Organizers of the Garden Tour and Flower Design Show at the Bay Creek Life Center pose with a sample of a row arrangement. From left are Liz Goffigan, of Cape Charles; Megan Ames, of Parksley; Jody Bundy, of Cape Charles; Lenka Hardie, of Melfa; and Lee Walker, of Birdsnest. “We’re trying to show different styles so people can see they’re manageable, and people can do them at home for themselves,” said Ames, who handles publicity.
Story and Photos by Jim Ritch –
Sunny skies and warm temperatures made for picture-perfect strolls through the five stops of the Eastern Shore Garden Tour Saturday, April 24.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, organizers halved the usual number of tickets, from over 1,000 to about 500, and switched to bracelets from printed tickets.
The stops this year were 100 Creekside Lane, Cape Charles; the Flower Design Show, at Bay Creek’s Life Center, Cape Charles; the former Cobb Island Coast Guard Station, Oyster; Eyre Hall, Cheriton; and the Barrier Islands Center, Machipongo.
Susan Henderson, of Machipongo, adjusts a bridal bouquet she made as a prototype for a bouquet her grandniece will carry down the aisle later this year.
Sherry Wrucke, of Cape Charles, photographs tulips in the formal garden behind Eyre Hall.
Steve Bennett, owner of one of the tour homes, directs visitors.
Paula Henao, of Cape Charles, right, points to a lacy leaf maple, one of several layers of maple trees in the garden of Steve and Nan Bennett. With her at left is Mary Fleming, of Virginia Beach.
Cheryl Gresham, of Accomac, stands by a small portion of her long, “stretch” arrangement of wild clematis, creeping fig, and flowering dogwood. Gresham and her co-designer, Lynn Calvert, of Belle Haven, have worked together about 20 years.
Susan Price, of Bayford, adjusts a three-pot, “Synergistic” arrangement, tied together with segments of a vine called Harry Lauder Walking Stick. The vine, plus azalea blossoms, and kerria from local yards made up most of the arrangement.
Volunteers Martha Sutherland, of Accomac, left, and Catie Hubbard, of Cape Charles, admit visitors.
