Fragrance, Color, Texture

Artists and gardeners have always had a symbiotic relationship. You can’t mention Monet without envisioning water lilies. And how many of us imagine sunflowers to rival Van Gogh’s when our own tiny blooms pop up out of the ground? Master gardener Betty Crowther has transformed her suburban Evans yard into a living work of art that, like any masterpiece, lures you in and changes your perspective.

This plant enthusiast has created a three-dimensional experience that takes gardening to the next level. The sight of bright faced Black-eyed Susans smile up at you. The feel from the delicate jacaranda to the thorny coral bean presents a spectrum of textures. The smell of fragrant gingers and heady orange tea olives lead you through her garden by your nose. There are the sounds of the pond filled with tadpoles, a waterfall and the ever-present bees, frogs and birds. Even your taste buds are tempted with basil and sugar cane. It’s a veritable feast for the senses that began with a vision and a mostly blank canvas.

A Blank Canvas

Surveying Crowther’s generous backyard filled to the brim with trees, shrubs, blooms and tropical fare, it’s hard to believe just five years ago it was full of pines and shade. A plan to alter the vista drastically and add a generous amount of sunlight and color nearly ended in disaster. “My yard was devastated. The grass was gone and they took out 16 trees and destroyed my garden in the process. I cried every day,” remembers Crowther. That’s when her engineer husband stepped in and laid the foundation of what was ultimately to be their tour de force. His design consisted of a brick patio, extended deck and the most striking feature—a winding garden pathway where today delightful surprises await visitors at every turn.

A Brilliant Gallery

Entering the backyard from the side gate, visitors are greeted by the soothing sound of the pond. Two previous locations kept it hidden from view, but its current spot makes the pond a focal point at the entrance to the rear garden. As any artist—or gardener—can tell you, the creative process is one of constant change. It’s a trademark of Crowther’s garden; if something is not thriving, it will be moved. “Nothing stays the same for long. I move plants the way some people move furniture,” she quips. The pond’s proximity to the house guarantees year-round enjoyment. Water lilies cover the surface, blooming in the morning and closing in the late afternoon. Papyrus, parrots feather and cattails are right at home, while the exotic water lotus, accompanied by an ornamental heron, guards the waters. Tiny goldfish dart among the underwater growth. Wave petunias, marigolds, dianthus and liriope frame the surrounding space and add a wave of color. Nearby, a rare variety of pink trumpet vine blooms, flanked by a black-stemmed bamboo. The juvenile stalk is green, but the mature plant boasts the unusual darkened stem.

Between the brick patio and the garden path, adjacent to the pond, is the upper garden directly behind the house. There is perennial interest here. Even in the midst of winter, one look out the window is a reminder that the toils of garden labor have their rewards. Blooming spirea, camellias, edgeworthia and quince add warmth in the quiet cold months. In the spring comes color from azaleas, lavender cleome, spider azaleas and strawberry begonias. A Forest Pansy red bud tree peeks out over the back deck, boasting a brilliant shade of bright red. Summer brings the cheerful flowers of the shrimp plant and the foliage of the boehmeria and 11 varieties of hydrangeas. Fall brings a magnificent transformation as the branches of two coral bark Japanese maples change from bright green to flaming orange. This spectrum of colors would inspire any artist to pick up a brush.

A trip down this garden path is like being on a treasure hunt, with new discoveries unfolding before you. Walk too fast and you may miss the bud of the intricate pineapple lily hiding out beside the columbine and foxgloves, heavy from the weight of plentiful blossoms. The sound of trickling water from a fountain surrounded by fragrant gingers and elephant ears, beckons you to a vibrant butterfly garden, where you’re likely to spot a hummingbird enjoying the bright red cannas, Texas hibiscus or the unique firespike. Bengal Tiger cannas stand out against a verdant backdrop filled with color, a visual payoff from the 400 bulbs planted throughout the garden.

