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7 Gorgeous Spring Garden Tours Across the U.S.

Stroll through a sea of blossoms at these top sites.

Gigi Ragland,

Across the country, the arrival of spring brings bright floral landscapes. These seven annual garden tours offer particularly lovely opportunities to enjoy spring’s blossoming.

rows of pink, red and yellow tulips at the Skagit Tulip Festival

Skagit Valley Tulip Festival (Mount Vernon, Washington)

Sixty miles north of Seattle, Skagit Valley is at about the same latitude as the Netherlands and home to 350 acres of tulips. During the annual festival , a self-guided driving tour of the tulip fields takes about 30 minutes and you can also walk through the rows of brilliant flowering bulbs. Festival stops include RoozenGaarde, Tulip Town, Garden Rosalyn and the tour’s newest addition, Tulip Valley Farms. While the four show gardens are very different, all showcase commercial growers who plant millions of tulips. Purchase tickets online for RoozenGaarde ($15), Tulip Town (general admission online is $15; $13 for seniors), Garden Rosalyn ($20) and Tulip Valley Farms (prices vary per event). Note: Tulip Valley Farms offers a new parklike area where you can stroll miles of grass “Tulip Trails” with stunning views of the North Cascades and Olympics. Parking is free at all four sites.

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flowers at Garden Club of Virginia Historic Garden Week

Garden Club of Virginia’s Historic Garden Week (destinations across Virginia)

April 15–22

As the only statewide house and garden tour in the country, t he Garden Club of Virginia’s Historic Garden Week , a tradition since 1927, celebrates its 90th anniversary this year. The participating 150 homes and gardens in communities across Virginia — from the Shenandoah Valley to the beaches of Tidewater — showcase private landscapes, public gardens and historic sites through tours organized and hosted by 48 member clubs. Highlight this year include two special properties opened to the public this spring: Bunny Mellon’s Little Oak Spring in Upperville and John Kluge’s Morven in Charlottesville. Some of the tours will offer outdoor demonstrations or porch talks on topics such as floral design and composting, so you can plot your daily itinerary according to your interests. Tickets start at $15 and prices vary by destination.

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Charleston Glorious Garden Tours, Charleston, SC

Charleston Glorious Garden Tour and the 2023 Festival of Houses and Gardens (Charleston, South Carolina)

March 15–April 16

Known for formal gardens that feature year-round greenery and flowers from azalea to camellia, magnolia, hydrangea, jessamine and roses, Charleston in spring offers an especially lush display, often in elegant settings. On Fridays, the Glorious Garden Tours ($75) celebrate the design, history, culture and architecture of the town’s most impressive private gardens. The guides at each location will answer questions about the blooms and offer background on the history and features of the stately houses where they’re cultivated. In addition to the garden tours, special events and concerts are part of the monthlong celebration. Check out the “Live Like a Local” series for events including the popular Rosé and Roses in the Garden ($55) to listen to lovely string music as you sip and stroll the garden surrounding the Nathaniel Russell House Museum. Purchase tickets online or at the festival ticket office in Shop Historic Charleston on Meeting Street.

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flowers at Mary Lou Heard Garden Tour, California

Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour (Long Beach, California)

May 6 and 7

Mary Lou Heard was a passionate horticulturist who created a garden tour in 1993 to highlight the small gardens cultivated by local homeowners. Every year brings more fans to this self-guided tour of “real gardens by real people,” tucked into Long Beach’s neighborhoods. This year’s event includes 44 home gardens , 13 of them new to the tour. This year will also feature drought-tolerant gardens in an effort to reflect California’s changing climate. No tickets are required for the two-day event (10 a.m. to 5 p.m.), but donations are accepted at each of the locations (funds go to the Sheepfold, a shelter that helps women with minor children in crisis).

pink yellow and purple tulips blooming in holland michigans tulip time festival

Tulip Time Festival (Holland, Michigan)

In spring this Michigan city rivals its namesake in the Netherlands with millions of colorful tulips filling its fields and parks for the public to enjoy for free. At the Window on the Waterfront Park, take photos next to the life-size statues in traditional Dutch dress and stroll walking paths through acres of tulip fields and beds. In addition to free activities, there’s Veldheer’s Tulip Gardens and De Klomp Wooden Shoe & Delft Factory, where you can watch artists hand-carve your own traditional wooden shoes from a block of poplar wood or hand paint blue and white Delftware pottery. Or visit Windmill Island Gardens ($12) to see an authentic Dutch windmill surrounded by tulips, dikes, canals and walking paths.

horses stand in a field of blue bonnet flowers in ennis texas

Ennis Bluebonnet Trails and Festival (Ennis, Texas)

The bluebonnet, a wildflower that blankets the fields, meadows and rural roads throughout the Lone Star state, holds the title of state flower. And the small town of Ennis, a 36-minute drive south of Dallas, has the Texas Bluebonnet Trail and is the self-proclaimed "Bluebonnet City of Texas .” The bluebonnets peak in mid-April but since they are a natural occurrence, their blooms may not be in the same exact place year to year. (The locals defer to Mother Nature each year on the best trail sightings.) People trek from all over the country for the Bluebonnet Trails opening (April 1) and the Ennis Bluebonnet Trails Festival, a weekend of music and activities celebrating the beautiful blue wildflower (April 14–16). To explore the trails, download the map for self-guided driving tours. All events are free.

gamble garden spring tour in palo alto california

Elizabeth F. Gamble Garden Historic Home Spring Garden Tour (Palo Alto, California)

April 28 and 29

In 1902, when the Gamble House was built, the city of Palo Alto was considerably smaller, with a population of 3,000 compared with 69,000 today. Thanks to the Garden Club of Palo Alto, which assisted in creating a nonprofit organization to restore the garden and maintain the buildings, the Gamble House and garden continues on as a beautiful example of Colonial-Georgian Revival architecture, complete with restored gardens of the era. The original family gardener, Elizabeth F. Gamble, was well known for her love of flowers and her extensive collection of prized camellias. While you can take a free self-guided tour anytime, during the spring tour you can see what a restored 1900 garden looks like, from camellias, roses and wisteria to the front lawn’s three surviving Canary Island date palms. Live music, a silent auction and special shopping experiences are part of the tour admission. Plus, five private Palo Alto gardens will be open for tours April 28 and April 29, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Note: The private gardens on the tour are not wheelchair accessible, but all activities at Gamble Garden are fully accessible. Admission includes the five garden tours; $30 for members, $45 nonmembers; $50 at the door.

Editor's note: This article was originally published on March 31, 2021. It has been updated to reflect new information.

Gigi Ragland is a Colorado-based travel and food writer whose work has appeared in National Geographic Traveler, Hemispheres, Sierra, AFAR, American Cowgirl and many other publications.

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East Coast USA

Washington to Philadelphia, New York, Rhode Island, & finish in Boston. Visit private gardens, historic homes & gardens & grand public spaces, built by the rich & famous in spectacular style. Longwood, Winterthur, Chanticleer, Dumbarton Oaks & the ‘Summer’ cottages on Newport Rhode Island; it’s an extravagant ride.

From $3,895 AUD

Meet your Tour Leader Sandra Ross at Sydney International Airport. Late evening arrival into Washington. Check in to your boutique hotel for the next 4 nights.

Melrose Georgetown Hotel , Washington DC

Orientation tour of Washington this morning. This afternoon two fine public gardens – United States Botanic Garden & Arlington Cemetery to see the changing of the guard ritual at the tomb of the unknown soldier. Welcome dinner included tonight.

Mt Vernon is your destination this morning, on the banks of the Potomac River; the home, garden and plantation of George Washington with upper and lower gardens, flower and kitchen gardens, Orangery, family burial vaults and slave graves. You will get a real sense of a pioneering, energetic, eighteenth century man and his gardens. River Farm is next, on the Potomac River, once part of the of George Washington’s original five farms, now headquarters of the American Horticultural Society. Return to your hotel with dinner included this evening and then a tour of the famous Washington Monuments, all illuminated, including US Capitol Building, World War 2 Memorial, Jefferson Memorial, Vietnam Memorial, Lincoln Memorial, Korean Memorial, Iwo Jima Memorial, White House and Martin Luther King Junior Memorial.

Morning visit to Dumbarton Oaks, once the home of Mildred and Robert Woods Bliss who found their ideal country house and garden within Washington, DC in 1920. They purchased a fifty-three-acre property and hired landscape gardener Beatrix Farrand to design the gardens. Working in happy and close collaboration for almost thirty years, Mildred Bliss and Beatrix Farrand planned every garden detail, each terrace, bench, urn and border. The result is a triumph in garden design; terraces are sculpted with grass, brick, mosaic pebbles and planting. In 1941 Dumbarton Oaks was donated to Harvard University and is faithfully maintained. Travel on to Philadelphia.

Renaissance Downtown , Philadelphia

Travel into the nearby Brandywine Valley to Longwood Gardens, a horticultural tour-de-force, recalling the great pleasure gardens of Europe. Gardens here were created by Pierre du Pont who laid out the first flower garden at Longwood in 1907 and went on to create water gardens and fountain displays to rival anything he had seen in Europe; 434 ha of complex gardens, 20 indoor gardens in elegant glass conservatories and spectacular illuminated fountains. After a guided orientation tour of the gardens, there will be time for lunch and free time for you to explore. Fountains have been restored – so we won’t miss them.

Back to Brandywine this morning and this time to visit Winterthur, home and garden of Henry Francis du Pont (1880-1969). He selected plants from around the world to enhance the natural setting. He created a flowering understory of rhododendrons and azaleas beneath a woodland canopy and was meticulous with colour planning. Close to the house is Sundial garden, Reflecting Pool and Peony Garden that serve to link the house with the wider landscape. Lunch included.

