A few pictures from O'Brien Nurseries in Simsbury, CT. Not my favorite garden, but a fabulous place to buy plants. A great selection with good size and fair prices. Sort of a Hornbakers East. Some beautiful conifers as well.

Follow the link for more.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: O'Brien Nurseries

Part of the fun of going on garden tours is the different ways people think and display in their gardens. It's nice to have an event like this in your local area.

Steve, love the pics - thanks again for your efforts and the info on them as a vendor. So what have you picked up so far at vending?

Paul

I love, love, love Kathy Sisson's garden and O'Briens nursery... Am out of state this weekend and can't believe I am missing the convention when it finally comes close to NH. I always spend waaaayyyy too much money though, last regional convention, we had to bare root some of our purchases just to fit them in the van. great fun, and John O'Brien was very accommodating ?enabling? Providing a wheel barrow for soil and plastic bags for wrapping.

Lovely gardens, lovely pictures, Thanks Steve!

Thanks Steve. Great photos. I loved the conversation with Bob Solberg. Thanks for sharing.

bkay

Here are some of the entries from First Look. First Look is the annual NEHS show for seedlings and sports. It is judged and the attendees are also able to vote for their favorites. Lots of ripples in the seedlings. UK Hostaman will like that. These plants are very new and do not have names nor have they been introduced yet. But it gives us a preview of what is in the immediate future.

Sport of Spilt Milk. Small.

Sport of Stitch in Time. You have to wonder if this is stable.

Sport of Francis Williams. This one is enormous. You have to wonder about its performance in the garden. But then other FW sports have been fine.

Seedling. This one is Medium/Large

Seedling. Gold and ruffled. Medium.

Seedling. Medium w/ white backs

Seedling. Dark Green. More ruffles.

Steve

Thank you very much for the images. I'm wondering if in 10 years my garden will be frowned upon because it doesn't have enough purple hostas?!!!

Thanks for posting some of the pics! It's always nice to see other people gardens to get ideas for your own! :)

The garden of Sue and Bernie Apter has over 800 hosta cultivars. Of the gardens we saw on Wednesday, this was the best kept, and it was exceptionally well designed. It was immaculate, from the garden paths and edging to the well placed garden art. The cultivars were not as mature as those we had seen earlier in the day (check out the Samual Blue, Frank), but the overall effect was exquisite. The highlight was a 12 foot diameter stone circle called "Lakeside Circle" featuring 32 Lakeside cultivars.

Follow the link to the slide show.

Here is a link that might be useful: Apter Garden

Thanks, Steve! Please keep posting!

you would think they would have put the kickball away for the tour.. lol ...

first pix.. if you care.. probably abies kor skylands.. in a bit too much shade ... not a. k. aurea ...

thanks for the pix ... the effort.. etc ...

heard a rumor that next year is the last tour ever... any knowledge???

also ... what is the attendance at the conv itself ... 5 busses at 50.. is pretty light for conv.. but ok for optional day ...

ken

Steve, Thanks so much for your photo updates for those of us that couldn't attend the convention. I'm really enjoying them and appreciate all of the effort. Keep up the good work :)
Thanks, Dan

P.S. Ken right about the cultivar name 'Skylands', but genus and species should be Picea orientalis. It's a Spruce, not a Fir.

We saw four more gardens today. Each of them were outstanding in their own right, but all were different. The first garden we saw was in Rhode Island. It was created by Bob and Diane Adams. It is called Oakenstone Gardens with good reason. Bounded by beautiful stone walls and raised beds lined with stones, the shade is created by a large number of huge oaks, pruned to create a property full of high dappled shade. This garden had everything going for it. It was a collector's dream with many rare and one of a kind plants. It had themed beds. The use of garden art was probably the best we have seen. The use of companion plants, small trees and conifers was also the best we have seen. This was as good as any garden we have seen thus far. As the bus pulled up to the front of the garden we could see Bob Adams putting the shovel away in the shed. This garden clearly reflects a huge labor of love by these two gardeners. One they are justifiably proud of.

Here's a couple of pics.

Foxfire Irish Moon - a unique color

Ocean Isle, Love Pat and Blue Hawaii

Atlantis

Follow the link to the slide show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Oakenstone Garden

Wow, and I haven't looked at the Oakenstone link yet.

