Whidbey garden tour springs to life

From a Japanese-inspired garden to cascading waterfalls to an expansive collection of metal household objects, there’s something for everyone on this year’s Whidbey Island Garden Tour.

Now in its 26th year, the tour is a way for island dwellers and mainland visitors alike to explore some of the home gardens of South Whidbey residents and possibly gain some inspiration. This year’s tour runs from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, June 24.

Formed in 1996 as part of a successful campaign to stop the Saratoga Woods from being logged and developed, the Whidbey Island Garden Tour is a nonprofit organization that has raised more than $500,000 for over 60 different causes throughout the years. In 2022, the organization awarded $14,000 to six grant recipients.

Penny Harger, the organization’s president, explained that every year, a garden selection committee convenes to select the gardens that comprise the tour. Five, they have determined, is the magic number.

“Five is a number people can comfortably get to in one day,” she said.

For many, the tour is an opportunity to drive down the winding, wooded and lesser known roads of South Whidbey. Ticket purchases number between 800 and 1,000 every year.

This year’s gardens include Useless Bay Estate, Heron’s Rook Garden, Someday Farm, The Hive and English Idyll Garden.

“The diversity of gardens is really interesting,” Harger said. “I don’t think you could get five more gardens that are each so different from each other.”

Jack Ng owns Useless Bay Estate, a garden with an impressive view of the Salish Sea. Continuing that theme of water, there are three unique aquatic features on the land, including a creek, a pond and cascading waterfalls.

“I always tell people, ‘I bought a park that came with the house,’” Ng said.

He is looking forward to sharing his garden with others during the upcoming tour.

At Someday Farm, much of owners Jill and Dave Campbell’s garden is unplanned.

“Someday we’ll clean the barn, someday we’ll mow the lawn,” Jill quipped.

Their 70-acre Freeland property is home to a vegetable patch, woods, a wetland, an aviary, a gaggle of turkeys, several other animals, a catio, a red refurbished school bus named Bussie Smith and several collections of metal items, such as hose nozzles, watering cans and coffee pots.

As the previous owners of Island Recycling, the couple accumulated quite a lot of stuff over the years.

“Marie Kondo can go take a walk, because some of this stuff, it’s cool,” Jill said.

“We have a good friend that says if you find yourself with more than three of anything, you’re morally obligated to call yourself a collector and add to it,” Dave said.

Volunteers will be present at each garden to greet visitors, direct parking, manage access and answer questions. Tickets can be purchased for $30 online at wigt.org or at Bayview Garden, Flowers by the Bay, Lavender Wind Farm, Rain Shadow Nursery, Venture Out and Flying Bear Farm and Design. On the day of the tour, a limited number of tickets can be purchased at any of the five gardens.