Bella Madrona: mystery and magic

On my April trip to Portland, one of the destinations I was most looking forward to was Bella Madrona. I’d been there once before, during the 2014 Garden Bloggers Fling, and had fond, if hazy, memories. For some reason, I never finished my post that I started 12 years ago, but here is a good one about Bella Madrona and the Fling written by Pam Penick on her blog Digging.

Bella Madrona defies description. There are trees and shrubs and flowers, art pieces and found objects, a stream and a bog, several meadows, and even a secret forest inhabited by gnomes. As I was reading up on what others have written about it, I came across a term that captures its essence perfectly: pleasure garden. It makes me think of something grander, something that goes beyond plants; a space designed to bemuse, entertain, and thrill. When you look at the photos below, you’ll see what Bella Madrona is: lush, eclectic, playful, romantic, serene, mystical. I’d even call it whimsical if the w word wasn’t so worn out.

Before we get to the photos, a bit of history to give you context. Here is how Geof Beasley, who bought the 5-acre property in 1980 together with his partner James Sampson, described Bella Madrona in the 2014 Garden Blogger’s Fling brochure:

Bella Madrona began forming in 1980, at an 1892 farmstead. It was named for the madrones growing naturally here, in gravelly soil formed by the ice age floods. Over the years, garden rooms were added, surrounded by hedges. We began having large parties and benefits, which required that crowds could move easily from room to room, and that large open spaces be included. The plant material, though special from the beginning, was chosen to complement the overall space.

Now that the garden is 34, and the gardener in 64, the prime focus is keeping towering hedges sheared, pruning trees and shrubs to allow some semblance of light in, and repairing crumbling infrastructure. The garden has directed its own maturation, with some editing help from the aging gardener. As a result it has taken on a personality and possesses a sense of place that is to many visitors alluring, eccentric and magical. The lower area, essentially a bog, with its metasequoia grove and large bald cypresses, is a world apart, belying its proximity to the urban growth boundary. It is, along with the garden as a whole, home to a great variety of wildlife, and, indeed, the place is as much for them as it is for the humans who live here and who visit.

The 2014 Garden Bloggers Fling brought almost 100 garden peeps from all over the country (and a few from Canada and overseas) to Bella Madrona. It was the closing reception of what had been a fantastic three days of touring gardens in the Portland area. There was plenty of food and drink, much of it alcoholic, and the mood was loud and joyful. What we didn’t know was that James Sampson was returning that night from hospice care. He would die at home the following year at age 65. He and Geof Beasley had been together for 47 years, 35 of them at Bella Madrona.

In the years after James’s death, Geof, along with volunteers from local horticultural organizations, worked hard to maintain and refresh the garden. When we were at Bella Madrona in April, almost 12 years after my first visit, the garden, now 45+ years in the making, seemed quieter, a little less exuberant, but all the elements that make it one of a kind were still there.

Geof Beasley himself led our small group all over the property, accompanied by Brazilian music playing over speakers installed throughout the upper garden. Hopefully the photos below will give you an idea of why Bella Madrona is so special.

When we arrived, we were greeted by pug Caper...

...soon to be joined by his pug sister Olive

The house is nestled under the trees, as is almost everything else at Bella Madrona

Spring flowers

Tulips may be a common sight in Portland, but to me they’re almost exotic (they’re challenging to grow in our climate)

Early signs of spring

Bella Madrona has many places to sit

Two paired chairs are a recurring motif. An invitation to have a deeper conversation? Or to share a romantic moment? As with so many things at Bella Madrona, you can bring your own interpretation.

Allée leading to the barn

The barn is a beautifully weathered structure

I think it also serves as a guest house

Winding paths, leading who knows where

Upside-down wine bottles as pavers

Stone face by Berkeley artist Marcia Donahue, who was part of our group

I love the layer of moss

Giant penis by Marcia Donahue. Marcia was delighted to see it was still there.

It seemed that I was able to find something...

...wherever I looked

I have no idea what this represents, but as a fan of rusted metal, it had my attention

Another enigmatic piece

Milk can pretending to spill water...

...into a terraced stream lined with all kinds of rusty objects

In a small garden, this stream would be a central feature. At Bella Madrona, it’s just one of many things you come across as you walk around.

Portals in the woods. What does it mean?

Two chairs in a meadow of daisies

Four chairs at the edge of the woods

Metal pinwheel, because why not

Stone pagoda in the bog...

...and a cowl vent suggesting that maybe there’s someone or something lurking beneath

First I thought the red things were the flowers of this butterbur (Petasites sp.), but at closer inspection it’s obvious they’re made of glass

Hänsel and Gretel in cage?

A bit eerie and unsettling

And finally, at the far end of the property, a secret walk through a forest populated by gnomes:

There be gnomes in them thar woods

Making merry, but always keeping an eye on you

Gnoming is thirsty work

About five years ago, vandals smashed a number of gnomes. Many new gnomes have been added since then, but the broken pieces were left in place. As if to say that you can’t keep a good gnome down.

Over the past 45+ years, James Sampson and Geof Beasley have hosted many parties, celebrations, and fundraisers at Bella Madrona, some for hundreds of people. It is, quite possibly, the best known private garden in Oregon. Thomas Lauderdale, founder and leader of the band Pink Martini, and China Forbes, Pink Martini’s lead singer, were so captivated by the magic of Bella Madrona that they co-wrote the song The Gardens of Sampson & Beasley, which appeared on their 2nd album Hang On Little Tomato (2004). The song’s narrator reminisces about a past love under “Orion’s starry sky,” wishing they could “still pretend that love was around the bend in the gardens of Sampson and Beasley.”

At the closing reception of the 2014 Garden Bloggers Fling, each of us got a CD of Hang On Little Tomato so I knew the studio version of The Gardens of Sampson & Beasley (which I love). I recently found a video of Pink Martini performing The Gardens of Sampson & Beasley live from Bella Madrona on September 10, 2022, and I think it’s even better, maybe because it was recorded in the very place that inspired the song.

© Gerhard Bock, 2026. All rights reserved. To receive all new posts by email, please subscribe here.