Our Gardens

Enjoy a casual stroll on winding paths nestled between colorful, sweetly scented blooms. Explore reflections in a secret garden pool, eclectic garden sculpture, and the unique flora of western North Carolina when you visit the eight enchanting gardens on the 2023 Historic Montford Garden Tour.
Please note: Pets are not allowed in the gardens.

Cheery Peaceful Eden

This sun-kissed garden holds a beautiful surprise around every corner, including terraces and quiet seating areas, a vine-covered arbor, robust banana trees, a koi pond, art installations, and fragrant plantings. The house is a 1901 Arts and Crafts design by Richard Sharp Smith, and the current owners are busy adding annuals and perennials to pump up the color quotient.

Catmandu

Created from an overgrown and trash-strewn vacant lot, the house and garden are just a decade old. Little is left of the original vegetation. Today the structure is provided by levels of boulder and rock, the better to set off some spectacular plant specimens: Dragon’s Eye pine, a huge banana tree, hardy opuntia cactus, and a dramatic Autumn Minaret daylily that reaches six feet.

A Bed of Roses

Although the house dates back more than a century and was formerly a Bed & Breakfast inn, it is the first home together for the recently married owners. They keep mowing to a minimum with various groundcovers, including dwarf mondo. Hardscaping includes stone walls, stone and pebble walkways, and decorative planters, the better to show off beloved plant species.

A Work of Art

Over the course of nearly 40 years, the owner has brought order to what was once a jungle of kudzu vines; the house itself dates to 1897. With an artist’s eye the owner-gardener has made wildlife welcome with food, water, cover, and space. Sculptures, garden rooms, and a water feature add to the joy. Special plants include an espalier Keiffer pear and a witch hazel.

Montford National Forest Wilderness

The humorous name of the garden belies its serious intent as a certified pollinator garden despite the shady aspect. Garden “rooms” are richly appointed with sturdy hardscaping and outdoor furniture, the better to observe the prolific wildlife. An Alaskan cedar and two Franklinia trees are companions to towering American hollies that rise above a lush understory. Prepare to be enlightened!

Keep It Simple

The backdrop for this garden is a 114-year-old house, so the landscape has evolved over many generations and attracts wildlife of all sorts, including owls and bears. Once completely overgrown with ivy, the yard is full of colorful perennials today and easy to maintain with regular weeding. Highlights include giant native hydrangeas and a mulberry tree.

Daylily Delight

The emphasis is on joyful color from spring through autumn, with a special nod to sentimental family heirloom plants brought from a previous residence. A charming stone cottage, stone pathways, and a large stone patio and greenhouse in back set the stage for the interplay of sun and shadows throughout the day. Daylilies provide color in summer, proof that ivy can be vanquished.

Asian Fusion

The owner’s Asian-inspired garden has grown up over 25 years of her stewardship, a credit to her upbringing near her family’s garden center in western New York. Lush wisteria vines weave across the front porch, and other features include a 100-year-old white oak and five varieties of bamboo. The owner’s basketry and bamboo studio will be open during the tour.