Welcome to Mass Gardens on Tour ’08 
 

Link To:

General Tour Information 
General Tour Tickets Order Form
Learning Tours Schedule and Ticketing Information 
Frequently Asked Questions

    The Massachusetts Garden Club Federation proudly presents Mass Gardens on Tour '08 and the Learning Tours.  We invite you to visit and learn from some of the most beautiful gardens in the state, with proceeds going to benefit the scholarships, civic development and historic preservation grants and other work of the Federation.
     Beautiful gardens have always been part of GCFM’s biennial fund raising project, and those who look forward to Mass Gardens on Tour for beautiful and well-planned gardens will certainly find them.
     You can count the number of private homes in Massachusetts with a 100-foor-plus dawn redwood tree on their property on a few fingers of one hand, but next June, you’ll be able to see that tree - and the spectacular gardens that surround it - as part of Mass Gardens on Tour '08.  Another garden is built to scale for a model railroad. There are gardens with waterfalls and gardens with heart-shaped ponds.  You’ll find gardens by marshes and quiet gardens on busy streets.
    But even great ideas like Mass Gardens on Tour need to be continually reinvented in order to remain fresh.  The 2008 edition of the Tour will incorporate a thoughtful new twist: The Learning Tours.

The Learning Tours
     You’ve probably been on tours of gardens designed by top landscape professionals like Kevin Doyle, Hilarie Holdsworth or Tom Wirth.  You’ve probably marveled at some feature and wondered, 'what inspired her to do that?’  Next June, you’ll have the opportunity to tap the designer on the shoulder during the tour and get the answer.  Perhaps you’ve wondered how you could use the flowers you grow in your garden to decorate your home like professionals.  On a Learning Tour, you can ask a designer as she walks through a cutting garden and then prepares floral arrangements.
    The Learning Tours are for those who would like to hear from experts while exploring one garden in depth.   Landscape designers, floral designers and horticultural specialists will offer unique insights into selected gardens during morning programs.  Each Learning Tour group is limited to just 25 participants per day.  Eleven gardens, selected for their detailed landscaping, unique horticultural offering, historical or other merit, will host unique tours each day for a total of 21 programs over the four days of the Tour. 
     Eight programs held at four gardens will focus on landscape and garden design.  At three professionally designed gardens, the landscape architect responsible for the property will lead the tour.  The fourth garden will be discussed by the homeowners, who have devoted 20 years to creating a stunning series of gardens on their property.  In each case, tour participants will learn about the decisions that went into creating landscapes to complement and complete the home.
    Eight programs held at four different gardens will show tour-goers how to design floral arrangements from their own gardens.  Four noted floral arrangers will offer tips on growing and finding materials from the garden and then demonstrate how to create designs using cuttings from the garden just toured. 
      Five programs will be held at specialty gardens.  These will include a historical garden and a private arboretum.  At the historic garden, an expert will lead the tour, explaining what is involved to preserve and maintain the site while meeting the demands of modern day use. At the private arboretum – forty years in the making - an arborist will discuss the special collection, and the care of trees and shrubs on any property.  And finally, we are offering an in-depth look at a railroad garden which proves that two hobbies, intelligently combined, are better than one.     

Two regions over four days
     The 2008 Tour will take place in two areas.  On Friday and Saturday, June 6 and 7, the Tour stops west of Boston, including Dover, Natick, Wellesley, Medfield and Dedham.   On Sunday and Monday, June 8 and 9, the Tour will be northeast of Boston, including gardens in Manchester, Beverly, Gloucester, Ipswich, Rowley and Danvers. 
     Gardens will be open in the morning only for the Learning Tours and from noon until 5 p.m. for the general tour.

How to order Tickets
     Tickets to view all the gardens on the general tour are $30.  Garden clubs may buy general tour tickets in blocks of 15 or more for $25 and resell them as a fundraiser for the club, or sell them to members at a discount.  Tickets can be purchased by mail (with checks payable to GCFM) by writing to Mass Gardens on Tour 2008, 35 Woodpark Circle, Lexington, MA  02421-7207
    The 25 tickets available for each of the 21 Learning Tours will include a continental breakfast and entry to the gardens open in the region on the day of the program, and will be available on a first come, first served basis.  All tickets will be sold in advance and are priced at $45 each.  Reservations are being taken now.
    Tickets for the Learning Tours must be reserved by calling 781-237-0336.  You must call to reserve a specific tour; e.g “Tour #1  Kevin Doyle landscape design on Friday June 6”.  You will be called with a confirmation.  Payment must be made within seven days of confirmation, or the space will be made available to the next caller.   The list of Learning Tours is below.
 

The Learning Tours Schedule

In 2008, for the first time, participants will have the opportunity to visit gardens in small groups to better understand how great gardens are designed, how historic gardens are preserved, and how to create floral designs using the flowers from your own home garden.  Each tour will be led by an expert in the field.  Each Learning Tour is a unique event, limited to 25 participants.  Learning Tour registration is on a first-come-first-served basis and tickets are $45.

When calling to reserve a space for a Learning Tour, you must identify the tour by number as well as by description. 

All tours begin at 9:30 and conclude by 11:30 a.m.  A complimentary continental breakfast, coffee and tea will be offered at each site.

GCFM reserves the right to substitute gardens or tour leaders if circumstances require.

Metro West Gardens

Tour #1                                                                                                  Friday, June 6, 2008
Landscape Design Tour with Kevin Doyle                                   Dover, MA, 9:30 a.m.

Noted landscaper Kevin Doyle was approached by homeowners who wanted to add a large stone pool to their property.  What has evolved is a stream, a waterfall and a swimming pond that Mother Nature would like to take credit for.  It’s a fully-formed landscape design that delights the eye and the imagination.  Mr. Doyle will explain how he integrated all this into an existing garden. 

Tour #2                                                                                                  Friday, June 6, 2008
Landscape Design Tour with Tom Wirth                                     Wellesley, MA, 9:30 a.m.

Tom Wirth Associates’ designs have won multiple landscaping awards over the past few years, but few projects were as much a challenge to Tom as this in-town property in Wellesley.  Mr. Wirth will explain how deception is grand in landscaping a 'small parcel'.

 SOLD OUT

Tour #3                                                                                                  Friday, June 6, 2008
Floral Designs from the Garden with Linda Ladd                       Medfield, MA, 9:30 a.m.

SOLD OUT

Tour #4                                                                                                  Friday, June 6, 2008
Floral Designs from the Garden with Mabel-Maria Herweg     Dedham, MA, 9:30 a.m

Noted designer and landscaper, Mabel Maria Herweg has spent years traveling the world and using what she learned to perfect her own style of floral arranging as well as her garden.  She will share her expertise along with her historic home for this Tour.

Tour #5                                                                                                  Friday, June 6, 2008
An Intimate Look at a Private Arboratetum with Jim Ingram   Natick, MA, 9:30 a.m

In the 1960s, a Natick couple purchased six acres of land and began a remarkable quest to create their own, private arboretum.  Over the decades- starting many trees from seeds or cuttings – the couple have achieved what few can ever dream: a world-class collection of specimen tree and shrubs, arranged with an uncommon sense of design, texture and form.  Arborist Jim Ingram, who is working on a long-term plan for the preservation of this unique property, will introduce you to species and cultivars you may have never before encountered.   SOLD OUT