Get garden ideas during tour next week

A variety of options for small garden spaces will be featured during the Seven Oaks Garden Club’s annual tour next week.

Six Rancho Bernardo and one Poway garden will be available for the self-guided tour from 9:30 a.m. to noon Wednesday, May 2. Tickets are $10, with cash and checks accepted.

Participants are to meet at the Seven Oaks Community Center, 16789 Bernardo Oaks Drive in Rancho Bernardo, at 9:30 a.m. to purchase their tickets and receive a map, addresses and descriptions of the seven gardens, said tour chairwoman Angela Falcone. A homeowner or the garden’s designer will be at each site to answer questions.

Those going on the tour are to wear flat shoes. The gardens are not wheelchair accessible.

“You get an idea of how to incorporate (what they have done) into your own garden,” said tour co-chairwoman Rosalie Mikelson. “They are small, but really unique ... (with) color and variety.”

Falcone said a couple gardens are those of club members, but the majority she learned about via word of mouth, described as beautiful gardens.

“I like seeing how others (grow) gardens in a small amount of space ... and learn how to take care of the plants,” Falcone said.

The featured gardens are:

► The Bieber garden in Rancho Bernardo is described as “pristine,” with walkways surrounded by colorful plants and shrubs.

► The Blackstone garden in Rancho Bernardo is a certified wildlife habitat, filled with fruit trees, flowers, shrubs, a koi pond and waterfall. It also includes views of the area’s mountains.

► The Faust garden in Poway has a pool and patios for entertaining on one side of the home, while there is a natural pond stocked with fish and boat dock on the other side. It has “majestic” trees, a lawn, natural rock, a waterfall and pergola.

► The Hansen garden in Rancho Bernardo has a “charming” front patio with drought-tolerant trees and shrubs. In the backyard there are vegetables, fruit trees, plumerias, flowering shrubs and a koi pond that produces fertilized water for the garden.

► The Hayden garden in Rancho Bernardo features a drought-tolerant front yard. In the backyard there are orchids and other flowers, garden art, a gazebo, rock and colored glass, plus a terraced hillside with various blooming shrubs and trees. The homeowner constructed the terraces by using 18,000 bricks.

► The Ivany garden in Rancho Bernardo is described as a “manageable” garden with various trees and colorful shrubs. It also has a cage that prevents rabbits from destroying the vegetables within it. There are also golf course views.

► The Khelnik garden in Rancho Bernardo has color and texture in the front yard via the use of drought-tolerant succulents and shrubs. In the backyard it has fruit trees, succulents, flowering shrubs, a fountain and golf course view. It was designed by the award-winning landscape designer Linda Bressler.

Proceeds from the tour will support the club’s activities, including speakers at its meetings, Falcone said.

The Seven Oaks Garden Club meets monthly at noon from September through June in the Seven Oaks Community Center. Annual dues are $12 for Seven Oaks residents and $17 for non-residents. For questions about the club or tour, call Falcone at 858-487-4319.

Email: rbnews@pomeradonews.com