veggies: Asian yardlong beans and bitter melon.

“I grow those for my wife, Leonora, who is from the Philippines and enjoys cooking with them,” he explained.

Palmer is also trying his hand at straw bale gardening. He has three straw bales planted with six grafted tomatoes. He is pleased with how they’re doing so far. Palmer also likes how the bales retain moisture better than containers do.

The secret garden

One of the most delightful surprises is his “secret garden.”

“I decided to avoid letting the area behind my garage turn into a dumping ground,” he said. “I wanted an area, away from everything, that you could retreat to.”

This garden room is located behind the garage. A large pergola shades covered with grapevines shades it. To add some ambience and privacy, he covered the back fence with some reed grass fencing and also placed a small water feature at one end to provide soothing water sounds. The area has plenty of seating for visiting with family, friends and neighbors.

A surprise benefit from Randy Palmer’s garden

And speaking of neighbors, Palmer’s enthusiasm for gardening has already had a positive impact on the young couple living behind him.

“They are interested in gardening and have already built some garden beds,” he said.

What’s next on his list of landscaping plans? He wants to removing his existing front yard and is mulling over some design ideas.

Palmer enjoys encouraging others to get involved in gardening and experience the joy of it.

“To create an area outside of the home that you can call a sanctuary, where you can walk through your creations, and where you can plant something and watch it mature, is one of the biggest thrills of life, besides having children,” he said.