The charming home of Julie Claxton was chosen by the Ardsley Park Chatham Crescent Garden Club as the winner of the yard of the month! If you have driven or walked the 300 block of 51st I’m sure it has caused you to stop and take it all in. Julie has always wanted a cottage garden that would have blooms all year long. 2 years ago she removed all of the old landscaping and started over. The plants chosen were ones that would attract pollinators, and she tells us that it’s quite a sight to see during the summer with bees, hummingbirds, dragonflies and butterflies fluttering around the garden.

A fellow Ardsley Park resident, Caroline Holder helped Julie with the design, while she and friends did all the installation. Most landscaping materials came from several places, besides the big box stores, she recommends Victory Gardens for native plants, Wise Nurseries for shrubs and perennials and Black Creek Gardens for camellias. When asked her favorite plant in her yard…without hesitation her Drift Roses! “They are the first thing you see when you pull up or walk up to my home. They bloom all year long and give lots of color. They also require minimal maintenance. Even after our freeze, I had blooms.” Julie claims to just be a novice and is still learning gardening. While she walks the neighborhood she looks at other people’s gardens and yards to get ideas. “Savannah can be a tricky place to garden! We are too hot and humid or too cold for many plants that can thrive slightly North or South of us. Carmen Johnston on Instagram has lots of tips and tricks that have been helpful to me. I learned of Color Star fertilizer from her. It’s great for blooming plants! I wish a local landscape company here would carry it.” Thank you Julie Claxton for sharing your garden with us, it is a personal favorite of mine. And thanks to Hester and Zipperer for providing a gift card to our winners each month. Well, now I’m going on Instagram to find this gardener and I’m going to put Drift roses in my yard.