Field Trip! Open Garden Days, Oregon Burn Center

June 25, 2008 | by Naomi Sachs

When people ask me for good examples of healing gardens, I always cite the gardens at Legacy Health System‘s health centers in Portland, OR. Their Oregon Burn Center garden is no exception, but unlike some of the other gardens, this one is not usually open to the public.

So, here’s your chance: Open Garden days in July and August. If you can visit, do! If I didn’t live 3,000 miles away, I’d be there in a New York minute. Here’s their press release, just sent to me by Teresia Hazen, Legacy’s amazing horticultural therapist:

“Join us for Open Garden at the Oregon Burn Center on Monday, July 14, 2008 and Monday, August 25, 11:30 – 1:00. Watch the growth of this four-year-old award-winning garden. We will celebrate the recent story of the garden in Landscape Architecture Magazine, April 2008. http://www.legacyhealth.org/documents/Gardens/OBCgarden.pdf

Enjoy garden tours, gardening education, nature craft activities and more. Bring a picnic lunch to enjoy in the garden. Bring your camera for great photos.

Garden is located at 3001 N. Gantenbein on the Emanuel Hospital campus. Enter through the two garden gates marked with balloons. This is a secured garden and only open to the public for these two special event dates.

For more information, please call 503-413-6507.”

Landscape Architecure Magazine published an article about the garden in April, written by UC Berkeley Professor Emerita (and my mentor) Clare Cooper Marcus: “For Burn Patients, A Place to Heal.” The garden was designed by Landscape Architect Brian Bainnsonof Quatrefoil, Inc. and Horticultural Therapist Teresia Hazen.