Have you read about the Desert Island Gardens “game”? I first heard about it from a post by Danger Garden and I thought it was a fun little twist on the “What would you take with you if you had to be in a deserted island?” question. The Desert Island Gardens is part of Noel Kingsbury and Annie Guilfoyle's Garden Masterclass on YouTube. The game invites their guests to talk about their five favorite gardens that they would think about if they were stuck on a deserted island.
So...do you want to play along? For this version by Danger Garden, we are adding also a book, an item, and another question— What is the next (new to you) garden you want to visit when you get off that island? Here are my answers, the gardens appear in the order in which I discovered/visited them:
Five Gardens
Cape Fear Botanical Gardens (Fayetteville, NC) ~ I lived in Fayetteville, NC for almost 20 years. part of it is because my parents lived there and I was also stationed at Fort Bragg for almost 10 of those years. And the Cape Fear Botanical Garden was my favorite place to visit, especially during a weekday. It is so beautiful and peaceful, that I found a haven when I needed to just be. Over the past 8 years, it has had quite a transformation with the addition of an orangery and events area that’s made it quite the destination. But my favorite areas are the outdoor ones, especially the gazebo and path further away from the buildings. There among the pines and hardwood forest, you will find many beautiful plants, especially a stunning collection of camellias that will give any gardener garden envy.
Photo credit: NC Tripping
Phot credit: AAA Carolinas
Reiman Gardens (Ames, Iowa) ~ Reiman Gardens will always have a special place in my heart. First of all, it is a stunning garden complex. With 26 distinct garden areas and several structures including the Christina Reiman Butterfly Wing (my favorite part of the garden) and the Conservatory, this hidden jewel in Ames, Iowa will surely bring joy gardeners and non-gardeners alike. But for me, it is even more personal.
When my now husband and I were dating, Ames was our mid-point to meet for romantic getaways. He is an Iowa State alumni (the gardens are located there) and I was stationed in Kansas. During my first visit to this garden is when I started having a lovely suspicion that he actually was more serious about our relationship that just dating. Later that evening, at the bottom of the campanille at Iowa State, as is tradition at ISU, he told me he loved me. It was a big moment for him because apparently, he never brought a girl to the campanille when he went to school there. So yes, the romantic memories associated with this stunning garden will always be with me.
Photo Credit: Midwest Almanac
Photo credit: Reiman Gardens
Seeds Saver’s Exchange (SSEx) Heritage Garden (Decorah, Iowa) ~ Not far from the SSEx HQs is their Heritage Farm, and part of it, is a beautiful garden where they showcase some of the company’s most prolific seeds. The Heritage farm also has a trial garden as well as nature areas where one can go hiking. I love this garden enormously— its simplicity, what its trying to achieve (protect heirloom varieties) and how focused on sustainability it is. Throughout the year, there are many events that leaves no doubt, this is a community effort. This farm is only two hours from me, and one of my favorite places to visit, especially in summer and fall. You can read more about my visit HERE.
Oslo Botanical Garden (Oslo, Norway) ~ In 2015, my husband and I went to Norway for our honeymoon, and Oslo was one of the areas we visited. First of all, if I could live anywhere in the world aside from where we are (or Jackson, WY), it would be Oslo. It is amazing… but that is another story. While there, we visited the Oslo Natural Botanical Gardens which was glorious. This garden boasts a very large and diverse collection of plants. It reminds me more of an arboretum, than a garden, but it is exquisite. My favorite area was The Palm House from 1868 and The Victoria House from 1876— both with exotic plants from all around the world. I have a big love for Palm Houses and I think in another life, I was alive in the Victorian era.
Photo credit: Wikimedia Commons
Marjorie McNeely Conservatory at Como Park (St. Paul, Minnesota) ~ Remember how I mentioned that I love Palm Houses and Conservatories? Here we go again. This stunning example of a British palm house was erected in 1915 and it is one of the few remaining glass domed Victorian style gardens in the US. This garden encased under the glass conservatory was the culmination of a dream of Frederick Nussbaumer, who was the Como Park gardener. As a young man, he worked at he worked at Kew Gardens in London where he fell in love with the glass palm house. Though there was skepticism about undertaking such a frivolous project, it was hugely popular when it opened. At one point, the conservatory had around 77,500 original plants some which still survive. This is one of the most stunning places to visit in St. Paul. And I just love that very British feel to the conservatory, reminiscent of Kew Garden in London. You can read more HERE about my visit.
One Book ~ This is super difficult and you would understand if you saw the amount of books I have. But I think I am going to go with my trusty Bible. If I was cast away, I would need spiritual nourishment to deal with that experience.
One Item ~ My trusty hori hori knife. This multi-tasker is all I would need.
One Garden To Visit If I Got Off The Island ~ This is a completely unfair question to ask a gardener…lol. So, I am going to break this rule and list the top six (6) gardens I would visit:
Mrs. Whaley’s Charleston Garden (Charleston, SC) ~ Aside from my grandmother’s influence, she was a great gardener, no other person has had as much influence in my gardening life than Mrs. Emily Whaley… and I have never met her. About 15 years ago, I read the book Mrs. Whaley and Her Charleston Garden, and I was inspired. After I finished reading the book, I just knew that gardening was in my future. This garden is actually a private garden, but it is open year-round, on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday afternoons. Reading the book, and the determination of the feisty woman to have her garden the way she wanted, spoke to me.
Olbrich Botanical Gardens (Madison, WI) - If all goes well, I will be visiting this one this summer as part of the Garden Bloggers Fling. Fingers crossed!
Jardins de Quatre-Vents (Canada) ~ Ever since I watched the film, The Gardener, about the creation of this beautiful gardens by Frank Cabot, it moved to my top six gardens to visit. You can read my review of the film HERE.
The Alnwick Garden (Alnwick, England) ~ My interest in Alnwick started when I started growing the rose by the same name. Then I watched The Making of Alnwick Garden and I was hooked.
David Austin Rose Gardens (Shropshire, England) ~ As someone who loves growing the roses he bred, this automatically is in my top six gardens to visit.
Kew Garden (London, England) ~ To me, this is the epitome of the English garden and conservatory and the photos I have seen are just spectacular!
And there you have it— my selections for Desert Island Garden. What are yours? Come on, play along!
Also sharing with Wonderful Wednesday Blog-Hop and Pink Saturday