A Pretty Watergarden

Every year I try to do my small part to support garden themed events for worthy charitable causes.  One such garden tour is the annual Pond Tour for the Hospice, which raises much needed funds for the Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice for Palliative Care in Hamilton. 

The hospice is a non-profit organization that provides supportive care to patients who are facing a life-threatening illness. A portion of the hospice's operating budget comes from the government, but the rest must be raised through special events like the annual pond tour.

Amber Downes of Clearwater Ponds, who helps to organize the tour each year for the hospice, emailed me the other day to let me know that they have set the dates for this year's tour. This summer the two day watergarden extravaganza will take place on Saturday, June 22nd and Sunday, June 23rd.

To coincide with this announcement, I thought that I would showcase one of the prettier ponds from last year's tour. 

I have already shown you a few sneak peaks of this terrific garden. Today, I will place them back in context and show you the full garden and pond.

Before we head into the back garden, we'll pause for just a quick second and admire the colorful container plantings at the front of the house.

Now let's go down the pathway leading to the backyard.

Beautiful blue-grey stones edge the stone path.

As we round the house, a mix of trees, shrubs and perennials partially obscures the view, 

making what comes next a bit of a surprise.

Looking back the way we came. 

If you like your garden to be neat and tidy at all times, this is a good example of what you might want to consider planting. 

Provided they are well watered and the slugs are kept at bay, this planting combination, which includes magenta astilbe, mixed hostas, pale pink spirea, pyramid-shaped boxwood, assorted hydrangeas and a Japanese Maple, are going to look great for the full gardening season.

As we round the corner, we get our first glimpse of the pond.

As you can now see, the pond is quite expansive and takes up a good portion of the back garden.

Amber Downes of Clearwater Ponds tell me that, "When Clearwater Ponds first met these clients, they had a brand new pond built by another contracter. Unfortunately, the pond was not functioning properly. The pond had good "bones", but not enough "muscle" to keep it functioning properly."

A stone patio runs along the back of the house and overlooks the pond.

To get the pond functioning properly, Clearwater Ponds increased the pond's filtration and improved the pond's circulation by adding an additional pump and a surface skimmer. They also reinstalled the existing filter properly.

Amber says, "The clients are so happy with the final result. Their pond is beautiful to look at and is always crystal clear."

The waterlilies in this pond are quite colorful.

One final project that Clearwater did was to redesign and rebuild the previously existing waterfall. The newly installed waterfall is much more natural looking and visually pleasing.

For those of you that live in the GTA, mark your calendars for this year's pond tour. It is a wonderful event for a great cause.

To see more ponds from last year's tour, be sure to check out this virtual Pond Tour for the Hospice on Facebook. There will be a different pond each day for the next few weeks.

Sneak Preview: Ponds Big and Small to Inspire You

The Sperling's Pond, Hamilton

Dealing with a deep personal loss is never easy, but somehow Debbie Sperling managed to find in her grief a reason to do good things in her community. Rooted in happy memories of her sister, Jean, and inspired by her loss, Debbie set out in 2010 to organize what she hoped would be the largest pond tour in Canada. The wellspring for this inner strength? A deep spiritual bond with nature, her love of gardening and her own backyard pond. 

"My sister Jean loved nature and my garden's pond," Debbie recalls. "After she was diagnosed with terminal colon cancer in February 2009, she would visit as often as possible. I treasured the times I watched her pain and tension disappear as she sat pondering."

In July, Debbie and her sister toured the Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice for Palliative Care in Hamilton, ON together. Debbie remembers, "She was nervous at first, but like all those times we sat looking over the pond, her anxiety melted away as she took in the beauty of the home and the smiling compassion of the staff...Within minutes Jean decided to spend her final weeks there."

Jean passed away at peace, having received what the family felt was exceptional care. "Our experience as a family made us want to give back to the Hospice," says Debbie."Jean's fancy for the pond gave me a vision for this project." The pond tour raised over five thousand dollars that first year and has gone on to become an annual event.

The Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice receives approximately 41% of its annual budget from the government, meaning that it must raise the remainder to cover its monthly operating costs. "It is for this reason that events such as the pond tour are critical to the home's survival," says Jan Nichols, the hospice's Director of Development. 

The Lawson Pond, Hamilton

"This year's pond tour will showcase over 20 amazing private gardens,"says co-chair Melanie Downes of Clearwater Ponds. "On Saturday, June 23rd there will be tour stops in Hamilton, Grimsby, Burlington and the surrounding area. Sunday, June 24th will spotlight properties in Oakville, Mississauga and Halton Hills. There is even a "surprise feature garden" that will be open on both days."

The Brown's Pond in Mississauga, ON

The theme for this year's pond tour is "It's all about the memories" highlighting the role that memories have played in inspiring this year's gardens. For the Brown's of Mississauga, their pond is, "Where we begin and end our day. The sights and sounds draw us in and provide us with many happy hours of pleasure and relaxation." 

Thought it was designed to look expansive, this is actually a mid-sized pond 

on an average suburban lot.

Irises are a nice choice for pondside plantings and the Brown's have several pretty varieties.

Located right off the deck, this the perfect place to enjoy a morning coffee 

or to relax on a fine summer evening.

Let's stop on our way to the next pond to admire the roses growing 

all along the walkway to the back garden.

 The Paquette's Pond in Mississauga, ON

The Paquette's pond is a great example of a water feature for a small-sized garden. Water tumbles into a small pond that is just inches deep. Though the pond is only a year old, already the Paquette's already have many happy memories of the times they have spent sitting by the pond.

"The pond is a mecca for cardinals, finches, robins and many varieties of butterflies. We often see different birds drinking at the same time," the Paquettes tell me.

"We even have racoons dropping by during their evening jaunts around the neighbourhood," laughs Robin Paquette. "Last summer they discovered the goldfish and now they think we are offering them up as hor d'oeuvres."

The Luke's Pond in Oakville, ON

For Jackie and Peter Luke, their Japanese-inspired bridge and garden pond has formed the perfect backdrop for a summer wedding, a grandson's christening and garden parties for friends and family. The sound of water cascading down the pond's waterfall (which you can see on the left) has added a lovely ambience to all these cherished summer memories.

Jackie wanted their garden to have a Japanese feel to it, where the emphasis is more on form and foliage than flowers. She did most of the plant selection and Peter did most of the planting.

The garden's design incorporates a large patio area just outside the back door 

with ample seating for large parties. 

Just a short walk across the bridge, there is second flagstone patio complete with a table and chairs.

The Clarke Pond, Halton Hills

There were no trees or grass, let alone a garden when the Clarke's moved into their home ten years ago. In 2004, they commissioned Clearwater Ponds  to design a pond and garden that would transform their 2 acres on the outskirts of Glen Williams into the perfect backyard retreat. 

Water now pools on an upper terrace and flows down a meandering stream, under a stone bridge and then cascades down into a large pond. 

For the Clarke's 2 young boys, their pond is the place where summer memories are made. 

There are goldfish to feed, croaking frogs to hear and needle-thin dragonflies to watch. Though the pond is sizeable, it is only two feet deep, making it the perfect place for supervised summer fun.

Highlights of the 2012 Pond Tour for the Hospice include pond-less waterfalls, small water features and beautifully landscaped gardens filled with colorful summer flowers. There are even prizes to be won and a photography contest to enter. The tour is self-guided, leaving participants free to plan each of the two tour days to their liking. All proceeds from the sale of tickets go directly to the Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice. 

"My sister would have loved this tour," Debbie Sperling says. "She would have bought tickets in a heartbeat. Jean would have toured both days, revelling in the tranquility, imagery and sensory stimulation of every pond she could get to."

The 2012 Pond Tour for the Hospice represents a perfect opportunity for you to find the inspiration to create your own personal garden sanctuary. 

Just imagine two, fun-filled days of touring and the natural beauty of this area's most magnificent water gardens. Best of all, it is for a really great cause!