We are heading to New York with a morning visit Chanticleer, a “pleasure garden” designed to illustrate the beauty of the art of horticulture. The summer home and country retreat of Adolph Rosengarten. See the Ruin Garden,‘Old Tennis Court’ garden, Pond Garden, Gravel Garden, Teacup Garden and Cutting Garden. Continue to New York, check-in to your hotel, for the next four nights, centrally located in the heart of the city a short walk from Central Park, Carnegie Hall, Broadway and Fifth Avenue. Dinner is included this evening.

The Iroquois , New York

Morning visit to the widely acclaimed ‘High Line’, an urban green space built on an old railway line, elevated above the streets on Manhattan’s West Side with views of the city to the Hudson River. Focus is practical and aesthetic. Piet Oudolf designed planting schemes, with trees and verdant gardens. Free afternoon; option to visit Chelsea Market Manhattan, a great place to eat as well as shop, a true New York experience.

A guided tour this morning of Central Park designed by Calvert Vaux and Frederick Law Olmsted, with attractions spread throughout its 843 acres of landscape. There are sprawling waters, green meadows, bridges, performance space, educational facilities, Central Park Zoo and Wildlife Centre, gardens and classical architecture. But above all else, this is a recreation space for the people of New York, one of the busiest cities in the world. The Conservatory Gardens are magical when the crab apples and the wisteria pergola are in bloom. There are three gardens, one on either side of the central wisteria-pergola garden. Bryant Park is delightful with sophisticated gardens flanking a large lawn and throngs of joyful New Yorkers on countless ‘French’ bistro chairs. Free afternoon.

We are heading to Providence, capital of the State of Rhode Island, a quintessential New England town. Morning visit to Hollister House and garden in the English Arts and Crafts style. Travel on to Providence. Dinner included this evening.

Omni Hotel , Providence Rhode Island

Morning visit to the Newport Flower Show, presented in the Marble House (1888-1892), built for Mr. and Mrs. William K. Vanderbilt in the ‘Beaux Arts style’, an eclectic style of architecture inspired by classic architecture and promoted by American graduates of the École des Beaux Arts (School of Fine Arts) in Paris. The style was popular in the late 19th century among America’s wealthy industrialists. On show will be floral designs, garden displays, horticulture exhibits, shopping opportunities, lectures and demonstrations. Free time in Newport for lunch. Afternoon visit The Breakers, the grandest of Newport’s summer “cottages” and a symbol of the Vanderbilt family’s social and financial pre-eminence in the Gilded Age. Take the scenic Ocean Drive, 10 miles of commanding coastline before we return to Providence.

A coastal Rhode Island garden this morning, The Sakonnet Garden, private and highly individual, with unique design ideas, superb plant selection and exquisite planting schemes. Travel in to Boston this afternoon with a walking tour of the Old Town. Check in to our hotel.

Park Plaza Hotel, Boston

Morning visit to Harvard University’s Museum of Natural History and the Glass Flower collection. Guided walk of Boston’s Historic Emerald Necklace, an 1,100-acre chain of green spaces. Visit Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum. Interior courtyard is an astonishing work of art. Farewell Dinner this evening.

Free morning. Fly from Boston to Los Angeles then on to your home port.

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You will be contacted by a Ross Tours Travel Manager to confirm your details and preferred method of payment.

Cancellations received 180-120 days prior to departure will incur loss of deposit.
Cancellations received between 119-60 days prior to departure will incur a 50% cancellation fee.
Cancellations received between 59-30 days prior to departure will incur a 75% cancellation fee plus any non-recoverable costs incurred.
Cancellations received within 30 days prior to departure will incur 100% cancellation fee.
Cancellations must be sent in writing.
Cancellation fee is based upon the total amounts paid including tours, airfares and all other travel arrangements.

Please refer to the Ross Garden Tours standard terms and conditions

Garden Tours USA: Explore Spectacular Gardens from Washington to Boston

Ross Garden tours is proud to offer an exclusive journey through the United States, discovering breathtaking gardens, historic homes, and grand public spaces. Our remarkable itinerary takes you from one iconic location to another including Washington, Philadelphia, New York, Rhode Island, and finally Boston. Immerse yourself in the opulence of private gardens and explore renowned destinations like Longwood, Winterthur, Chanticleer, and Dumbarton Oaks. From the meticulously designed terraces of Dumbarton Oaks to the horticultural marvels of Longwood Gardens, this tour promises an unforgettable experience. Indulge in a remarkable fusion of nature and luxury – secure your spot today and be enchanted by the beauty of the most famous gardens in the USA.

Garden Tours USA

Your garden tour in the USA starts in Washington, then moves through Philadelphia, New York, Rhode Island, and finishes in Boston. Explore exquisite private gardens, stunning parks, and panoramic views that will ignite your senses and rejuvenate your spirit. Each garden holds a distinctive charm and character, showcasing a harmony of colourful blooms, lush greenery, and creative garden designs. It’s an opportunity to gain ideas for your own outdoor spaces as you stroll through a tapestry of delightful sights and scents.

Perfect for garden enthusiasts, this tour will reveal the underlying principles behind garden creation, maintenance, and enhancement. Meet garden curators and seasoned horticulturists who craft and maintain these wonderful spaces and gain valuable insights into the art and science of gardening. Soak in the tranquillity, immerse yourself in the natural splendour, capture spectacular photos, and return with unforgettable memories.

Experience The Rich Floral Heritage

The USA is renowned for its diverse, abundant, and uniquely constructed gardens. Your garden tour will showcase the East Coast’s impressive floral heritage, home to mesmerising botanical gardens, arboretums, and private estates. From George Washington’s home of Mt Vernon to the modern and practical High Line of New York City, your itinerary will cover a wide array of distinctive garden styles.

Luxury Accommodation and Effortless Travelling

Beyond our selection of gardens, Ross Garden Tours is known for our effortless travel and luxury accommodation, ensuring a comfortable and memorable journey. From the moment you board your flight, relax as every detail is taken care of. Travelling on an air-conditioned coach, our experienced guide will share insights into history, culture, and the best local restaurants and shops, which will further enhance your tour experience.

Your tour includes relaxing accommodation that provides convenience and comfort after a long day. Enjoy the unrivalled comfort and style of luxury hotels chosen for their quality, impeccable service, and convenient location, providing the perfect base for your garden tour in the USA.

Ross Garden Tours: Over 40 Years of Reliable Service

Ross Garden Tours , the world’s leading specialist garden tour company, was founded by Graham and Sandra Ross due to their passion for sharing the world’s most beautiful gardens. With a history spanning over 40 years, we have taken groups to more than 1000 gardens across four continents.

Your tour leader, Sandra Ross, has travelled the world seeking out the most incredible gardens to tour. She will provide fascinating insights, manage daily itineraries, and guide you to all the must-see (and eat) destinations! We aim to create a relaxed and memorable tour, giving you everything you need to enjoy your holiday to the fullest.

Book Your Garden Tour of the USA Today

Embark on this journey of a lifetime, and embrace an experience like no other with Ross Garden Tour’s trip through the USA. To secure your place, call now on 1300 233 200 or book online. We look forward to helping you expand your horticultural horizons!

What do your garden tours of the USA offer?

Led by Ross Garden Tours, we allow you to explore the diverse and abundant gardens across the United States. We offer you a chance to not only visit mesmerising botanical gardens, arboretums, and private estates but also to learn about the principles behind garden creation, maintenance, and enhancement.

Who can benefit from garden tours of the USA?

Our garden tours of the USA are perfect for garden enthusiasts seeking inspiration for their own gardens, people interested in the diversity of flora, or those who simply want to enjoy the tranquillity of stunning landscapes. You also get a chance to meet curators and seasoned horticulturists and learn about different plants, gardening methods, and styles.

What kind of accommodation does Ross Garden Tours provide?

Ross Garden Tours chooses comfortable and luxurious hotels with high-quality service, style, and convenience. All of the accommodation we select is close to key destinations to allow for quick trips to local hotels and shops.

What is unique about Ross Garden Tours?

Ross Garden Tours offers a spectacular peek into the USA’s impressive floral heritage. The tours are led by Sandra Ross, a seasoned horticulturist, author, and garden enthusiast. Operating for over 40 years, we have taken groups to more than 1000 noteworthy gardens across four continents.

How to book a spot on a garden tour of the USA?

You can book your garden tour of the USA through Ross Garden Tours. Simply visit our website and select your preferred tour date. Don’t miss your chance to embark on this incredible journey with people who share a love for gardens.

Entrance fees to all gardens and sightseeing including

United States Botanic Garden, Mount Vernon, River Farm, Dumbarton Oaks, Longwood Gardens, Winterthur, Chanticleer Gardens, Central Park, Highline NYC, Hollister House, Sakonnet Garden, Newport Flower Show, Harvard Museum of Natural History, Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum..
Twin Share land only $15,295 per person
Twin Share including air $17,995 per person
Single Supplement $3,895
All prices in Australian Dollars.
Prices based on minimum 15 passengers.
Price is based on departure Sydney.
Previous Traveller $100.00
Garden Clinic Member $50.00

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United States Self-Guided Day Trips

Explore some of Los Angeles' best gardens. Walk peaceful pathways, see elegant and inspired collections, and learn more about local plants.

Famous for its miles of sandy beaches and pristine weather, San Diego also boasts amazing gardens. Discover 3 of local expert Debra Lee Baldwin's favorites.

Don't let the desert climate fool you. Explore three of the best gardens in the greater Phoenix area, and you just might be surprised at the array of beautiful plants that grow here.

Discover three unique gardens all located within Golden Gate Park in San Francisco. The park offers visitors a picturesque setting with lakes, picnic spots, and trails.

If you're seeking a walk through mossy woods, Asian gardens or a botanical extravaganza to inspire you, you will find many ideas on this adventure.

Get off the well-trodden path to explore some hidden treasures. Walk woodland trails, see birds and wildlife, and get landscaping ideas for your own garden.

Known for its dramatic beauty and mild climate, Tucson is also home to 3 amazing gardens, where you'll find inspiration and practical advice for your own garden.

