Planning a Garden Walk is a bit like putting a 1000-piece puzzle together.  Some pieces you can do ahead and push to the side, others wait until you have the outer edges or framework in place.  This year’s 5th annual walk is no different. There are homeowners to contact, sponsors to reach out to, relevant speakers and educational booths to invite, artists booths to approve, artwork to be designed, volunteers to schedule…well you get my drift. There is both pleasure and pain to the whole process and I’m thankful to all the committee members who volunteer to do the myriad of tasks needed to bring this Garden Extravaganza  to fruition.

Every year, I wonder how we can streamline the process more, but doubt with so many variables, that it’s even possible. One can always fantasize.

Consider this: (To date, so far)

• Secret Gardens: 36
• Front Gardens: 30
• Business + Green Spaces: 11
• Artist Studios: 2
• Speakers: 10
• Educational Booths: 9
• Vendors:5
• Guided Bike Tour-1
• Plant Vendors: 2

Add to that–our new Moonlight Magic Garden Tour + Reception, held Friday,  May 15, 2020, which will feature music, hard + soft beverages, hors d oeuvres, and 4 magically lit, unique gardens.

Things that keep me up at night….will I misspell a name or put the wrong address in the guidebook?  Will we draw young gardeners as well as all the amazing master gardeners in town?  How can we encourage our visitors to plant more native plants?  How can we make our gardens more sustainable? Are we reaching people with our marketing plan and can a baby boomer learn new social media tricks?

When my to-do list feels overwhelming, I remind myself what our garden club mission is.

We celebrate gardening and beautiful spaces. Our goal is to conserve our natural resources and connect gardeners throughout the region. Let’s make Memphis a premier garden tourist destination.

While our walk is 73 days away, you can be sure that our garden hosts are getting ready to surprise you with their creativity and hard work. 73 days, yikes, I need to start working on my own garden sanctuary.

Tickets go on sale this weekend.  Buying early gives you numerous times to win fabulous prizes from our donors and sponsors. Join our Mailing List and be the first to know about upcoming garden walk additions.

Time to get out in my garden and spring clean.