Editor's note: Longtime Waukesha County columnist Lorayne Ritt is making her debut this week in Brookfield-Elm Grove NOW. As she has for the last 10 years with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Ritt will write about what's happening with Waukesha County's nonprofit organizations.
Each year the Oconomowoc Woman's Club, with the cooperation of gracious homeowners, opens up some of the most beautiful gardens in the area to the public.
In the words of the poet John Keats, "A thing of beauty is a joy forever," and the many people who had the opportunity to tour six gardens in the 2009 garden tour on July 18 came away with ideas of how they might create such beauty at their own homes.
The Zion Episcopal Church in Oconomowoc sits on a peninsula on Fowler Lake. Thirteen themed gardens are laid out behind the church with water all around. Mary Casey, a church member, led a tour of the gardens explaining the significance of each.
A historic 1927 estate on Oconomowoc Lake has been restored and preserved by Veronica and Don Borkenhagen. Towering trees provide umbrellas of shade over the gardens and fountains.
Lark Kulikowski and her husband, Don, have worked 14 years to develop the growing zones at their home on Scuppernong Circle in Dousman. The property contains a wetland that borders Scuppernong Creek. All of the property has been landscaped and decorated with household items that add color and interest.
Leslyn and Dave Mueller also have landscaped the grounds of their Nashotah home themselves. That included planting trees and installing 20 tons of small stones in flower beds. The couple did this while running their restaurant, Spinnakers, on Lac La Belle in Oconomowoc.
Liz and Jeff Lunde live in a passive solar home on a drumlin west of Oconomowoc on Allen Road. Seven acres of gardens surround the home, which they have styled with found objects they have incorporated into the design.
Erla and Bud Newbecker occupy the same home on Armour Road in Oconomowoc that they bought 55 years ago. Over the years they have decorated their gardens with statues of playing children. These symbolize the 35 children they helped raise.
Chairing the Oconomowoc Woman's Club 2009 Tour of Gardens was Mary Jane Kamber. Her committee included Isabel Ladwig, Gloria Teifke, Jeanne Leitl, Ann Sullivan, Betty Olson, Marilyn Henes, Helen Hertnecky, Pat Soyker, Jeanie Burchardt and Georgeann Gossett. All of the profits from the event will be donated to local charities.
Lorayne Ritt can be reached at (262) 542-6797. Her fax number is (262) 650-0275.
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