Margaret Penner photo
Winkler is home to some of the best public gardens in Manitoba.
The Manitoba Sunflower Festival in Altona is hosting backyard garden tours.
Ayoko Design photo
The Floriography Garden Party is hosted by Ayoko Design and Pineridge Hollow.
Shirley Martens
Hop on the Manitoba Master Gardener Association tour bus to see this stunning garden in Kleefeld.
There is an interesting mix of people you will find at garden tours and garden parties. Their reason for attending goes beyond a quest for beauty or mere curiosity about what lies beyond the gate. Ticket holders have access to garden treasures and secrets.
And oh, the garden parties with delicious food and drink. Mingle with other gardeners and you never know who you’re going to meet or what you might see.
Plan to attend one or all of these upcoming garden tours and garden parties being hosted throughout our province this summer:
The Urban Retreats annual garden tour, tea and craft sale on June 22 is the first garden tour of the season. Hands down, it’s also the biggest. Last year, 600 attended and even more are expected to participate in this year’s tour, longtime tour organizer Shirley Godkin says. The tour originated 20 years ago as an initiative by St. Matthews Maryland Community Ministry that would help support programs for vulnerable West End families.
The 20th-anniversary Urban Retreats self-guided tour showcases 14 gardens in River Heights, as well as an edible weed walk with Joel Penner, a time-lapse filmmaker. The tour runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and tickets are $15. For an additional $5, tour-goers can attend the Manitoba Tea and Craft Sale, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m., at the Westworth United Church, 1750 Grosvenor Ave. Enjoy fresh bannock, visit booths featuring talented local artisans, and ask a master gardener and master composter your gardening questions. There is also a plant sale.
More than 70 volunteers organize the Urban Retreats garden tour and tea. Tickets are available at many local garden centres. For more details, visit stmatthewsmaryland.ca.
The East Kildonan Garden Tour on July 6 is an exciting new entry this year. Hosted by the John Black Memorial United Church Refugee Interest Group, all of the proceeds from this charity garden tour go to support an Afghan refugee family. Luella Stephens, tour organizer, invites you to walk, bike or drive to the 10 diverse and creative gardens on this self-guided tour featuring rare and native plants, David Austin roses, vegetable, herb, pollinator, and bog gardens, a unique stone shed, as well as an Arts and Crafts-style gazebo. Tickets are $15 and are available at Schriemers Flower and Garden.
The Manitoba Master Gardener Association (MMGA) is hosting three garden tours this summer. The first is a pop-up garden tour later in June. Spoiler alert: the featured garden is home to one of Winnipeg’s most exclusive collections of peonies. Watch the website (mgmanitoba.com) for details.
On July 6, travel with the MMGA by bus to tour extraordinary gardens in Steinbach and Kleefeld. The all-day tour will also include visits to the gardens at the Mennonite Heritage Museum and a chance to shop at Sunshine Nursery and Greenhouse. Tickets cost $35 and can be purchased online or at local garden centres.
Then, on July 20, the MMGA hosts its annual garden tour and plant sale. Master gardeners will be on hand at each of the nine gardens to answer your gardening questions, says Shelley Walker, tour organizer. Tickets are $15 at local garden centres or can be purchased through the MMGA’s website.
On July 13, Nature Manitoba hosts Our Natural Garden Tour and Plant Sale. This year’s tour, says Judith Tougher, tour organizer, features 10 gardens in St. Vital and Fort Garry, including one that is a registered Monarch WayStation. This year’s tour also includes a garden book sale. Tickets are $15. Visit naturemanitoba.ca.
The Carman Garden Club hosts its annual garden tour, A Garden Celebration, on July 20. Visit rural gardens, including the Laughing Flowers, a flower farm owned and operated by Lori Stevenson. Alice van der Wal, club secretary, says there is also a unique garden designed by a visually impaired gardener. The self-guided tour starts at 10 a.m. Tickets cost $15 and are available on the day of the event, along with a tour map, at the Dufferin Historical Museum, 44 Kings Park Rd., Carman.
The Niverville Better Gnomes and Gardens Tour on July 27 is another new entry on the local garden tour circuit. (Hands down, it has the best name.) Sponsored by Niverville Communities in Bloom and Tim Hortons, the tour starts at the Niverville Heritage Centre, 100 Heritage Trail. The tour marks the 50th year of the town’s incorporation and includes tours of five of Niverville’s loveliest gardens. The tour also includes a gnome scavenger hunt. Tickets are $10. Visit eventbrite.ca.
Eric Hildebrand, Town of Altona’s recreation programmer and special events co-ordinator, says that on July 28, from 1 to 4 p.m., backyard garden tours will be part of this year’s Manitoba Sunflower Festival. Maps are available at the festival’s information booth. Tickets are $5 and proceeds go towards the Altona Memory Garden, another must-see garden.
The city of Winkler is home to an abundance of beautiful parks and public gardens, each one of which the Winkler Horticulture Society is actively involved in designing, planting, and maintaining. From Aug. 14 to 18, visitors can pick up a map at Winkler Arts and Culture, 547 Parks St., which is home to a monarch butterfly garden with a 213-centimetre wingspan. Margaret Penner, chairwoman of the Winkler Horticultural Society, says the map will describe the gardens and their locations and will also include special points of interest such as restaurants offering Mennonite cuisine, local tea houses and thrift stores. In addition to the self-guided tours, there are other surprises in store, too.
Penner says tour assistance is also available by request. Leave a text message for Penner at 204-362-2552.
But now let’s get to the parties.
Ayoko Design and Pineridge Hollow are co-hosting the Floriography Garden Party July 23 at Pineridge Hollow in the RM of Springfield. The Floriography (Victorian language of flowers) Garden Party will be a visual feast showcasing 15 outdoor vignettes styled by more than 20 local designers and florists. There will also be 20 local vendors selling fresh flowers (including flower fascinators, flower crowns and boutonnieres), art, food, fashion and handmade wares. Guests will enjoy delicious appetizers, desserts and beverages from Pineridge Hollow.
Local singer and songwriter Sheena Grobb will perform live in the garden. Each guest will receive a copy of Down to Earth — Homemade Soups in Handmade Vessels, a collaborative project by Ayoko Design and Winnipeg Art Gallery. Tickets are $50 and are available for purchase online at anthologieproject.com.
This exciting event will celebrate the launch of Ayoko Design’s Anthologie Project in support of Winnipeg charities. Anthologie, which launches this September, will showcase a curated collection of local design. Yoko Chapman, owner of Ayoko Design and editor-in-chief of Anthologie, says that the goal is to donate $25,000 in net retail sales profit to five Winnipeg not-for-profit organizations, as well as inspire creativity, wellness and community collaboration.
On Aug. 23, the International Peace Garden hosts Gala in the Garden from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. This formal event will include food and cocktails, entertainment, and a silent auction. Tickets are $100 and will be on sale soon. Visit peacegarden.com.
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