Oregon Garden

History

The Oregon Association of Nurseries first conceived the idea of a public showcase garden in the 1940s. Work towards the creation of such a garden began in earnest around 1990, when the OAN began seeking a location for their project. Around that same time, the City of Silverton was searching for a way to use their reclaimed wastewater. These serendipitous situations led Silverton to purchase the land south of downtown and dedicate it to the future garden in 1995. As a result, Silverton's wastewater is filtered through a series of terraced wetlands located in the garden, collected in a holding tank and used to meet all of the garden's irrigation needs. In April 1996, a master plan was created for the garden which includes ultimately developing all 240 acre of the site.

The groundbreaking ceremony occurred June 27, 1997, and featured high-ranking Oregon politicians.The dedication speech was given by former U.S. Senator Mark O. Hatfield. The first soil was turned by U.S. Representative Darlene Hooley. The garden opened to the public during a dedication on April 17, 1999. Attendance at the garden totaled 250,000 visitors the first year. In 2002, the water garden won an award from the American Society of Landscape Architects for environmental friendliness.

Features

As of 2025, the Oregon Garden includes more than twenty specialty gardens and features such as the Bosque, Children's Garden, Conifer Garden (one of the largest collections of dwarf and miniature conifers in the United States), Honor Garden, Hughes Water Garden, Jackson & Perkins Rose Garden, Lewis & Clark Garden, Northwest Garden, Pet Friendly Garden, and Sensory Garden. The water garden is a maze-like area with numerous paths and bridges. The garden holds an annual festival each autumn. Also on the grounds is the Teufel Amphitheater which hosts concerts and other events; Sam Bush played in the Amphitheater in 2006.

Gordon House, the only house Frank Lloyd Wright designed in Oregon, is now on the grounds of Oregon Garden. The house, designed in 1957, is one of Wright's Usonian houses, and the only Wright house open to the public in the Pacific Northwest. Completed in 1964, the home was moved from Wilsonville, Oregon, to the garden in 2001.

On each Earth Day since 1999, the Garden hosts a celebration which attracts environmental supporters and organizations with demonstrations, exhibitions, and workshops. Garden admission is free for this event.

Using treated wastewater from the city, the garden is one of only a few installations in the United States that reuses wastewater for a water feature. Even in the summer months, the garden does not draw on drinking water supplies, instead relying entirely on wastewater treatment plant effluent, which additionally irrigates 240 acre of farmland. Until recently, such use was prohibited by state law, but the law was revised partly due to this water reclamation project. The garden also provides wetland mitigation for a nearby industrial park to provide waterfowl and amphibian habitat, and offloads Silver Creek from water it would not naturally carry during low-flow months in the summer to address an Oregon Department of Environmental Quality requirement. The wastewater receives final treatment on about 16 acre of the Oregon Garden where a series of 25 ponds perform three final filtering functions. The end result is extremely high quality treated water.

Gallery

Founder's Pavilion in Oregon Garden.jpg|The original Founder's Pavilion (replaced in 2024). Ducks in the A-mazing Water Garden.jpg|Ducks in the A-mazing Water Garden Hibiscus bloom in the A-mazing Water Garden.jpg|One of the many flowers in the garden. Artwork in the Secret Garden.jpg|Artwork in the Secret Garden Home Composter Demonstration Center sign.jpg|Many different educational centers onsite. Oregon Garden - Silverton, Oregon - DSC00159.jpg|One area of the garden. Oregon Garden - Silverton, Oregon - DSC00176.jpg|Inside a greenhouse. Soothing water feature in Oregon Garden.jpg|Small waterfall. The J. Frank Schmidt, Jr. Pavilion.jpg|The J. Frank Schmidt, Jr. Pavilion Oregon Garden deer 2007-12-23 15-28-16 0077.jpeg|Deer are sometimes spotted onsite.

Notes

References

References

1. "The Oregon Garden". Pacific Horticulture.
2. "Home Page – The Oregon Garden".
3. (November 16, 2003). "The Oregon Garden time line". Statesman Journal.
4. Pokorny, Kym. (July 6, 2006). "Green Ways: Hope grows". [[The Oregonian]].
5. Rose, Michael. (November 16, 2003). "The Oregon Garden has a withering outlook—As attendance tumbles, the garden is rethinking its business plan". [[Statesman Journal]].
6. "History". Oregon Garden.
7. (October 22, 2006). "A garden jewel in the Northwest". [[Grand Rapids Press]].
8. "Specialty Gardens: Signature Oak Tree and Oak Grove". Oregon Garden.
9. "Heritage Tree and Historical Marker brochure". Oregon Travel Information Council.
10. Zone, Rob. (September 27, 2007). "Oregon Garden fest welcomes a new season". [[The Seattle Times]].
11. Yeager, Angela. (July 20, 2006). "Legendary Sam Bush plays garden". Statesman Journal.
12. Kuehnel, Danielle. (June 25, 2006). "Vintage cars park at Gordon House". Statesman Journal.
13. ahartley. (February 15, 2006). "7th Annual Earth Day Celebration at The Oregon Garden". Oregon Garden.
14. Ellaby, Liz. (January 27, 2007). "Aldridge Gardens wants $6 million to spruce up Unusual 300-foot waterfall in the plan". [[Birmingham News]].
15. Willey, Bruce. (Summer 2003). "Innovative Wastewater Management Creates Wetlands and Irrigation Supply for the Oregon Garden". HDR Incorporated.