Utah is filled with fascinating destinations. Explore three of the best gardens in the area, where you'll not only find plant collections, but education and beauty.

Local garden expert Ryan McEnaney has planned the perfect day out for garden lovers, with 3 lavish Minnesota gardens all within the greater St. Paul area.

Boasting interesting architecture and art, Chicago is also home to beautiful gardens. Our local expert shares 3 favorites that any garden lover will enjoy.

Local landscape designer Diana Kirby suggests a fun-packed day exploring three of her favorites, all unique and exciting in their own way.

See plants from around the world, get inspiration for your own water-wise garden, and more at three fantastic gardens on this local day trip in the Denver area.

Visit these Proven Winners® Signature Gardens before or after a trip to Mackinac Island, or any other Michigan destination.

This day trip may take more than a day, but these three must-see gardens are well worth the time. See what garden is described as "a garden lovers dream."

Designated as a National Heritage Area, this region offers peaceful villages, spectacular views, and a wide range of garden experiences on this day trip.

Local landscape designer Jerry Fritz had no hesitation in recommending these three outstanding gardens for an unforgettable day trip in America's Garden Capital.

Step away from the museums and memorials and enjoy a day exploring delightful gardens, as recommended by local landscape designer Barbara Katz.

Georgia may be best known for its peaches, but there are also wonderful gardens to visit, such as the three featured in this day trip for the Atlanta area.

Take a break from theme parks and discover unique plant collections and explore exceptional gardens, including one that is described as "Miami and New York combined".

Sign-up for our travel newsletter to be notified when each new self-guided tour is added - plus other garden travel oppotunites.

International Self-Guided Day Trips

Experience three unique gardens in this Vancouver day trip that starts in the heart of the city, then on to an aerial trail adventure, and ends with a calming Japanese garden.

Visit three distinctly different gardens in Toronto, the largest city in Canada, on this relaxing day trip recommended by local garden expert Helen Battersby.

Enjoy three magnificent gardens in, and near, Halifax—including the oldest Victorian garden in North America, an amazing rock garden, and an historically themed garden.

The walled city of York in northeast England offers so much to the visitor, including three picturesque walled gardens that are not to be missed.

The Peak District National Park is a delight to all those who love the picturesque countryside, with its rolling hills, sweeping views, quaint villages, and historic gardens.

East Anglia is the perfect destination any time of year. See beautiful countryside, medieval and historic market towns, and three fabulous gardens.

Set in the heart of Yorkshire, the Harrogate District is filled with historic castles and abbeys, attractive towns, quaint villages, and exceptional public gardens.

Discover 3 breathtaking gardens set amongst the historic villages and rolling countryside that surround the spa town of Harrogate.

Loved for its fairytale châteaux, bustling market towns, and some of the best wines in the world, it also has much to offer garden enthusiasts.

An unforgetable adventure awaits when you visit these 3 gorgeous gardens in the vibrant, bustling city of Marrakesh.

Visiting Victoria is always an adventure, but it's also a gardener's paradise. Explore three unique gardens that both educate and delight.

Garden Travel Inspiration

Discover some of the best gardens to visit from coast to coast, including Longwood, Denver Botanic, Atlanta Botanical, Descanso, Bellevue Botanical (pictured), and more!

"Have you been to Great Dixter?” is the question on the lips of anyone debriefing a gardening friend who has been traveling in England. Great Dixter has a reputation for being...

On a hot afternoon last summer at Monticello, Peter Hatch walked toward a redbrick colonial pavilion pierced with floor-to-ceiling arched windows, then past neat rows of...

South Africa’s famous National Botanic Garden Kirstenbosch is known as the most beautiful garden in Africa. Its diverse collection of plants...

Twenty first century Philadelphia straddles its historical past and the future in a way that could only happen in America’s horticultural heart...

Make a pilgrimage to Brazil to get a firsthand view of the gardens and public spaces designed by modernist landscape architect Roberto Burle Marx...

On the grounds of a former estate outside of Philadelphia, a cadre of master gardeners presides over an oasis of earthly delights. We've put together...

Artist Helen Marden fell twice for Golden Rock Inn. The first time came in the mid-2000s when Marden and her husband were looking for a new...

RELATED: Top 20 Gardens to Visit in the U.S.

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About The Site

Icangarden.com has been around since 1996. Originally founded by Donna Dawson, it was created with a goal of giving gardeners a place to go for resources and information about gardening. Whether you are an experienced green thumb, or someone that’s just starting out, this site was created as a resource for everything you need to know about gardening.

Redesigned and relaunched in 2022, the goal of icangarden.com remains the same. If you’ve come to the site, you’ve likely already seen our comprehensive articles about flowers, shrubs, native plants, vegetable and fruit gardens, container gardening as well as just about any type of gardening tip or trick you can think of!

Our authors are a group of hobby gardeners, organic farmers, landscape designers and certified master gardeners. Many of our writers have advanced degrees in plant biology or horticulture, and many run their own gardening businesses when they aren’t writing for our website.

Icangarden.com has been featured in many major media publications, including the Ottawa Citizen, The Calgary Herald, Gardenology, and The Christian Science Monitor.

Below you’ll learn about each of our gardening experts, their favorite plants, and what they love so much about gardening. Feel free to drop us a line on our contact page if you have any feedback, and thanks for taking the time to stop by!

Meet Our Garden Writers

Tracy Edwards

Hobby gardener & writer.

Tracy loves to garden with ornamental plants. She is a pro with perennial flowers and also adores her rose bushes. She’s been an avid plant lover and hobby gardener for over twenty years.

Emma is a hobby gardener from the United Kingdom. When she’s not taking walks with her dog or enjoying time with her family, she’s enjoying plants she regularly grows in her hobby garden.

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Gardening expert & writer.

Liessa Bowen spends most of her free time in her hobby garden. She has a PhD in forestry from North Carolina State University with an emphasis in conservation biology and birds. She loves native plants.

Laura Elsner

Master gardener & writer.

Laura runs a garden design business in Canada, where she enjoys cold climate gardening and container planting. She’s been a professional gardener for over 15 years and is also a certified master gardener.

Donna Dawson

Master gardener & founder.

Donna founded icangarden.com in 1996. She is a certified master gardener leads garden tours around the world. Visit Gardening Tours for tour information.

L.A.’s private gardens are springing to life. Here’s how to peek inside while you can

A closeup of small blue flowers with white centers.

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In 1995, when most people considered native plants little more than weeds (if they considered them at all), desert devotee Mike Letteriello peered through a chain-link fence at a patch of bare ground and dreamed up a fragrant, vibrant tribute to California’s diverse native plant communities.

Nearly 30 years later, his dream is a lush reality, with a small waterfall, stream and pond along a meandering path bordered by a stony desert wash, thick chaparral, a flowery meadow and even native shrubs and trees from the Channel Islands bursting with blooms.

A man standing in a garden smiling and holding a flower in his hand

It’s still mostly viewed through a fence because it’s on the grounds of William F. Prisk Elementary School in Long Beach and reserved for students and teachers. But during Southern California’s annual season of spring garden tours, the gates of Prisk Native Garden will be open to the public from 1 to 4 p.m. on March 26 and again on April 2. Admission is free, but “donations will be gladly accepted,” Letteriello said.

The Prisk Native Garden tour is the earliest of more than 16 annual tours of private gardens around SoCal that extend into May, many of which are fundraisers for nonprofit organizations. You can find a list of other tours below, but if you’ve got a free afternoon and an interest in creating native plant habitats, or just wandering through a beautiful and lovingly tended garden of more than 300 mature species of California native plants, a visit to the Prisk garden is well worth your time.

Lake Elsinore, CA - February 07: A close-up view of the spring California Poppies and wild flowers blooming early this year in the wake of major winter rainfall, which are covering patches of the upper slopes of Walker Canyon in Lake Elsinore Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2023. Poppies didn't blanket Walker Canyon hillsides in the past three years due to the drought. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)

Has wildflower shaming gone too far? How to find the best blooms without the drama

The Theodore Payne Foundation’s annual Wild Flower Hotline returns March 3. Be respectful when you visit, but don’t be ashamed you want to see the bloom.

Feb. 28, 2023

It was Prisk Elementary science teacher Candy Jennings who first envisioned creating a native plant garden on 7,500 square feet of weeds and dirt at the southwest corner of the school grounds, at East Los Arcos Street and Albury Avenue in Long Beach. She sought advice from the Theodore Payne Foundation — then known as the Theodore Payne Foundation for Wild Flowers & Native Plants — and the foundation staff called Letteriello, a Long Beach painting contractor, native plant enthusiast and avid volunteer.

“They basically said, ‘Mike, can you handle this gal?’ so Candy and I got together, and it was the most fateful outreach you could imagine,” Letteriello said.

“I looked through the fence at flat dirt — a huge blank palette. The only plant was one white alder — Alnus rhombifolia — and I thought, ‘How can I do this?’ I had no master plan at the time, and I’d never designed a big garden. All I’d done was take out the lawn at my house and put in native plants ... but I told her, ‘Let’s just do this and I’ll design it as we go.’”

A yellow and black butterfly against a leafy green background

And design he did. He and Jennings, her husband, Alan, and the Jennings’ neighbor, Frank Duroy, took on the job of transforming the dirt into the colorful quilt of habitats it is today. Duroy not only helped with physical labor, Letteriello said, but he became the garden’s benefactor too, providing money for materials, a storage shed and the garden’s “learning arbor,” a sheltered space for classes to learn outside, recently renovated by Long Beach Eagle Scout Kai Cobabe , a Prisk alumnus.

Los Angeles, CA - December 04: Kyle and Claire Penn play with their daughters Maxine, 3, left, and Stella, 5, right, in their backyard where Berkeley Sedge, a meadow grass grows at their home on Sunday, Dec. 4, 2022 in Los Angeles, CA. Homeowners Kyle and Claire Penn wanted a wild outdoor space for their family that felt "organic, lush and voluminous." (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times)

Do kids really need grass? This magical L.A. garden will make you rethink turf

Kyle and Claire Penn pulled out their lawn in Eagle Rock and never looked back. “We haven’t given up anything by not being able to run around on grass,” Kyle says.

