Tom and Karen McClung have more than old photos to remind them of family. The couple lives in a pitched-roof cottage in Southeast Portland’s Sellwood neighborhood that his parents bought 75 years ago. And the English-style garden started by the previous generation still thrives.

Tom and Karen moved into the house after they were married in the rose garden in 1979. As they remodeled and expanded their home on a quarter-acre lot, they installed a series of brick patios, meandering brick and paver walkways, and well-placed wrought-iron fencing to protect flowering plants from being trampled by their Vizsla dog.

Among evergreen bushes and trees are hundreds of pots and hanging baskets. “This allows me to regularly change my landscape, utilize my favorite annuals when available and form little vignettes throughout the yard,” said Tom McClung. “My roses vary from dwarf, hybrid tea, floribundas, bush roses and climbing roses.”

The McClungs’ well-nurtured property, named A Gardener’s Delight, is one of seven private landscapes on the 2023 Sellwood Garden Tour taking place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 4.

Tickets to the self-guided tour are $30 (sellwoodgardentour.com), and all profits from the fundraiser organized by the Sellwood Middle School PTA are spent on classroom support for teachers as well as student field trips, music and art programs, and community-building activities.

Hear the story behind each of the seven home gardens, which showcase different styles within small and large spaces. In addition to the McClungs’ mature landscape, the tour includes:

• Fuchsia Perfect garden created by the vice-president of the Oregon Fuchsia Society.
• Farmhouse Dream with raised vegetable gardens, perennials and mature shade trees enhancing the view from a wraparound porch, pergola, patio and playhouse.
• Zen Paradise with Koi and frog ponds, garden statuary and a bamboo island.
• The Entertainer with a herringbone pergola and encaustic tile stair risers surrounded by Hostas, hydrangeas, peonies and clematis.
• Modern Wonder outdoor entertainment space with inviting architectural details and inventive hardscaping.
• Mermaid Ranch with zones for pets, bikes, art projects, pool parties and outdoor dining surrounded by roses, annuals and container plants.

• Ticket holders can pick up tour maps at the public Eastmoreland Garden at 2425 S.E. Bybee Blvd. in Portland. For more information, visit sellwoodgardentour.com.

  — Janet Eastman | 503-294-4072

  [email protected] | @janeteastman

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Author :Janet Eastman

Source Url :https://www.oregonlive.com/hg/2023/05/see-7-unique-landscapes-at-the-sellwood-garden-tour-fundraiser.html