Spring is a beautiful time to be in coastal Virginia. The spring ephemerals are in bloom and accented by the flowering cherry, apricot and plum trees. The migratory birds are returning. And, best of all, the days are warming up as we transition into spring. Daffodils and tulips are blooming, followed by many, many more types of beautiful flowers as we get later into the spring season and head into summer. It really is a beautiful time of year!
Touring gardens is a favorite pastime of many but especially in the spring. The colors and smells abound with the new spring buds. The weather is still cool enough to keep the bugs at bay. Throughout the state of Virginia, select homeowners are scurrying about making last minute touch- ups to their homes and gardens for the Historic Garden Tour presented by the Garden Club of Virginia. So many areas of the state participate, hosted and arranged by the local garden clubs affiliated with GCV. These truly are the best of the best within the state. These gracious homeowners open their land for all of those (with tickets) to see. It is such a fun tour and so unique to Virginia. If you have the opportunity, visit your local garden tour or travel around to see what the different areas have to offer. You will be amazed with what the garden clubs and homeowners have in store for you to see. Our local tour, hosted by the Garden Club of Gloucester, is such a wonderful community event of astounding local properties, beautiful flower arrangements and an abundance of places of interest. One of those places being the Chesapeake Bay Friendly Teaching Gardens at Brent and Becky’s. The Gloucester Master Gardeners will be on hand throughout the day to give guided tours of the gardens, or you are welcome to take your own self-guided tour. There will also be artists from Arts on Main onsite at the gardens giving demonstrations of their crafts on the day of the Historic Garden Tour for Gloucester- Mathews, which is April 20th this year. You will not want to miss Ronda Bowden making her realistic looking paper flowers from 11:30 am to 4 pm. Her daffodils are so lifelike that we see many people leaning over to smell them and not realizing they are made from paper!
The display gardens at Brent and Becky’s are made up of over 20 different styles of garden rooms within the overall garden. The goal of this garden space is not only to teach about different types of plants and how they grow and evolve in the garden, but also to show how you can garden with very minimal chemicals to create a healthier space in the garden and to contribute to the health of the Chesapeake Bay which is the watershed in which we live. Each space shows you a different style of gardening depending on the plants involved, attributes of the garden, or garden conditions. One of my favorite gardens is the Bird and Butterfly garden. This garden is comprised of plants specifically to attract birds and butterflies. The plants involved are all beneficial in some way for both, and there is also a water source for them to use. In the summer when the butterflies are in abundance, this is a great place to see and identify many different species. Some of the other gardens include a Rock Garden, Parterre Garden, Native Garden, Crimson Garden and Bog Garden. The gardens change throughout the year depending on the season, and there is always something new in bloom. There are several works of art throughout the garden and garden paths to lead you in and out. There is so much to see and take in! Feel free to stop by often to see the changing cycles of the garden landscape. If you come with kids in tow, make sure to pick up a scavenger hunt page for the garden before heading out to explore. When you get back, kids and adults alike are welcome to participate in our monthly activity set up in the greenhouse. Well-behaved, leashed pets are encouraged to bring their owners.
If you are planning to visit later in the summer, or make a return visit, keep in mind National Honey Bee Day is on the third Saturday in August. At Brent and Becky’s, we celebrate National Honey Bee Day in conjunction with The Colonial Beekeepers from 10 am to 2 pm. This is a great day filled with kid’s activities, honey tastings, talks on beekeeping, opening the hive, and much more. It is a great family event for all ages. You can also see the bees in action on any given day at the Beehive Observation Hut located in the gardens. This structure allows you to get an up-close look at the bees coming and going from the hives but through the safety of the hut, so you do not accidentally get too close. It is fun to watch the bees come and go and bring the pollen back to the hive to make the honey. Plan your own self-guided tour of the gardens or attend one of our many workshops, garden tours or special events throughout the year. We would love to have you come visit.
We live in a beautiful area of the country, and Gloucester County has so much to offer. So, we recommend a trip to “The Land of the Life Worth Living”, exploring all there is to see, and we hope you take some time to come experience The Bulbs Shoppe and Gardens at Brent and Becky’s.