Nice Atlantis, nice everything......

Paul

The second garden we saw on Friday was in Bridgewater, MA and it was created on 2 acres of farmland by Paula Lehtola. With all the room that 2 acres brings it allowed Paula to grow many very large specimen hostas and still have lots of room left over. This garden still has lots of room to grow and yet there were so many unique features. An old barn foundation provides a structure around which hostas are planted and a private seating area is located. Old iron troughs contain an extensive mini garden. There were some great companion plants in this garden also, but not very much garden art. This garden is all about hostas.

Humpback Whale

Band of Gold

First Frost (the biggest one I've seen)

Follow the link to the slide show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Lehtola Garden

Ken.... last year at the Convention here in MN, they said that they were really looking for host cities and that the 2012 in TN is the last one that any host city has bellied up for. I know it's typical for MN to be the host city in the years ending in zero, but it surprises me that there aren't more local clubs willing to host. I mean, Indianapolis, Chicago, Dayton/Columbus/Cincinnati... even New Jersey... seems like there'd be enough interest in those areas.
*shrug*

The third garden we saw on Friday was also in Bridgewater, MA and it was the smallest in terms of space. With only 1/3 of an acre to work with and maple trees in the front and back, Mary Arnberg has created a small miracle with this garden. This is a garden that is both beautiful and comfortable. Once again we saw rare and unique cultivars and huge mature specimens. Yet this isn't a garden that you are afraid to step into. This is the kind of space in which you want to linger over an extra cup of coffee. It reflects the personality of its creator. I'd never met Mary Arnberg before, but she spoke to me as if we were old friends.

Mary has a lot of her plants in the ground in pots. This gives the plants some advantage against the maple roots and it allows her to add the "magic sludge" that she gets from the local waste treatment plant. The results are sublime.

Here's a few pics:

Celestial with an Oak Leaf Hydrangea

Lakeside Symphony

Follow the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Arnberg Garden

The last garden we visited on Friday was the display garden of Cochato Nursery in Holbrook, MA. This is a Hosta specialty nursery, but they sell much more than Hostas. They sell many different and hard to find plants of all types. Their selection of Hostas is extensive. I had intended to do more shopping and less picture taking on this visit, but the garden was so compelling that I ended up taking many many shots of mature Hostas. This garden is professionally designed and constructed. It is a garden to which many other gardeners can only aspire. Just remarkable.

Oh yeah, I also bought a Blue Umbrellas, Victory, Band of Gold, Great Expectations, Dick Ward, Spilt Milk and Grand Tiara. I barely made it back to the bus in time. Two more nurseries on tap for tomorrow. Yikes!

A few pics:

Jack in the Pulpit

Blue Mammoth holding court.

On Stage

Follow the link to the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Cochato Nursery

Steve - I really appreciate your sharing with us. I was without power for a couple of days when a wind took down my power line to the house (and tore up some of my hosta) so I am catching up. Wish I were with you.

Les

We saw three gardens in New Hampshire today. The first was a display garden at Mason Hollow Nursery. Mason Hollow is run by Sue and Chuck Anderson. Sue is the current president of the NE Hosta Society. Mason Hollow is located at the end of a long drive and the property encompasses 105 acres, 90% of which is undeveloped woodlands. The nursery opened in 2001 and the gardens have developed since then. The gardens are varied and are represented not only by mature hostas, but also by a number of conifers and companion plants which are available for sale. This turned out to be a favorite shopping place for many tour participants. It's hard to know if the gardens or the shopping was more popular. We certainly could have spent all day here and not seen everything there is to see.

Here are some pics:

Winter Lightning with Acer Palmatum 'Shaina'

Journey's End

Great Conifers in this garden

Follow the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Mason Hollow

Thanks so much for taking the time out of the busy convention schedule to post these pics.

cj

The second garden we saw belongs to Cheryl and Rick Cravino. The also operate a small nursery out of their home called Hosta Amour. Great plants at great prices. Located in a suburban neighborhood this garden features over 600 hostas, several koi ponds (covered by hardware wire so that the blue herons won't feed on the fish), and Beaver Brook. Evidence of the beaver from this brook was seen in a girdled apple tree in the garden. The garden art can best be described as whimsical. Everything from sneakers and gloves to old buckets and wagons are surrounded by the beautiful hostas and companions.

