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The Meadow is an open area in Naturescape designed with year-round interest, low-maintenance, and large space design in mind. Inspired by the work of Dutch landscape designer Piet Oudoulf, the Meadow incorporates both ornamental grasses and native plants to create visual interest in an otherwise lackluster space.

In the spring the Meadow is alive with native Camas lilies and dotted with bulbs like hyacinth, narcissus and fritillaria that were leftover from the original garden space. In summer, after the flowers fade, the grasses fill in and are intermixed with fireweed and native sanguisorba.

The Meadow also features a large wildlife snag, created when the original white pine became dangerously askew and had to be removed. A mason bee home resides on the smaller snag in the garden. After the grasses die in late fall they are left throughout the winter to provide shelter for beneficial insects and food for foraging birds. They are not cut back until the day temperatures are consistently 50 degrees, which is when nesting insects begin to hatch.

Meadow Plant List

#Botanical NameCultivarCommon NameTreeNative
CC34Thalictrummeadow rueN
CC36Salvia nemorosa 'Snowhill'meadow sage
28Thalictrum aquilegiifoliummeadow rue
47Spirea bumalda'Anthony Waterer'Japanese spirea, Japanese meadowsweet
Allium 'Purple Sensation'giant allium
Allium cernuumnodding onionN
Calimagrostis 'Karl Foerster'feather reed grass
Calimagrostis arundinaceaKorean feather reed grass
Camassia leichtliniiwhite camasN
Camassia quamashblue common camasN
Chasmanthium latifoliumsea oats
Deschampsia cespitosa 'Goldgehaenge'tufted hair grass
Fritillaria meleagrischeckered lily
Helenium 'Rubenzwerg'sneezeweed
Miscanthus sinensis 'Little Miss'dwarf miscanthus
Molinia caeruleapurple moor grass
Muscarigrape hyacinth
Narcissusdaffodils (a variety)
Nasella tenuissimaMexican feather grass
Panicum virgatumswitchgrass
Pennisetum orientale 'Karley Rose'oriental fountain grass
Sanguisorba menziesii 'Burgundy'native burnet
Spodipogon sibiricusfrost grass
NMD116Philadelphus lewisiiwild mock orangeN
NMD128Pinus wallichianaHimalayan white pine
5Astilbefalse spirea, meadow sweet
6Astilbe 'Deutschland'false spirea, meadow sweet