Locals stop and smell the roses thanks to biennial Oxford Garden Tour
“You don't have to accomplish everything, just do a little something every day, and you'd be amazed … You look back 10 years, and you can't believe what you've accomplished.”
The biennial “Oxford In Bloom” Garden Tour was hosted by Des Fleurs Garden Club on June 20. Locals explored six unique gardens around the city and were able to speak with the gardeners about their work.
Proceeds from the event go toward beautification projects in Oxford. The garden tours started in the late 90s as a fundraiser for Des Fleurs to purchase hanging flower baskets for the city.
Garden 1 – Madison and Derek Wetzel
Madison and Derek Wetzel moved to Oxford in 2020 after purchasing the house over a FaceTime call. The first time they saw the property and its lack of landscaping was when they got their keys.
With help from Derek’s late uncle, who was a landscaper, the entire yard was torn up. Starting from scratch, the two created colorful, cottage-styled gardens, filled with coneflowers, Russian sage and upwards of 30 rose bushes.
Madison said gardening is a “slow burn,” and it takes time to understand what your yard needs.
She gardens the same way she parents: by going with her gut, which she said gets easier after a while. Madison said failure is inevitable, but there’s no better feeling than when the plants bloom in the spring.
“Just know (there’s) not a lot of instant gratification, but it's absolutely worth it in the long run,” Madison said.
Garden 2 – Astrid Overn and Dave Spencer
Astrid Overn got married to Dave Spencer and moved to Oxford seven years ago. She is a life-long gardener and enjoys the English cottage style.
The back, shaded garden contains spring ephemerals, lungwort and several other plants. Overn loves hostas and once had over 200 varieties, but lost some over time. The couple’s most recent project was a timber frame screened-in back porch, which they say the landscaping around it will be a work in progress for the next few years.
Overn said YouTube is a helpful tool for first-time gardeners. She said she lives by a 1% philosophy, where she does 1% of work on her gardens every day.
“You don't have to accomplish everything, just do a little something every day, and you'd be amazed,” Overn said. “You look back 10 years, and you can't believe what you've accomplished.”
Garden 3 – Jackie and Jamie Roy
Jackie and Jamie Roy moved to their dream home in 1994, which came with nine acres of grassy fields and scattered hardwood trees.
What started as garden beds around the house eventually turned into the place where the couple’s youngest son would be married, complete with a rock path and blue bench in the front yard.
Most of the gardens are 20 to 30 years old, and are home to several varieties of flowers, including daffodils, peonies, hydrangeas and lilies, which are Jackie’s favorites.
Jackie said the gardening process is “trial and error,” and she doesn’t baby anything she plants.
“You just kind of find what you like, and if it works, it does,” Jackie said. “If not, then you move on to something else.”
Garden 4 – Megan and Graham Kenworthy
Megan became a “COVID gardener” after she and her husband bought their house right before the pandemic started. In just six years, this newfound hobby has touched every corner of the property.
The front yard features evergreens layered with hydrangeas, ninebark and zinnias, and a “swoop” of Candy Corn spirea and structural baptisia leads visitors to the side. A straw bale vegetable garden lines the left side of the backyard, while the right side presents beds of coral bells, catmint and amsonia.
“What I've really enjoyed is integrating the vegetable gardens with the flowers … it's kind of like function and form,” Megan said.
She describes her garden as an “ever-evolving labor of love;” her sons have joined in on the fun, helping with the sowing of seeds, watering and mulching.
Garden 5 – Samantha Koontz
Samantha Koontz bought her house in 2016, which was surrounded by honeysuckle and overgrown hedges at the time.
Koontz’s gardens now contain many shade-loving plants, including hostas, brunnera and hellebores, which are her favorites. She said her redbud flame thrower was the biggest hit among tour attendees.
Koontz has dabbled with plants for a long time, but has only ever had small gardens. She prefers a low-maintenance approach to the hobby.
“I like little plants that I think I'm not going to have to maintain, so the majority of the plants here I will never have to trim or cut or do anything to,” Koontz said.
Garden 6 – Doty Kitchen Garden at Pioneer Farm
The Doty Kitchen Garden at Pioneer Farm is maintained by the Butler County Ohio Master Gardener Volunteers. Originally, the spot was a patch of bad ground with overgrown shrubs and weeds.
Bob Carmean, president of the Oxford Museum Association, said its purpose is to imitate what gardens might have looked like in the mid-1800s.
Several plants here have a variety of uses. For instance, the basil can be rubbed on insect bites to relieve itching or put in sauces while cooking. False indigo can be used for dye, and the seed pods can be rattles for children.
The combination of flowers, herbs and vegetables is beneficial for both humans and pollinators.
“We're looking at not only some good food for us, but also some nourishment for the birds, the bees and the butterflies,” Carmean said.
