Tom Spencer's TexZen garden
Blue pot with dianthus
Can a garden you’ve visited only three times, briefly, seem almost as familiar as your own? It can if it’s Tom Spencer’s. At Soul of the Garden, Tom has been chronicling his garden—and “exploring the garden of life”—with stunning photographs and introspective essays for eight years. So last Saturday, when my husband and I made Possumhaw Hollow our first stop on Gardens on Tour 2008, I found myself leading my DH from garden room to garden room, telling him the names of each space and explaining the meaning behind Tom’s design. (It was a little weird, actually. That feeling of intimacy, while not really knowing, is both the delight and the downfall of reading someone’s garden blog, but that’s a subject for another day.)
Tom has an attractive and shady front garden…
…but the back garden is where most of the action is. Passing through the back gate, you step onto a checkerboard granite-and-limestone patio (see MSS’s post for a photo) that sits several steps above the garden for a sweeping view of the extra-long lot. Taking in the view with us stood a man in a Mr. Smarty Plants t-shirt. Of course, I had to ask if he was Mr. Smarty Plants, a Wildflower Center gardening expert who answers readers’ questions online, and to my surprise he said he was, with assistance from several others. He introduced himself by name, but I see on his webpage that his identity is meant to remain a mystery, so I won’t reveal more. Suffice it to say he was very nice and expressed interest in the Austin garden-blogging community (yes, I plugged it).
At that point, we spotted Tom, his camera dangling from his shoulder, and he came over to say hello. He looked excited yet relaxed, and I hope the day went well for him. It can’t be easy to welcome 750 visitors into your garden on one day (see Tom’s post about the tour ; you must scroll down to May 11–evening), but his garden’s generous layout and linear design make for good flow, which surely helped.
This hideaway nook, created with a semi-circle of possumhaw hollies, gave the garden its name, Possumhaw Hollow. It anchors one end of the transverse axis of the garden.
Just outside the hollow, this pyramidal boxwood parterre and the bald cypress allee behind it exert a magnetic pull from the elevated vista of the patio. Explore me, cries this path.
Obligingly, we strolled down the allee as I explained to my DH, like a tour guide, that Tom planted the double line of bald cypresses to evoke the beauty of the cypress-lined Hill Country rivers he fell in love with when he moved here. We marveled over how much the trees had grown since we’d last seen the garden a couple of years ago.
In a circular node at the end of the allee, this vignette begs you to pause for a moment to observe.
One of the garden’s beautiful collection of religious statuary, from Mexico, I’m guessing.
To the right, orange daylilies brightened a side path that led back toward the possumhaw hollow.
Tucked among lush native palms, a Buddha head contributes to a tropical feel along the south fence.
We backtracked to the circle node, however, to continue along the back of the garden. Visible behind this ‘Santa Rita’ prickly pear, writhing, white-painted branches constitute a sculpture called “Tree Bones” by Hank Waddell.
Another sculpture in the labyrinth
Emerging from the labyrinth through an arched trellis, the path draws you toward a long, rectangular pond, centered along the same axis.
Water lilies were blooming.
Dwarf papyrus added its pretty chartreuse green and pincushiony texture.
Another meditative sculpture
Working our way back to the center of the garden, we found the conversation room, as Tom calls it. This beautiful agave backed by pink-blooming salvia grew nearby.
The conversation room and a sharkskin agave (I think)
A miniature Zen garden amid the southwestern natives. Contemplative spaces and vignettes abound in Tom’s garden.
As do circles and other geometric shapes, imparting a sense of order. Here’s another look at the agave bed deliciously mulched in blue glass. It’s mesmerizing.
We went on to see all the private gardens on the tour, and I’ll have a few images from some of them in a later post. By mid-afternoon, when we called it a day, the temperature was a muggy, sizzling 95 degrees F. But after dinner, a hailstorm hit our neighborhood, chipping golf-ball sized chunks of ice into my own garden. By some miracle, nothing was damaged, not even our cars. A lovely north wind followed the storm, and by Sunday morning we had cool, dry temperatures and perfect weather for Mother’s Day.
All material © 2006-2008 by Pam Penick for Digging. Unauthorized reproduction prohibited.
Hi Pam, Tom’s garden is a masterpiece, how large is the property? The blue glass agave bed is spectacular, as was the whole thing. The gravel paths are so wide and inviting and the cypress trees are wonderful. Good job giving us a real feel for the garden you had already memorized before even seeing it. DH had an able docent!
Frances
I don’t know how big it is, Frances, but the oversized lot was what attracted Tom to the property, he once wrote. I’m glad you enjoyed the tour. —Pam
To answer your first paragraph, yes, it is an odd feeling to be very familiar with someone else’s garden because of his or her blog. At your Spring Fling cocktail party I found myself playing docent as people arrived, pointing out elements in the front garden, naming roses, and showing off the various containers you had just posted about–especially the metal stovepipe one.
