Allison writes in…

The Decatur Garden Tour blooms again this fall, September 25 and 26, inviting visitors to step “behind the fence” to explore extraordinary private gardens and experience first-hand thriving community greenspaces. …In celebration of the 100th anniversary of the incorporation of the original township of Oakhurst – annexed between 1914-1916 and now one of Decatur’s most popular neighborhoods – many of the featured gardens are located in that area.

Dates & Hours: Decatur Garden Tour hours are Saturday, September 25 from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and from 7 to 9 p.m. and Sunday, September 26 from noon to 5 p.m.

Tickets: $20 in advance, online at www.decaturgardentour.com or at these Decatur retailers: Intown ACE Hardware, Smith ACE Hardware and The Seventeen Steps. Tickets are $25 the day of the tour and will be sold at the Oakhurst Community Garden Project at 435 Oakview Road, Decatur, GA 30030 and at Ryan Gainey’s garden, 129 Emerson Avenue, Decatur, GA, 30030

Group Tickets: For questions regarding group discounts ($15 for eight or more), call (404) 371-4444.

Location: While gardeners who purchased tickets in advance may begin the tour at any point along the route, the Oakhurst Community Garden Project at 435 Oakview Road, Decatur, GA 30030 is a suggested starting point for all others.

On the Web: For additional details, suggested Decatur dining destinations and online ticket sales, visit www.decaturgardentour.com.

Read the full descriptive list of this year’s featured gardens after the jump. Read the rest of this entry »

This year the Decatur Preservation Alliance and Oakhurst Community Garden Project-hosted Decatur Garden Tour celebrates its 20th anniversary on Saturday  Sept. 27th (from 10a-5p; 7p-9p) and Sunday the 28th (from 12p-5p).

According to the tour’s official press release, visitors will explore 12 private and 4 public gardens, including those of Cakes and Ale restaurant owners Billy and Kristin Allin and AJC wine writer Gil Kulers and his wife Eleanor.  Also new this year is a twilight tour with wine and entertainment in Ryan Gainey’s and Pandra Williams’ gardens. The tour will be complemented by a variety of gardening lectures and demonstrations, musical performances and children’s activities.   For the full schedule click here.

Tickets are $25 a piece, which get you into all events (including the twilight tour).  To buy them online or see a list of locations where tour tickets are sold, click here.

This morning Creative Loafing has a great little interview with Decatur’s most famous gardener.

Pathetically, I’ve never seen the gardens. But I did encounter Gainey at a commission meeting one evening. He is a definite presence. One of those people so comfortable with who he is and what he does that when he speaks up, you can’t help but pay extra attention to what he’s saying.

If you’d like to visit his gardens, his website RyanGainey.com assures us that “…Ryan’s garden is open to the public throughout the year. The garden is at 129 Emerson Avenue in Decatur, Georgia, about 5 miles east of downtown Atlanta.”

More articles and Ryan Gainey products can also be found at the website.