The Soroptimist International of Medford is offering its 21st Annual “Gardens for Good” Tour on Saturday, May 18, 2024, from 10 am to 4 pm.  This garden tour is an opportunity to see four (4) unique gardens around the Valley, which are both beautiful in their own right but also either promote wildlife or use environmentally sound practices.  The “Gardens for Good” tour promises to offer some creative ideas to use in your own yard or garden:  techniques which do not rely on pesticides or fertilizers and/or support the bees, birds, bats, frogs, and other critical wildlife in our local ecosystems.

One of the four (4) gardens available to tour on May 18th is a five (5) acre permaculture farm.  The property, located in the heart of the Rogue Valley, features an integrated food and forest system.  Integrated farming is a sustainable agricultural system that combines multiple enterprises, such as crops, horticulture, animal husbandry or forestry.  The goal of integrated farming is to reduce the use of inputs from outside the farm, while also optimizing the production of abundant, nutrient-rich food.  The guided tour of this garden shows off an elderberry and medicinal orchard.  Indeed, everything on the farm is either medicinal, herbal, edible or a pollinator.

Another unique and diverse garden is displayed around a 1942 English Cottage House.  Entry to the mature English garden is through a wisteria and honeysuckle arbor.  The garden itself is replete with giant calla lilies, peonies, loropetalums, oriental lilies, hydrangeas, rhododendrons, camelias and a sweet garden swing.  Another garden is filled with diverse, native birds and bird song, as 35 different bird houses are concealed around the charming, one-acre property.  In addition to the four gardens on the tour, there is also a bonus garden, located in Jacksonville, Oregon.  This property includes a restored portion of Daisy Creek and an “urban forest,” of sorts, with an abundance of native trees and plants.  This property also hosts a “must see” sanctuary for rescued, largely domesticated pigeons.

Tickets are $20 for the Tour.  Tickets are available online at www.si-medford.orgTickets.  Tickets can also be bought at either:  (1) Judy’s Florist, 337 East Pine Street, Central Point, Oregon (541-664-1878), or Country Quilts, 130 N.4th Street, Jacksonville, Oregon (541-899-1972).  Also, there will be raffle tickets available at each garden for a drawing that day for a giant petunia basket from Four Seasons Nursery or a Pre-Planned Planting Collection from Shooting Star Nursery.  Raffle tickets are $5 each or $20 for 5.

In addition to spending a beautiful Saturday afternoon enjoying inspiring gardens, the proceeds from this garden tour benefit the mission of the Soroptimist International of Medford.  The Medford Chapter is part of a larger international group, which strives to be a global voice for women and girls in their education, health, and economic independence.  Their flagship project, “Live Your Dream,” awards scholarships to local women head of households enrolled in post secondary education or training programs.  Over half of the recipients of this program are survivors of domestic violence, trafficking or sexual assault.