Music in the Gardens: Peggy Miles Memorial Garden

from the program: This pocket-size townhouse garden was created by the late Peggy Miles and continues to thrive in her memory with tending by her husband Gene. The front porch abounds with the charm and beauty of colorful hanging baskets and potted plants. Narrow beds surrounding the house are planted with deer-resistant plants. The jewel of this garden is the tucked-away courtyard in back, filled with a bold composition of shade plants and well-chosen ground covers placed in crevices between pavers and river rocks. At the end of the courtyard is Gene’s upcycled pallet composter and a chiminea-seating area.

The first garden we visited on tour day…after getting a bit of a late start so our friends could visit the Port of Ilwaco Saturday Market…was the Peggy Miles Memorial garden. We had been working on it since Peggy’s husband had asked for our help a couple of months before, but most of the gardening preparaton for the tour was his, on the foundation of the garden that he and Peggy made together.

the garden viewed from the street, previous day

on tour day

Gene had set up, by his garage, photo boards showing the progress of the garden along with pictures of his late wife, Peggy, who had died of ovarian cancer in the spring of 2013.

the story of the garden

Peggy Taylor Miles

Gene’s beautiful eulogy

I am sure my friend Sheila was not the only one who wept when reading the story of the garden.

Later in the day, Gene brought out delicious snacks and served wine; we were north touring other gardens by then, so I am borrowing a photo taken by Peggy’s daughter:

photo by Annalisa Taylor Smith

Gene told us later that he served to tour guests the first batch of wine and brought out more from his personal cellar! The little caprese pizzas were a hit.

Shelley Loring was the musician at the Miles garden.

storyboards, tent, music, in the garage driveway

Next to this display, the front porch overflowed with beautiful containers that Gene had planted, along with hanging baskets from The Basket Case Greenhouse.

Annalisa Taylor Smith got a good shot of how the porch relates to the garage entrance.

front porch

porch banner

I love the way that Gene has containers lined up all along the driveway line between his and the neighbouring townhouse.

Gene talking to tour guests by the streetside garden.

The main thing we did to help Gene prepare was to choose plants to go in the streetside garden which was new and had only spring bulbs in it when we started, except for a big beautiful lavender at the far corner.

streetside garden

tour guests

You can see, above, the big lavender encircling the lamp post.

As always, folks wanted to know the name of the painted sage (Salvia viridis).

Everyone loved the sweet little garden in the drainage spot by the road, planted up by Gene with absolutely no help from us and just adorable!

a miniature garden

looking from the tiny garden to the townhouse garden (across entry drive)

Our friend Kathleen Sayce took this photo from the lavender corner of the driveway, looking toward the porch.

two plants by the house, planted by Gene: a salpiglossis and a ??

These photos, taken the day before the tour, show the two narrow beds running along the house and street.

Gene plans to make the bed next to the house curvier to echo the outer bed.

at the east end of the garden, a box planted with edibles, and a potato cage (left)

Just next to that wire cage planted with spuds is the gate to the beautiful little sheltered courtyard. Our friend Kathleen Shaw took a good photo showing the entry to the courtyard:

daylily at SE corner of house by courtyard gate

through the open gate

(Above) The medley of groundcovers and shade plants was designed by Peggy with the addition of baskets and, on the left, a new area planted by Gene in the early summer.

photo by Kathleen Sayce

pavers and river rock

On the back wall of the courtyard sits a composter that Gene built from old pallets.

Gene’s compost bin

looking south from the courtyard…such a pretty green oasis.

I appreciate my friends letting me use their photos. It is hard to remember to photograph everything on tour day in a garden with which I have become so familiar. I think this garden spoke to a lot of people about loss, love, and memory and it’s important to me to show every view of it.

“In one sense, there is no death. The life of a soul on earth lasts beyond her departure. You will always feel that life touching yours, that voice speaking to you, that spirit looking out of other eyes, talking to you in the familiar things she touched, worked with, loved as a familiar friend. She lives on in your life and in the lives of all others that knew her.” Angelo Patri