Highlights of the Minneapolis Fling
So I have been to the Minneapolis/St. Paul area about a thousand times. We have a son living in St. Paul, plus my brother and an old college friend live in Minneapolis. We felt that we had seen most of what there was to see. So our expectations for this year’s Garden Bloggers Fling were modest.
Plus, the phrase “Minneapolis Fling” sounds a little incongruous, like “North Dakota Bacchanal”.
Oh, but we were wrong to be skeptical. Thanks to the outstanding work of the (uncompensated) organizers, we found that there were a great many gardens in the Twin Cities we didn’t know about. And so many were full of delightful surprises and enchanting beauty.
For now I just want to cover a few of the best parts of the Fling program. I intend to cover the various gardens in greater depth after we slide into the long dark Chicago winter.
First, there was the Eloise Butler Wildflower Garden, a 15 acre native plant preserve. The Garden includes wetland, forest and oak savanna. Founded in 1907, it’s one of the first gardens of its kind. Summer blooms filled the open areas with yellow, orange, and white.
There was also the conservatory and adjoining gardens at Como Park. We liked the aquatic gardens best. We were so enthralled with the water lilies and the conservatory that we didn’t even visit the Japanese Garden.
We saw just a tiny slice of the Minnesota Arboretum, but what we did see made us determined to return for more. We especially loved the giant wooden insects, like this Assassin Bug.
We visited a number of wonderful private gardens, but the garden of Lee and Jerry Shannon left us almost speechless. The Shannons managed to acquire land adjoining their city lot, so that their garden goes on and on – it seems to be half a dozen gardens in one, all of it lovingly cared for.
The Shannons have actually accomplished a fantasy that Judy and I frequently indulge in, namely extending our garden into the neighbors’ yards – and they’ve done it legally and without coercion.
Finally, there was the Mosaic Sculpture Park of artist Woutrina DeRaad. This is actually a few miles over the state line in Wisconsin. The sculptures are made of wire mesh, concrete, and bits of glass and ceramic. They are integrated into a garden that is lush and colorful.
It reminded me somewhat of the folk art of Watts Towers. However, while Watts Towers is solemn, Woutrina DeRaad’s garden is mischievous and joyful.
There was a great deal more, and I have something close to a thousand of Judy’s photographs to sort through. More to come when the weather cools!
gardeninacity 
Haha I like the sculpture!
Me too! And I think the photo is kind of classic.
That giant assassin bug is something else!
They have a whole series of giant wooden insect sculptures. They’re a lot of fun! I think it’s a traveling exhibit.
So glad you had a good time and found new places of inspiration. Hope to make a fling one of these days!
The next one is in DC/NoVa! Not very far for you, I think.
Very exciting. Hope to make it. Saw Helen Yoest from Raleigh, NC at our Chapel Hill Spring Garden Club Tour. She mentioned she’s hoping to have the year after that somewhere in NC.
Such a great time! It was awesome to see and Judy again. 🙂 Each garden you’ve highlighted was a beauty.
I agree, it was a great time, and of course wonderful to see you again in person. Looking forward to DC!
It was nice to see photos of you and Judy in others’ shots of Flingers on Facebook. I’m looking forward to checking out your winter Fling posts.
And I’m looking forward to writing them.
I enjoyed these pictures very much, thanks ! Beautiful park, great art !
You’re welcome!
I liked your photos of water garden and of Shannon’s garden , Jason, I think you had very useful trip and you will realize these ideas in your own garden, won’t you?
Yes, I got a lot of good ideas.
Well, I love learning about a new place, and I know nothing about Minneapolis,(apart from Garrison Keillor of course) so I’ll enjoy seeing the gardens through your blog, over time. The gardens so far look very lush and green and the sculptures are wonderfully distinctive too.
Everything was pretty lush. Fortunately they’ve gotten a decent amount of rain this year, they’ve had some very dry years recently.
Looks great!
Thanks!
oh my, another reason to look forward to cooler weather. These glimpses into some of the gardens make me excited to see more. Those water lilies are gorgeous. I like the speckled leaves and those sculptures…want to see more.
The sculptures alone made the trip worthwhile.
Great highlight post…it was a wonderful Fling! I look forward to you future posts and Judy’s photos this winter.
Thanks! It was great having a chance to chat with you and Sean.
Awesome, awesome photos! (And the words ain’t bad either…)
Thank you. Hope to see you again in DC, maybe we’ll get a chance to chat.
It was a great time with lots of learning opportunities. I am sorry we didn’t chat much. Next time for sure.
Let’s plan on it.
I felt the exact same way when the Fling came to Toronto….and those water lilies were unbelievable, weren’t they?
They certainly were.
You know it’s a good Fling when you see gardens you never knew existed, even when you knew the city well. Looks like plenty of photos and thoughts to entertain us in the coming winter months!
Absolutely!
Sounds like it was a very interesting get together!
These gatherings always are.
I think those are tropical water lilies. gorgeous foliage.
Isn’t it? By the way, I saw your post with the very expressive tree trunk, but I couldn’t figure out how to leave a comment.
At least one reason to look forward to winter.
Definitely.
This is a nice overview of what we saw! I especially loved Woutrina’s sculpture garden, which reminded me somewhat of Bella Madrona at Portland Fling. It was good seeing you and Judy again this year.
Woutrina’s garden may have been the high point of the whole fling. It was certainly full of surprises!
You’re very lucky to be able to do that.
True.
The gardens are beautiful but I love the sculptures because they are so different. 🙂
It looks like you visited many nice gardens. I wish I could have attended this Fling.
It would have been nice to see you.
Wonderful! Can’t wait to see more. I, too, really love the the sculptures.
That last sculpture just made me smile:) I enjoyed all the postings on Facebook by Flingers–looks like you saw some amazing gardens. Looking forward to seeing all these gardens in more detail–something to get us through the depths of winter! I so wish I could have gone, but I had a chance to go to D.C. instead, which was my first time there. Now I want to go back to D.C. to see everything I missed–hmm, sounds like next year’s Fling is a definite possibility!
The lotus flower is a beauty
It certainly is.
I thought of going to this fling but could not go at the last moment. Perhaps next year. I think I will like the sculpture garden best (from whatever I can gather from your pictures and writings). It seems a magical place.
Hmmm…how do you all get to use your neighbors’s property :-)?
Next year is in DC – not so far for you!
Hello Jason, it sounds like you had an unexpectedly good time in the Minneapolis Fling. I like the sound of the garden that was extended through purchasing acquiring land. I wondered if that would be something I would wish for here, but I think the plot we have (and the state it is in) is enough work to be getting on with!
Think big, Sunil!
Gosh, how lovely! I enjoyed everything, especially the sculpture and that giant bug. Fanbloomingtastic!xxx
The giant bugs were a lot of fun.
I love the bug and last sculpture too, what fun. I’m also enjoying the picture of you illegally coercing your neighbour into letting you have part of his garden. It would make a wonderfully original script for a Chicago Gangster movie.
I had an academic friend who wanted to start a street gang called the Insane Hegelians. I like the idea of a gardening street gang. How does The Gardening Disciples sound, or the Horticultural Vice Lords?