The Fairfield Art Association is hosting its Dorothy Bell Memorial Garden Tour on Saturday, June 20th, from 10:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. The event honors Dorothy Bell, a founding member of the FAA and creator of the original Garden Tour, during the organization’s 60th anniversary year.
This year’s fundraiser features five private gardens open to the public, along with two bonus garden center stops — Oakwood Nursery at 1000 Oakwood Blvd. in Fairfield, and Wolf Creek Farm at 3100 226th St. in Lockridge, which opens after 1:00 p.m. Both locations will offer door prize sign-ups, gardening inspiration, and plants available for purchase.
Visitors can expect plein air artists at work throughout the gardens, live musicians, and art-related displays at select locations. Below is a look at each garden on this year’s tour.
Bob & Jan Bork — 802 South 3rd St.
Bob Bork describes his garden as a fifteen-year-long discovery built on trial, error, and persistence. “I particularly enjoy the contest of wills between me and the purple coneflower, as it struggles to invade the whole yard while I struggle to keep it in check,” he said. A highlight of the garden is a Harison Yellow Rose grown from a cutting his father gave him some 30 years ago. “The yearly blooming is especially meaningful to me,” Bork said. He took up gardening in retirement, balancing it alongside his woodworking. Bob is well known locally for his handmade wooden boxes sold at area trade fairs. His wife Jan is a talented artist who adds her touches to the lids of Bob’s boxes and other creations, and is also known for her greeting cards and mail art. Tour visitors may get a peek at a display of some of these items during the tour.
Glenn & Diana Watt — 800 South 3rd St.
The Watts have tended their garden since moving to their home in October 1989, and in that time have created a space that is as much a repository of memory as it is a collection of plants. Bricks salvaged when St. Mary’s Church was torn down line their garden, and limestone blocks from the demolition of Barhydt Chapel are incorporated throughout the yard. Rocks collected from river dredging in Eldon, geodes found on family outings, and flagstones from a Stone City trip with in-laws all have their place. “The landscape of rocks and bricks gives a structure to the garden that I like as much as the variety of plants,” Glenn said. Standout plants include a Chinese Dogwood flanked by two large azalea bushes, a climbing hydrangea at the corner of the pergola, and a variety of native flowers added gradually over 36 years. Diana is well known for her beautiful pressed flower greeting cards and pictures made from her garden.
Jim & Joan Salts — 2223 185th St.
Located northeast of Fairfield, the Salts property has been in development since before the couple even moved in — they planted over 150 pine trees in 1984 and 1985, two years before arriving in April 1986, and those trees now frame the east and west sides of the home. The gardens surrounding the house display peonies, iris, lilies, hostas, mums, burning bushes, boxwoods, and a variety of decorative garden art, along with some special themed areas. A birdbath painted red, white and blue — originally from Joan’s parents’ property — and large rocks from the family barn foundation surround a large scotch pine at the center of one garden. Visitors can sit around a fire pit and listen to frogs in the backyard pond, explore a small apple orchard, and check out oak trees started from acorns on the east side of the home. A fall clematis winds around the west side of the front deck, and Jim’s fenced-in gourd and pumpkin patch is not to be missed. Comfortable walking shoes are recommended for this expansive rural property.
Pete & Kathy Tollenaere — 2439 Peach Ave.
The Tollenaere garden off Glasgow Road has been growing since the spring of 1993, when a rock truck delivered a large load of soil to their driveway and the couple got to work. More than three decades later, visitors can meander through a series of distinctly named areas including the Sunny Corner Bed, the Often-Overlooked Garden, the Raised Bed Gardens, the Woodland Walk, the Pond Garden, the Way-Back Garden, and more. A backyard arbor marks the entrance to a Little Prairie Area, and three separate walkways allow visitors to experience the gardens from different perspectives. Artistic pieces are incorporated throughout, including “Mr. H.C.” (Half-cup) by Mike Pech, originally an Art Association installation for the town square. Kathy Tollenaere, well known for her realistic bird drawings, will have cards for sale and will offer five small paint-a-concrete-owl projects, with all proceeds benefiting the Fairfield Art Association.
Patrick & Suzan Kessel — 412 Heatherwood Circle
The Kessel’s built their home 43 years ago in a fully wooded area, and their garden has evolved considerably since then. A large portion of the original woods remains, while the rest has seen garden areas come and go over the decades depending on shifts in sun, shade, and the realities of nature. A waterfall and garden pond featuring waterlilies and frogs is a centerpiece of the property, though the Kessel’s now face a persistent challenge from deer — more than 40 were counted in the yard on a single day last winter. A collection of over 50 flowerpots placed throughout the yard, deck, and porch helps protect plants from deer pressure. Suzan, an artist, approaches planting with an artist’s eye. “I like to think of planting as I do painting, balancing warm and cool colors and different shapes,” she said. “Then nature adds its magic.” Visitors are invited to hunt for all 16 years’ worth of FAA Art Installations by Suzan and other artists hidden throughout the yard.
For more information on the Dorothy Bell Memorial Garden Tour, contact the Fairfield Art Association. The tour is a fundraiser supporting the organization in its 60th anniversary year.
