The Garden Tour

The Piedmont Gardeners have held an annual garden tour every year since 1992. For the first three years, the group helped the UGA Horticulture Club with the tour. Since then, they have conducted the tour on their own. Allan Armitage, UGA Professor of Horticulture, conceived the idea for the tour. In the brochure for the Tenth Anniversary Tour, he described how it all began:

“In 1992, there were house tours, Christmas tours, and Classic City Tours in Athens, but nobody was bragging on the great gardens under our very same noses. My students loved the idea of a garden tour, and having met many fine gardeners in the area, I approached the one person who I knew would not only be supportive of the idea but whose garden was one of the finest in Athens: Mrs. Laura Ann Segrest. Over many cookies and cups of tea, we decided to invite the Horticulture Club and five gardeners, including Laura Ann and myself, to Laura Ann’s house to give the idea a try. A local garden that was a must-see was that of Donna and Ed Lambert. Donna suggested that her garden club, the Piedmont Gardeners, would enjoy being a part of the tour and—away we went, with little knowledge but with high hopes. The first tour was an unqualified success. . . .”

Since 1996, The Piedmont Gardeners, using proceeds from the garden tour, have awarded scholarships of $1,000 each to UGA horticulture students. The number of scholarships awarded each year varies, depending on the funds available. The club president presents the check to the scholarship winner at the annual holiday party.

2010 Garden Tour
Saturday,
April 17, 2010

click here for
Ticket Information

Preview the 2010 gardens

Garden 1
Magdalena Williams

Garden 2
Mary & Charlie Weiland

Garden 3
Patti & Charlie Burch

Garden 4
John Knowlton

Garden 5
Lee Epting