March 7, 2023

Creating the garden was fairly straightforward, Letteriello said, once they came up with the theme.

“The idea was to organize the garden by plant communities,” he said, “like you’re crossing California from the ocean to the desert, through all the biomes and native plant communities — a beach, coastal sage scrub, chaparral, mountain meadow, freshwater creek and marsh, shade garden, desert wash. ... We even included plantings from the Channel Islands.”

Duroy helped pay for a lot of those initial materials, including a good-sized fish pond that he and Letteriello dug themselves. In 2017, Letteriello got a $7,000 grant from the South Coast Chapter of the California Native Plant Society to build a small waterfall and stream that runs into the pond and recirculates back to the waterfall with power from solar panels. By then, Duroy had died and Candy Jennings had retired, so Letteriello did most of that work, again as a volunteer, with his friend Joey Vanoni, who helped him lug in rocks to build the creek.

Two photos side by side of some plants in shades of green, blue and purple. There is a bee on the blue flowers on the right.

The resulting waterway looks like a natural jumble of logs and rocks created by a small flash flood, with artfully set steps hidden by a profusion of native grasses and shrubs along the banks. Letteriello got permission from state wildlife officials to bring in two dozen native arroyo chub minnows for the pond from San Juan Creek, along the Ortega Highway. The chub have multiplied heartily, but Letteriello has had to erect netting “to keep raccoons from ravaging the pond.” The pond also has one lonely frog that Letteriello hopes to socialize when he brings in tadpoles later in the spring.

The Prisk garden is less than a fifth of an acre, but there’s so much to see, time seems to slow for visitors who get the Letteriello tour because he has a personal story for almost every plant and he’s a stickler for details. The Latin names of the plants he loves roll off his tongue as easily as his stories, which tend to drift as delightfully as his garden paths.

Santa Barbara, CA - February 21: Paul Gripp stands for a portrait at the business he helped start in 1957 as one the premiere hybridizers at the Santa Barbara Orchid Estate on Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2023 in Santa Barbara, CA. Gripp helped bring the Santa Barbara International Orchid Show to prominence and it will have its 75th annual show March 10-12. (Dania Maxwell / Los Angeles Times).

This fabled orchid breeder loves to chat — just not about Trader Joe’s orchids

Paul Gripp, 90, helped build the famed Santa Barbara Orchid Estate and will be there sharing tips during the International Orchid Show March 10-12.

March 1, 2023

For instance, one of the low-growing varieties of sagebrush, Artem i sia californica ‘Canyon Gray,’ was found on San Miguel Island, Letteriello said, where it adapted to the strong Channel Island winds by growing close to the ground, much flatter than Artem i sia californica ’s regular upright form. But with its feathery, silver-green foliage, Canyon Gray sagebrush makes a lovely groundcover for yards, especially since it has the same sharp, savory aroma as the taller plant, and did you know, he said, barely taking a breath, that some Southern California Indigenous peoples would weave sagebrush branches around their necks to serve as a kind of fragrant bug repellent?

Then there’s the sprawling island oak that Letteriello carried back from the Catalina Conservancy as a seedling in a gallon can, cradled in the front seat of his pickup, or the hilly area he created in the center of the garden from donated shale and other rocks — “my homage to the Vasquez Rocks,” he said, the iconic jagged rock formations near Agua Dulce in the high desert off Highway 14, made famous in numerous commercials and television shows.

A stone plaque on the ground amid greenery with the words 'Thanks to you, Mike Letteriello"

Desert landscapes are what drew Letteriello to native plants in the first place. He loves wandering through desert washes, especially in the Mojave Desert, and tried to create that effect in his yard as well as the desert biome at Prisk. Many people have contributed to create and maintain this garden, but it continues to thrive because Letteriello has made it his life’s work. He doesn’t get any monetary payment as the garden steward, but when the kids run in, clambering over the stones he laid around the stream or squealing with excitement at the sight of a lizard — there are many in the garden — he said he feels well paid.

“One girl opened up her arms and said, ‘I just want to live here.’ Another boy looked at me with delight on his face and said, ‘This is my happy place.’ Those are all spontaneous things they came up with — I couldn’t solicit those comments if I tried, and when I hear them I think, ‘I’ve done my job,’” he said.

“And this isn’t just a garden, it’s a zoo, with the chub and frog and the lizards and all the birds ...,” Letteriello trailed off as a swallowtail butterfly sailed by, almost on cue, to land on a purple-blooming lupine, and he laughed in delighted disbelief. It was just too perfect.

ALISO VIEJO, CA - JANUARY 12: Bat Vardeh, founder of Foraging and Mushroom Hunting Women of SoCal and the Field Trip Chair for the LA Mycological Society, shows the gills of two mushrooms in Canyon View Park on Thursday, Jan. 12, 2023 in Aliso Viejo, CA. (Jason Armond / Los Angeles Times)

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Someday, he said, he’d love to expand the Prisk garden into the huge expanse of asphalt behind the school, to create a bigger garden and stream. But more than anything, Letteriello wants to spread the gospel of the benefits of school gardens. He’s creating a nonprofit organization called Wild for Schools to try to build more native plant gardens at schools because he thinks they bring something rare and precious to the students within.

“[Los Angeles Unified School District Superintendent] Alberto Carvalho said, ‘So many kids are caught in concrete jungles; we have a moral obligation to remove them from that,’ and I’m in total agreement,” he said. “It’s therapeutic to immerse children in nature. It calms them down and gets them into the present time, not the past or future. When you get kids in nature, they become highly observational. They start asking, ‘What’s that? What’s this?’ and they’re looking at everything with intense interest. When they stare at a computer, it’s not the same as surrounding kids with aromas, butterflies and lizards, fish and moving water.”

A smiling man in a hat peers through some garden plants

His mission now is to convince financial backers and school leaders that these native plant gardens should be a fixture in every school. There are so many lessons that can be taught here, he said, about plants and biology, the importance of habitat, animals and drought, and how California’s native peoples used the plants around them for food, shelter, medicine and spirituality.

“It’s highly educational, and it connects us with our heritage in California,” he said. “I was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to an Italian immigrant family and moved to California when I was a child. I’ve never been to Italy, and I don’t care to go now. I love our mountains and deserts. I’d rather tour California because it’s my home and I’m proud to live here. I want these kids to know we’re unique, this is part of their heritage, and I’m just beginning.”

LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 08: (9. SWAN STAIRS Walk #25). The Swan Stairs zig-zag up the hillside from Westerly Terrace to Swan Place in Silver Lake. Photographed at Swan Stairs on Friday, July 8, 2022 in Los Angeles, CA. (Myung J. Chun / Los Angeles Times)

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Clearly, gardens can be intensely personal creations, so if you’re looking to be inspired or just want to satisfy your inner voyeur, there are lots of other garden tours throughout Southern California this spring. Here’s a list of upcoming events:

A 'Welcome to California' sign at a garden

March 26 and April 2 The Prisk Native Plant Garden Open House features a free visit to the native plant garden usually closed to the public. From 1 to 4 p.m. both days at William F. Prisk Elementary School, 2375 Fanwood Ave. in Long Beach. The garden is behind the school, at the corner of East Los Arcos Street and Albury Avenue. facebook.com/prisknativegarden

April 15-16 The 20th Theodore Payne Foundation Native Plant Garden Tour features 37 gardens around Los Angeles devoted to at least 50% native plants. Ticket holders get a map for self-guided tours to gardens on the Westside of L.A. on April 15 and the Eastside on April 16, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. One ticket gets you into all the gardens on both days and provides an opportunity to see gardens for larger spaces as well as residences, including Kuruvungna & the Tongva Sacred Springs, Ballona Discovery Park, Manhattan Beach Botanical Garden, the Gottlieb Native Garden and Los Nogales wholesale native plant nursery. Participants will get a map in the mail once they purchase their tickets for $45 ($40 for members, children under 16 do not need tickets). nativeplantgardentour.org

A hummingbird, wings blurred because of the motion, sipping nectar from hummingbird sage

April 16 The Conejo Valley Audubon Society’s 5th Bird-Friendly Garden Tour involves self-guided tours of 15 gardens at private homes, a school and a park in Oak Park, Camarillo, Thousand Oaks and Ventura from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. The tours are designed to showcase native plant landscapes and habitat gardens that support birds. The tours are free, but online registration for each attendee is required by April 7. Dogs are not permitted on the tours. conejovalleyaudubonsociety.org

The Creative Arts Group 28th Art of the Garden Tour includes self-guided tours of four gardens in the foothill communities of Pasadena, San Marino and Sierra Madre from 10:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $40 if purchased before April 16 and $45 on the day of the tour. The tour is the biggest annual fundraiser for the group, which is entering its 63rd year as a community nonprofit. Executive Director Gwen Robertson said the tour strives to includes at least one blockbuster estate and one more modest but still inspiring homeowner-designed habitat garden. Photography, pets and children under 12 are not permitted on the tours. The Creative Arts Group Gallery will be open at 108 N. Baldwin Ave. in Sierra Madre for people who want to purchase tickets in person and view work by more than 25 local artists. creativeartsgroup.org

April 23 Claremont Eclectic: A Tour of Six Local Gardens from 1 to 4:30 p.m. around the city of Claremont, as well as two entries into the California Botanic Garden in Claremont, the state’s largest botanic garden devoted to California native plants, the day of the tour and once again in May. The self-guided tours begin at the botanic garden parking lot, 1500 N. College Ave., where ticket holders with a receipt can get their tour maps and brochures. Proceeds support the Claremont Garden Club. Tickets are $20 and can be purchased in person at Claremont Heritage in Memorial Park, 840 N. Indian Hill Blvd., or Rio de Ojas at 250 N. Harvard Ave. as well as online. claremontgardenclub.org

a pond with lily pads surrounded by pergola

April 22-23 The Redlands Garden Tour , sponsored by the Redlands Horticultural and Improvement Society, features six private gardens representing a broad variety of garden landscaping, including hillside gardens, a yard filled with colorful mosaics and other repurposed yard art, a 5-acre garden where you can feed the ducks and the stately Kimberly Crest Gardens surrounding the mansion built in 1897. The self-guided tours are available from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. Tickets are $15 (children 13 and younger enter free) and must be purchased with cash or check only at the Asistencia, 26930 Barton Road in Redlands. redlandsgardenclub.org

