Colorful Gardens on Club's Spring Tour
By Ruth Lepper

Dogwoods at the Campbell home.Photos by Ruth Lepper

Strolling through picture-perfect gardens is a leisurely way to spend a spring day. That's what awaits visitors to Ramona Garden Club's tour on April 26.

Seven colorful gardens in the greater Ramona area will be open from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. for a self-guided tour. The event is a fundraiser for the group's community projects and scholarship fund.

Sally Campbell brought back landscaping ideas garnered from the years she and her husband, Norm, lived in Spain and England. She also was inspired by her parents' garden while growing up in Australia.

Their garden was planted six years ago. Much of the rear garden was destroyed in October during the Witch Creek fire. Replanting and new growth are helping to return it to its original beauty.

Several birdhouses hang from the numerous trees on the property, while birdfeeders around the yard attract an untold number of birds each day.

The Janson home features a Koi pond.

"I have birds nesting in just about every birdhouse," Campbell said. "I grew up with kookaburras and magpies. This is all new to me."

An orchard boasts of orange, lemon, peach, plum, apricot and apple trees.

Across the road from the Campbells is where Karen and George Guglielmetti live. They planted their garden four years ago with a mix of herbs, perennials and roses. A variety of fruit trees and raised planting beds are in the backyard.

Barbara Janson's yard has natural streams running through it. Two main paths lead to different areas of the spacious yard. Native plants are joined by Hawaiian snowbush and English heather, along with other plants. Flowering trees include redbud and white birch.

"It's really pleasant, the way it's done," said Patricia Frederick, who is coordinating the tour. "This is how a California garden should look."

Sandy and Glenn Marlin's home and gardens were destroyed by the Cedar fire in 2003. Their yards now abound with color and an informal "country cottage feeling." Numerous paths wander around the grounds, leading to several seating areas where guests often enjoy the spectacular views. There are a variety of salvias, penstemon, rockrose and ceanothus.

Statuary in the Dunigan garden.

Sandy and Bill Dunigan selected many drought-tolerant plants for their multi-level garden, as have all of the gardeners chosen for the tour. The Dunigan garden sports several pieces of statuary, adding to the ambiance of the picturesque yard set amidst the natural terrain.

One of the features in the gardens at Donna and Scott Farguar's home is a grove of olive trees. Scott Farguar planted the trees with plans for making olive oil when the 65 trees mature in another two years. There are eight varieties of olive trees that will be used for his project.

Another feature in the Farguar garden are the more than 650 tall irises planted throughout the yard.

"I like different colors and textures," Donna Farguar said. "That's why there are different sorts of plants. I started with just certain ones."

The Manhan home sports a waterfall.

At E&K Nursery, Karen and Elden Mahan use the garden in front of their house to showcase the plants they sell in their adjacent business.

"Every plant we have is good for Ramona," Karen Mahan said. "We test everything for a full year before we release it. The plant has to go through our summer and winter so we know what we're talking about."

The Mahans will be offering a 10 percent discount on all purchases made at the nursery on the day of the tour.

Tickets for the tour are $15, available at Ramona Interiors, 707 Main St., or on the Internet at www.ramonagardenclub.com. Tickets also will be sold, along with a plant sale, at the vacant lot at 13th and Main streets on the day of the event. Maps to the locations and descriptions of the gardens will be available with the tickets. For more information, Frederick can be reached at 760-518-8890.

Raised beds at the Guglielmetti home.

A lush border in the Marlin garden. View to olive grove at Farguar home.