A few pics:

Arc de Triomph

Blue Jay and friend.

Follow the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Cravino Garden

OK, so you think you've got a hosta addition? Chances are yours is nothing compared to Roger Kinchen's. Roger has lived in his Windham, NH home for four years. During that time he has collected over 1600 hostas. We're not talking about Royal Standard and Lancifolia here. This garden had the most streakers, rare and hard to find cultivars of any garden we have seen. We were given 40 minutes to see 1600 hostas, so we had to prioritize. Obviously, this garden is not mature, but it has incredible potential if Roger can keep the deer and voles away from his prize possessions.

A few pics:

He has a few plants still to be planted on the back deck. Makes my deck look sparse.

Nantucket

Skylight, my favorite blue.

Follow the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Kinchen Garden

Well, I think the shopping is over for this week at least. Here's the damage:

Lakeside Color Blue
Frank Lloyd Wright
Lakeside Ninita
Grand Tiara
Blue Umbrellas
Glory
Victory
Royal Flush (A stand out in every garden we've seen)
Band of Gold
Spilt Milk
Dick Ward
and a few Heuchera and Brunnera as well.

Some of the haul:

Steve

WOW!! Thanks so much for taking the time to share all these beautiful gardens with us!! I added several more to the list. After seeing all your pretty pictures, I am convinced that Atlantis is a future Hosta of the Year.

Thanks so much for all your hard work presenting these gardens to us. The slide shows were excellent.
Cher

Steve - Thank you for taking pictures and your efforts to share these beautiful gardens with all of us.

Paul

Another thank you. Your pictures are great. It has been great fun reading about and viewing these gardens via this thread.

Beverly

Thanks so much Steve! I've really enjoyed looking at this thread. Looks like you had a good time and got some real nice plants.

Wow! Love the photos/gardens. How were the events?

OK, so they saved the best gardens for the last day. First off was the garden of master hybridizer Rick Goodenough. Rick has introduced a number of new cultivars inlcuding, Frank Lloyd Wright, Nippers, Brant Rock Jetty, Scituate Harbormaster, and Nantucket. His garden is built on a steep hill and represents a great deal of stone work and building of beds all done by Rick. He integrates companion plants and especially conifers exceptionally well. His garden appears to be about half finished as he still has a large area out back that is full of conifers and is being developed into more beds. Lot's of mature streakers in this garden as Rick breeds and grows streakers. I tried to take pictures of those plants I haven't yet posted.

Here's a few pics:

Nippers

Gunther's Prize

Mirror, Mirror: One of Rick's. Changes color throughout the season.

Follow the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Goodenough Garden

The property that belongs to David and Rosemary Parks is in itself spectacular. It goes from woodland to links land to beach over a few acres of land with a stunning view of Cape Cod Bay. Add to this property a series of different gardens each meticulously kept by David (he always has his pruners on his belt), and you have what can only be described as a jaw dropping experience. You begin with a woodland hosta walk featuring rhododendrons, azaleas and high mature pines and oaks. The star of these gardens is David's introduction the giant 'Betsy.' From this you move to an open lawn surrounded by hostas, companion plants and conifers. This leads you to the front of the house where a large lawn leads you to a formal garden surrounding a koi pond and a fountain. Then a stone wall separates the lawn from the dunes and beach. The wall is bordered with a traditionsl English Cottage garden in full sun. An opening in the wall leads the visitor to a lone stone bench overlooking the beach. This bench is framed with topiary of a sailing ship and a lobster. Every turn and every new garden amazed and enchanted the visitors. One participant was heard to say that this garden visit was worth the entire fee for the convention. Pictures can hardly recreate this experience, but I'll try.

A few:

Hosta Woodland Walk

The Back Garden

The View

Click the link for the show.

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Parks' Garden

I don't think the Parks' garden can be beat for sheer beauty, but the last garden we saw also gave us an experience that we had not yet had on these tours. The last garden belongs to Gerry and Rindy Bennett. From the road the house looks like an antique colonial with a typical small front yard (lots of pachysandra, some lawn, a few hosta), but the tip off was the Volvo SUV and the red Jauguar convertible in the driveway. The back of this property was enormous. It contained beautiful hosta beds, open lawn, numerous small and rare ornamental trees, a pool with a pool house almost as large as the house itself, and a natural wetlands area. However, the coup de grace was the extensive conifer garden. It was the best conifer garden I've ever seen and it probably is similar to Ken's. Oh, and we were joined by the family Golden Retriever who reveled in the company and romped throughout the conifers in celebration. A fitting end to a wonderful week of garden tours.

