PORT TOWNSEND — The rural forested Toandos Peninsula will be featured in this year’s Secret Gardens Tour.
The self-guided tour will be from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
The annual event usually takes place in Port Townsend, but organizers of the Washington State University Jefferson County Master Gardeners Foundation fundraiser wanted to do something different this year.
They selected five gardens on the long peninsula that stretches south between Hood Canal and Dabob Bay.
“We decided to showcase gardens there to show there’s more to Jefferson County than Port Townsend,” said Kris Burns, garden tour chairwoman.
“You’d never even know the gardens are here. They’re tucked away, so it is truly, truly a secret garden tour.”
Locations for the tour are published only on the tickets, Burns said.
Tickets
As of Thursday, 500 tickets were available for the event, now in its 16th year, for $15 in advance or $20 the day of the tour.
Advance tickets are available through today in Port Townsend at Gardens at Four Corners, Far Reaches Farm and Secret Gardens Nursery, as well as at both the Port Townsend and Sequim Henery’s Garden Center.
Tickets also are available at McComb Gardens in Sequim, Valley Nursery in Poulsbo, Savage Plants in Kingston and Whitney Gardens in Brinnon.
If any are left after today, they will be for sale only from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Olympic Peninsula Gateway Visitors Center on state Highway 19 at state Highway 104.
The sites — one isn’t really a garden by definition as it’s on 40 acres — will provide tourists with insights into gardening in forested areas rather than open urban garden sites, Burns said.
Garden owners and Master Gardeners will be on hand to discuss various techniques and plant selections.
“They’ll be teaching things such as native plants and gardening on slopes,” Burns said. “Also, how to deal with critters like deer and rabbits.
“On the last garden/property, people can learn how to get the forest back instead of having thistles and Scotch broom.”
Each of the gardens has a water feature such as a pond or waterfall or a view of Dabob Bay.
The larger size of the properties will give people more room to enjoy the gardens, while food will be served at several locations for an additional cost.
“It’s not just about gardening, but relaxing and breathing as they go through the gardens this year,” Burns said.
“It’s a chance to mingle with the plants.”
Fundraiser
Burns has chaired the organizing committee for the fundraiser the past four years after taking a Master Gardeners course in 2006.
She said the fundraiser provides grants to assist individuals, community gardens, schools, churches and other groups.
For example, Burns and her neighbors needed money for irrigation pipes for their Pea Patch akin to the Seattle gardens, so they applied for a $700 grant through the WSU Jefferson County Master Gardeners Foundation.
Since the tour is self-guided, people needn’t be concerned with visiting each garden nor being at any particular garden at a specific time.
Rural roads
However, people are encouraged to carpool, in part because the route covers a dozen miles of rural roads.
Even the view along the Thorndyke and Coyle roads should be delightful, with rhododendrons in full bloom and new growth on conifer trees, Burns said.
“Within the gardens, there’s forest all around, and people have carved out the gardens using a mix of cultivars or native plants,” she said.
“There’s a bog in one of the gardens. It’s about working out the layout of the land and making it your own piece of paradise.”
Participants should dress for the weather and wear shoes appropriate for traversing larger plots of land than are usually showcased during the Secret Gardens Tour.
“There’s a lot of natural beauty, like the way the gardens are laid out,” Burns said.
“They’re foot-friendly, and there’s a lot of meandering at each of the gardens.”
The Coyle Women’s Club will sell coffee and pastries during the morning at Garden No. 1 (as listed on the tour ticket), as well as at the Laurel B. Johnson Community Center, 923 Hazel Point Road.
Mystery Bay Seafood Catering will sell lunch and snacks (including nonseafood items) from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Garden No. 4.
Participants are also welcome to bring their own picnic foods.
Musicians will perform at the various gardens.
Those who carpool may park at the visitors center at state Highway 19 or in the park-and-ride lot at Center Road and state Highway 104.
For more information, phone 360-379-5445.
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Philip L. Watness is a freelance writer and photographer living in Port Townsend. He can be reached at whatnews@olypen.com.
