Alpine Garden

One of my favorite sections of the garden is the Alpine Garden. The area is a steep slope to the left of the stone steps leading from the upper yard to the lower yard. When we moved in, the area was overrun with strawberries and various groundcovers. A waterfall of hens and chicks spilled over the edge. I tried various things trying to hold the slope but not much worked. Five years ago, we went hiking in the Italian and French Alps on a trek called Giro del MonViso with some Swiss friends…fantastic trip.. here’s some video of the area I found on the net (http://www.cuneo360.it/itinerari/102 ). The wildflowers were amazing too. Two weeks after we returned, we learned that our hiking companion and friend Ruedi (whom I had know since high school) fell off a trail while climbing and died. I made the Alpine Garden as a tribute to him. I have put some plants in this garden that we saw while hiking together. Others are suited to rock gardens. Some have done better than others but the garden is thriving. I will look through my file and get the proper names for these petite gems , but in the meantime here are some photos.

This is the Alpine area to the left of the steps.