On June 22, the
Madisonville Beautification Committee is hosting its third annual Madisonville Blooms Garden Tour. The tour begins at the corner of Madison Road and Whetsel Avenue, and includes seven gardens.
In 2010, the inactive Beautification Committee reorganized under new leadership, and many of its members were gardeners. They all shared a vision and were eager to change the perception of Madisonville.
Three years ago, the Beautification Committee discovered “hidden treasures” among Madisonville’s gardens, and felt it was important to showcase the gardens to show that residents take pride in their yards.
“We wanted to foster community involvement and preserve and improve the beauty of the neighborhood,” says Beautification Committee member Carolyn Winstead.
Each garden has its own character, and many are reminiscent of the homeowners’ childhood memories of their parents and grandparents’ yards, Winstead says.
The gardens also vary in type: One is a mix of vegetables and flowers and has been around since 1920; another vegetable garden was created by the youth at
Lighthouse Community School in 2012; a third has bamboo and is considered a Zen garden; and the other four are mainly flower gardens.
The tour is from noon to 4 p.m., and tickets are $10 per person. Tickets can be purchased at
French Rendezvous, located at 6124 Madison, before the event or the day of. At the end of the tour, guests are invited to a reception at
Madisonville Arts and Cultural Center for refreshments and entertainment.
All proceeds from Madisonville Blooms will benefit the Beautification Committee’s work to promote beauty in the neighborhood. The event is sponsored by H.J. Benken Garden Center and Lighthouse Community School.
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