Visiting Virginia's gardens

Southern Living, Apr 2002

In April, one of the best ways to travel across Virginia is to stroll from garden to garden.

The 69th annual Historic Garden Week in Virginia is April 20-27. Visitors can step through the gates of more than 250 gardens, historic homes, and landmarks during the event, often called "America's largest open house."

Tours of gardens and homes are scheduled in more than 30 cities and towns. Highlights range from gardens planned by Thomas Jefferson to an estate in the Northern Neck region on the site where Capt. John Smith was taken as a prisoner of Chief Powhatan in 1608.

Charlottesville's tours (April 20-- 24) include the University of Virginia's Pavilion Gardens, designed by Jefferson, and horticulture lectures at Monticello. In Lynchburg (April 23) Master Gardeners will demonstrate their gardening techniques on the grounds of area homes. Tours in Richmond (April 23-25) open homes and gardens in neighborhoods west of the state capitol.

Sponsored by The Garden Club of Virginia, Garden Week tours help fund the restoration of historic gardens around the state. Over the past half-century, dozens have been redone, adding their flowers and greenery to the mosaic that makes spring a beautiful season in Virginia.

The Garden Club of Virginia: 12 East Franklin Street, Richmond, VA 23219; (804) 644-7776, or www.va gardenweek.org. Admission: Prices range from $10 to $30 per event and can be purchased on the date of the tour at any of the properties. Get a guide: A comprehensive 220-page guidebook is available by sending a $5 donation payable to Historic Garden Week to the address above.