April 23 The Garden Conservancy Pasadena Open Days Tour : Explore four elaborate private gardens at historic homes in Pasadena. Tickets are $10 per garden ($5 for members) and available online only. Children 12 and under enter free with an accompanying adult. gardenconservancy.org

The Morongo Basin Conservation Assn. Desert-Wise Landscape Tour is scheduled from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. The event features self-guided tours of five water-wise Morongo Basin landscapes in Yucca Valley, Joshua Tree and Landers, along with docent-guided visits to the Mojave Desert Land Trust and Joshua Basin Water District Demonstration Garden . Tickets are $10 ($5 for members) and can be purchased online. The website also features videos of “desert-wise” landscapes from past tours. mbconservation.org

April 29-30 The Riverside Community Flower Show & Garden Tours ’ Diamond Jubilee Festival of Flowers celebrates its 75th year with self-guided tours in nine Riverside-area gardens between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. both days, along with a free flower show at the Elks Lodge, 6166 Brockton Ave., from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. with floral displays, crafts and garden art for sale. A wristband for admission is $10, children under 16 enter free. riversideflowershow.com

The 30th Floral Park Home & Garden Tour in North Santa Ana features tours of historic homes and gardens from the 1920s to the 1950s from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days. The tour also includes a vintage automobile display, food from local restaurants, a beer and wine garden and shopping opportunities. Proceeds support community scholarships and nonprofit organizations. Tickets for the tour are $45 if purchased ahead online by April 24 or $50 if purchased the day of the event. floralparkhometour.com

A pond with lily pads and orange koi in a previous Leimert Park Garden Tour

May 6 The Leimert Park Garden Tour is a biennial tour of eight private residential gardens in one of Los Angeles’ most historic neighborhoods, bounded roughly by Crenshaw Boulevard, Exposition Boulevard, Arlington Avenue and Vernon Avenue. The self-guided tours run from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tickets are $20 in advance online or $25 if purchased the day of the event at the Garden Tour Hub at the Baldwin Hills Crenshaw Mall, 3650 W. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. The hub will also feature artisan vendors from 10 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. Children under 13 can join the tours for free when accompanied by a ticketed adult, but pets and strollers are not permitted in the backyards of the gardens. leimertparkgardentour.com

The Garden Conservancy Los Angeles Open Days Tours in Santa Monica : Explore four private gardens in Santa Monica — the Urban Wildlife Habitat, the Edna May Garden, Casa Nancina and the Adams Family Garden. Tickets are $10 per garden ($5 for members) and available online only. Children 12 and under enter free with an accompanying adult. gardenconservancy.org

A garden with rounded shrubs under tall trees

The Laguna Beach Garden Club 18th Gate & Garden Tour begins at the Laguna Beach County Water District’s Bruce Scherer Waterwise and Fire-Safe Gardens at 306 3rd St. in Laguna, with special buses shuttling ticket holders to tours of seven Laguna-area gardens. Mexican fare and artisanal margaritas will be available for purchase along with free homemade baked goods. Artists will be painting canvases in several gardens and visitors wearing a “festive garden party hat” will be entered in the tour’s hat contest. Proceeds support school gardens, local scholarships and community projects; last year’s event netted more than $40,000. The tours run from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m, with the last entry scheduled at 2 p.m. Children are not permitted. Timed-entry tickets purchased by April 28 are $60 or $80 for entry anytime between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. along with tickets for one food item and one drink. lagunabeachgardenclub.org

A view of a pergola covered in wisteria, in a backyard garden.

May 6-7 The Mary Lou Heard Memorial Garden Tour features self-guided tours of 43 gardens — 14 of which are new to the tour — from Long Beach to San Clemente from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. both days. A list of the gardens and their addresses is on the Mary Lou Heard Foundation website, but plan ahead because some of the gardens are open to visitors on only one of the days. The tour is free but donation jars will be set out at the gardens to support the Sheepfold , a crisis center for women and children in Orange that has long been the beneficiary of the foundation’s annual tours. heardsgardentour.com

May 7 The 25th Livingston Memorial Visiting Nurse Assn. & Hospice Camarillo Garden Tour features art exhibits and demonstrations, live music, refreshments and a garden-themed boutique in addition to tours of five Camarillo gardens from noon to 4 p.m. Artists from the Pastel Society of the Gold Coast will give demonstrations at each garden. Tickets are $30 online. Proceeds benefit the association’s hospice program in Camarillo. lmvna.org

May 11 The 26th Newport Harbor Home & Garden Tour features stops at seven homes and gardens near Newport Harbor High School, along with lunch, a “boutique” of home decor and accessories vendors and an afternoon reception at Barclay Butera Interiors between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. The home and garden tours are from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. The event is a fundraiser for the Newport Harbor Educational Foundation to support academic programs and faculty at Newport Harbor High School. Tickets can be purchased online for $100 ($110 after April 28, if still available). newportharborhometour.com

May 13 West Floral Park and Jack Fisher Park Neighborhoods Open Garden Day features eight garden tours in two tree-lined neighborhoods of vintage homes in North Santa Ana, along with live music, art displays, garden talks and demonstrations, cooking demonstrations and vendors selling food and garden products from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Ticket sales begin March 27 online for $20, or $25 if purchased the day of the event, at West Santa Clara and North Westwood avenues in Santa Ana. opengardenday.com

May 20 San Clemente Garden Club 2023 Garden Tour features self-guided tours and live entertainment at five San Clemente-area gardens from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets can be purchased online before the event for $35 ($30 each if purchasing four or more). Day-of tickets are $45 and must be purchased in person, at a location that will be announced on the website after 6 p.m. on May 19. Proceeds from the tour support the San Clemente Garden Club College Scholarship and Junior Gardeners programs as well as conservation organization and civic beautification projects in the city of San Clemente. sanclementegardenclub.com

pink-flowered shrubs and trees in front of a house

May 21 The Rossmoor Woman’s Club 19th Garden Tour features self-guided tours of six private gardens in the Rossmoor-Los Alamitos area of Orange County, just north of Seal Beach, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Tickets are $20. They can be purchased online after April 15, at several area shops or, on the day of the tour, at the club’s outdoor marketplace, featuring music, food, craft and plant sales in Arbor Village, 10651 Los Alamitos Blvd. in Los Alamitos. Net proceeds from the tours support local charities. rossmoorwomansclub.org

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Native California wildflowers in the scenic Alta Vicente Reserve. Volunteers from the Palos Verdes Land Conservancy work in the scenic Alta Vicente Reserve to plant native plants as part of a habitat restoration project, and to remove invasive non-native weeds on Saturday, March 23, 2024.

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April 4, 2024

5:51 p.m. March 27, 2023: This story was updated to include details about the Conejo Valley Audubon Society’s 5th Bird-Friendly Garden Tour on April 16 and the May 6 Leimert Park Garden Tour.

At the start of each month, get a roundup of upcoming plant-related activities and events in Southern California, along with links to tips and articles you may have missed.

You may occasionally receive promotional content from the Los Angeles Times.

Jeanette Marantos is a Features reporter focused primarily on plants, gardening and Southern California’s changing landscapes for the Los Angeles Times. She also writes the monthly L.A. Times Plants newsletter, which includes a calendar of upcoming plant-related events. Email calendar submissions or plant-related story ideas to [email protected] for consideration.

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Mastering the Gardener: Hosting a Garden Tour

Styrax japonica and friends in bloom in the front yard

Guest post by Mary Vaananen

After a recent Master Gardener tour came through my little city garden, I have a few rambling reflections and odd bits of thought to share:

Gardeners can’t help but talk plants…. even when you set the focus of the tour on quiet connection with nature. What was I thinking?

All gardeners recognize how much work it takes to create and maintain a garden. When gardeners visit other gardens, they are almost always kind and almost always comparing it to their own. Visiting other gardens can be validating to one’s own efforts, or a blow to the ego.

“That’s our hobby. Some people do arts and crafts. We judge.” ~ Carrie Bradshaw

No matter how wonderful a garden is, if it is not yours, it lacks something.

Gardens have a vibe. So do gardeners. It is the feel of this vibe that registers when I enter a garden. It helps to be able to sit a while and absorb the little details. And maybe drink some wine.

Garden gates are portals

Are gardeners able to relax in their own garden? I am hard-pressed to sit for long. It seems the garden will always need another snip and tug. {Pro-tip: Wine enables relaxation.}

Approaching a garden mind-forward…as if to catalogue its many genera and nuances in words and labels…is a shallow encounter perhaps leaving one with a headache and a vague sense of missing something.

In indigenous ways of knowing, we understand a thing only when we understand it with all four aspects of our being: mind, body, emotion, and spirit. ~ Greg Cajete

To really connect with a garden is to recognize its weight…to feel the depth of its quiet. (All gardens have quiet . Not all quiet feels the same. The quiet of wilderness is deafening.)

Quality of quiet = Vibe

You and your garden are one movement within the quiet. As you tend and fertilize, the garden is enriching you.

“ Your skin does not separate you from the world….it is a bridge through which the external world flows into you and you into it.” ~ Alan Watts

When I am giving a tour of my garden, it surprises me which plants catch the eyes of visitors. I often forget common names and do a lot of (Latin) spelling. I usually end up with a headache. (Could be the wine.)

Sculpture by Girly Steel

Keep the names of artists who have created the sculpture in your garden on hand to share. Every garden needs awesome focal points.

