Tag: wonders

Huntsville Botanical Gardens

I took advantage of the reciprocal admissions program  (I love that program), and visited Huntsville Botanical Gardens while visiting my in-laws. The actual gardens didn’t impress me as much as many that I’ve been to. I did visit in a bit of a slump…summer blooms are gone and fall has yet to fully mature.

But these gardens are first on my list of kid-friendly gardens. Not only did they have a dedicated children’s garden (which was large and fun), but scattered throughout all the gardens were kid-friendly places like a model train, fort, and swing set. The kids with us enjoyed ponds and fountains to splash in (it was hot), ball bins, and butterflies in the butterfly house.

Callaway Gardens

We went down to Callaway Gardens last weekend. If you are interested at all in visiting public gardens, check out the AHS reciprocal admissions program. Not only do you get free admission to all sorts of fun gardens, but it’s good way to find new ones.

The gardens were fun. If I go back, I think I would only visit in the spring when the azaleas are blooming. There was still a lot of pretty plants, see the pictures for some of my favorite.

The Curious Garden

It’s fun when you find hidden gems among piles of normal stuff.  The Curious Garden, by Peter Brown was my gem in the large stack of picture books from the library. My kid preferred car/things-that-go books, but this is one of my favorite picture books I’ve ever read. It depicts the transformation of an industrialized city to a city filled with green living things.  Two large pictures depict the city. My kid preferred the first one with smokestacks and steel, but I loved the final one filled with green. It reminded me of projects like The High Line, and green roofs. Like the book depicted, life is better with gardens.

Atlanta Botanical Gardens

Prepare to be bombarded with pictures. I went to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens (and if you like visiting public gardens, become a member of AHS and use the reciprocal garden program). It was cloudy and the gardens were gorgeous so I was a super happy photographer. The only reason I am able to fit all the pictures from my trip into one post is because I had a nursing infant and preschooler along with me.

While there, I though about how beautiful everything is and how I like Atlanta. But although Atlanta is filled with fun stuff to do, has the most amazing wooded gardens, and has been a place I’ve been able to thrive, I also don’t considered it home. Home is Utah. Home is where I can actually give good recommendations on plants, I know exactly when the average last spring freeze is, and I know how to grow the biggest, juiciest melons. Home is where my family lives, where I grew up, and where the landscape is familiar and comforting even if it is covered in dry grass and sagebrush.

I wouldn’t mind if I did end up here, although that’s not the plan. Even if I do, Atlanta will always be an exotic location. It’s not the home base where I grew up and first grew a garden.

Atlanta History Center

At first glance, this place looks like a history museum. And it is…but it also has some incredible gardens. I’ve enjoyed them more than any other garden I’ve been to out here. The day I went there was a pretty good chance of rain. I planned on mostly looking at the interior exhibits and maybe ducking quickly outside if the weather cooperated. The rain never did show up and the weather wasn’t that hot, so we were able to spend lots of time enjoying the woodland gardens outside. We were out there longer than my little preschooler wanted to walk.

My mom was there with me, and as native Utahns we agreed that you couldn’t mimic this out west. The moist air, towering trees and moss growing everywhere creates an exotic feeling, as I grew up surrounded by sagebrush. I enjoy dense woods with a sense of oddity because they are the opposite of the steppe landscape I grew up in.

The batteries died in the camera, so I didn’t get as many shots as I would have like. Occasionally it is nice to not worry about pictures at all and just enjoy the scenery. There are six different gardens there, each with a unique style. The large formal gardens of the Swan House had a secret garden enchantment to them, surrounded by the more wild woods. My favorite was the quarry gardens, filled with native plants including burnt red rhododendrons in bloom.

The only downside to visiting the garden was it wasn’t spring with its blast of color, but it looked fantastic even in the heat of the summer. For more information visit their website.

Unexpected Garden Trip

I packed up the kids and went to the Fernbank Science Center, the goal of which was to entertain the toddler. I pleasantly discovered a small demonstration garden out back. The garden was enjoyable but not remarkable, unless you count the number of composters littering the pathway. (The composters compared methods of composting.) I miss gardening, noted by the fact that I was much too excited about finding a small demo garden. The pots out on the patio don’t cut it. I would love a home-grown heriloom tomato right now, but they are not lining my cupboards like they were last summer. Oh well, I guess I will take potted basil and finding gardens to tour.

The garden featured a small butterfly garden (complete with magnifying glasses), bog garden, wildlife habitat, and bees. There was a beehive in the garden, and bees in a narrow glass case. My kid and I spent a good portion of our time there peering at the busy bees. Bees are awesome. I was also happy to see not only a honey bee hive, but nests meant for native bees as well.

