Sustainable Garden Tour 2022

June 18, 2022
10:00 a.m.

Meeting Place: ReWild Garden at Dodge, 58 Harbor Road

Click here to see the 2023 Sustainable Garden Tour


IMPORTANT NOTICE

We thank you for your interest in our Sustainable Garden Tour. Unfortunately, we have run out of available spots on the tour and we have to close registration. You are still welcome to visit the Growing Love Community Garden on Manorhaven Blvd. in Port Washington, which is yet another fantastic example of sustainable gardening.

Once again, thank you for your interest in this tour and please keep an eye out for future events!


Welcome to Port Washington’s first Sustainable Garden Tour. Organized by ReWild Long Island and The Port Washington Water District.

As part of our “Do It For Port” water conservation campaign, we invite residents to take part in a ‘show and tell’ of beautiful, low water, earth-friendly landscapes around Port Washington.

Feast your senses on bio-diverse and sustainable gardens that feature pollinator-friendly native plants, no mow lawns, composting, organic fruits and vegetables, smart sprinklers and more. You’ll pick up ideas to create a great-looking garden that uses less water and fewer chemicals while saving time and money.

We are grateful for the homeowners and organizations sharing their properties and practices. 

***If inclement weather, please look for an e-mail from PWWD with instructions***

All guests will receive a welcome gift.

Note: Spots are limited. If for some reason you register and cannot attend, please e-mail info@pwwd.org so we can give your spot to someone else. Thank you.

Garden Tour Stops and Descriptions:

Meeting Place and Start Time:

ReWild Garden at Dodge
58 Harbor Road
Port Washington, NY 11050

June 18, 2022
10:00 a.m.

Receive a map of the tour with parking instructions

This garden is an emerging sustainable space on the historic grounds of the 300-year-old Thomas Dodge Homestead garden along the shore of beautiful Mill Pond. It is being designed by a core of dedicated volunteers as a community showcase for sustainable landscaping, featuring native perennials, organic fruits and vegetables, composting, and water conservation.

Garden 1: Annemarie Ansel
Feature: Incorporating Phlox and Sunflowers

  • Long time gardener with vegetables, fruits and flowers
  • Native plants for pollinators and to reduce water usage
  • Fully organic with greenhouse and almost year-round interest
  • Driveway converted into a vast container garden
  • Shade gardening

Quote from the host:
“Every year I took out another piece of lawn and replaced it with a native garden.”

Garden 2: Margaret (Meg) & Charlie Desiervo
Feature:  Creating an Elegant Landscape that is Sustainable and Attractive

  • Thyme lawn and lots of colors, berries, bees, and birds
  • Small property that delights pollinators, homeowners, and their dog
  • Composting with small barrel system
  • Rain Barrel and Drip Water System

Quote from the host:
“You can do a lot with a small space, and yet make it look good. We have attracted a lot of attention on our street with curious neighbors, who are now starting to rewild their yards!”

Garden 3: Growing Love Community Garden in the Manorhaven Preserve
Feature: Connecting Nature to People

  • No lawn. Vegetable garden beds, trees, perennials, ground covers
  • Bluestone patio and seating for community interaction
  • Composting demonstration
  • Children’s garden, pollinator garden, memorial garden, and vertical garden
  • Soil regeneration
  • Elbow grease irrigation
  • Mulch
  • Brambles

Quote from the host:
“I think of the garden in terms of function. Picking the right plant for the right place. I try to put plants together that cooperate well.”

Garden 4: Peggy Maslow
Feature: How to Attract Birds to Your Garden

  • Sun and shade flowering plants for all seasons
  • Predominantly native plants
  • Habitat and food for birds and pollinators
  • Low water garden with water reuse
  • No pesticides
  • Composting and Bokashi

Quote from the host:
“As a long-time member of North Shore Audubon, I try to look at my garden with the eyes of a bird. Birds can’t resist a pretty yard with plenty of delicious native seeds and caterpillars, as well as places to hide and forage.”

Garden 5: Raju Rajan
Feature: A Radical Backyard Meadow

  • Front yard with flowering trees, lawn and a well-controlled native planting, demarcated by bamboo edging
  • Backyard is a wildflower meadow and vegetable garden
  • Demonstration of composting, smart and drip watering systems

Quote from the host:
“Native plants, just like any other plants, can be used in a variety of ways from formal landscapes to wildscapes. We just love how our gardens feed our soul with surprise and delight each week.”

Garden 6: Joanne Strongin
Feature: Landscaping that Barely Needs Water

  • Mix of garden and turf in a tiny front yard
  • Doing a lot with little space and yet attracting plenty of pollinators
  • Lush and elegant, yet biodiverse and low-maintenance
  • Thyme path

Quote from the host:
“We love our little front yard where there is always something new happening. Our native plant-based design is very low-maintenance. Plants will thrive with just occasional watering.”