Even in Tom’s garden, I was aware that you had been there before me and the photos I took were influenced knowing what kind of photos you often take–closeups of ornamentation and flowers. I thought, how can I get a different perspective than Pam will show or that people can see on Tom’s site? Blogging provides an exciting challenge to really look at something, knowing that you are going to try to explain the gist of it to one’s readers.
I really like comparing our perspectives. I’m glad you took the photo of Tom, for instance. I would never have thought of that. I was too shy to even introduce myself. I started to several times, but he was always talking to someone, so I just listened to his explanations and lurked.
Your comment has given me more food for thought, MSS, particularly about the nature of putting together a photo tour of a garden. You say that you compose shots with a storyline in mind—how you are going to “explain the gist of it to one’s readers.” That’s a different approach from how I do it. I tend to shoot anything and everything that catches my eye, long shots, close-ups, unique perspectives. When I get home, I wade through all the photos, dozens, generally, and spend time cropping them, which usually results in more close-ups as I cut out extraneous detail to create a better photo. When that’s done, I begin organizing the photos to compose my story—my experience—of the garden. That’s usually how I create posts about my own garden too : shoot a bunch of images, then look for patterns or stories to pull together for a post. It would be interesting to know how others do it.
I’m glad you “played docent” at the Spring Fling happy hour, by the way, especially since I was still setting up when people arrived and wasn’t able to greet guests in the front garden. Thanks for showing everyone around. —Pam
Wonderful to see your perspective of Tom’s garden. I do feel like I know his garden from his blog. I still like to read other peoples thoughts and see what they take pictures of, what makes them stop and stare.
I enjoy that too, Lisa, and was glad that MSS of Zanthan Gardens posted about Tom’s garden too. That’s also what made the various Spring Fling posts so much fun—comparing perspectives. —Pam
Wonderful tour Pam, your commentary and your photographs were perfect. The Agave backed with Salvia is a beautiful combination and makes me think of your garden; with its the wonderful juxtaposition of colors and textures.
Gail
I almost led with that agave/salvia photo, Gail. It’s one of my favorites too. If you see any similarity of composition between my garden and Tom’s, I’m sure Tom should take the credit. His garden and photographs have inspired me for some time. Thanks for your kind comments. —Pam
Pam, I’ve been looking forward to this post for several days. Through your close ups, I can sense the intimacy of the garden, the attention to detail. Through your long-views, I can see how the garden pulls you toward the different settings. It really does look like a TexZen kind of place.
Thanks for waiting, Carol. I’ve been dying to post about Tom’s garden, and the others on the tour, but with family in town and a busy work schedule, I just didn’t have time until last night (and I stayed up way too late—uh-oh). I’m glad you liked the pics. If you ever come back to Austin, perhaps we can persuade Tom to let us pop by for a visit. —Pam
There is so much more to a garden than just the plants and flowers within. This is stunning, and thanks for sharing the tour!
Glad you liked it, Nancy. What I especially enjoy about Tom’s garden are the stories of personal meaning behind each garden space or design element. He created the possumhaw hollow to evoke a favorite childhood hiding place. The allee represents those Hill Country scenes that caused him to fall in love with Austin’s rugged beauty. An Zen-inspired arrangement of stone slabs (not pictured) reminds him of mesas of the southwest, and he calls it his TexZen garden. These stories and interpretations make the garden, as you say, “so much more . . . than just the plants and flowers.” —Pam
The photos are fantastic. The garden must be a wonderful space – a wonderful place to visit. But it has set me to wondering what is ‘a garden’ – because, to me, this isn’t one. It is something else.
I would love to visit it – but I wouldn’t feel comfortable in it. I can’t put my finger on it – it isn’t to do with personal taste – (there are gardens I don’t like but which I recognise to be gardens). It feels more challenging than a garden. Perhaps I think a garden should be a place in which the mind rests or runs free – but this space provokes thought.
I can’t grasp what I am driving at. Do you know what it is? Do you know what I mean?
Esther Montgomery
ESTHER IN THE GARDEN
I’m glad you enjoyed the photos, Esther, but I confess I don’t know what you mean about it not being a garden, or being too thought-provoking to be one. I actually find the garden’s intimate spaces and meditative quality restful, though never boring. Perhaps my photos didn’t do a good job of conveying it, but it meets every definition I have for a garden: filled with beautiful plants, along with ornamentation that complements and enhances the experience of the garden, while providing focal points. Through formal design, informal, naturalistic plantings (often using native plants) within those borders, and creative interpretation, Possumhaw Hollow artfully represents the natural world, which is what gardens do.
Could it be that you’re simply not attracted to gardens with spiky plants like agaves and cacti? Maybe they give you that uncomfortable feeling you mentioned? —Pam
Looks like some lovely spaces.
Does agave need to be in full sun, or would it work in a shadier area?
