Every Spring Frederick, Maryland has a weekend-long tour of several private gardens in the downtown area. This year's tour opened the garden gates to historic townhouses as well as individual homes. It was a lovely day to be outside despite the overcast skies as we walked through these 11 gardens....
We entered the garden from the side street. I was immediately struck by the perfection of the grass, but then realized it was artificial turf....
This Weeping Blue Atlas Cedar made a stunning statement up against the house....
The archway to the side yard was formed by two Blue Ice Cedars....
The next garden was also on a corner lot....
The view looking back out at the side street upon entering the rear garden....
A welcoming window box....
Take a closer look at the "window"....
Yes! It's a mirror! This was a charming display against the garage....
As we entered the enclosed backyard we were treated to a large brick patio with plantings all along the wall....
A pleasing arrangement by the back door....
There were several container garden displays....
We left through an entrance on the other side of the house enclosed by this gate....
The next house was in the middle of the block across from our city park....
We followed the walk along the right side of the house....
The chocolate mulch was heavenly! So much was in bloom I wondered if they were new plantings. We passed through two gates to reach the backyard....
....to find a rather large pool and circular spa where you see the first waterfall on the right and a pizza oven in the back right. On the left was an apartment over the garage....
The deck chairs and umbrellas were charming....
....and the huge Cryptomeria against the dark fence gave the area an oriental flare....
The table top is Pennsylvania Blue Stone resting on a wrought iron base, held on with "fingers" of iron wrapped around the edge....
We exited through the other side yard. The flames in the porch lanterns caught my eye....
The houses were far enough apart that we had to drive to each. This one was on a quiet street. I was delightfully surprised to find a friend from the past on the porch checking visitors' tickets....
I love flowers and garden whimsy along steps....
We followed the porch to the back yard to discover this wonderful outdoor fireplace....
Across from it was a Koi pond. It is 5 feet deep--too deep for Herons to stand in it to catch the fish...
I followed the walk to the back of the yard....
A plein air artist was nearby capturing the garden on her canvas....
Her view....
As we left through the side gate I turned to photograph the gate....
The next garden was behind a townhouse....
The driveway to the left was our means to entering the backyard. The Southern Magnolia is estimated to be 120 to 140 years old...
The yard had three distinct areas. After the stone patio area for eating was this gravel path....
There was a fountain on the wall....
Behind the hedge was a shadier area with this small pond with waterfall....
The view from the back of the yard....
This next townhouse was built in 1840....
We entered through the side gate to the right....
We were told that this cistern was only uncovered just recently when the brick patio was constructed. When the workers struck plywood while digging up the yard, they discovered a 15-foot, rock-lined hole in the ground. There was a pipe extending into the area for water runoff from the roof. The owners had the stone extended to bring it above ground and placed a safety grate at ground level with a light at the bottom. They think it is as old as the house....
This is the view from the back of the yard....
Another townhouse....
The owner had several plant arrangements as we walked along the side yard....
There is water coming up out of the center of this rock....
We followed a walkway like this combination of stone and brick to this back patio area in front of a small room attached to the garage that the owner converted into a dining room....
This is the view looking back. I was unable to get a good photo of the dining room because of all the people in the way....
We stopped by the hospitality for a cookie/lemonade break at City Hall and sat by the fountain....
A Cardinal joined us nearby....
Then it was onto two townhouses side by side....
We entered the first garden for the house on the right and followed the brick walkway to the backyard....
I turned and snapped this photo of the path we took....
We exited the first garden through the door on the left and walked around to the second garden's back gate....
On either side of the terraced walkway were lush plantings....
This is taken mid-point looking back at the gate we entered from the back parking area....
I spoke briefly with the owner. Her husband had only just recently put in the terraced walks and landings. They had rented the house out for years but they'd planted the trees when they originally bought the house with this future garden in mind. This was the way back out to the street....
As we walked back to our car I admired this front stoop....
This side entrance to someone's backyard has inspired me to take advantage of all the ivy in my yard. I'm thinking about putting an arch at the beginning of the walkway to my backyard like this one....
This kitty seemed to be appealing for help to escape....
The last two houses were on the edge of downtown and were stand alone houses. This one was rather new as compared to the others....
We walked around to the backyard and were rather surprised to see that it was entirely landscaped with hardscape and plants....
The path through the yard was a lush lawn. Between the plantings were sitting areas like this....
As you reach the back there is a pretty shed with a nice sitting area....
....with a fountain in the corner....
The last house is one of Frederick's stately Victorians....
A closer look at the front door....
We entered the garden, though, from the side street. The garage made a nice backdrop for the plantings....
The yard was very large and most of the plantings were along the perimeter....
....until you got to the other side of the house. Notice the chandelier hanging from the tree....
....and the flower on the table....
Each chair had a picture for each season. Spring....
Summer....
Autumn....
Winter....
The steps to the side porch were near the table....
The Forget-Me-Nots were in full bloom....
Our last stop was the Arboretum where we saw this Black Squirrel with a partially red tail....
Cathy ... you've created yourself a wonderful E-zine! I've thoroughly enjoyed the tour. The pictures are delightful and inspiring. Here in lower Alabama, we're challenged by fire ants and bare patches throughout our 'lawn,' if it can be called that; and we've just discovered some tell-tale signs of possible armadillo invasion! Having lived here only 9 months, we're enjoying the variety of palms and various trees and shrubs on our property, although much could be improved upon to create a 'garden.' Thanks for sharing these creations to reflect upon.
ReplyDeleteSharon in Alabama
Wow!What a great tour. I would be in heaven looking at all the houses. I can't decide which is my favorite. The one with the cistern is pretty interesting and I love the photo of the kitty you got. Thanks for the tour.
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