CAPE GIRARDEAU COUNTY, Mo. (KFVS) – The Jackson Area Garden Tour is set for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Saturday, May 17.
It’s a self-guided tour of a dozen different public and private gardens. There will be garden-themed gifts for visitors at each stop.
Special activities will be offered along the way, including plein air painting, live music, plant and seed giveaways, chair yoga, story time and more.
Organizers say there will be guides at each stop on the tour to answer questions and offer a bit of history.
Tickets are $25 through May 16, before increasing to $30 the day of the tour. Ticketholders will be given a lanyard to wear, which must be presented at each stop.
Tickets and tour maps are available at the Cape Girardeau County History Center.
Organizers say people do not have to visit the spots on the map in order, though it was crafted to make the experience flow.
According to History Center Director Carla Jordan, it’s been decades since the last tour, which organizers call a local tradition.
Host Cassi Holcomb said it means a lot to bring it back to the community.
“It’s wonderful to bring it back. I know back in the day, there were tons of garden clubs, men’s garden clubs, women’s garden clubs, I think just one specifically about roses.”
Steve Ford is the founder of southeast Missouri nonprofit Legacy Preservation Enterprise.
“We do historical restorations and we do natural restorations, planting primarily native plants.”
The organization has three gardens on the tour, including the Taylor Twins Memorial Garden, Abraham Byrd House and Charles Shelby Ford Nature Preserve.
The Abraham Byrd House, located about 15 minutes outside of Jackson, will also be open to the public for the first time.
Holcomb said other stops include a backyard produce and flower garden, a backyard oasis in the Bent Creek area, her Juneberry Plant Shop and more.
Free refreshments will be offered at the History Center.
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