The West Seattle Garden tour celebrated 25 years June 24 with tours of eleven spectacular gardens in the community and the West Seattle Bee Garden too.

Photos by Kimberly Robinson

Urban Stepped Garden
Levels of planters filled with hardy, natural northwest plants blur the hard edges of the building, while contrasting colors of burgundy, chartreuse and dark green repeat throughout the garden. 

A Sidewalk Orchard
Explore a real working garden creatively designed within a small space. Edibles and ornamentals combine to provide beauty and joy for neighbors and passersby. This garden sparks conversation and invites everyone to slow down and smell the flowers.

 
An Oasis for Birds, Pollinators and People
A naturalist specializing in bird behavior and a permaculture educator and landscape designer have joined forces to create a richly diverse habitat in an urban environment and a peaceful, bountiful and safe home for native birds.

A Tale of Two Gardens
Just steps below street level lie two secret gardens. Enter the gardens between the two houses and step down into the north garden along a series of small waterfalls. Pause to take in expansive views of Puget Sound and the Olympic mountains. 

An Inspired Sanctuary
Five tall and thoughtfully-placed Japanese maples, underplanted with hostas, Japanese blood grass and Japanese forest grass anchor the entry into this serenely modern garden.

A Dedicated Rock Gardener
Step down from a small rock terrace into a large and casual garden. Let your eyes follow the curving line of lawn punctuated by vine and Japanese maples, rhododendrons, grasses, blueberries, and flowers.

Creekside Retreat
Walk up a few steps from the city sidewalk and hear the sounds of water gently burbling from a natural stone fountain. As you move along the hand-cut flagstone path between lush plantings of Japanese maple, hydrangea, ferns, hosta, wild ginger, fuchsia, and golden grasses, a small patio emerges along with soothing sounds of moving water. 

A Collector’s Garden
A pair of watchful gargoyles sit patiently at the corners of this formal and very eclectic garden. Follow the driveway toward the house and a formal garden courtyard is revealed with a pergola and water fountain on a stone patio. 

Picture Perfect
A riot of color pulls you up the walk under an old and stately copper beech. A path to your left brings you around and through a colorful palette of ninebark, foxglove, salvia, roses, and sedum that surrounds a tall Japanese maple—the focal point of this patio garden and seating area.

Waterwise Oasis
Enter through the south gate and pass between potted bamboo and a large myrtle. The backyard opens up in a surprise view. Under the shade of the Rainier cherry tree that continues to bear copious fruit, a patio of stone pavers connects with a wood deck and hot tub to create a little oasis. 

Pocket Paradise
A few steps down from the sidewalk lies a hidden gem of a garden. Massive stone steps lead to a hand-laid bluestone patio, softened by numerous maples and a large witch hazel all underplanted with lush hostas, ferns and oakleaf hydrangeas.

 
West Seattle Bee Garden
The West Seattle Bee Garden supports three hives in a special enclosure, easily viewed on three sides through large Plexiglas walls. Beautiful blooms of black-eyed Susan, bee balm, echinacea, and annual cosmos attract bees and human visitors, who come to sit and enjoy the blooms and the humming of the bees. 

BENEFICIARIES
West Seattle Garden Tour has selected seven local non-profits as beneficiaries of the 24th annual tour. Proceeds from the 2018 garden tour will support improvements to four public gardens, a summer theater program for youth, the Urban Forest Symposium, and a mural restoration project in West Seattle.

The garden tour’s designated beneficiaries for 2018 are:

ARTSWEST

Funds from West Seattle Garden Tour will support ArtsWest’s Theater Education Program, where students learn more than how to sing, dance, and act. They learn how to think creatively, take calculated risks and work as a team. 

West Seattle Garden Tour was originally founded in 1995 to fund ArtsWest. As the tour has evolved over the years to support a variety of community organizations promoting horticulture, education and the arts, ArtsWest remains as the tour’s legacy beneficiary. | artswest.org

THE LITTLE RED HEN PROJECT

The Little Red Hen Project provides the Delridge community with an opportunity to grow and maintain a backyard food source through a learning garden and classes at the Delridge Community Center. West Seattle Garden Tour will fund construction of an artistic and functional trellis in the “Winter Feast Garden” located at the heart of their recently expanded 4,800 square-foot garden space.| thelittleredhenproject.org

THE ARBORETUM AT SOUTH SEATTLE COLLEGE

West Seattle Garden Tour funding will provide for the design and construction of a new message hub and kiosk at the Arboretum’s south entrance, creating a large, attractive presence to welcome visitors to the site. | sscarboretum.org

HIGHLINE SEATAC BOTANICAL GARDEN

West Seattle Garden Tour funding will pay for the design and construction of a “Victory Garden” within a Neighborhood Heritage Garden. The Neighborhood Heritage Garden commemorates the neighborhood history of the houses that once existed on the property before SeaTac Airport’s runway expansion | highlinegarden.org

PLANT AMNESTY

West Seattle Garden Tour’s financial support will help fund the 10th annual Urban Forest Symposium which brings together arborists, land managers, planners, volunteers, and advocates from around the region. This year’s theme focuses on building effective partnerships for a healthy urban forest. Participants will learn to leverage their unique skills in coalition to accomplish shared goals of the broader Northwest horticultural community. | plantamnesty.org

SEATTLE CHINESE GARDEN

The Seattle Chinese Garden inspires exploration of nature and culture through a harmonious intermingling of landscape and traditional architecture in a secluded setting atop Puget Ridge. In 2018, West Seattle Garden Tour funding will enhance the Garden with three varieties of camellia shrubs—Camellia sinensis (the tea plant), spring blooming Camellia japonica, and late fall’s glorious red blossoms of Camellia sasanqua. | seattlechinesegarden.org

WEST SEATTLE JUNCTION ASSOCIATION

West Seattle Garden Tour funding will help restore “The Mosquito Fleet” mural which is affixed to the historic Campbell Building in the Junction, bringing it back to its former glory. This mural is one of eleven murals originally created from 1989 to 1993 to provide a unique window on the Duwamish peninsula’s rich history and identity. | wsjunction.org

ABOUT WEST SEATTLE GARDEN TOUR
Since its inception in 1995, West Seattle Garden Tour has been one of the premier garden tours in the Northwest, as well as a fundraiser for local non-profits. The all-volunteer 501(c)(3) organization annually donates approximately $25,000 to local beneficiaries in support of their horticultural, educational and artistic missions.