The 2005 Gardens

The 2005 Whidbey Island Garden Tour was cause for special celebration as it marked the Tour’s Tenth event. A milestone that all volunteers, advertisers, sponsors, friends, and beneficiaries could be proud of. Their hard work and countless volunteer hours have made the Whidbey Island Garden Tour, Inc. a successful organization and made all of the Tours financially beneficial events for our Whidbey Island community.

The Tenth Annual Whidbey Island Garden Tour was held on Saturday, April 30. With a focus on spring gardens this year, five of South Whidbey Island’s loveliest private gardens were open to the public, offering visitors a personal glimpse into the exceptional world of Island gardening.

The gardens ranged from a collector’s garden of the rare and unusual to an 11-acre growing canvas of extraordinary compositions and the personal garden of a noted rhododendron grower.

And, again, we were pleased to offer admission to the Meerkerk Rhododendron Gardens, which was complimentary with the Garden Tour ticket on April 30. Spring is prime bloom time at this Whidbey Island treasure.

Gallery

MooseRidge Gardens

These magnificent gardens, arrayed over eleven acres within a 54-acre site, offer extraordinary compositions that vary with the seasons. In springtime, flowering trees, some of them rare, attract attention... more

Fun and Functional

Over the past eight years, the owners have created their enchanting one-and-a-half acre garden, nestled inside seven bucolic acres, with comfort as the primary design focus. An outdoor dining room sheltered by a vine-covered... more

Michelle's Legacy

This one-acre garden is the legacy of the late Michelle Pailthorp, a passionate plant collector who sought out the rare and unusual. For the plant aficionado, many treasures are to be discovered here... more

Ravishing Rhodies

In his private garden overlooking Admiralty Inlet, the owner, a renowned rhododendron hybridizer, showcases many of the rhodies he has developed and introduced. This time of year, spectacular blossoms combine artfully... more

Crafted Elegance

Sensitivity to the site and to the environment guided the design of these exquisite Japanese-inspired gardens. In a woodland setting near the front of the house, mature rhododendrons transplanted from elsewhere... more