When others visit your garden, learn to accept a compliment graciously on behalf of yourself and your partner. You do what you can; Mother Nature’s magic does the rest.

A great garden is not possible without a great gardener. They arise together and are inseparable.

Thank God for the filler plants; the scramblers and re-seeders that stitch a vignette together.

Thank God for the filler plants!

Sometimes a visitor will ask about a plant. “ What does it do after it blooms”, as if the plant’s worth is bloom-dependent. I draw parallels to the aging human I am…hoping my après bloom presence still contributes to the whole composition.

I must remember to appreciate the vigor of the body that allows precious gardening to happen year after year.

A gardener is made mostly of quiet. The garden points this out.

There is nothing higher that I can see, than the deep and full understanding and appreciation of the beauty around you . ~ Frank Lloyd Wright

Mary Vaananen lives and gardens in Louisville, KY. She is the North American Manager for Jelitto Perennial Seeds, headquartered in Germany. She is made mostly of quiet and obviously enjoys wine.

SHARE THIS RANT!

About the author: mary vaananen, guest ranter.

Mary Vaananen leads Jelitto’s North American public relations from a 280-square foot office in Louisville, KY. (Breeding, seed cleaning and testing, and order fulfillment take place at company headquarters in Schwarmstedt, Germany.) Mary is a skilled horticulturist, communicator, seed sage and poet.

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Well Done Mary!

Yes, well stated! We judge.

This is lovely, Mary! I’m the kind of gardener who will be distracted and stop in the middle of what I’m doing to notice the little details (including the weeds and insects). The glass of wine probably helps!

Nice job Mary. I particularly liked this:

I like that sentiment too!

Great post!

I enjoyed reading this very much. I just finished up volunteering for a local garden tour held this past weekend and all your points rang home to me. I can also say, having had my own garden on tour, that it is interesting seeing it through visitors eyes- it forces the gardener to challenge their inherent biases (both for and against) about the garden.

Great article! Been fascinated with the awesome garden. Thanks for sharing this as I keep on reading posts in this site. Keep it up!

I really enjoyed reading your observations on gardening & gardeners and your garden photos – so well written!

Comments are closed.

Come see us at the International Master Gardener Conference June 18-22 in Overland Park.

Discover Gardens like you've only imagined.

At Discover Garden Tours we design intimate garden tour experiences. Our tours are curated for both Master Gardeners and garden lovers alike.

Upcoming trips and itineraries are listed below.

Netherlands with NC State Master Gardeners

April 9 - 18, 2024 - SOLD OUT!

Join the North Carolina State Master Gardeners as they travel to The Netherlands to Discover the Amsterdam Tulips and The Keukenhof Flower Show. This tour stops at the Zwarte Tulip Museum and The Royal FloraHolland just to get things started. To learn more simply click on the View Itinerary button below.

Oregon Gardens and Grapes with University of Florida Master Gardeners

August 4 - 9, 2024 - SOLD OUT!

Wendy Wilber of UFL leads this tour to the renown Portland Japanese Garden and Stave and Stone Family Farm in Hood River. Marvel in this magnificent tour of Oregon's beautiful gardens and award-winning viticulture.

Oregon Gardens and Grapes with University of Florida Master Gardeners - Tour #2

August 11 - 16, 2024 - SOLD OUT!

Discover Washington D.C. with Powell Gardens - August 2024

hummingbird at pink flowers in botanical garden in Costa Rica

Discover Costa Rica Gardens - 2025

January 22 - 30, 2025

Costa Rica is our signature annual tour. This tour always includes visits to Lankester Botanical Garden and The Botanical Orchid Garden La Garita along with many more incredible tropical sights.

Deposit Deadline: October 1, 2024 (or sooner, when tour sells out)

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"Saw some nice public and private gardens. Learned about Costa Rica agriculture ie chocolate, sugar cane and coffee culture Saw richness of bird life here. Food was plentiful and varied in it's deliciousness. Rode in a nice van with air conditioning though weather was not so hot in Jan 2023. Hotels also varied in charm but for the most part were comfortable. Favorite hotel was Hotel Bougainvillea. Guide, Margarita was Spectacular. Driver, Esteban was excellent driver."

Costa Rica Garden Tour 10-Day on 17 Jan, 2023

”We thoroughly enjoyed our garden tour in Costa Rica. Our guide and group leaders made us feel well cared for and well fed as well! Great scenery and lots of knowledge shared, we’d highly recommend this trip.”

Discover Costa Rica Garden Tour - January 2024

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The gardens are open on may 3rd..

Make the most of your time at Greenwood Gardens by learning about its history, landscape, and horticulture. We offer a variety of guided tours throughout the season, including exclusive tours for members. Each visitor receives a self-guided tour pamphlet and map as they enter. You should plan to allot 75 minutes to fully appreciate the garden on your self-guided tour.

Download our self-guided tour pamphlet, The Garden Guide .

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Our friendly and knowledgeable docents lead tours throughout the season. With the garden ever-changing, you are sure to learn something new each time you visit. We offer a variety of tours exploring various aspects of the garden and the history of the site. Visit our Programs webpage to learn more about our 2024 programs and events. Subject to availability.

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Greenwood offers a wide range of tours inspired by the unique characteristics of Greenwood, such as plant, tree and bird walks, twilight tours, turkey talks, and more. For a complete listing of upcoming themed tours and to pre-register visit our Programs page.

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If you are interested in providing a memorable experience for your group of ten or more, be sure to schedule a one-hour docent-led guided walking tour highlighting the history, landscaping, and architecture of this 1920s Arts and Crafts-style garden. This century old property is graced by Italianate garden terraces, stately fountains, winding moss-covered paths, iconic follies, whimsical ornaments, romantic grottoes, majestic allées of London plane and spruce trees, and interactive wildlife at the barnyard. In 2022, Greenwood was voted “New Jersey’s Prettiest Garden” by New Jersey Family magazine.

You and your group are welcome to bring a bag lunch and eat on-site in Adelaide’s, our covered outdoor Pavilion, or to dine at one of the area’s local eateries.

Tours are available Monday – Sunday from May through November. The fee for Garden Tours is $20 per person. Reservations must be made in advance.

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Visiting the Vatican
Vatican Gardens

Visiting The Vatican Gardens - Enjoy This Exclusive Visit!

By Elyssa Bernard

November 23, 2023

The Vatican Gardens are some of the most beautiful most exclusive gardens in Rome.

To visit them, you need to plan ahead. Here's how.

at the gardens behind the vatican, you can see stunning views of st peter's dome

The Vatican Gardens - Everything You Need to Know

If you're wondering whether you should try to fit in a visit to the Vatican Gardens, or are even wondering what they are, let me tell you - they are so worth visiting!

It's never crowded, as they only accept a few reservations every day they are open.

And be prepared for views of Saint Peter's Basilica unlike any other.

To visit the gardens at the Vatican, here's what you need to know:

What's included in a visit
What's the difference between the gardens at the Vatican and the garden at the Pope's summer residence ?
How long will the tour take ?
Can you visit the Vatican Gardens on the same day as the Papal Audience/Scavi Tour/Vatican Museums ?
Opening times, costs, and how to book a visit
Can you book a visit without a guide ?
Is there an option to see the gardens for visitors in wheelchairs ?
Is this visit part of the Omnia Pass ?

What's included in a visit to the gardens at the Vatican

Gardens, fountains, views, sacred sites.

On your visit to these gardens, you will see beautifully curated mini-gardens . . .

. . . fountains and sculptures . . .

. . . a harmonious balance of trees, bushes, and flowers along delightful shaded walkways . . .

walkway among the trees in vatican garden

. . . stunning views of St. Peter's dome from almost every angle . . .

view of st. peter's dome from the garden walkway

. . . and important holy sites, such as the Grotta di Lourdes , a replica of the Lourdes Grotto in France.

replica of grotta di lourdes in vatican garden

Brief History of Vatican City eBook

The history of the Vatican stretches back thousands of years, and to know everything about this incredible micro-state would take a lifetime to learn.

With this eBook, discover the brief history of Vatican City - where it got its name, who built the basilica, where the Popes are buried and more!

Topics covered include:

Details about the Vatican's origin , going back to the time of Ancient Rome
The role important artists such as Michelangelo played in the creation of the Vatican as we know it today
How the Vatican came to be an independent city state within the boundaries of Rome

What else is included in this Brief History of Vatican City e-book?

50+ pages of information covering all areas of the Vatican's history
Dozens of stunning and original photos showcasing the Vatican
Insightful diagrams and drawings to help illustrate the more detailed elements of the Vatican's history
+ much more!

Look inside:

Only $8.99!

Vatican museums.

When you book your walking or bus tour of the Vatican Gardens, your ticket will allow you entry to the Vatican Museums , which includes the Sistine Chapel .

(It does not include a guided tour of the museums, though.)

creation of adam by michelangelo, ceiling of sistine chapel

This is one fantastic way to skip the line at the Vatican Museums .

You not only get exclusive entry with no waiting, but you will have seen the special gardens that most visitors never get to see. For more secret tips and tricks to visiting the Vatican, check out this guide .

vatican museums as seen from the gardens

Some very important things to note about your Vatican Gardens ticket and entry to the Vatican Museums:

The Vatican Gardens visit includes a tour, but when you enter the Vatican Museums, there is no tour included for the Museums . So if you want a tour of the Museums also, your choices are to a) get the audioguide for the museums (must be purchased separately and can be purchased on site), b) book a ticket that includes a guided tour of both the gardens and the museums .
I get asked this all the time, so here is the definitive answer: Once you visit the Vatican Gardens, you then have to go right into the Vatican Museums. You cannot leave and have lunch and come back . Think of the gardens and the museums as being one entity. There is no re-entry . (There are places to eat inside the Vatican Museums.)
The Vatican Gardens tours are always in the morning/late morning. So your visit to the Vatican Museums will be sometime around noon/1pm . If you want to visit the Vatican Museums right when they open at 8AM, or, later in the day, you will need to purchase separate tickets to the Vatican Museums and the Vatican Gardens .
It is not possible to wander around the gardens on your own. You must be either on the bus tour or with a guide on a walking tour.

