Sunday, April 13, 2008

Wilmington Azalea Festival - Day two!

Our second and final day at the Wilmington Azalea festival. I could hardly sleep for all the excitement I felt about what we would see and do today... I was out of bed and ready to go at 7 o'clock; however, because the gardens didn't open to visitors until ten, we decided to kill a little time scouting out some of the area garden shops. We found some really nice plants to bring back home, including a beautiful green Japanese maple. After the garden shops we headed over to the home and garden built on the grounds of "The Bungalow," Pembroke Jones's elegant hunting lodge. There we found this beautiful Azalea Belle sitting on the steps outside.


The back yard view off the property where Pembroke Jones's hunting lodge once stood
The other side of the yard
We saved the best for last! The Temple Gardens... Designed by Jefferson Memorial architect John Russell Pope, the Temple of Love was once a focal point for notables who came to hunt with Pope's father-in-law, Pembroke Jones. An example of a formal English garden (my fav!), the space includes beautiful parterre areas filled with roses and guarded at the four corners with sheared hollies. Informal sweeps of azaleas, loropetalum, aspidistra, abelia, fatsia and variegated ligustrum are punctuated with sheared yaupon hedges. Dogwoods and cherry trees provide a canopy of color to this stunning garden. I could have spent the whole day right here!



The Temple of Love
Notice how closely it resembles the Jefferson Memorial - Fantastic!

Perfect!

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