The NRV Garden Tour will take place rain or shine Saturday July 8, 2023, from 9 am. until 5 pm.
The tour features seven glorious gardens located in Blacksburg. Tickets for the self-guided tour, which includes a program and map, are $15, available now at the Blacksburg, Christiansburg, Jesse Peterman (Floyd) and Meadowbrook (Shawsville) libraries. Tickets will also be available at each of the gardens on the day of the tour, as well as online. www.newrivervalleygardentour.org. The annual tour is celebrating 27 years and brought to you by the Montgomery-Floyd Friends of the Library.
Local NRV Master Gardeners will be stationed at each garden ready to answer questions, identify plants as well as point out the many sustainable garden principles present at each garden. You’ll view pollinator gardens, water features, use of drought tolerant plants, as well as gorgeous, unique hardscapes and garden art. The master gardeners will host a Plant Clinic at the Keciorius/Villareal garden during the tour. There you can pick up a soil test kit, a regional planting chart and challenge the team with a garden question to earn a free pack of seeds. Master gardeners are proud to support the tour by sharing research-based information through Cooperative Extension.
In recent years the tour has added “Points of Interest” for the enjoyment of all. Points of Interest are public spaces where no ticket is needed. This year they are, Glade Road Growing/Rising Silo, Unitarian Universalist Congregation Garden and Valley Interfaith Child Care Center Garden all located on or near the tour route.
Musicians and plein air artists have joined in making the tour a true community event. Their compliment to the atmosphere of the gardens makes for a lovely addition. It is suggested you bring your friends and make a day of the tour, taking your time and enjoying lunch in between the tour sites. Wear comfortable shoes, bring an umbrella (just in case), and of course your camera. We thank each garden owner as well as the many volunteers for their efforts in making this day special!
A special unique addition to the tour this year is a raffle to win a plumbed rain barrel painted by local artists. The Keciorius/Villareal family have generously donated a rain barrel ready for a new home. A $10 donation will get you a ticket to own your choice of one of three lovely painted rain barrels. Cash or check.
As has been a tradition in recent years, a collection of 2023 garden photo cards taken by our local photographer Charles Bostian will be on sale at the Marquis garden for $10 (cash or check).
It is suggested you bring your friends and make a day of the tour, taking your time and enjoying lunch in between the tour sites. Wear comfortable shoes, bring an umbrella (just in case), some funds for the raffle and cards and of course your camera. We thank each garden owner as well as the many volunteers for their efforts in making this day special!
The Montgomery-Floyd Friends of the Library are represented by an all-volunteer committee dedicated to bringing the tour to our community each year. Proceeds from the tour go to the Summer Reading Program and other programs offered through our libraries. The Friends of the Library extends gratitude to our business and private sponsors for their support in making sure our ticket proceeds go directly to our libraries.
Regrettably the tour is not ADA accessible.
Tour sponsors for 2023 include: Anonymous, Blacksburg Breakfast Lions Club, Bonomo’s, Capone’s Jewelry, Juneberry Gardens, McCoy Funeral Home, Don and Carolyn Rude, Shelter Alternatives, and Warm Hearth Village.
