Bedford Garden Club groovy with theme

18th annual tour begins at library, includes Lutz home

Editor's Note: This article corrects the date of the tour to July 12.

Ken and Jeanie Lutz will display their garden at their Lambertville home during the Bedford Garden Club tour on July 18.

TEMPERANCE — “Flower power” is the theme of this year’s Bedford Flower and Garden Club Tour, scheduled for July 12.

This is the 18th annual tour. Jessie Green, a co-coordinator of the event, said the theme was a whimsical hearkening to the slogan of the late 1960s and early 1970s that was an expression of peace, love, and understanding, but in this case has a narrower and more literal meeting.

“It’‍s about flower gardens,” Mrs. Green said. “It’s touchy and colorful. It’‍s just a nice theme that I thought would be fun.”

The tour will feature six township home gardens and the garden at the Bedford Branch Library, 8575 Jackman Rd. The library is the tour’s starting point, and the $8 tickets can be purchased there starting at 9 a.m. Tickets are sold until 2 p.m. The tour ends at 3 p.m.

The Springdale Drive home of Jeanie and Ken Lutz in Lambertville exhibits pride on the tour. Mrs. Lutz said she spends three hours a day watering her one-acre yard, which is filled with perennials, including hostas, roses, and dahlias.

“I hope for rain all the time,” she joked.

The yard backs on to a neighbor’s shed, on which Mrs. Lutz has painted a picture of a cottage. The Lutzes also keep a vegetable garden.

Outside the library, crafters will sell a variety of garden-related merchandise, such as birdhouses and garden art. Housels Nursery of Temperance and Beauchamps Garden Center in Ottawa Lake have donated items for a raffle and will offer ticketholders a 10 percent discount the day of the tour.

The garden club was formed in 1993 by a group of women who saw a need for gardening work at the original library on Jackman. The club’s efforts intensified when the library was renovated and enlarged. The group also puts great stock in gardener education and holds classes.

With money raised from past tours, the club has awarded nearly $10,000 in scholarships to Bedford High School seniors intending to study in fields related to horticulture. Money also goes to library materials at the high school and educational programs.

Contact Carl Ryan at: carlryan@theblade.com or 419-724-6095.