Visitors invited to step in to magical places
BECCA MARTIN-BROWN
bmartin@nwadg.com
Stew and Dixie Rynone call their garden, 22 years in the making, “a continuing transition of dreams and learnings.”
“The garden was developed in stages and at various locations,” they explain. But it came by its name — “Solid Rock Garden” — naturally.
The Rynones’ garden near Goshen will be among seven private gardens open to visitors June 1 during the 22nd annual Through the Garden Gate fundraiser hosted by the Flower, Garden & Nature Society. It is a place of flowering trees, fruits and vegetables and “woodsy settings,” with hints of the Bavarian Alps reflected in the gates that enclose the property.
“As you approach the house, notice the sides [of the driveway] are lined with a symmetrical design pattern of red bud trees, crape myrtles, both red and white, and various fruit trees — peach, apple, cherry and plum,” Stew Rynone says. “In the pasture, there are a couple of Kieffer pear trees that generally supply an adequate supply of fruit — and the design offers an abundance of color in the spring blooms and the fall leaf color blends.”
At the summit of the driveway is a trellis filled with concord grapes for jelly and seedless grapes for eating, and blackberry patches next to the pond provide for blackberry preserves. Just beyond, four 10-by-25-foot raised beds serve up vegetables — “if we remember to close the gates to keep the deer from dining on our crops,” he explains with a laugh.
Countless shrubs, bushes and perennials include “some unique trees which are native to this area — bodark, blackhaw, etc.,” Rynone says. And “for those with an interest in more natural settings, we have left behind the house an area that is mostly natural with gravel paths to explore.” Non-paying guests may include raccoons, deer, armadillos, squirrels, possums and gray foxes, he adds, “as well as a multitude of bird species.”
“The grounds offer an abundance of rock, and many of these same rocks were harvested and facilitated in the construction of the foundation of the home, the rock wall adjacent to the lower loop of the drive and the rock wall along the main road,” Rynone returns to the garden’s name. “As once was said, ‘Build your house upon a rock and not sand.’ Well, we did and appreciate all that we have and wish to share these blessings with others.”
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FAQ
‘Through The Garden Gate’
WHEN — 9 a.m.-4 p.m. June 1
WHERE — Seven private gardens & the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks in Fayetteville
Solid Rock Garden — Stew & Dixie Rynone, 20791 Pug Gayer Road, Fayetteville
Heather Ridge Railroad — Monte & Virginia Scott, 1210 Barrett Lane, Greenland
Storla Memorial Garden — John King, 901 W. Cleveland St., Fayetteville
Whitetail Nursery — Julie & Andy Feinstein, 515 E. Rock St., Fayetteville
Hillside Garden — Jill & Tom King, 1724 E. Rockwood Trail, Fayetteville
Never Done Garden — Brad Beach & Elkin Perez, 225 E. Lafayette St., Fayetteville
Porches With a View — Talya & John Boerner, 422 N. Washington Ave., Fayetteville
COST — $15
INFO — Westwood Garden Centers; the Botanical Garden; or call 595-2298 or 466-6817
