Garden Tour

Driving up to the Naples Botanical Garden in the seaside town of Naples, Florida, you can’t help but notice the bromeliads. They are everywhere in shocking oranges, yellows, reds and greens, scattered among the snow-white stone mulch. Even on a cloudy, surprisingly chilly day in February, the contemporary design cheered the mood of our small group.

The North Carolina Botanical Garden in Chapel Hill knows plenty about going native. In fact, this 600-acre botanical garden is all about helping the public better understand and appreciate native plants. As you can see from the praying mantis above, the beneficial insects feel quite at home here too. The conservation garden is affiliated with [...]

Step onto this shady and serene back porch, and you might think you’d landed in Italy. Not Idaho. A fountain bubbles in the background. ‘Niagara’ and ‘Suffolk’ red grapes hang from the pergula. Comfy chairs are scattered among green leafy plants, and the courtyard looks like it’s been there for generations. That level of detail [...]

You know you’re somewhere special when you drive into California’s Andrew Molera State Park.  This lovely park – 21 miles south of Carmel on Highway 1 – is where Big Sur River runs wild into the Pacific Ocean. It’s also the largest state park in the Big Sur area, with plenty to impress nature lovers. [...]