Daylilies, liatris and other lilies bloom in the rural Linn County garden of Zora and Paul Ronan. The gardens will be open for viewing on Sunday, July 12, 2015. (photo/Zora Ronan)
Note: Due to rain, the Backyard Abundance tour in Iowa City has been rescheduled to Saturday, July 18, 2015.
Gardening enthusiasts are in luck this upcoming weekend. A free garden tour in Iowa City and one near Central City promise glimpses into gardening worlds that many of us can only dream about achieving.
Backyard Abundance is hosting a tour on Saturday, July 11, in Iowa City at the home of John Thomas, a retired landscape architect who has applied a lifetime of practice to his entire garden.
The following day, on Sunday, July 12, Zora and Paul Ronan will open their American Hemerocallis (daylilies) Society National Display Garden near Central City for tours.
Here is more information on both:
Tour an Elegantly Designed Garden
Saturday, July 11, 2015
3:00 PM – 5:00 PM
509 Brown Street, Iowa City, IA directions
Tour a beautifully designed garden that buzzes with an abundance of edibles, natives and classic Midwestern favorites.
John Thomas is a retired landscape architect who has applied a lifetime of practice to his entire garden.
Flowing and playful front yard beds encourage passersby to linger, while requiring little maintenance.
In the backyard, rough-hewn limestone walls hold soil and water in place while enhancing beautifully organized prairie plants, berry shrubs, and annual vegetables.
Landscape Features
In addition to chats with like-minded gardeners and yummy snacks provided by New Pioneer Food Co-op, you will see…
Front yard garden designed with passersby in mind
Plants in the right-of-way
Iowa native plants
Vegetables and greens
Berry bushes and fruit trees
Beautiful limestone beds on a slope
Xeriscaping: landscaping that reduces or eliminates the need for supplemental irrigation
The tour is free and open to everyone. Drop in anytime between 3 pm and 5 pm.
See more at Backyard Abundance.
From Zora Ronan:
Paul and I will be opening our garden to friends and garden enthusiasts again this July. The garden will be open on Sunday, July 12, between 9 am and 4 pm. The garden is an American Hemerocallis (daylilies) Society National Display Garden.
My garden usually peaks between the 3rd and 4th weeks of July. Because of all the rain and warm temperatures the garden is about a week or two earlier than average. The daylilies are in top bloom and the lilies are also tall and colorful. You may find an occasional weed (well, perhaps a few more than usual) as we took a 12 day trip to London with our Texas granddaughters. Weeds took advantage of my absence but my goal is ‘reasonably well-kept’.
We are located in rural Linn County, just west of Central City (not in Central City). The address is 5031 North Marion Road.
Directions: From I-380: Exit at Toddville. Travel east on County Home Road to Alburnett Road. Turn north on Alburnett Road. Turn east on Justins Road. Justins Road is approximately 1.8 miles north of E-16. Justins Road dead ends at North Marion. Turn north and the garden is on the right. If you cross Paris Road you missed the turn.
From: Highway 13: Travel north on Highway 13 to Central City. Turn west on E-16 (Center Point-Central City Road). Turn north on North Marion Road (gravel) and travel 1.8 miles. Garden is on the right.
From Marion: Travel north on North Tenth Street. Tenth Street changes name to North Marion and becomes gravel when it crosses County Home Road. Since North Marion is gravel for quite a long way, it is better to travel north on either North Alburnett Road or Highway 13.
For more information and photos of the garden, visit my web site www.ronandaylilygarden.weebly.com. If you can’t make it on Sunday, the garden will be open at other times by appointment. See more here: Open garden poster – 2015
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