More Information and Links:

Ticket Information:

Tickets for the Pond Tour for the Hospice are available online and at selected retailers throughout the Golden Horsehoe. Tickets are $15 per adult and children under 12 are free of charge. The non-refundable tickets are good for both days of the event and you can visit as many ponds as you wish. The tour takes place rain or shine. For further information, and to purchase your tickets visit: thebestpondtour.com

Visit the The Dr. Bob Kemp Hospice for Palliative Care website

Thanks to these tour sponsors: Clearwater Ponds and Cole's Pond Store

Ideas for Gardens with an Uneven Terrain

Not everyone has a yard that is flat as a pancake. 

For fun, I thought I would show you a series of back gardens where the home owners had to contend with the challenges like hillside slopes and deep ravines. Most of these beautiful gardens were designed and installed by professionals. We'll look for lessons from the designers and affordable alternatives to hiring a crane and a crew of burly landscapers.

Garden #1: Hillside back garden. In this first backyard, the land slopes steeply up and away from the foundations of the house. The professional designer's solution? Add a series of curved terraces into the hillside. 

A stone pathway and staircase leads you around the side of house and down into the garden. This first picture is the view from the stop of that stairway. 

More affordable Alternative: I actually think this may even be a little bit of a case of boulder overkill. I personally would have gone with fewer big stones and more plantings in the nooks and crannies. Sometimes not having tons of money and a crew of professional landscapers can actually make you more creative. Imagine instead an old fashioned rock garden set into the slope here.

A curved hillside of boulders in that last shot, leads your eye around to another set of steps that take you up to first level on the hillside terrace.

Note that the grid lines of the large flat stones in the foreground draw your eye in the direction of the stone steps. Affordable Aternative: Concrete pavers instead of cut stone.

This has got to be one of the most tasteful presentations of a hot tub I have ever seen. There is even a space heater incase things gets chilly. What luxury!

If the hot tube doesn't take the edge off a long day off the office, the soothing sounds 

of the splashing water probably would.

Did yo notice that the designer has cleverly placed the botanical equivalent of a waterfall 

beside the real waterfall?

The designer has also done a really nice job of mixing foliage shapes, colors and textures.

This garden has another nice feature we must admire while we are here. It is just behind the cedars that you can see in the near-distance on the right.

What a great space for relaxing around a campfire! Imagine sitting fireside and toasting marshmallows on a cool, late summer evening. Bliss!

More affordable alternative: What is the most important design feature of this part of the garden? 

Did you answer the elaborate stonework? It is certainly statement making, but I don't think it is the most important element. 

What is more crucial are the shrubs and evergreens which surround and enclose the area, sheltering it from the noises of the busy city surrounding it. The greenery functions like a cocoon, enclosing the space and making it an intimate gathering place.

Once you release this design secret, recreating this area becomes doable. Create a semi-cirlce of shrubs and evergreens. Lay down a flagstone or pea gravel patio area in the center. Then, place some adirondack chairs in a semi-cicle around a store-bought fire pit.

Garden #2: Steeply sloping property. Next, we are going to look at second garden at the side of a house, where the land slopes toward the back of the property. There are two ways to get down the slope. 

You can take the more direct route and go down a set of stone steps. Here we are looking back the way we came.

Or you can meander down a snaking path of grass and walk in among the plantings. Here, we are looking back on the grass path we have taken down the slope from the front garden.

But before we go further, let's take second and go back to that first view down the slope. I want to make a point about the design function of the arbor.

The arbor is a destination; a Pandora's box if you will. I beacons to the visitor and invites you to come further. Let's test the theory by looking at the view with and without the arbor.

Suddenly there is nothing encouraging you to go any further. The doorway says, "Come in."

And what a shame not to visit the lower more woodsy section of the garden!

The rhododendron is beautiful and there are lots of woodland plants to admire as well.

Before we go, let's take a second, and admire the skill of the gardener who managed to grow something this pretty and exotic in a northern garden, where the late summer is often dry.

Part 2 will be up next. 

I also promise to post the winner of the Free-Range Chicken Gardens book draw as well.