A few pics:

Second Coming. A sport of Honeybells. This plant has been lab tested to be virus free.

Conifers: The big gold one is a Metasequoia.

Mountain Snow. Don't you wish the pic on the Garden Web forums looked this good?

Follow the link for the slide show:

Steve

Here is a link that might be useful: Bennett Garden

Truly stunning, Steve! Thanks so much for sharing the photos with us!!
Karen

Thank you, thank you thank you, Steve, for this wonderful thread.

-Babka

Great thread! Thanks for your excellent convention coverage. Now I'm sorry I missed the Sunday tour. That sport of Honeybells is one strange hosta.

BTW, Steve has posted his pics by garden in the Gallery section of the GW Hosta Forum. Easier to find and review in the now Hosta months.

Steve, thanks for the efforts above and beyond.

Paul

Steve thanks again. I've saved that thread to review this winter. That was a lot of work on your part and know that it was really appreciated.
Cher

You are all very welcome. Next year's convention will be in Nashville. I won't be there but if it's in your area it's definitely worth the time and money.

BTW, I think I got better at this as the week went along. I went to a seminar on garden photography on Thursday and I think it helped. "Rule #1 Get Closer." Doing this helped me to pay attention to the names of the plants. I took pics of the labels as a way of remembering them.

Plants that went to the top of my wish list as a result of these tours:

Victory - huge and beautiful
Royal Flush - it stood out in every garden
Ebb Tide - haven't found it yet, but I will
Dick Ward - even better than I thought it was
Climbing Hydrangea - saw this in 4 or 5 gardens and it was a standout
Tiffany's Godzilla - All the Massachusetts gardens had this. I wonder if it was being shared.
Skylight - the best blue I saw. It's expensive but worth it IMO.
Lakeside Frosted Mint - sort of a waxy green unique color
Nippers - better than I thought
Neat and Tidy - anything but
Queen of the Seas - a great blue

The Park garden was obviously the most beautiful, but the garden I'd like to spend more time in is Rick Goodenough's. I'm going to try to wangle an invitation to do just that later on this summer.

I'm glad you all liked the thread. It was truly my pleasure to do it.

Steve

Steve... who taught the photography seminar? Ken Harris, Mike Shadrack or someone else?

Just beautiful, all the gardens and I am amazed at all the work the owners put into them. Thanks so much, Steve.

chris

It was Rich Pomerantz. He is the photographer for the White Flower Gardens catalog as well as for Fine Gardening Magazine. I think he's from Connecticut.

Steve

WICKED GOOD!

I've been slowly going through your additions as you posted them.
Just amazing what people can create. Inspiring.
Thank you so much for putting this together.
Your work is very appreciated!

A lot of, LOT OF, thanks for a lot of, LOT OF, effort. Not only the abundance of pix, but the quality of pix as well.

tj

Oh my, what a joy to view all these beautiful hostas and their gardens. Thanks a huge bunch. There's something so calming about hostas - live or in photos, I think I may be able to go to sleep now. gramma jan

TG is not shared at least in MA- it was a winner in a "Largest Leaf" contest at First Look a few years ago, and became an immediate "Must Have!" for me. Found it;bought it in 2009. Still a baby.
Ebb Tide is a stunner- deserves better placement in my yard. Have owned it for years-before the database that would remind me where I got it.In my Top 10.
Many heartfelt thanks to Steve for the wonderful garden photos and writeups. I cherish the compliment that mine is a garden that you are not afraid to step into. Just pull a weed on your way out!

Steve, know do you have a photo of you? Just wondering if we ran into you at any of the gardens, as I see photos of folks who were on the same bus as we were at a few of the gardens. The National Convention was a great time for us!

Thanks, Trudy.

I didn't get a picture of me among the Hostas. Here's a photo of me teaching at Kanyawara Primary School last summer.

Steve

Dont remember seeing you Steve, but then again you may have had on a hat and summer attire. Have been enjoying your photos...bringing back lots of good memories! Thanks for sharing!