Glorious fall garden

As you swing open the old iron gate into the garden of Frances and Milton Parker, it creaks reassuringly, welcoming you to their home as if you were opening the screen door to a friendly porch. Now is the perfect time to visit their quiet Beaufort, South Carolina, garden. The clear, blue skies of late summer and the cooler weather of early fall breathe life into the plants. Blooms that faded in the heat of August re-emerge in exuberant colors, creating a grand fanfare to welcome autumn. Though blossoms mark the occasion, what really makes the Parkers' garden special is the multitude of plants given to them by family and friends.

It Began in the Garden

Frances's earliest memories revolve around gardening. Even as a little girl, she loved flowers. One day while her father was away during World War II, she and her mother were outside in the yard. Frances said, "Momma, let's pray for Daddy June." (They called her father June, short for Junior.) While her mother closed her eyes to pray, Frances picked all the daffodils. She laughs mischievously at this story even now.

Frances grew up in McClellanville, South Carolina, a small fishing and farming village between Charleston and Georgetown. "We lived out in the country on the farm," she remembers. "My father would bring home wonderful things from the woods: wild ginger, pinxterbloom azaleas, common sweetshrubs, and fringe trees. We would take these and plant them in huge masses in the yard." Frances's birthday and her sister Katharine's both came in early spring, and their parents would always take them to a nursery to buy azaleas and camellias as presents.

Her mother, a nurse at a hospital in Georgetown, was known as "The Flower Lady" because she always carried flowers from her garden to patients. She also shared with neighbors-gladly handing out iris, daffodils, white flowering quince, and deutzia. Frances says, "I have always considered myself a good plant propagator, but my mother could root anything-at any time of the year. She would break off branches of blooming azaleas and spirea and stick them in the ground to root." Frances recalls that at the memorial service for her mother, the church was filled with flowers-flowers that came from neighbors' gardens, flowers that her mother had once shared with them. Reflecting on all this, Frances declares, "My soul requires that I garden; it's just necessary."

A Garden of Treasures

Plants shared by family and friends define the Parkers' garden. It's divided into three separate areas: front, middle, and side. Each boasts its own character, and each has diverse colors and textures to take advantage of the ever-changing light.

When Frances and Milton began their garden more than 25 years ago, very few plants occupied the space. An ancient bay hedge, a large multitrunked yaupon, a dogwood, and a few palmetto trees were all that stood in the yard. Keeping those plants in mind, the couple first created an oval lawn in the front to make the space seem deeper. They added paths and hedges to divide the garden, planning the three areas around the plants to be saved. Next, they gathered plants from both sides of their families-mock oranges, spireas, roses, iris, phlox, quince, and ginger lilies-and wove them into three garden rooms.

Along the Path

While the garden really begins outside the pierced brick walls, it's first defined along the brick path that leads through the front. A trimmed hedge of 'Wintergreen' boxwood (Buxus microphylla koreana 'Wintergreen') lines one edge of the path. The manicured boxwood balances the large, loosely clipped 'Yuletide' sasanqua camellias (Camellia sasanqua 'Yuletide') and mock oranges on the other side. Yellow, orange, red, and green foliage and flowers find a home braided between and underneath the large shrubs.

Framed by Hedges

The middle garden lies between another clipped sasanqua hedge and a culinary bay (Laurus nobilis) hedge. This garden is primarily one of texture. Central to this area are large beds of trimmed Asian star jasmine, trained onto rebar frames. A bit whimsical in character, they are topped with blue ceramic pottery and look as if they could have emerged from a Dr. Seuss book. 'Golden Sword' yucca accents the corners of the center bed, while yellow-striped 'Bengal Tiger' cannas, 'Black Magic' elephant's ears, and orange butterfly gingers provide bold color and texture along the outside edges of the beds. "Foliage and texture are the things most exciting to me," Frances says. "I am not into blooms so much anymore-at least not primarily. I want everything to be a tapestry of color and texture."

On the Side

Of all the areas, the enclosed side garden holds the most surprise. "It's the secret garden, a retreat," Frances allows. As you enter through the bay hedge, a red China rose that belonged to Milton's grandmother waves out to greet you. A sundial serves as the central focus of this garden, and abundant colorful flowers radiate from it. Clipped boxwoods, serissa hedges, and brick paths establish the borders. Trimmed, variegated Asian star jasmine topiaries accent the center axis of the garden. Cherished roses such as 'Old Blush,' 'Louis Philippe,' and 'Maggie' grow among boxwoods on the outside edge.