See great gardens in Columbia and Lexington
Whether you’re looking for inspiration for your own garden or just want to see some lovely outdoor spaces, two Midlands garden tours are just what Mother Nature ordered.
The ninth annual Lexington Master Gardener Volunteers Tour, today, Saturday and Sunday, includes nine gardens in the West Columbia and Irmo areas, plus Riverbanks Botanical Garden. Landscapes and gardens on the tour include courtyard gardens surrounded by tall brick walls, climbing vines and espaliered shrubs, water features, a cottage garden, ivy terraces, an infinity pool and an herb garden.
The Columbia Green annual Festival of Gardens, today and Saturday, features 12 homes in the Spring Valley area with a variety of landscapes: gardens on the golf course, on lakes and in backyards hidden from the road; a garden train; and the garden of a national rosarian.
2010 Columbia Green Festival of Gardens
Garden 1, Ann and Steve Holtschlag, 236 Spring Valley Road — Gardening in the South was a new experience for this couple transplanted from colder climates in 1993. Year-round gardening has had a happy aspect for the Holtschlags, who built their garden from scratch. The landscape is designed as a family gathering place since the Holtschlag clan is widely scattered.
Garden 2, Jane and Greg Evans, 120 Spring Valley Court — The Evanses moved from Charleston, and the influence of that city is found throughout this space. Guests will find it hard to believe that this garden is only two years old— it is a jewel box of color, variety and whimsy.
Garden 3, Susan Hamilton and Tom Gross, 116 Southlake Road — This garden radiates with color in every season with trees, bushes and perennials. The centerpiece is a recirculating stream that meanders through the terraced garden before flowing into Lower Spring Valley Lake.
Garden 4, Francine and Phil Smith, 201 Southlake Road — Look past the screen of palms to the front porch of this Craftsman inspired house, and you’ll pots of agaves and succulents with colorful annuals. The containers have a structural quality that mirrors the clean lines of the house. The combination of architecture and landscape make the visit worthwhile.
Garden 5, Betsy and Harry Mashburn, 8 Northlake Road — Many events supporting charities and other organizations take place in this impressive garden.
Garden 6, Steven Ford and Alonso Cuellar, 1 Tiftgreen Circle — This spacious home “speaks Southern,” and the owners have been adding their style on the structure of this garden since they moved in a year ago.
Garden 7, Linda and Bill Stern, 2134 Bermuda Hills Road — Linda Stern envisions her front garden as an interplay of shades of green, as she brings her background in design to one of the prettiest landscapes with a golf course view.
Garden 8, Yvonne and Donald Russell, 2400 Bermuda Hills Road — The house and landscape are only two years old but give the impression of a thoughtfully planned and executed Southern garden. The garden “rooms” were given the same attention as the home’s interior.
Garden 9, Vijaya and Satish Prabhu, 18 Long Meadow Lane — This space has been designated the best rose garden in the Southeast United States by the American Rose Society. The Prabhus grow roses for exhibition and competition, but that will be the last thing on your mind as you pass under the rose-draped gate.
Garden 10, Karen and Charles Potok, 311 East Springs — This area around Clark Lake is one of the prettiest in Spring Valley, and the lake provides a backdrop for the traditional Southern landscape design of this tree-shaded yard.
Garden 11, Carreen and Bill Frew, 837 Kinlock — The front yard of this home puts on a show during azalea season, but it’s in the backyard where creativity really shines. Friends and neighbors often pass through the Frews’ gate to pick a sprig of fresh herbs or find a fresh vegetable or two. Birds are welcome, too; the weeping yaupon holly is an avian salad bar when the berries are on the tree.
Garden 12, Erika and Jack Swerling, 14 Glenlake Road — The landscaping showcases the architecture of this unique Spring Valley home.
Ninth Annual Lexington Master Gardener Volunteers Tour
West Columbia area
Garden 1, Joan and Clay Deal, 207 Holly Ridge Lane — Landscaped pathways meander up and down hillsides, and Japanese maples and gold cypress shrubs join a flagstone edging to frame a naturalistic pool.
Garden 2, Holli and Moultrie Roberts, 1516 Sewanee Drive — From the sunny front garden featuring Sago palms and red Japanese maple, follow the screen of Leyland cypress to the right of the house where variegated vinca cascades from a series of terraces. Wax myrtle, Pittosporum, eucalyptus, bald cypress and live oak create a shady refuge for lace cap hydrangea, both Confederate and Carolina jasmine, ferns and cast-iron plants.
Garden 3, Rosemary Lambert and Tom Falls, 117 Silver Wing Drive — This retreat incorporates a putting green and an herb garden. Gently curved flower borders surround an infinity pool and join with a brook running through the property. Enjoy sprays of purple salvia, wild petunias, hybrid lantanas, rare pink and yellow trumpet vine, Pee Gee hydrangea, red Knockout roses, hosta, daylilies and more.
Garden 4, Riverbanks Botanical Garden, 1300 Botanical Parkway — This walled garden features an ever-changing mix of unusual perennials and colorful annuals, both spacious shade and sun gardens, a winter garden, several gazebos and even an “old rose” area.
Irmo area
Garden 5, Janet Stirling/Brian Speer, 403 West Ashford Way — This garden offers the perfect mix of perennials and annuals in shade and sun. Butterflies flock to this old-fashioned cottage garden, complete with lily pond and romantic vine-laden gazebo. To find the orchid collection, just follow the red brick path.
Garden 6, Nan and George Briggs, 105 Bithynia Circle — Spot the espaliered shrubs on the courtyard wall and a myriad of artistic containers and intertwined plantings. The Briggses have chosen a palette of reds, blues and gold. Black-eyed Susans, hollyhocks, salvia, sweet potato vine, fishnet coleus and crimson fuchsias burst from the borders.
Garden 7, Willie and Bob Hale, 305 Bithynia Circle — This breezy courtyard garden offers an opulent collection of soft pastels – blues, pinks and yellows. Within the walled garden, a fountain bubbles amid hydrangeas, gardenias, daylilies and Confederate jasmine. An espaliered pyracantha claims a spot on the brick wall.
Garden 8, JoAnn and Buddy Lockwood, 104 Bithynia Circle — Tall brick walls enclose an oval pool. Peek around the corner to see periwinkle hydrangeas in a shady corridor with feathery ferns and blue-green hosta. Pink gauras dance near a Chinese fringe tree and a pink dogwood.
Garden 9, Donna and Rick Toburen, 116 Bithynia Circle — This secluded retreat surrounds a pool, and towering walls protect hanging baskets and planters brimming with color. A magnificent river birch shows off “ruffled” bark at the gated entrance.
source: http://www.thestate.com/2010/05/20/1293542/see-great-gardens-in-columbia.html