Happy Monday, GPODers!
We have a very special week lined up on the blog, thanks to Anne Eshelman from Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida. This February we were introduced to the new garden Anne built in Florida after moving from the vastly differently climate of Michigan a couple of years ago (check out that submission here: Flowers From Anne’s New Florida Garden). However, adding to and maintaining the plantings around her new home is not the only way she gets involved in gardening lately—she is also president of her local garden club. As president, she helps arrange their Secret Garden Tour and has very generously shared with us photos from all five gardens featured on the tour this past spring. So this week, Garden Photo of the Day is staying in the Sunshine State, exploring a new “secret” garden from this tour each day. Here’s what Anne has to say about the tour, and the first garden we’ll be exploring:
I love Fine Gardening! I wanted to share our Secret Garden Tour, which is the premier event of our Garden Club in Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, Zone 9B. We visited five unique gardens in our neighborhood, which were not visible from the street, ending with a garden lunch. And the proceeds from the event benefited a local college scholarship fund.
Teresa Romero’s rear garden is serene and peaceful, with stately trees, and grass leading down to a quiet lagoon. It was designed with azaleas, which had already finished blooming, in tribute to the Master’s golf tournament. Notice the blue plumbago (Plumbago auriculata, Zones 9–11) and red Hawaiian ti plant (Cordyline fruticosa, Zones 10–11).
Teresa has created a lush border garden around the lagoon at the end of her property. Saw palmetto (Serenoa repens, Zones 8–11) brings its tropical texture with fans of spiky foliage.
The intense heat and sun in Florida make shade a precious commodity, and lots of mature palms and other trees on the property create a shady oasis.
More fabulous foliage brings color to Teresa’s garden. This seems to be pink-flowering Chinese fringe-flower (Loropetalum chinense var. rubrum, Zones 7–9), which produces vibrant pink flowers in spring. If this is the case, it must be a radiant companion to the blue plumbago and Hawaiian ti plant poking out from behind.
Towering palm trees add their incredible tropical foliage and plenty of shade to this garden, but the interesting patterns and colors of palm tree bark often get overlooked. The bark of some palms can look like scales, but I love the cool gray tones that are highlighted here.
These trees are not only interesting shade-producers, but they also create a stunning wall of privacy behind Teresa’s pool. Whether she’s soaking up some sun or lounging in the shade, Teresa is in her own private retreat.
One final view of the vibrant blue plumbago and ti plants looking dazzling in the dappled shade. Teresa’s garden has a calm feel, but it is not lacking in color or interest. What a fantastic introduction to this tropical tour!
Have you enjoyed any garden tours this year? I know many loyal GPODers are also members of a local garden club, and we would love to hear about and see more of the gardens that get featured on these very special tours. If you’ve opened your garden to a tour or visited some exceptional neighborhood gardens this year, please consider sharing pictures with Garden Photo of the Day. Follow the directions below to submit photos via email, or send me a DM on Instagram: @agirlherdogandtheroad.
We want to see YOUR garden!
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, send 5–10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
Have a mobile phone? Tag your photos on Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter with #FineGardening!
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