Kathy and Ken Walker are still learning what grows in their zone, finding that Dunmore tends to be somewhat cooler with more snow. - NEWS PHOTO SAMANTHA JOHNSON
reporter@medicinehatnews.com
The Medicine Hat and District Horticulture Society hosted its annual Garden Tour this past Sunday. The tour shows the diversity of gardening options within the city and surrounding area. Each garden offered something different and provided enthusiasts with opportunities to discuss and compare.
Two very large, park-like gardens book-ended the tour. The first was in Dunmore with a lush lawn and flower beds mostly relegated to the fence lines. This lot was almost an acre in size and is mostly managed by Ken Walker. His wife Kathy says she loves the size and variety of the garden, with space to put in a new plant whenever they find one.
Mark and Christine Keller have their garden built on a slope. The couple have done lots of rock landscaping and Mark says he loves that the more he works in the garden, the better he feels. There are discreet steps built into the rock gardens, interspersed with some lawn, all the way to the top, where they’ve built a small teahouse with a hammock tied up outside. When Mark lies up there, he says he can forget he lives in a city and enjoy the quiet and the great view he has across the river valley.
Terry and Theresa Eisenbarth have created sanctuaries throughout their garden. When first arriving, two red chairs surrounded by ornamental grasses and flowers immediately catch the eye. To the rear of the chair are lush vines growing up the front of the house. In the back there is a water feature with resting spots to sit and enjoy the birds and wildlife that come to visit, along with a large wooden smoker.
Bonnie Doucette and Tim Roebuck have been working on their garden for 33 years and find inspiration each year on the Garden Tour. Bonnie enjoys sitting out on the deck with a morning coffee or evening glass of wine and enjoying the garden from a distance, where it’s harder to see the weeds that need to be pulled and other work that is waiting to be done.
Amy Makepeace has created a front-yard oasis. While she puts a garden in each season, this year’s display received more effort and she loves how it invites people in. Her grandmother, Isabel, passed away this past February. Isabel was an avid gardener and passed on her talents to her granddaughter, who created this year’s garden in her memory.
Cheryl and Kent Friedt have a giant maple shading the back yard. Cheryl says she has always loved plants and enjoys the calming aspects of her garden. The gazebo in the back corner provides a relaxing area to sit and enjoy the colour. The garden is well established and, while Cheryl puts in annuals each year, she enjoys the low maintenance aspect of her space now. One area has two vibrant red chairs, but Cheryl said they are primarily for show as it gets too hot in that corner to be out there for very long.
Judy and Brian Graham have created an Alberta-themed garden with hitching posts and wheels from old wagons dotted around. The eye is immediately drawn to the large swimming pool on one side of the yard. Both the garden and pool have curved edges, which Brian feels is one of the gardens best features. The garden is south-facing, both a curse and a blessing. Cheryl explained they’ve waited 23 years for the trees to grow large enough to give shade.
Each year Grace MacDougall starts something new. The garage has lots of grow lights and the vehicle gets kicked to the curb for the plants take over the space in the early months of each year. She wants to have an all-season garden and says she’s been mostly successful with that goal. Keeping a small area for experimenting with new flowers is something she enjoys.