Saint Peter's Basilica

When you book a tour of the Vatican Gardens, it comes with tickets to the Vatican Museums .

As I mentioned above, this part of the visit does NOT include a guided tour of the museums, which means that you will NOT be able to take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to Saint Peter's Basilica.

You can only take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to St Peter's Basilica if you are on a tour that INCLUDES the basilica.

So as of now, you cannot take the shortcut unless you are on a tour , but finding a tour that includes the Vatican gardens, the museums and the basilica is rare.

Entry to Saint Peter's Basilica is free, but you will have to leave the Vatican Museums and go into the basilica from the front. This means waiting in line and going through security again.

There is no "skip the line" ticket for Saint Peter's Basilica as the church is free , but everyone must go through security.

When you visit the Vatican Museums , you already have to go through security, so if you are able to take the shortcut from the Sistine Chapel to the Basilica by joining a tour that includes this, you will save a LOT of time by not having to walk all the way back around, and going through security again.

For ways to skip the line at the basilica, visit my page about St. Peter's Basilica here.

What's the difference between the gardens at the Vatican and the garden at the Pope's summer residence?

There are actually two "Vatican Gardens."

The gardens right behind St. Peter's Basilica , are the most famous and most popular.

There are also the gardens at the Papal summer residence at Castel Gandolfo , just half an hour outside Rome.

There, you can visit the Pontifical Palace , and see the pope's private Barberini gardens , which were opened to the public only in 2014 by Pope Francis.

pope's barberini gardens at castel gandolfo

You can visit either of the gardens, right at the Vatican , or at Castel Gandolfo, or, you can see them both in one day .

This fantastic full-day tour takes you to the Vatican Museums + Sistine Chapel, then the Gardens in Rome, and then to Castel Gandolfo where you will enjoy a delicious lunch. *

*Please note you do not have a guide with you on the train to and from Castel Gandolfo.

The perfect 3-day itinerary in Rome

Trying to figure out how to organize your visit to Rome? I've got the perfect 3-day itinerary for first-time visitors (or those who have not been here in a while.) It works for a 2.5 day visit as well.

In my 3-day itinerary, you'll see all the major must-see Rome attractions like the Vatican , Colosseum , Trevi Fountain , Pantheon , Piazza Navona , Spanish Steps , Castel Sant'Angelo , and much more.

And if you have more time, or want suggestions for extra/other things to do, you'll find that there too.

Visit my page with the best 3-day itinerary in Rome for first-timers .

How long does it take to tour the gardens at the Vatican?

A visit to the Vatican Gardens can take 2-3 hours or a full day, depending on how you choose to visit:

view of vatican gardens from st peters dome

Walking Tour of the Vatican Gardens

The guided walking tour of the gardens alone will take 1.5 hours.

Then, your ticket allows entry to the Vatican Museums , where you will visit on your own.

Normally this visit takes around 2 hours.

If you book the Gardens + Museums combo guided tour , they say it takes 3 hours, which means they go at a fairly steady pace.

If you plan to visit St. Peter's Basilica , add at least an hour + the time to get to the basilica and wait in line.

Bus Tour of the Vatican Gardens

The bus tour of the gardens is 45 minutes.

It does not stop and you cannot get off.

This is a shorter tour, but can be ideal for anyone with walking issues .

Then, add the option of the Vatican Museums (about 2 hours) so count on at least 3 hours.

Book your Vatican Gardens bus tour here .

You are not obliged to go through the Vatican Museums or to visit Saint Peter's Basilica.

If you have limited time, and/or have already visited those sites, you may simply leave after your garden tour.

All Day tour including the Papal Gardens at Castel Gandolfo

If you choose to include a visit to the Papal Gardens at Castel Gandolfo , it is an all day visit beginning at the Vatican at 8am, and ending back at the Vatican at about 6pm.

You can also book a tour of JUST the gardens at the Pope's summer residence in Castel Gandolfo .

This makes for a fascinating and unusual day trip out of Rome .

A guided tour of the Apostolic Palace, the Barberini gardens, and lunch on the Pope's farm are all included!

How to plan all your Vatican visits

When you book a visit to the Vatican Gardens, you will automatically get entry to the Vatican Museums .

So plan for at least a 3-4 hour visit.

If you want to also visit Saint Peter's Basilica on the same day, you can either go at 7 AM when it opens, or after your museums tour, probably after a short lunch break.

If you visit the Basilica in the morning, you could then have the other half the day to do other things (although you will likely be tired as that is a lot of activity for one morning!)

If you visit the Basilica after your Vatican Museums visit, this will likely take up the rest of your day.

Visiting the basilica can take maybe an hour.

Once inside Saint Peter's Basilica , you can climb the dome (for a fee) and/or visit the grottos just below the altar where many popes are entombed (free.)

Plan for yet another hour. Just make sure to climb the dome before it closes, which is about an hour earlier than the basilica itself.

Do you want to also know how to fit in a visit to the Vatican necropolis (St. Peter's tomb) , and/or the Papal Audience ?

Visit my page about this .

Ready to plan your trip?

How to book a visit to the Vatican Gardens

Opening days/hours of the vatican gardens.

The Vatican gardens are open Monday - Saturday.

They are closed Sundays and on Catholic holidays, and/or when the pope conducts mass at St. Peter's basilica, including December 8, 25 and 26, January 1 and 6, Easter Sunday , and more.

To see all closing dates for a given year, check the Vatican Museums calendar online .

Although the gardens are open the same dates as the museums, visiting hours are restricted to mid-late mornings .

Walking tours are not available on Wednesdays when there is a Papal audience . Bus tours are.

You can book a walking tour that begins at 9:30 or 11am.

You can book a bus tour that begins somewhere from 8:15 am to 12:45 pm (last departure.)

The all-day tour that includes a train visit to Castel Gandolfo must be booked for an early start at 8am.

The tours are available in different languages but the most commonly offered is in English.

If you choose another language, you may find limited availability.

Vatican: All the Paintings: The Complete Collection of Old Masters, Plus More than 300 Sculptures, Maps, Tapestries, and other Artifacts

Disclosure : If you make a purchase through a link on this page, I may receive a small commission - at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my site!

Book on the Vatican Website

You can easily book a tour of the Vatican Gardens on the official Vatican website .

Click " Vatican Gardens ", which takes you to the page with all the options.

There you can select different garden tours.

Costs vary depending on the type of tour you book.

fennel salad at sorpasso near the vatican

Book through an Authorized vendor

If you have trouble with the Vatican website, or don't find availability there, you might want to try booking the same ticket through the authorized vendor Tiqets .

There is a small booking fee but the ease of use makes up for it.

Also you may find more availability through Tiqets.

Book a Tour

Whether you book a walking or bus tour of the Vatican Gardens, your ticket allows you entry into the Vatican Museums and Sistine Chapel .

When you book the Vatican Gardens, you will either have a human guide on the walking tour, or an audio-guide on the bus tour.

After that however, you will not have a guide for the Vatican Museums , just entry.

So if you would like a guide (which I highly recommend), you can book a tour that includes a guided tour of the Vatican Museums .

In my opinion it is a much better way to visit the Vatican Museums, and makes for a smoother and less tiring day.

You cannot visit the Vatican Gardens without booking a tour.

If you take the shorter bus tour, there is just an audio-guide and not a human.

However, you are not allowed to get off the bus.

Options to see the gardens for people in wheelchairs

Yes it's possible for those with mobility problems or who are in a wheelchair to visit these wonderful gardens.

visiting the gardens at the vatican in a wheelchair

However, there is no regularly scheduled tour.

You need to write to the Vatican and ask for a time slot and guide.

Visitors in wheelchairs may of course be accompanied on the tour by their companions and/or care-givers.

Visit the official Vatican website for more details and how to book.

Bathrooms inside the Vatican Gardens

Yes, there are bathrooms in more than one spot inside the Vatican Gardens.

They are quite discretely hidden, so just ask your guide where to find them.

Using the Omnia Pass

The Omnia Pass is a great combo pass that gives you access to the Vatican Museums, Saint Peter's basilica, San Giovanni and many Rome sites such as the Colosseum, Galleria Borghese and much more.

Ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, Michelangelo Buonarotti 1508 - 1512

However, the gardens at the Vatican are not included .

If you want to visit the Vatican Gardens, I'd suggest booking them separately (which includes the Vatican Museums), and then purchasing the Roma Pass , which has nothing to do with Vatican sites.

Or try the Turbo Pass which does include the Vatican Gardens.

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Rishi Sunak to open to public No10 garden, scene of the Covid rule-busting 'bring-your-own-booze' party

Rishi Sunak is to open to the public the No10 garden - the scene of the famous Covid rule-busting “bring-your-own-booze” party.

People will be able to visit the Downing Street garden, where David Cameron once flipped burgers with Barack Obama, in June.

London Open Gardens announced that the garden will be open to a small number of individuals through a public ballot during London Open Gardens 2024.

Two tours will be put on for Saturday 8 June at 11.30am and 1.30pm.

Each tour will have 24 places and will be open to visitors aged 12 and over.

“Due to high demand, this event can only be applied for by ballot,” the organisers stressed.

Laid out in 1736, the garden has an open lawn, where official functions and receptions often take place, with rose beds commissioned by former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.

In 2010, Mr Cameron and Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg unveiled the formation of the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition in the Rose Garden.

A bronze sculpture by Barbara Hepworth also stands in the garden.

It was the venue for one of the series of Covid rule-busting gatherings in Downing Street during the pandemic, with staff invited to the outdoor event on 20 May 2020 told in an email to “bring your own booze”.

One No10 special adviser Whatsapped Boris Johnson’s then principal private secretary Martin Reynolds: “Drinks this eve is a lovely idea...

