This month's Take Joy Society get-together was to tour Ron and Nancy Walz's civil-war-era house and personal garden at Surreybrooke on the Open Days Tour sponsored by the Garden Conservancy. Open Days features private gardens throughout the country. There may be one in your area, so check the Garden Conservancy link above. Unfortunate for the others, Cindy and I were the only one's able to make it today. We got to see the modern addition as well as the original part of the house. This is looking back down the walk we came up to get to the new addition. In the distance is the mountain range I live on. You will see Catoctin Mountain in the background in many of the photos. . . .
The rest of the room is focused on the view of the mountains outside. In the winter Nancy said they close off the rest of the house and heat this room with the wood stove in the corner. . . .
The kitchen was moved into the new addition. . . .
This is the original pantry which they opened up to the new kitchen. . . .
The kitchen had been in this room in the original part of the house. . . .
The stairs in this next room lead to the second floor which was not on the tour. . . .
From the above room you could enter the parlor. . . .
As well as this room which was originally the birthing room when the house was built. . . .
We exited through the addition's french doors onto a deck overlooking the pool. . . .
...and fish pond with a view of the mountain. . . .
Once outside the fence we got a good view of the back of the house and gardens. . . .
From there we walked around the public gardens that are part of the nursery. Nancy has planted all the plants she sells in the nursery so that you can see how they will look when they are mature. This building was the first shop on the property. They'd moved there about 1977 and Nancy soon started a dried flower business using the flowers she grew on the property. When people started asking to purchase the plants she used in her wreaths she started selling live plants, too. . . .
In 1988 Southern Living Magazine did an article about her dried flowers. Here is their photo of the smokehouse and well house where she dried her flowers. . . .
On the tour today there was a photo taken in the 1800s of the smokehouse and wellhouse. The difference today is striking. . . .
Today this is the view from the smokehouse off to the west where you can see one of their several reclaimed log structures. You can see the brick walk in the shadows that you see in the magazine photo. . . .
Nancy makes candles now inside the smoke house. . . .
This is a view of the nursery's garden from that first shop. . . .
One of the many theme gardens Nancy has added over the years--this one is an Italian theme. . . .
There are several walks lined with perennials. . . .
Charles the cat greeted us at the end of this walk. . . .
This gate is a recent addition to the garden path that leads to the next cabin. . . .
Nancy holds various workshops in Spring and early summer. This one was on creating fairy houses. . . .
Inside is a Peter Rabbit lettuce and herb garden. . . .
Structures to climb up and through and even a maze created in the tall arborvitae in the back of the photo to the left. . . .
Last year several of us attended Surreybrooke's tour on the trees in Surreybrooke's gardens. You can read about that HERE and view more photos of Surreybrooke's amazing gardens. Morning Musings also did a post back in 2014 HERE.
❤️Take Joy❤️
Cindy is admiring the very old tree in the front yard. . . .
This view from the other side of the terrace includes the original civil-war-era house. . . .
The display of potted plants on the front porch of the addition is one of the hundreds of displays Nancy has throughout the property. . . .
When you enter the first thing you see is the spiral staircase that leads up to a loft. . . .
The rest of the room is focused on the view of the mountains outside. In the winter Nancy said they close off the rest of the house and heat this room with the wood stove in the corner. . . .
The kitchen was moved into the new addition. . . .
This is the original pantry which they opened up to the new kitchen. . . .
The kitchen had been in this room in the original part of the house. . . .
The stairs in this next room lead to the second floor which was not on the tour. . . .
From the above room you could enter the parlor. . . .
As well as this room which was originally the birthing room when the house was built. . . .
We exited through the addition's french doors onto a deck overlooking the pool. . . .
...and fish pond with a view of the mountain. . . .
Here are more photos of their personal garden. . . .
Once outside the fence we got a good view of the back of the house and gardens. . . .
From there we walked around the public gardens that are part of the nursery. Nancy has planted all the plants she sells in the nursery so that you can see how they will look when they are mature. This building was the first shop on the property. They'd moved there about 1977 and Nancy soon started a dried flower business using the flowers she grew on the property. When people started asking to purchase the plants she used in her wreaths she started selling live plants, too. . . .
In 1988 Southern Living Magazine did an article about her dried flowers. Here is their photo of the smokehouse and well house where she dried her flowers. . . .
On the tour today there was a photo taken in the 1800s of the smokehouse and wellhouse. The difference today is striking. . . .
Today this is the view from the smokehouse off to the west where you can see one of their several reclaimed log structures. You can see the brick walk in the shadows that you see in the magazine photo. . . .
Nancy makes candles now inside the smoke house. . . .
This is a view of the nursery's garden from that first shop. . . .
One of the many theme gardens Nancy has added over the years--this one is an Italian theme. . . .
There are several walks lined with perennials. . . .
Charles the cat greeted us at the end of this walk. . . .
You'll find fairy items and child-size table and chairs in this one. . . .
Nancy holds various workshops in Spring and early summer. This one was on creating fairy houses. . . .
You can get ideas on how to use the items she sells throughout the gardens. . . .
She even has a Children's Garden. . . .
Inside is a Peter Rabbit lettuce and herb garden. . . .
Structures to climb up and through and even a maze created in the tall arborvitae in the back of the photo to the left. . . .
We ended our morning with a picnic lunch in one of the arbors. . . .
Last year several of us attended Surreybrooke's tour on the trees in Surreybrooke's gardens. You can read about that HERE and view more photos of Surreybrooke's amazing gardens. Morning Musings also did a post back in 2014 HERE.
❤️Take Joy❤️
I enjoyed the gardens of Surreybroke when I visited you. However, I didn't get to see the inside of the house. So this post was extra special. Thank you for sharing!
ReplyDeleteI love seeing other people's homes so I can visualize where they are when I think of them.
DeleteVery good point! I feel the same!
DeleteAs I was reading, I was thinking I had read about this place before. I'm glad you were able to return and share more of this lovely place here. The inside of the home is quite interesting how they have respected the old and made it modern for today's living. ♥
ReplyDeleteIt is rather an amazing place when you consider Nancy and her husband have done all the planting and upkeep themselves all these years. I asked Ron will they ever be able to retire. He said he's trying to convince Nancy to downsize the pots she plants every year--from 200 to 100! He has to water them all and then in the fall empty the dirt out of them--takes him 4 days he says.
ReplyDeleteEnchanting ... and you can probably guess my favorite: the fairy garden! :-)
ReplyDeleteIndeed, Sharon! 🦋
Delete