PLEASE NOTE: The Ticket/Information Booth will be in front of the Choose Marshall Welcome Center (323 West Michigan Avenue) during tour hours. Short-term parking will be available.
A preview of the gardens featured
on the Welcome to My Garden Tour, July 13 and 14, 2024:
Bouwens/McIntosh Garden- 340 North Mulberry Street
The Bouwens/McIntosh family have created a natural haven in their private backyard where hostas, grasses, hydrangeas, sunflowers, native perennials, and a mix of vegetables flourish. Frequent visitors to this charming yard include dragonflies, butterflies, honeybees, tree frogs, birds, squirrels, chipmunks, and hungry city deer. The serene landscape is perfect for entertaining and bird watching.
Bosserd Family Farm- 14721 Verona Road
Enjoy browsing the cottage gardens featuring some of the newest perennials from Proven Winners as well as an assortment of natives and old-time favorites like bee balm, cone flowers, day lilies, and ornamental grasses. Take a short walk to the cutting flower field to see the production area and methods used to raise an assortment of different focal flowers, greenery, and fillers. Hanging baskets and display containers decorate the exterior of the farm stand.
Ghiban Garden - 347 High Street
A front yard garden of native plants welcomes you to Karen Ghiban’s landscape, while a sloping bed of more than 150 daylily cultivars and over 130 hosta cultivars greet you in the backyard. This garden is just two years old and replaces what once was a jungle of vines and weeds. Her labors have resulted in a stunning display of color and imagination as well as evidence of her tenacity in keeping deer away.
Keiper Garden - 521 Sibley Lane
This garden is a tribute to “The Wizard of Oz,” a favorite movie of garden owner and designer, Cora Keiper. The garden entrance begins in black and white, like the film, until you step into the colorful backyard. A yellow brick path leads you though the movie scenes with all the important characters and locations. See if you can find the Tin Man, the Cowardly Lion, the Scarecrow, and Dorothy and her dog, Toto. Of course there are witches, flying monkeys, and an apple tree; all artfully portrayed and enhanced by flowers.
Mankerian Garden - 301 South Liberty
The spacious back and side yards are a compilation of many garden areas: an herb garden, a potting shed, a green house, a brick patio covered by a pergola, a vegetable garden, and perennial cutting beds. The Mankerians unified these areas with trees and shrubs, unique fencing, an espaliered apple tree, a large space of green lawn, and a collection of garden ornaments. It is a whimsical garden paradise.
Overhiser Garden - 215 North Marshall Ave
Some call him “Mr. Hosta or Mr. Marshall,” but his real name is Martin Overhiser. He is a member of the Michigan Hosta Society and shares his hosta laboratory and specimen garden with us. He started hybridizing hostas in 1995 and has registered nine varieties all named for his children and grandchildren. The garden includes a water feature, an outdoor shower, a sitting area, and a pergola over the back porch. A variety of shrubs, trees, perennials, and grasses are planted to add height and accent the colors and shapes of the hostas.
