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Notes from a Garden Tour

May 24, 2022 By Talya Tate Boerner 7 Comments

notes from a garden tour

Well, friends, after months of anticipation and preparation, the Arkansas Master Gardener garden tour has come and gone. Whew! Now that I’ve had a minute to sit back and think about it, I scribbled down a few random notes about the whole fabulous experience.

Start Early.

Gardening is one of our favorite hobbies, so in a way, we’ve been preparing to be on this garden tour since we bought our property in 2014. But, as soon as we officially agreed to participate in this year’s state garden tour, we began honest-to-goodness planning. The end of winter seemed a very long wait. We pulled weeds between snowfalls and counted down to the last frost date when the real fun could begin.

Hard to believe this photo was taken only two months before the garden tour!

backyard

Get ‘er done!

The thing about agreeing to be on a garden tour is we were compelled to finish all those projects we’d been putting off. Two major projects we tackled included redesigning our compost bins and addressing our broken water feature.

I discussed how we repurposed our broken water feature in my last Sunday Letter, which you can read HERE. Bottom line, we converted it to a raised planter. Later we will probably add a new fountain because we miss the sound of flowing water.

I will soon devote an entire post to our new composting bins because I believe composting is a valuable thing (and our new bins are a work of art, if I do say so).

compost bins

Make a Plant List.

Whether or not labeling plants is a requirement of the garden tour you are on (our garden tour required it), it’s a good idea to keep a list of the plants growing in your garden, with both common and scientific names. You think you will remember the specific variety of fern purchased last summer, but that detail will disappear from your brain in a snap.

And yes, people will ask…

Allow time to place the markers too. If you have ten Astilbe plants and only one Astilbe marker (one per plant variety), placing it in the most visible garden spot can be tricky.

This is what 110+ plant labels look like…

Plant Markers

Plan a Garden Route.

When you have 150 people touring your garden, it’s a good idea to have an entrance and exit plan to avoid bottlenecking.

Garden Tour

Details Matter.

Don’t ignore the small things.

Clean and refill bird feeders. Trim low-hanging branches. Edit crowded plants so that each shines. Deadhead spent blossoms. Sweep porches. Rake gravel. Power wash surfaces.

I could go on and on.

Pace Yourself.

What gets done will be great, what doesn’t won’t matter. A garden is always evolving which means it is never finished.

Most Asked Questions from Garden Tour Visitors:

  1. What variety is this hosta?
    A huge one.
    See, I’m not good at remembering varietals. I think it’s Empress Wu.Empress Wu
  2. Do you have a yard person?
    No. John and I do all the gardening. (Two friends did help us weed one afternoon last week. Thank you Kristi and Jill!)
  3. Where did you get this gravel?
    Schwartz Stone Company in Springdale.
    side garden
  4. How long have you lived here and when was your house built?
    2014; 1875.
  5. What variety is this iris?
    Come Away With Me Bearded Iris. (I only recently identified this one’s name.)come away with me
  6. What type dogwood is this?
    It isn’t a dogwood. It’s a Korean Spice Viburnum.Korean Spice Vibernum
  7. Where do you buy plants?
    White River Nursery; Westwood Gardens; Sharum’s; from the Arkansas Master Naturalists’ plant sales. And many of our plants are passalongs from friends.

Take Lots of Pictures

Now that the beds have all been weeded and the plants are looking spiffy, be sure to take lots of pictures. In two days when the next blowing storm sweeps through, the petals on the peony will scatter, the weeds will blossom, and more twigs than seem possible will liter your lawn. You’ll be glad you have pictures of that single glorious garden tour day.

Garden Tour

Grace Grits and Gardening
Farm. Food. Garden. Life.

Filed Under: Gardening Tagged With: Arkansas Master Gardener, garden tour

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Comments

  1. Lou Nell McCraw Davis says

    May 24, 2022 at 7:30 am

    How lovely, Talya! I truly enjoyed the facebook tour of your beautiful garden. Thank you. Your’s and John’s drive for excellence paid off for all of us. Love, Lou Nell

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      June 10, 2022 at 7:56 am

      Thank you so much, Lou Nell!

      Reply
  2. Frances Creecy says

    May 24, 2022 at 7:56 am

    Talya your yard is so beautiful. Loved all the pictures you posted.

    Reply
  3. Colene says

    May 24, 2022 at 8:10 am

    Exactly what Frances said!!! Paula said you have the best house in Fayetteville!

    Reply
  4. LISA Pobst says

    May 24, 2022 at 2:30 pm

    Yes, your beautiful yard..love reading about it all and the pics!

    Reply
  5. Dorothy Johnson says

    May 30, 2022 at 5:56 am

    Wish I been on that tour! Your yard is beautiful and very inviting. Love it.
    Our peonies were just beginning to bloom when we left for two weeks at the beach. I could tell they would be glorious. I was sad to come back and find I’d missed the show.

    Reply
    • Talya Tate Boerner says

      June 10, 2022 at 7:55 am

      The show doesn’t last very long, that’s for sure! But I’m sure the beach put on its own show. Sure miss you.

      Reply

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Talya Tate Boerner


Hi! I'm Talya. Writer, Reader, Arkansas Master Naturalist / Master Gardener, Author of

THE ACCIDENTAL SALVATION OF GRACIE LEE (2016)

GENE, EVERYWHERE: a life-changing visit from my father-in-law (2020)

BERNICE RUNS AWAY (Now Available!)

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