Something old Something new

Flowers and plants and soil tell many stories. One can learn about the climate about the history of a place or the personality of the person who puts the plant into the earth.

Flowers and plants and soil tell many stories. One can learn about the climate about the history of a place or the personality of the person who puts the plant into the earth.

“Gardens  have so many stories,” said Sally Hodson, garden  tour co-chairwoman. “It’s fun to always learn something new.”

The 2015 Annual Garden Tour Weekend is Saturday and Sunday, June 27 and 28, from 11 a.m to 5 p.m.

Tickets are $20 online at Brown Paper Tickets; on the island at Darvill’s Bookstore, Driftwood Nursery, Crow Valley Pottery, Smith and Speed Mercantile and at the gardens during the tour.

The annual Garden Tour is the highlight of the Garden Club year. Visitors from all over the U.S. come to Orcas to take a self-guided tour of some of the most beautiful gardens in the San Juan Islands.

“We have one of the most accessible garden tours in the northwest,” said  Hodson.

Proceeds from the tour go back to the community to support things like special guest speakers at garden club meetings, which are open to all and the Farm-to-Cafeteria program at the school.

This year’s tour celebrates its 10th anniversary with “Old Favorites and New Discoveries.”

Dream ranch

Michael Sterling’s 12-acre “Dream Ranch” is the creation of a man with boundless imagination and energy.

“It’s pretty wild right now,” said Sterling, who laughs generously.

His property has unique features like a patio nook he calls the French cafe, a small amphitheater for his wife who is a singer, several labyrinths, a hammock for star gazing and a frisbee golf course. His vegetable garden is awash with gooseberries, marionberries, elephant garlic, potatoes and hops for making beer.

Sterling first started work on the “Dream Ranch”  in 1997. Back then it was just a field, but he said it’s amazing what one can do with a tractor.

Orcas treasure

Crow Valley Pottery is an island treasure, dating back to 1959 at the historic “Cabin” location. This will be Jeffri Coleman’s and Michael Rivkin’s third time on the tour.

“The Crow Valley garden is an island favorite,” said  Hodson.

Their personal garden is filled with architectural salvage and treasures from travels around the world, including heritage perennials and shrubs, a fern grotto, a veggie and berry garden, a contemplative garden and Coleman’s cactus collection in the greenhouse.

“It’s inspired by old English gardens all higgly piggly with  no rhyme or reason,” said Rivkin.

There are sugar peas, cherry trees, hydrangeas, glass art and kale all swirled together on their expansive property.

“Everywhere you look there is something new to discover,” Hodson said.

Although Coleman is the main gardener, he and Rivkin often work together on their property. Their one rule is no heavy conversation or arguments when digging in the dirt.

“It’s our time to talk about pleasant things,” said Rivkin, who often takes his morning coffee in the veggie patch.

Garden with a view

Dick and Judy Evans three and a half acre- garden surrounds a small cove near

 

Obstruction Pass, with a perfectly framed view of Mt. Baker.  Gravel paths wind through a woodland garden containing hundreds of rhododendrons, to emerge at a mixed border filled with hundreds of roses, accented by flowering trees and perennials.  Be sure to peek in the greenhouse, the garden house, and the Winnie-the-Pooh house Judy built for her grandchildren.

Coffelt Farm

Coffelt Farm is beloved for its beauty, historical significance and as an example of island-scale agriculture. Covering 185 acres of pasture, woodland and wetland at the north end of Crow Valley, the farm sells grass-fed lamb and beef, pastured pork and chickens, organic vegetables and fruits and eggs and wool products. Peek over the farmhouse fence at the cottage garden that Sidney Coffelt has nurtured over 30 years.

Indralaya

Founded in 1927, the Indralaya Retreat Center draws visitors from around the world.  As the Indralaya mission states, from the moment you pass through the gate, you are keenly aware you have entered “a sanctuary of natural beauty and peace, celebrating the inter-connectedness of all forms of life.”

The 78-acre retreat includes nearly a mile of shoreline, forests, an historical orchard, a labyrinth and organic gardens, including 30 raised beds of veggies, herbs, and flowers.