TLC’s field trip to five gardens, hosted jointly by TLC and the Reid Chapter of the NC Native Plant Society, celebrates how private gardens and residential properties contribute to the health and beauty of the Triangle’s environment. The gardens on the tour illustrate ways to steward home gardens that enrich our lives with birdsong, flowers, shade, and homegrown food, while enhancing the environmental health of the community. In addition to showcasing the beauty of native woodland wildflowers, these “conservation gardens” provide wildlife habitat and demonstrate environmentally friendly practices such as water conservation, rainwater harvesting, composting, mulching, and alternatives to lawns.
Paths through the gardens are mostly unpaved and narrow. Terrain in several of the gardens is steep in places, with uneven trail surfaces and steep stream banks. Please wear appropriate footwear, stay on paths and exercise caution during your visit. Children are welcome if supervised. Please leave pets at home.
Details
● Participants may visit any or all of these gardens; registration is not required.
● Visitors should please keep in mind that these gardens are all private residences and respect the privacy
of the homeowners/gardeners who are so generously opening their gardens for our tour.
● Please visit only during the defined tour time period of 1 to 5 p.m.
● Please be considerate of the gardens' neighbors, especially being sure not to block driveways
when parking.
Click here to see a tour map.
1. 'Older Wood' -- A Woodland Garden
1004 Kelly Road, Apex
The two-acre garden of Suzanne and Ed Edney is in a typical forest of the North Carolina Piedmont Region. Mature trees include: Loblolly Pine, Sweet Gum, Tulip Poplar, Maple, Elm, Oak, Dogwood and Sassafras. The site is in the Triassic Basin (sandy soil over clay) and at the eastern edge of an ancient lake bed. Numerous underground springs cool the air with constant rising moisture keeping temperatures about five degrees cooler than surrounding towns. The garden plants are a mixture of natives and ornamentals enhancing winding paths around the house and through the woods.
Distinct areas of interest that have been developed over the past 15 years and include:
• The main driveway with northern and southern 'woods edge' exposures.
• The children’s garden entered through an arbor topped with a living roof.
• A front courtyard that weaves wetland plants into a visual tapestry.
• A stone wall and terrace garden dubbed "The Woodland Meadow".
• Two moss gardens and a moss path with a newly planted Epimedium collection.
• Wetlands in the woods and a young fern garden.
• And on the southern edge of the woodland is a 300' x 35' stroll garden including perennials, a mixed hedge and winter interest garden that is being partially renovated.
2. Swiftbrook Gardens
5508 Swiftbrook Circle, Raleigh
Swiftbrook Gardens is a restful retreat for humans and a refuge for native plants and wildlife created over the past 16 years by Dale Batchelor and John L. Thomas on 1.4 acres of re-foresting farmland. The gardens reflect the divergent interests and passions of its creators through a “His,” “Hers,” and “Ours” approach to the property.
Dale’s open and inviting front and side garden blends with the surrounding cul-de-sac. Her passion for native flora is evident in the sunny and shaded planting beds along soft, mossy paths. Removing the English Ivy and Japanese Honeysuckle that once covered the yard revealed some of the garden’s most appealing features--large areas of Partridge Berry and Running Cedar as well as several types of native orchids. Downed- tree path liners and areas of undisturbed leaf litter provide habitat for insects and other small animals that support the success of the plant communities.
John’s background in theatrical design is evident in the whimsical garden behind the modest ranch house. Careful control of sight lines creates a sense of mystery and drama while solid geometry lends formality to areas such as the “Little Sissinghurst Behind the Barn.” A walled patio garden, a restful pond and shady rock garden, and a cottage garden filled with Foxglove and Dame’s Rocket are stops along the way to hidden formal borders. An avid collector of native and exotic plants, he has something in bloom 365 days a year.
In the collaborative back woodland, brush piles and both standing and fallen deadwood support cavity nesting birds and other wildlife. A path to a pair of wooden swings takes visitors through an area where the naturally re-establishing forest is enhanced with other Southeast natives, some from organized plant rescues. Approximately 50 distinct native species have returned to Swiftbrook Gardens in the 60 years since it was farmed.
Swiftbrook Gardens is recognized as a Native Plant Habitat by the North Carolina Native Plant Society and as a Backyard Wildlife Habitat by the National and North Carolina Wildlife Federations.