The DeKalb County school system operates the science center, and its main mission is education for schools. While there, I felt a little like an elementary school kid on a field trip. The place was not spectacular or modern by any means, but it helped me get into a learning mode. The Fernbank Science Center is low cost (free), so it makes a fun day expedition. In additional to science displays, they have planetarium programs and an old growth forest. For more information go to http://www.fernbank.edu/

Underutilized Smells and Space

I went to a friend’s house to look at her garden and she had nice tomatoes growing. I haven’t grown any tomatoes due to lack of sunlight on my balcony, and a newborn right at planting time. I didn’t realize what I’d been missing out of until I put out my hand to touch the plants and got a whiff of one of the most beautiful smells in the world. I adore the smell of tomato vines, and currently I can’t think of smell I enjoy more. I might plant one as a fragrance plant, even if it’s a little late and shady to actually get tomatoes. I know that ‘tomato vine’  isn’t necessarily categorized as a  pleasing smell, but its one of those smells that is richly associated with good memories for me. What smells in the garden or elsewhere are like that for you?

I saw this nursery while visiting some family in Huntsville, Alabama. It’s off the side of a highway underneath some high tension power lines. It’s strange shape is  only about 30 feet wide, but a half-mile long. I didn’t get a chance to visit, but snapped some pictures while driving by. I think that it is a great use of space that can’t be used for much else. It reminds me of research I’ve heard of that grows biofuel crops on highway right-of-ways. Location is a part of sustainable agriculture, and both example show how agriculture can fit into places that are frequently wasted.

Blossoms Tour Part 2

Continuation of previous post

When I visited the third house, I noticed this formal planting on the drive:

Much of the garden close to the house was formal in nature, but there was a more naturalistic gully as well.

I loved this potting bench, although I would love to see it covered in potting soil and not made up for the tour. 

The outdoor living space, complete with pool, fireplace, grill, good company and much appreciated water. 

 

My first impression of the last garden was that it was bland, and the front yard was. But the back yard resembled a flower show. The highlight was not necessarily a functional garden, but rather various garden-themed scenes spread throughout the garden, beautifully decorated for the tour.

There’s a chandelier off the gazebo…very cool. 

I loved the colors on the umbrella, echoed down into the place setting. 

They were even playing French music to go along with this French cafe scene. 

Adorable bird feeder…or squirrel feeder based on the statue.

 

 

Blossoms Garden Tour

On Saturday, I went to a free garden tour in Norcross featuring four residences and a plant sale. It was a bright sunny day, and I was beginning to feel the heat of summer. Luckily, I still managed to get some good pictures even with intense noon-day sunlight. The gardens were wonderful, and beautifully made-up for the tour. One common feature throughout all four that helped them stand out above other gardens was the use of embellishment and detail. Colorful pots, unique hardscape, statues, fountains and fun whimsical elements helped light up the gardens. The plants weren’t that bad either.

First up was a corner lot. The outdoor living space and most of the garden, including a large vegetable garden, were located in the front and side yard which I loved. It used the space well, and I enjoyed the more open and public feel.

The front yard, an effortless transition from outdoors in.

Welcoming front patio.

Side patio flanked by vegetable gardens .

Love this rustic outdoor chandelier.

The second garden had a lovely southern woodland feel. All the trees had been limbed up to allow for filtered rather than dense shade.

Looking from the back of the garden looking toward the house.

Side path with beautiful mass plantings.

Taken from behind the shed shown in the picture above. I love the attention to every out-of-the-way spaces.

This is enough for one post: more will be coming!

Wildflower Center of Georgia

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Spring is in full swing, and it is so gorgeous here. Streets are filled with flowering trees and shrubs in much larger quantities than I’ve seen before. I wanted to go visit a public garden, but not pay a lot or travel far. I finally found the Georgia Perimeter College Botanical Gardens, and headed over for a visit last Saturday. They feature a native plant and fern garden. The gardens are small and I enjoyed the naturalized layout and feel to everything. They also had a plant sale that was also going on and I was sad that I didn’t have a garden to buy carts full of plants for. It looked like a great place to get Georgia natives though, and also to get ideas on using them.

The azaleas and dogwoods were in full bloom making it a great time to visit. I loved the look of the fern gardens, backlit by filtered shade from trees just starting to gain their leaves. It was a great time to take a load of pictures, and I hope you enjoy them.

*Visit the site linked above for visiting information, along with plant sale dates, and free native plant talks and garden walks.