Why take a garden tour? For fun and inspiration, says Victoria Coyne of Victoria Gardens nursery in Rosendale. “It’s a fun thing to do with a group of friends,” she adds, “and even if it rains, the gardens still look spectacular in that kind of light.” That was the case last year with the annual Rondout Valley Garden Tour, she says, when weather dampened the landscape but not the enjoyment of the garden tour-goers.
The 2014 Rondout Valley Garden Tour
This year’s tour, sponsored jointly by the Rondout Valley Business Association (RVBA) and the Ulster Garden Club, will take place on Saturday, June 21 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. It’s a self-guided tour done at one’s own pace, allowing attendees to visit some of the area’s nicest private gardens using their own transportation and staying as long or as briefly as they like. A post-tour reception follows at Catskill Native Nursery in Kerhonkson from 4 to 5:30 p.m. Morning coffee and a donut are included in the ticket price, along with a complimentary glass of wine at the reception after the tour.
Tickets cost $25 on the day of the event and may be purchased up until noon at any of the tour’s three starting locations: Victoria Gardens, at the corner of Route 213 and Cottekill Road in Rosendale; Davenport Farms, 3411 Route 209 in Stone Ridge; and Saunderskill Farms at 5100 Route 209 in Accord. Advance tickets will be available up to the day before the tour at $20, sold at Victoria Gardens or online at www.rondoutvalley.org. Just print out the receipt and present at one of the starting locations to receive a booklet containing maps and garden descriptions.
The 2014 Rondout Valley Garden Tour is a fundraiser benefitting both of its sponsors. In years past, the tour visited farms and other sites of horticultural interest, but this year it will be all private homes in the Stone Ridge Hills area, says Coyne. Because those homes are relatively close to each other, driving will be minimal, and the gardens can be seen at a leisurely pace.
Join the family! 
