Monday, June 25, 2007

Alaska Botanical Garden - Civilizing Wilderness

The Garden is a lot like Anchorage - a tiny bit of attempted civilization hidden in the middle of the wilderness. A chunk of natural forest with a few clearings with flower beds showcasing plants that can grow here.
This weekend was the 10th Annual Garden Fair & Art Show at the Anchorage Botanical Garden.





For people trying to figure out what to plant in their gardens, all the different plants with their labels are a great resource.










The Peony is for Lyrica - Des, be sure to show it to her. Lyrica and her mother took us to the Coal Hill Garden in Beijing a couple of years ago just as the peonies were blooming. That's when peonies finally got my serious attention.






We got to the garden an hour before closing on Sunday, but just in time to hear the bagpipes - a dubious pleasure.








I have mixed feelings. Every bit of 'civilizing' here reminds me that the whole North American continent was once as wild and natural as the environment around Anchorage and if we continue what we're doing, Alaska will lose its special natural splendor. On the way to the garden we stopped at that epitome of American civilization - Costco. Convenient? Yes. Natural? Beautiful? Not even close. And Costco appears to be one of the more thoughtful big box stores - good pay and benefits for the employees, etc.

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