10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour

The Lakes & Hills Garden Club's 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour was held on November 2 & 3 and its theme was "Garden Parties."

Here are some of the beautiful "garden party" tables featured at each garden. 

And, here are my favorite "spots" in each of the 5 gardens featured.

In Garden #1 - this shaded walkway was a place to slow down and enjoy the orchids hanging from the trees as you approached a private sitting area.

In Garden #2 - I liked the inclusion of the palm trees which created a tropical Florida cottage-style garden.

Garden #3 - incorporated a number of decorative garden pieces into their small garden, and I particularly liked this sweet angel among the colorful display of coleus and ferns.

Garden #4 - enhanced a natural wooded wildlife area that borders their property.

Garden #5 - artfully eliminated turf grass with a functionally pretty landscape.

 Here are some great garden ideas to borrow for your own garden.

From left to right - tillandsias attached and hanging from a metal plant stand, ornamental sweet potato vine trailing out of a bird feeder, succulents and ferns in a strawberry pot, and raised vegetable garden beds.

The garden club members did a nice job in featuring gardens that were each uniquely different. Read on in the next 5 blog posts to see each garden in more detail. Hope you enjoy the tour!

Old Southern Style

The first garden on the tour sits on a very large piece of property on Sylvan Drive. The home, a guest house and a potting shed are connected by walkways. On both sides of the walkways are lush plantings of foliage to enjoy.

On the front porch of the guest house is a "garden party" themed table that looks quite inviting, along with two very colorful Adirondak chairs.

Another pathway that cuts through the foliage is made with mosaic tiles and looks like an inviting path to follow.

Along the path between the guest house and the home is a circular bricked area with more Adirondak chairs and a fire pit. It's a nice private area in which to relax and enjoy some conversation with family and friends.

The brick walkway then continues toward the house through a series of ligustrum trees. I particularly liked this area because the homeowner has hung orchids from the ligustrum trees. It's a wonderfully shady area in which to feature blooming orchids and be able to enjoy them. In addition, the seating area at the end of the pathway looks quite inviting.

Here's a close-up of the seating area and a glimpse of the other pathway that looks like a short-cut to the potting shed to me. This is another very private area in which to enjoy views of lush, tropical foliage. The garden is large but as you can probably tell, it is divided up into areas and landscaped so that you cannot overlook the entire backyard at one glance.

Back at the guest house here's another view of the "garden party" themed table. The begonia and trailing plant that's planted in a small bag and hung with burlap from the back of the chair is a charming touch, and would probably be a parting gift for their guests.

Behind the potting shed are some raised vegetable garden beds full of several varieties of peppers.

Some of the plants included in this established garden are many southern favorites - night blooming jasmine, azaleas, wisteria, citrus and philodendron.  

This garden was featured in the Lakes & Hills Garden Club 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour - Nov. 2 & 3, 2013.

Functionally Pretty

The tour of this home located on Country Club Boulevard starts on the enclosed patio with another lovely "garden party" themed table. 

This homeowner and gardener has a definite love for native tillandsias also known as air plants. Using a metal plant stand, she has found a great way to display her collection. They're easy to care for and don't create any mess on the patio surface.

There's also a nice variety of succulents and ferns placed throughout the enclosed patio area. Here's another great idea for displaying succulents and ferns. It looks terrific!

Right away you can see that this garden is designed with function and low maintenance in mind. 

An elevated boardwalk from the screen porch to a gazebo provides a walking path that overlooks a low area in the backyard. Beneath the walkway they've created the appearance of a dry river bed with stone. It is bordered with drought-tolerant plants, and includes several benches on the perimeter. Nicely done!

There are neatly maintained small beds of succulents, cactus and blooming plants bordering the property line on one side . . .

while another small bed of butterfly plants and whimsical features border the other side. 

Here's a view looking back at the rocked-area with its simple but effective drought-tolerant landscaping. It looks nice and it eliminates a nice slice of lawn turf for easier maintenance. The simplicity of this large landscaped area is very functional, and appealing to the eyes at the same time. The choices of foliage are neat but also spiky . . . just the right mix!

I particularly liked this feature of a stand-alone trellis in the garden. The stained trellis is very attractive and is a nice size for growing flowering butterfly-attracting vines on. And, the metal butterflies attached to it are a nice addition.

