Quilt Gardens Tour

Our first garden being planted is in Nappanee at McCormick Creek Golf Course.   Flowers are being delivered and planting will start on Tuesday, May 18.

McCormick Creek chose the One Room Schoolhouse for their design.  About 100 yards south of the garden site use to sit the Culp one room schoolhouse.  The Culp schoolhouse was built in 1870’s and served the children of Nappanee till 1952.  What a great way to bring the history of Nappanee alive for the Quilt Gardens Tour^sm.

If you attended the Culp one room schoolhouse, tell us what you remember.

We need planters for the Quilt Gardens Tour.  If you love this tour, and have wanted to know what it takes to plant a garden, this is for you.  Volunteers are needed at most all sites.

Here are the Gardens and the days of planting.

Nappanee Garden Committee is planting May 18 at 9-11; 1-3; 5-7
MennoHof is planting May 20
Meadow Brook  Farm is planting May 22
Elkhart Parks Department is planting on May 24
Middlebury Greencroft is planting on May 24-25
Linton’s is planting May 25
Ruthmere is planting May 25
Amish Acres planting on May 25
Krider Gardens is planting on May 26
Wakarusa is planting their town garden on May 26-28
American Countryside Farmers Market is plating May 27-29
Old Bag Factory is planting on May 27 at 1pm

Please leave us a comment on where you would like to volunteer, and then email me at Mindy@amishcountry.org with name and your contact information.  That way I can let you know times and other information that the site operators may need from you.

Vera Bradley Tote Bag
In conjunction with the Hope along the Heritage Trail, six Vera Bradley retailers will hold special events in their stores and also sell a limited quantity of special Hope Garden Tote Bags for $50.  Ten percent of the sales of Hope Garden bags benefit the Foundation. The Tote will include:

- Vera Bradley Zip ID tag
- Vera Bradley Pocket Papers
- Vera Bradley Tape Measure
- Vera Bradley Hope Grows Seed Packet
- Vera Bradley Foundation for Breast CAncer Magazine
- Crabtree & Evelyn Rosewater Hand Therapy
- Amish Acres Chocolate Chip Cookie Mix
- Wakarusa Dime Store NEW Strawberry Jumbo Jelly Beans
- Additional items may be added

Contact or visit the retailers to find out how to purchase.  Limited quantities available

What do you think? This is an amazing offer!

Each quilt garden site has it’s own very special challenges.  Many of the gardens have been elevated for optimum viewing which brings the challenge of effective watering practices.  The plants at the top may dry out more quickly due to the enhanced run off created by steep slopes.  Other sites seem to have poor topsoil due to the lack organic humus or compost.  Northern Indiana tends to have a fair amount of sandy loam.  This is great for drainage but not so for moisture retention and nutrition of ornamentals.  Even with the best fertilization schedule plants may fail to thrive if the soil is deficient.

August promises dog days of intense heat and pop up thunderstorms. Each garden will have to endure blazing sun, the ravages of hard rains and possible high winds.  In addition to these challenges (as if that were not enough) fungal diseases, insects and animals all have the potential to frustrate even the seasoned gardener.

A case in point is the quilt garden at the Elkhart County Fair Grounds.  The sumptuous red heart at the top of the garden was severely damaged in a night raid by raccoons.   The next morning the heart was no more than a few remaining begonias at the fringes of the pattern.  This garden is tended by the Michiana Master Gardeners who quickly set traps to catch the ring-tailed menace.  Alas only one of the fairground barn cats ventured into the trap.  There was no sign of injury to the kitty, which was of course quickly repatriated to the fair grounds to hunt for mice another day.  The flowers have been replaced and the heart is once again looking healthy and lush.

If your garden gives you reason for concern and you just can’t figure it out remember that the Michiana Master Gardeners Association hosts a hot line in the Elkhart County Extension Office to help you with just such challenges.  Our Master Gardener motto is “Helping Others Grow” and we invite you to put our words to the test!

I had the opportunity to view most of the quilt gardens again last week and I’m hard pressed to choose a favorite. There are of course several that stand out in my mind. I love the garden at the Das Essenhaus. The “Center Diamond” pattern has proven to be a spectacular choice. Their choice of plant material is stunning.

I’m also partial to the “Flower Basket” at Ruthmere Mansion. They chose to include Telstar Dianthus, which is performing beautifully. This garden is patterned after a quilt in their private collection, which adds to the historic relevance of the garden. I only wish they would have elevated it for better viewing.

Another favorite is the one at the Old Bag Factory named “A Birds Eye View”. Designer Shirley Shenk out did herself with this pattern. I am anxiously awaiting the periscope installation that will give us the superior view promised in the pattern name.

I would be remiss if I didn’t mention “Recovery” at the McCormick Golf Course in Nappanee. This community endured almost total destruction last year during the tornado season and now this garden reminds us that where disaster strikes beauty will return to erase the ill-fated memories best left behind. This is the only garden using Coleus and it appears to be a stunner! It really adds contrast and interest to the saw tooth border that surrounds the design.

We’ll see how the season plays out but if the early views of the quilt gardens are any indication it will be hard to choose a favorite. I‘d like to see the addition of a viewer’s choice award so that the public could vote on their favorite gardens. Perhaps someone at the ECCVB might be able to add it to their website. Now wouldn’t that be fun?

The colorful ceramic crazy quilt, “Mystical Window”, created by Nappanee’s Northwood High School art class is now complete and ready to move to a new home.  Students will dedicate their beautiful and touchable artwork to the Nappanee Public Library on April 30 during homeroom.  Art teacher, Melinda Sharp, is proud of her students’ willingness to share their “labor of love” with the community.  Although her classroom may seem a little colorless when the ceramic quilt is gone, it won’t be drab for long; she’s already brainstorming with students about next year’s project.