Spring does not arrive in the Willamette Valley all at once.

The cherry petals have barely disappeared before the next wave of color begins. By May, the fields and display gardens at Schreiner’s Iris Gardens are filled with blooms—deep purple, pale blue, gold, white, and nearly every shade between.

It is a bolder season than the soft blossoms of early spring. The flowers stand tall above their leaves, each one looking as though it has been carefully painted.

A Field Filled with Color

For a few short weeks each May, rows of irises stretch across the fields while the display gardens fill with color.

Tilly wandered among them with her ears forward and her nose working, pausing whenever something caught her attention. She looked especially at home beside the blue and purple blooms, her warm coloring standing out against the cool shades surrounding her.

The garden may have been planted for people to admire, but Tilly experienced it in the way dogs do—one interesting scent at a time.

Valley Field Notes

Location
Schreiner’s Iris Gardens, north of Salem

Color of the Season
Iris blue and violet

Bloom
May, with timing and varieties changing throughout the month

Peak Moment
Mid-May, when the iris fields and display gardens are filled with the broadest range of color.

Valley Fact
The Schreiner family began growing and breeding irises in 1925 and moved the gardens to Oregon in 1947. Today, generations of the family continue that work in the Willamette Valley. Schreiner’s Gardens

Listen For
Bees moving between the flowers and red-winged blackbirds calling from the surrounding fields.

Look For
The beards along the center of each iris, painted in colors that sometimes contrast sharply with the petals around them.

Sent at the Right Time

Tilly came home in March, when she was just shy of three months old. She was meant to be a little sister and companion for Bruce, the dog who was already deeply loved.

Only four months later, Bruce died suddenly from a blood condition.

The loss was shocking and heartbreaking. Tilly had barely begun her new life with Bruce before she and her mom were left to find their way forward without him.

But the puppy who had arrived to be Bruce’s companion became the one who helped her mom through losing him. Tilly brought comfort, friendship, and something steady to hold onto during an impossibly difficult time.

Her mom believes the universe knew what was coming and sent Tilly before she understood how much she would need her.

Today, she calls Tilly her best friend and her soul dog.

Perhaps some dogs arrive for one reason, only for their place in our lives to become something much greater.

Standing among the irises, Tilly was not thinking about any of that. She was simply exploring another corner of the Valley with the person who needed her—and whom she needed in return.

Every Story Begins Somewhere

Every dog featured in the Colors of the Valley 2027 Calendar has a story.

Many of those stories found a new beginning through 4 All Muttkind Rescue. Because someone opened their home. Someone opened their heart. Someone believed every dog deserved the chance to belong.

Today, those second chances are exploring orchards, forests, rivers, gardens, and fields across the Willamette Valley, discovering its colors one season at a time.

That’s the story we’re celebrating.

Next in the Valley → Meet the next 4 All Muttkind alumni as Colors of the Valley continues through another season, another place, and another unforgettable dog.

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Tilly Among the Irises

A Field Filled with Color

Valley Field Notes

Sent at the Right Time

Every Story Begins Somewhere

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