PHOTOS AND STORY BY KAREN BOSSICK
Carol Harlig smiled as she traipsed along her shady, winding “Hummingbird Path,” which boasts whimsical bird feeders and a rusted bicycle filled with petunias.
She planted the first flower in her yard north of Ketchum 20 years ago in the process of starting a healing garden as she recovered from breast cancer.
“I went on the home tour that the Community Library used to have and exited from Judy Perry’s home into this lovely garden. I was so enthralled—and that was the start of it,” she said.
With Linda Gillison’s help, Len and Carol Harlig’s garden has grown to encompass a half-dozen nooks from which the couple enjoy their morning coffee while listening to the early morning chatter of birds bathing in bird baths amidst rare blue Himalayan poppies, daylilies and larkspur.
Harlig will share her special place with the public from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, July 16, as part of the Sawtooth Botanical Garden’s 21st annual garden tour. This year’s tour, which benefits the Sawtooth Botanical Garden and its many programs, features six gardens north of Ketchum.
“What impresses me this year is the creativity and diversity of the gardens. And almost all are cared for by the homeowners—a mighty feat,” noted Garden Tour Chair Mary Wilson. “They’re unique in that they’re all up north—that they can grow such beauty and abundance with a smaller window than the gardens in town is unbelievable.”
The gardens include Hanley and Cathie Dawson’s formal flower beds positioned around a gurgling waterfall. Also, Chris and Jackie Flanigan’s floral display positioned around a small pond which boasts a barn and a windmill Jackie recently purchased at auction.
Tom and Lisa Griffith will offer garden-goers a bird’s eye view of their lovely spread from the balcony of their log home. And Lee Melly and Trish Klahr will offer viewers a peek at their vegetable garden, protected from local deer and elk by a decorative fence designed by welder Larry Meyer.
“I could hold off the deer until August. Then, as things died off in the hills, they’d come wandering in. Beets—they love beets,” said Klahr, who will also show off a nifty three-part composter she and Melly built. “I guess that’s part of high altitude gardening.
All the gardens suffered a hailstorm of “biblical proportions” two weeks ago, according to Harlig. It covered the ground and tore holes in some of the leaves. Harlig saved the snowballs for a family reunion.
Fortunately, the hail didn’t damage her new vegetable garden, which she protects from four-legged critters via neck-high protective structures. Harlig is growing kale, lettuce, artichokes, sugar snap peas, tomatoes and peppers. Marigolds protect her veggies from aphids and red flowers are designed to spur growth in her tomatoes.
As you might expect, there’s a table and chairs nearby so she and Len can enjoy a yummy blended ice drink made of iced coffee and cocoa powder while soaking in the sun’s rays.
A sign in Carol’s kitchen boasts, “Tickle the earth with a rake and she will giggle flowers.”
That’s certainly been the case with the rake pushing Harlig and Gillison have done. Harlig wanted only pinks and purples but Gillison convinced her to add reds and yellows for contrast. And she’s glad of it.
Gillison also suggested she add a few fountains to the mix.
“I said: Why would I need a fountain when I’ve got the Big Wood River running right by? But I finally relented and now I have two. They really add a different feel to everything,” Harlig said.
Harlig gazed around at her little oasis, which includes a pergola on the river bank, a stepping stone featuring her childhood footprint and handprint, a bear cub crouched under a blue spruce and Gabe Embler’s stacked stones near the river.
“I love my garden. And the delphiniums are my favorite—when they start to bloom I’m in seventh heaven,” she said, pointing out the showy flowers that tower over her head. “And they will be in bloom for the garden tour.”
IF YOU GO…
The tour begins on Dip Creek Road off Highway 75 north of Glassford Heights. It encompasses six gardens ranging as far north as the North Fork Store.
Each garden will boast an artist and musician. And some will have table settings designed by Bellissimo, Ketchum Kitchens, Sun Valley Garden Center and Consign Design.
Among the oddities: an Elizabethan greenhouse and a robot lawnmower.
KB’s food truck will serve lunch at the garden just south of the North Fork Store.
Discounted advance tickets are $20 for Sawtooth Botanical Garden members and $25 for non-members, available online at sbgarden.org through Thursday, July 14. Add $5 per ticket the day of the garden.
Will call and ticket sales will be at Chuck and Dawn Matthiesen’s garden off Dip Creek.
For more information, go to www.sbgarden.org.