Content tree frogs cozy up on stalks of sugar cane; butterflies dance along the lively pathway flitting from one generous bloom to another. A new variety of butterfly bush, the purple blooming Evil Ways, grows alongside lantana, Queen Anne’s lace and milkweed, a favorite of the caterpillars. “A lot of people squish them, but if you want butterflies, you have to welcome the caterpillars too,” Crowther says.

The lower tropical garden includes a fan palm, banana, pomegranate and chase tree. Attention-grabbing foliage is provided by the castor bean plant and the big leaf Princess Flower with leaves as large as platters. A corner swing near the tropical area welcomes you to sit and soak in the fragrant ginger, Carolina jasmine and Beauty Berry. From Kangaroo Paw to flowering almond to Rose of Sharon, the common and the unique are at home here. “I’m not a plant snob. I like different—and I like common too. If it’s pretty to me, I’ll plant it.”

A birdbath waits at the end of the path, tucked away in a tropical corner filled with exotic blooms. Varieties of lilies abound—from the delicate Hidden Lily to the voodoo lily with its exotic speckled stems. An enormous elephant ear threatens to engulf the area; there are 11 varieties here, from dwarf tropicals to hardy giant varieties, like Lime Zinger and Mickey Mouse. In the garden alongside the screened porch, the fragrance of tea olive and gingers mingles with the sights of a bold big leaf fig, tiny dwarf pomegranate, fuzzy red bottlebrush shrub and the delicate jacaranda tree, with its feathery fern-like branches on display.

English Roots

Betty and her husband Michael moved to Evans more than 20 years ago, but evidence of her English roots abounds. Rounding the curve as you approach their home, you can’t miss the explosion of color from the Indian Summer Black-eyed Susans and yellow cannas in the bed that makes up the length of the front yard. Plentiful color in both the front and back yards is a British tradition. This bed is anchored by winter blooming cherry trees and camellias. Spring color comes in purple cone flowers, Mexican petunia, indigo, a butterfly bush and basil, and that’s just a sampling. “My gardening style, if you want to call it that, would be closer to a cottage style than a formal English look, but I appreciate it all. I have a great many gardening friends and yet almost every one of their gardens is different. I just plant what makes me happy,” she says.

It’s hard to imagine this petite woman with the proper accent getting down and dirty in the garden. But all it takes is one glimpse at the look of wonder on her face as she describes a bloom or the pixie grin that crosses her lips as she speaks of her “happy accidents,” to realize this is a tried and true gardener. “I get such a kick out of the whole experience. You stick a brown ball into the ground and later you’ve got this cheerful, gorgeous blossom looking at you. I just love it!”

She is especially proud of the plants she grows from seed and has advice for new gardeners: Take the time to learn your growing conditions and no pesticides. “Spraying kills the bad bugs, but you get rid of good ones too. I’d rather enjoy the dragonflies, frogs and bees than have a picture perfect garden.”

Another garden essential is husband Michael. “He doesn’t garden, but he comes in handy.” He converted the screened porch to a winter greenhouse and designed an enviable compost system. A lifetime master gardener and a member of the Cherokee Rose Garden Club, Crowther enjoys having fellow garden enthusiasts tour her garden. “We all have different styles, but we’re connected because we like digging in the dirt.” Last spring, her garden was featured on the Sacred Heart Garden Tour. Many of her plants came from swaps and trips to nurseries across the Southeast and it’s rare for a friend to leave her place without a clipping of some kind.

With a daughter and young grandchildren in Atlanta, Crowther is on the road more often these days and would like to simplify her garden—someday. “I keep saying I’m going to scale back, but then I see a seed catalog and I can’t resist,” she laughs. Those creative juices are hard to suppress. Her son Tom most likely understands—he’s a professor of art at Augusta State University.

“You’re always planning ahead, always thinking about next year. But unlike painting, you’re never done. The garden is constantly changing and evolving. It takes a vision and a dream—and lots of optimism and patience,” she says, standing back to observe her creation. Spoken like a true artist.