Monday, January 10, 2011

Twin Sisters' Garden


This post is a journey back in time to April 2010 to revisit the garden of twin sisters Bernice Wade and Barbara Stiles. I also posted last winter about this beautiful garden here.

The sisters' garden is on a .45 acre lot on Gimghoul Road in Chapel Hill. In April the evergreen azaleas, densely planted all along the sides of the house and yard and behind the house, burst into bloom all at once and make a spectacular display. The colors flow harmoniously from white to various shades of lavender and pink to cherry red.



After a tremendous spring show the garden settles to quieter shades of green, but color remains with annuals and perennials grown on the sunny side of the front garden and the sunny back lower garden.


This sunny bed is packed with iris, peonies, Dianthus, wallflowers, salvia, candytuft and columbines.


Iris 'Jesse's Song'. I didn't buy JS because I saw it here first, but had I seen it here first I would have!





How I wish I knew the name of this beautiful iris. The sisters label many plants but I didn't see a label for this one.




The design of the garden truly does flow, with a lovely green open place at
the front of the house and curvilinear paths leading visitors through the garden.




Azalea 'George Taber'



There is no longer a car path to the garage, just a semi-circular drive that connects to the alley in back. The garden has taken over!


The large oak tree in back is underplanted with Solomon's Seal, Woodland Phlox, and Forget-me-nots.


Forget-me-nots weave a cloud of blue beneath other plants all over the garden.


A specimen dogwood showing its lovely layered effect.



The back garden is terraced with the stone walls that Chapel Hill is known for, and planted with more azaleas, phlox and iris.


A narrow stone stairway leads back up toward the front garden.


At the foot of the steps is a lovely Deutzia gracilis.
Every time I see it I think that I must get one.


Climbing Hydrangea and Yellow Lady Banks rose tumble down the stone wall next to the stairs.


A stone pathway leads from the stairs around the house, opening up to a wider grass pathway planted on each side by azaleas.








The garden curves back up to a half-shaded bed by the neighborhood sidewalk


planted with wood anemones


woodland phlox, iris and tulips.

The neighborhood sidewalk is decomposed sandstone, locally known as "Chapel Hill grit", which makes an excellent walking surface and is as characteristic of Chapel Hill as the stone walls and Tarheel basketball.

Later I will show some of the other house and gardens in the Gimghoul neighborhood.


31 comments:

  1. Okay that's it! I'm packing my bags and moving right to this delish garden!!!

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  2. This is such a beautiful garden- I love it!

    Carolyn

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  3. Oh my, this is what I'd love to have. My gardens look so pitiful compared to this one the sisters created. My George Tabor is in bloom right now.

    Thanks you for sharing this lovely garden and part of your area.

    FlowerLady

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  4. Oh my, What a magical place! The house looks so sweet and the garden landscaping suits it perfectly. What a dream, to garden with a twin sister - lovely!

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  5. I remember your posting from before. I enjoyed seeing this garden again with new eyes....I love those mature azaleas.

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  6. Thanks for a beautiful tour of a quintessentially southern garden! Give me a cool drink on a warm day. a good friend to share it with, and a nice spot to sit and I could spend hours here.

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  7. Such a feminine garden full of soft frilly blooms and forms. The irises captivated me, especially the grapey ones like Jesse's Song and the other purple jeweled one you show. What a lovely place.

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  8. I love the Gimghoul neighborhood. My husband and I took many walks there when we were students. The Twin Sisters' garden is beautiful!

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  9. What a lovely tour! With all of the snow outside...you have me longing for spring. Carla

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  10. Thank you for the visual tonic.

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  11. A wonderful spring garden. So many azaleas in dazzling and fantastic colour combinations. Everything looks so fresh and beautiful. The house is lovely too! I wonder how it is done to have it all flowering together, I guess marvelous planing and planting skills.

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  12. That you for the lovely post. What a beautiful garden! I can't wait for spring!

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  13. Sweetbay, This is classic Southern~Azaleas, iris, hydrangeas and roses. We can see these plants in many gardens, but, this one just says you are in the South and you know you love it here! Thank you for sharing this garden~I have SO needed an energy lift. gail

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  14. PS I forgot to say how beautiful your photos are~

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  15. Oh my, this post has left me breathless! What a cottage-garden paradise! And all on a half-acre! Almost makes me want to give up even trying.

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  16. Such a beautiful garden. Absolutly fantastic.
    Have a nice day.

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  17. I remember your previous post about this garden too. I could look at it a hundred times if you want to keep putting up photos. It's fabulous. I wish I were their neighbor ~ it would inspire me every day.

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  18. Dang it! Family won't let me move so I came back for a Spring fix.

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  19. I loved the tour, makes me even more anxious for spring. The azaleas and irises are beautiful.

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  20. Just dreamy. Thomas Kincaid couldn't do better. Talk about therapy for these dark winter days. Wonderful!

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  21. What beautiful pictures of a gorgeous garden! They are so nice to look at on a cold, dreary winter day! :) Thank you! :)

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  22. Now that's a garden that love built!
    Absolutely gorgeous! Such a lift for those who are snowed in!
    I'm in the desert and it is a breath of fresh air to witness these colorful flowers! Wishing you a happy and healthy New Year!

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  23. Oh my goodness, Sweetbay, this is my dream of the perfect garden! Unfortunately, I don't think azaleas would do nearly as well here, but I absolutely love that lavender pink iris--if you ever find out its name, I would love to know what it is.

    Such a beautiful garden and in my favorite colors as well--the sisters have created a masterpiece. Thanks so much for sharing this with us--a great pick-me-up on this cold, snowy day.

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  24. Good Snowy Morning Sweetbay, It is so lovely to see a garden that reminds me of Atlanta! I love the dappled light falling on the azaleas and the narrow stone stairway and wall in the back. As the snow continues to fall it is indeed a tonic to see so much living color. Beautiful photographic tour!

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  25. This is an amazing garden! my favorite is the Wood Anemones but all of they are gorgeous.

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  26. Absolutely stunning!

    The Azaleas are showstoppers, along with everything else.

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  27. OMG! What a gorgeous place. They have my dream garden. I was just drooling over your pictures. LOL! So many azalea blooms and those irises.Thanks for the eye candy for this cold, snowy day.

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  28. What a glorious garden and a nice respite from winter. I love the house also. It is a beauty.

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  29. That is one beautifully grand garden. Wow! Takes my breath away!

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  30. Sweetbay,
    An amazing garden, and you have captured it just beautifully. Truly an explosion of color - which is all the more enjoyable as I look out the window at the landscape covered in its wintry blanket.

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  31. We must have been there on the same day! I took very similar photos! The gardens just wonderful.

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