July 13^th Friday 10 am to 4 pm
July 14^th Saturday 9 am to 3 pm

Stroll through eight private home gardens in Madison’s Nakoma neighborhood during the Olbrich Home Garden Tour. Marvel at the beauty talented home gardeners have created and get some innovative ideas for your own home garden. See original shade gardens, creative sun gardens, Japanese-inspired gardens, and soothing water features. The Olbrich Home Garden Tour: Naturally Nakoma is Friday, July 13^th, from 10 am to 4 pm and Saturday, July 14^th, from 9 am to 3 pm, rain or shine. The tour is sponsored by Olbrich Botanical Gardens and Landscape Design, Inc.

Since much of the Nakoma landscape includes well-developed trees, shade-loving plants are prominent on this tour and many of the homeowners have found creative ways to spice up their shade gardens. Some homeowners are lucky to have a nice balance of sun and shade—other homeowners have gone to extreme lengths to get valuable sunshine, including removing part of a cement driveway! Talk to gardeners that have done all their own designing and planting, as well as those that had a little professional help. Master gardeners and volunteers familiar with each garden will be available to answer questions about landscape design and individual plants.

 

Advance tickets are $10 for Olbrich Botanical Society members and $12 for the general public. Tickets the day of the tour are $12 for members and $14 for the general public. Proceeds benefit Olbrich Botanical Gardens.

Tickets are available at the following locations:

• Greeter Desk at Olbrich Botanical Gardens
• Beauty Blossoms—701 N. High Point Road, Madison
• Felly's Flowers, with locations at:
• 607 N. Sherman Ave., Madison
• 7858 Mineral Point Road, Madison
• 2701 University Ave., Madison
• 205 E. Broadway, Monona
• 6353 Nesbitt Road, Fitchburg
• America 's Best Flowers Garden Center—4311 Vilas Hope Road, Cottage Grove
• Madeleine's Patisserie—3742 Speedway Road, Madison
• Johannsen's Greenhouse—2600 West Beltline Hwy., Madison
• Orange Tree Imports—1721 Monroe St., Madison

To purchase tickets the day of the tour, go to the home garden at 726 Seneca Place. Take Monroe Street to Odana Road, then turn left on Seneca Place.

Olbrich Botanical Gardens is located in Madison, Wisconsin on the shore of Lake Monona at 3330 Atwood Avenue. For more information visit Olbrich’s website at www.olbrich.org or call 608-246-4550.

Olbrich Home Garden Tour

July 13^th Friday 10 am to 4 pm
July 14^th Saturday 9 am to 3 pm

726 Seneca Place
A clean garden slate due to a renovation project spurred the evolution of these fairly sunny gardens. The gardens are infused with color, but also highlight hardscaping and water features. The homeowners started gardening in 2002 and in just five short years, the garden has developed nicely.

734 Miami Pass
Deep shade covers this backyard and shows off lovely shade plants, while a sunny front yard allows for more unique plants that have nice shape and provide interest, even when not in bloom. These homeowners have been tending the gardens here for 30 years and have learned that in gardening, experience is the best teacher.

746 Miami Pass
According to the homeowners, this site has the perfect combination of a sunny yard with some shade. A large deck, pergola, and patio overlook the secluded, quiet, backyard gardens. The gardens are formal, with bluestone edging around a rectangular lawn panel, while the deck, pergola, and patio provide a natural link between the house and garden.

3910 Council Crest
A large boulder stands prominently in this Japanese-inspired garden along with a soothing pond, and beautiful weeping tree. Inspired by Japanese heritage, the unique, sunny gardens incorporate interesting plants, hardscaping, and water features.

3914 Cherokee Drive
In order to expand a sun-loving garden, these homeowners took out a large part of their cement driveway! Sixteen oak trees provide lots of shade, but sun-loving and vegetable gardens are also showcased. A water feature off the patio is a prominent addition to the gardens and the wild flower garden adds a native Wisconsin feel.

3934 Manitou Way
What started as low maintenance shrubs and annuals has developed into showy gardens that feature several Rhododendrons. Though the garden features a sloped, shaded area in the back, a nice overall mix of sun and shade has brought many gardening opportunities for this homeowner.

937 Waban Hill
Inspired by their Nakoma neighbors, these homeowners have tried a variety of plants to create interest in their shade gardens. Varying moisture levels have made gardening on this site a trick, but the homeowners have learned to move plants around until they thrive. Newly added retaining walls, a circular patio, and stone steps create structure, while a crushed red-granite meandering path winds through these beautiful shade gardens!

957 Waban Hill
An Asian-inspired garden definitely stands out in the Nakoma neighborhood! Asian-themed plants provide a soothing view from the inside or out. Though only the font yard garden at this home is included in the tour, future plans are the expand the garden into the backyard.

Olbrich Botanical Gardens is owned and operated by the City of Madison Parks Division in partnership with the Olbrich Botanical Society.