“Just to flag that the press conference will probably be finishing around that time, so helpful if people can be mindful of that as speakers and cameras are leaving, not walking around waving bottles of wine etc...”

The scathing Sue Gray report into the partygate scandal revealed how No10 staff sought to hide booze-fuelled parties with one saying: “We seem to have got away with” it.

During the public tours, gardeners will offer more details about the walled, half acre site, its wildlife and sustainability.

But the organisers also stressed that the tours could be cancelled at the last minute, including if a General Election is called.

They laid out a string of conditions:

Entrants must be over 12 years old.
Only one entry per person via this website, but each entry may request one or two tickets.
If selected, you will be offered a place for the tour time you have selected. You will not be able to change your slot.
The places chosen will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
People selected for a place on the tour will have their details submitted for a basic security check.
If selected for a place on the tour, you must take photographic ID with you (either a Passport or Driving Licence).
Places can only be used by the person(s) named in the ballot entry. You may not pass your place on to anyone else or change the names after the form has been submitted.

They also emphasised that tours are subject to last-minute cancellation and/or changes in timing, including if a General Election is called.

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Stop Squatters Before It’s Too Late: How To Keep Unlawful Occupants From Taking Over Your Home

Squatting is on the rise: Across the country, homeowners have returned to their vacant properties only to discover that squatters have broken in, made themselves comfortable, and are refusing to leave.

Even worse, very little can be done to get them out.

KIRO 7 News in Washington reported last fall on Rainer Valley homeowner Jason Roth , who had a tenant who was no longer making rent payments but refused to leave the property. Without that rental income, Roth was forced to give up his own home and live in his car. Meanwhile, his squatter was not only living in Roth’s property rent-free, but also renting out the basement on Airbnb.

Homeowners who attempt to take the law into their own hands often find that these attempts backfire. This was the case with Adele Andaloro —who, after finding his childhood home occupied by squatters, changed the locks. Police ended up arresting Andaloro, while her squatters remained on her property.

Sometimes, confrontations between homeowners and squatters can turn violent or even deadly.

In March, 52-year-old Nadia Vitel entered her family’s New York apartment only to find it occupied by two teen squatters. They allegedly killed Vitel, stuffing her into a duffel bag in the closet, where she was later discovered by her son.

Why squatting is on the rise

Squatting surged during the COVID-19 pandemic, when many states eased their housing regulations and allowed renters to remain in their homes even if they couldn’t make their monthly payments. During the same period, the housing market exploded. Rents shot up, home prices rose to all-time highs, and inflation skyrocketed, leaving many unable to pay for housing.

Real estate professional and attorney Bruce Ailion , of Re/Max Town & Country in Atlanta, chalks the rise in squatting up to “economic stress.”

“With unemployment at or near 50-year lows and ‘Help Wanted’ signs in every storefront, it is hard to understand economic stress,” says Ailion. “Yet there are people with low education, no skills, mental health and physical health challenges who cannot afford a place to live. COVID-era eviction bans protected some of these people, and they became accustomed to not paying for a place to live.”

Once trespassers make their way into a home, it is difficult to get rid of them due to strong tenants’ rights laws—and, in some cases, squatters’ rights.

In New York, for instance, squatters can’t be evicted after just 30 days of living in a property. These rights mean a property owner can’t change the locks to the home to keep the squatter out, turn off utilities, or dispose of the squatter’s possessions in the home. Instead, the only recourse a homeowner has is to take the squatter to court and wage a costly legal battle.

How to stop squatters

What can a homeowner do with a vacant property—whether a vacation home or an empty house awaiting sale or rent—to deter squatters?

“The key to protecting yourself from squatters is preventing them from entering in the first place,” says Ailion. “Once a squatter has possession of the home in Georgia, it is currently more difficult to get them out than getting a delinquent tenant out.”

To prevent your dream home from becoming a squatter nightmare, here are five strategies for preventing illegal inhabitants from taking over your property.

1. Level up your home security

If potential squatters can’t get in, you don’t have to worry about getting them out, so the first line of defense is to make your property impenetrable. This means fortifying all entry points, including doors, windows, and other potential access areas.

But you must think like a squatter bent on taking over your home and invest in next-level locks.

(Getty Images)

“We have had squatters break open a lockbox, had a locksmith rekey to enter, and people use a key they legitimately got out of a coded lockbox,” says Alion

He advises forgoing cheap locks and deadbolts, which he can open “in about 10 seconds.” Instead, he buys directly from a locksmith, who has higher-grade locks that are hard to compromise.

As for windows, reinforce them with security bars or screw them shut. Once every entry point is locked down, monitor the home with a video security system.

“Ring and Amazon’s Alexa are popular, but if you desire stronger privacy and cybersecurity settings, there are other reliable brands like LaView and local favorites like Virtually Automated,” says Lee Davenport , a real estate coach, author, and former Re/Max managing broker.

You can also add motion-sensing lights or alarms and post “No Trespassing” signs around your property to reinforce your legal rights and discourage unauthorized entry.

2. Make your home look like someone’s living there

Squatters often target properties that appear vacant for extended periods. To prevent this perception, create the illusion that someone is currently living in a vacant property.

“Make the home look occupied with a car in the driveway and lights on timers that go on and off regularly,” says Ailion. He also suggests adding security signs, one that says the property is patrolled for security and one that reads “Beware of Dog”—even if you don’t employ a security company or have a dog.

“One client of mine got a device that, when it detected motion outside, would start loudly barking, and I mean loudly barking,” says Ailion. “I had an agent call to say she was afraid to go inside because of the dog.”

Making your home look lived-in will help to discourage potential squatters from attempting to take over.

3. Regularly stop by your home

Keeping a virtual eye on your property is great, but seeing your property with your own eyes is crucial for detecting any unauthorized activity or signs of squatting early.

“Regular property inspections can help identify any signs of unauthorized occupancy early on,” says Armstead Jones , strategic real estate adviser at House Cashin.

If you live too far away for timely check-ins, establish a network of trusted neighbors or nearby friends who can report any suspicious behavior or potential squatters on your property. By staying vigilant and proactive in monitoring your property, you can intervene promptly if squatters attempt to encroach.

4. Take legal action ASAP

Establish legal property ownership to assert your rights and deter squatters. If you’ve inherited a home, ensure that all necessary paperwork, including deeds and property titles , is current and reflects your ownership.

If your property is part of a homeowners association or governed by specific regulations, stay informed about any requirements or procedures related to property ownership.

Also keep in mind that, despite your best efforts, there’s always a possibility that squatters might attempt to take over your property.

If they do, it’s essential to take immediate legal action to reclaim possession of your property and prevent further trespassing or damage.

Contact local law enforcement to report the squatting activity and ask for their help ousting the squatters. Note that police usually can’t remove squatters, so you’ll have to call your local sheriff instead. If the squatters refuse to leave, consult a qualified attorney specializing in property law to understand your rights and legal options for eviction proceedings.

To support your case in court, document all evidence of squatting and property damage, including photographs, witness statements from neighbors, and any communication with the squatters.

5. Don’t go the vigilante route

If you find someone on your property who won’t leave, don’t take matters into your own hands.

“I’ve had two squatters in an inventory of 80 homes,” says Ailion. “One was what seemed like a homeless young woman. Against my advice, the owners flew here from Canada, hired a mercenary, ex-Marine Special Forces, to watch the house, and when she left, took possession and secured it with the measures I outlined above.”

While the homeowners were able to reclaim their home, Ailion says this route is “physically dangerous” and opened the homeowners to “possible legal consequences.” (Ailion is part of a political advocacy team in Georgia pushing the Squatter Reform Act, which has passed the state House and is waiting for approval from the state Senate. The bill “gives magistrates additional powers to process criminal trespass violations and introduces the offense of unlawful squatting.”)

“Some people may squat with malicious intent, but others may be down on their luck,” Davenport adds. “Our aim can be to direct the latter to resources that can help them get back on their feet.”

Margaret Heidenry is a writer living in Brooklyn, NY. Her work has appeared in the New York Times Magazine, Vanity Fair, and Boston Magazine.

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Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden: How to Watch the Concert Rebroadcast On TV and Online for Free

Joel's concert special was filmed in March to celebrate the Piano Man's record-breaking 100th consecutive performance of his MSG residency

By Tim Chan

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Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden: How to Watch Tonight's Concert Special On TV and Online for Free

If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, Variety may receive an affiliate commission.

Billy Joel is bringing his iconic concert back to the small screen with his television special re-airing tonight on CBS .

Titled “The 100th: Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden ,” the performance originally broadcast last Sunday night. But after fans complained that the special — and Joel’s performance of “Piano Man” — was cut short in its original airing, the show will now be rebroadcast in its entirety on CBS tonight, April 19 at 9 p.m. ET/PT.

Popular on Variety

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Want to watch “Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden” without cable? Stream the concert special on Paramount+ , which carries a CBS livestream.

The Paramount+ With Showtime plan will get you access to stream the Billy Joel special live on CBS. Paramount+ also has the concert streaming on-demand right now for subscribers.

Not a subscriber? Paramount+ has a 7-day free trial that you can use to watch “Billy Joel 100th” online for free. Continue on with a subscription from $5.99 a month or cancel before your free trial is up to avoid being charged.

Another way to watch “The 100th: Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden” on CBS is through DirecTV Stream. The live TV streaming service includes CBS as part of its channel lineup, and you can watch DirecTV Stream on your phone, computer, tablet or smart TV. DirecTV Stream has a 5-day free trial here that you can use to watch the Billy Joel concert special online free.

Joel’s concert special was filmed back in March to celebrate the Piano Man’s record-breaking 100th consecutive performance of his MSG residency . According to the CBS website, the TV concert will include classic Joel hits like “My Life, “Scenes From an Italian Restaurant,” “It’s Still Rock and Roll to Me,” and of course, “New York State of Mind.”

Watch “The 100th: Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden” tonight at 9 p.m. on CBS or stream it online through Paramount+ here .

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