3. Rita’s Garden
103 Beechtree Court, Apex
As a child, Rita Mercer lived on her parents’ farm, spending many hot, summer days working in the vegetable garden. Her favorite pastime was playing with neighborhood children in the relatively cool woods behind their home. It is little wonder then, that when she and Denny moved to Apex, North Carolina in 1988, she was drawn to the house at the top of a hill that was surrounded by tall trees (and Denny, a long-time pilot and aircraft owner, was drawn to the quaint grass airstrip bordering the property). Although Rita had never landscape-gardened, she felt an urgency to create beauty in a wooded lot that was inhospitable to most plants because of its infertile, sandy, dry soil. Now, fortunately, as a result of her insatiable interest in everything horticulture-oriented, the garden is resplendent with many different kinds of plants that have been researched and tested and have adapted beautifully to the conditions of the garden. Certified as a Wildlife Habitat and a Native Plant Habitat, the two-acre site contains everything from passalong plants to rare and unique specimen trees.
Entering the property, pastel-hued plants dominate the sunny borders surrounding the pond. Stone paths and terraces in addition to wooden decks and arbors enhance the naturalistic feel of the gardens. Mulched paths lead up into the woodland garden and to the house. In the shade, many wildflowers and shrubs bloom in the spring. Distinctive foliage plants are abundant in the shade when flowering plants become scarce. The path continues through the shaded backyard garden to the sunny Hangar Garden, planted with the hot colors that Denny loves. Showy in summer and fall, it has become a haven for butterflies, hummingbirds, and Denny’s pilot friends.
4. Harville Garden
104 Birklands Drive, Cary
I garden for many reasons. Enjoyment: I can’t think of anything I would rather do than watch Trillium open in the spring. Therapy: every evening I unwind by walking around the yard and watch things change. Beauty: Yellow Lady Slipper—enough said. Wildlife: our yard is a Certified Wildlife Backyard Habitat. Heritage: most of the plants in my yard have been rescued from sites that are being developed. Curiosity: I love to find something coming up and watch it develop and then be able to identify it. Some I wind up pulling out but that’s OK because a garden is never finished.
You will see that this neighborhood has been relatively “gentle” to nature. The developers spared a large number of the trees. Three trees that have died/got blown over/cut for a house had rings of 178, 175, 220+ so we have a lot of shade from old, tall trees. That was one of the reasons I migrated to native plants. My garden has earned the distinction of being a NC Native Plant Habitat from the NC Native Plant Society. I had to put in some water features—but on a small scale so far. I have started developing rooms in the landscape—places where you can tuck away, unobserved and watch the world go by. Probably my favorite feature, that’s really a hard call, is the bank on the side of the house. When we moved in 15 years ago it was a bare red clay road cut. It grew naturally for 6 years, then I cut out all the pines and I’m selectively removing some of the hardwoods as they develop. Paths crisscross the slope, allowing you a close up view of the rescued native plants. It now offers quite a variety to enjoy. Probably 95% of all the plant material that I have cut or pulled up has been ground up and put back and we compost most kitchen waste. Very little water leaves this lot. I didn’t realize what I was doing at the time but I have managed to slow and spread the rain water so it soaks in.
This garden is truly a work in progress because I enjoy watching it grow and change. Now that I think about it, perhaps my favorite feature is finding a native plant coming up that I didn’t plant.
5. Swift Creek Bluffs Nature Preserve – A Natural Garden
Holly Springs Road, Cary
This 23-acre natural area is a remarkable remnant of historical Piedmont forests. It is a wonderful place to see native wild flowers thriving within their natural plant communities and to glean ideas about how to use native plants (purchased from reputable nurseries) in your own garden. The preserve’s various habitats offer a diversity of plant communities and species. In late spring the site is a verdant and flower-filled natural garden. The wide floodplain hardwood forest is carpeted with herbaceous wildflowers such as Wild Geranium, Golden Alexander, Atamasco Lilies, Jack-in-the-Pulpit and Mayapple. The steep north-facing slopes of the bluffs feature towering beech trees. Flowers at the time of the tour are likely to include Mapleleaf Viburnum and Bigleaf Styrax in the shrub layer and Foamflower, Black Cohosh and Maidenhair Ferns at the ground layer.
Note: The springtime succession of bloom at Swift Creek Bluffs starts in early/mid March with the spring ephemerals - Spring Beauties, Hepatica, Troutlilies, Bloodroots and more. They’ll fade in late March- early April, depending on weather. The peak of the spring show comes in early to mid April – usually around “taxtime” and April 15, just as the tree leafbuds are unfurling. So, if you read this description ahead of time, and can visit Swift Creek Bluffs a week or two BEFORE the tour on the 25th, do so!Then visit again during the tour, for the next act of the show, which is greener and lusher, with a new cast of wild flowers.
Last updated on 04/02/2009