A generous family donated their 79-acre property in Hanover County to Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden. It is called the Lewis Ginter Nature Preserve. The estate features an impressive azalea collection of more than 1,600 varieties. In addition to azaleas, there are huge trees, dogwoods and beautiful rhododendrons. Recently, I was fortunate to visit the property with the Virginia Landscape Design Consultants Council while the azaleas and dogwoods were in bloom. And thankfully, I had my camera.
Unlike my spontanious gardening style (there's a plant sale!), this family worked professionally and methodically for many years. Not only is every plant labeled, but a database was established to record all the azaleas. Strolling through the garden, you see names such as Prosperity, Kagetsu, Marian Lee and Koromo Shikibu. When combined with Lewis Ginter Botanical Garden's own azalea database, this puts Richmond near the top among significant azalea gardens in the U.S.
Besides a gift of a garden that is beautiful and timeless, it is also one that is exact and recorded. What a labor of love. What a gift. Thank you to the family for this gift of a lifetime.