The photo of Tom’s front garden shows a large agave in a fairly shady space. I think many varieties will take a little shade, so long as they get mostly sun and excellent drainage. I’m using two shade-tolerant agaves in my own garden: squid agave and Manfreda ‘Macho Mocha,’ which has been dubbed a mangave (a cross between a manfreda and an agave) according to Yucca Do and San Marcos Growers. Also, variegated agaves tend to do well with afternoon shade, which keeps them from burning. —Pam
Hi Pam,
I’ve been reading about this garden since 2000 – in print and online, and a couple of years ago Philo & I were there in person. Tom’s blog has such wonderful photos, but you’ve managed to give me a better idea of how much the original plantings have grown and developed. Wish I could have made the tour this year, too. Thank you for the virtual version of this wonderful place – it’s amazing to realize that such spaces are fitted onto a good-size city lot!
Annie at the Transplantable Rose
He is blessed with a huge lot, but you are right that he has designed his garden to make the most of it, using long, straight views to emphasize the length. —Pam
Outstanding!!! I bet it would be so fun to visit there!!!! Thanks for the online tour!!!!
You’re welcome, Cindee. Thanks for touring with me. —Pam
Going camping or touring Tom’s garden was a tough choice for me this weekend, but ultimately celebrating our anniversary won out. I’m pretty sure I made the right choice, especially now that I can feel as if I’ve visited Tom’s garden through yours and MSS’s photos. Maybe next time Tom’s garden is on tour I’ll make it, and maybe he can make sure it’s not so hot!
Your camping trip looked like a lot of fun, Vertie. I’m glad you don’t feel as if you missed out on the tour, thanks to the blog posts about it. —Pam
Once again, Pam, one of your garden photo tours has left me absolutely delighted. Who needs to travel when we have your blog? I am always delighted to see formal garden (landscape) designs as they are more of a rarity here in the West. Although formal gardens can be somewhat static, it looks like Tom has done all of the “right stuff” to keep things fun, interesting and engaging. Bravo, Tom! And thanks for sharing, Pam!
I’m glad you enjoyed the tour, Jocelyn. Tom has definitely made formal fun again. I suppose formal gardens are easier on flat sites, which you probably don’t have much of in the mountain west. And yet, the Italians managed it on hillsides, didn’t they? 🙂 —Pam
Pam – No, it isn’t that I don’t like it. The photos show some very beautiful elements – and peaceful – like the daylily path – and the wooden bench. It is true that I am not attracted by the large, sparse, gravelly areas, but that isn’t it . . .
I’m thinking it needs a special word. Capability Brown designed landscapes (which are greatly admired) not gardens. Parks are not gardens – and there are wonderful parks. But Gertrude Jekyll designed gardens. And when you get a park that is garden-like, it is called ‘Gardens’, even though it is a public space. There are farms which have garden like qualities. But they are farms.
So, what I am getting at is that all these different kinds of growing places have special words or categories. Maybe the Zen bit says enough. But it seems too specific for what I mean. (Or I’m too ignorant!)
Esther
The straight lines and open spaces (i.e., structure) give the garden an light, airy feeling. Maybe I’ll have that in my garden someday! LOL.
Do you know the name of the Agave in the pool of blue glass? I’m interested in small agaves that stay small.
It’s identified as Agave parryi truncata on Tom’s site. —Pam
Congrats on the mousies, Pam, much deserved!
Frances
Thanks, Frances! Congratulations on your Mousie win too. —Pam
Tom’s garden is beautiful! You captured it for all of us to see. Thanks for sharing your photos.
You’re welcome, Michelle. Tom’s garden is a marvelous place to visit. Thanks for “touring” with me. —Pam
Wow… what a great review, and a beautiful garden! Thank you for taking us along on this little tour. 🙂
(BTW, I can’t wait to hear what you mean about the “delight and downfall” of feeling like you know a garden well via its blog.)
That was a bit of a teaser comment, wasn’t it, Kim? Perhaps I’ll get inspired to explain what I was thinking when I wrote that. I’ve talked about it a little with some of the other Austin bloggers and Spring Flingers. There’s a strange disjointedness in visiting a garden you know so well from reading someone’s blog. But it’s not a real intimacy, which only comes from experiencing it in real life. —Pam
That’s a lovely garden you’ve shown us Pam. That tree allee is beautiful and so is the circle with blue glass. I love the rustic garden seats but am less keen on the pond, too much stone and not nearly enough water IMO. Also too many ornaments and such around the pond. Loved the statues in the garden, they were very beautiful. It’s hard to find a good statue for the garden as most garden centres here have only horrific monsters to sell. So I keep on searching for a beautiful statue or ornament for my garden.
Yes, his statuary is particularly beautiful. I can imagine him hauling it home in the car from Mexico. —Pam
I love the blue glass mulch in the Agave bed, making it a faux pool. It was neat to see the garden through both your & MSS’s eyes.
And of course if you go to Soul of the Garden, you can see it through the gardener’s eyes as well. —Pam
What a very interesting and beautiful garden. Great pictures.
Debbi.
Thanks, Debbi. —Pam