This garden was featured in the Lakes & Hills Garden Club 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour, Nov. 2 & 3, 2013.

Gardening on the Side

This narrow lot has the gardener literally doing most of the "gardening on the side" of the house. It's a unique piece of property in that the small yard is quite small, but the side yard is long and slender. 

This gardener has adapted to it and created a lush, lengthy "green" fence of privacy in the side yard.  And, what a side yard it is, having come with some great features. The first being a wonderful natural wooded area with trees and palmettos and the second being a meadering stream that runs the length of the side yard. The homeowners have seen black bears, bobcats, coyotes, red tail fox, quail and many species of birds in the wooded property next to them.

What wonderful features to start with . . . wouldn't you agree?

The "green" fence the gardener has added only enhances these natural features and creates a wonderfully lush private area. 

How wonderful to sit on this table and watch the birds that call their side yard home. On this side of the home you would never know they had neighbors. It's a definite rural feel right in the middle of a large subdivision. It's the best of both worlds.

Even though this yard looks small, there's plenty of room in the back yard for growing lots of delicious looking tomatoes. And, from here you can steal another glimpse of the wooded area that wraps around their side and backyard. They are lucky to garden on such a unique piece of property.

This garden was featured in the Lakes & Hills Garden Club 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour - Nov. 2 & 3, 2013.

A Perennially Colorful Garden

Rocks are not something you often see in a Florida garden, but they always add a nice touch. This garden located in the Country Club of Mount Dora has been turned into a Florida-friendly perennial garden.

Let's go behind the garden gate to see what flowering plants this gardener has included in the garden.

Many tropical perennials and colorful foliage plants provide year-round color in this sunny and spacious-feeling backyard.

There are many nectar-rich choices such as plumbago, roses, pentas and salvia . . . to name a few . . . that provide the butterflies and hummers with a constant supply of nectar.

And, the homeowner with cutting flowers for their enjoyment.

A birdbath is utilized as a planting container and fits in nicely among the foliage.

I like the way they have used colorful foliage plants in the garden for added color, and their use of an ornamental piece of aged wood adds a fabulous natural touch, and is a nice contrast to the softness of their plant material.

Looking back towards the garden gate . . . this colorful perennial garden has a definate tropical feeling. 

And, a wonderful space for two to sit and enjoy the color, and the butterflies as they drift  from one bloom to another. 

This garden was featured in the Lakes & Hills Garden Club 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour - Nov. 2 & 3, 2013.

An Easy-Going Garden

The gardener in this home, located in The Country Club of Mount Dora, has a knack for maximizing the use of interesting objects throughout her small garden. 

A welcoming and neatly-manicured landscape greets you as you walk towards the front door. The large bird feeder is a nice touch, and I especially like the color combination of the plants beneath it, along with the chartreuse-colored ornamental sweet potato vine trailing out of the feeder. It all works so well together.

The private backyard, which has a relaxed and easy-going feeling, is a mix of tropical plants along with many decorative items. This birdhouse blends in nicely with the variegated pothos vine, selloum philodendron, coleus, Persian shield, tri-colored stromanthe and bromeliads.

The homeowner used this metal stand, placed in the center of the garden, to display some of her plants . . . what a clever idea!

She definitely has an eclectic mix of decorative items in her garden. Here's an Asian accent in front of the bromeliads.

I like the way she utilized the fence as a way to hang a container plant. It helps camoflauge and soften the look of the fence. Her choice of two varying colors of ornamental sweet potato plants was an excellent choice. The color combination is fantastic, and I love the way the vines drape down over the container. 

More whimsical touches can be found scattered throughout the garden like this sweet angel creatively tucked in among the coleus and fern.

An overall view reveals that it is a relatively small space in the backyard, but she's managed to incorporate a lot of fun pieces among the varying heights of foliage which create a cozy feeling.

My favorite area is this private nook right off the home. Partially hidden by the foliage, it is a great place to sit and enjoy the garden.

The front yard (more structured) and the backyard (relaxed and easy-going) are very different in styles, but equally as nice.  And, they both display nice plant color combinations.  

My guess is that the backyard reveals a little more of the gardener's personality. What do you think?

This garden was included on the Lakes & Hills Garden Club 10th Annual Mount Dora Garden Tour, Nov. 2 & 3, 2013.