Thursday, March 21, 2013

Massee Lane: Millstone Collection in the Garden

Millstones collected for a lifetime & sited in David Strother's garden, now a public garden.





  Many were slave made.


Today, 1 millstone in a garden is special.  Hard to find, expensive, and getting it home & setting it in the garden, for most, requires men & equipment.





Concrete piers support these in the pond.


Doormat.


Only a handful are setting on the ground.  Showing off.


As time passed this pair, above, could have been sited where the evergreens are.  Their value, literally & historically, of incredible value.
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Garden & Be Well,     XO Tara
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Pics taken at Massee Lane Gardens, Fort Valley, GA, last weekend.  From their site, "The formal camellia garden at Massee Lane had its beginnings as the private garden of David C. Strother in the 1930's. He surrounded his farmhouse with camellias. Year by year, he moved out the garden borders to accommodate the camellias he wanted to plant. It is said he never included a camellia he didn't like, even if it were given to him! Mr. Strother donated this land to the American Camellia Society for its headquarters in 1966. 

Mr. Dave collected millstones and road markers - the millstones he brought into the garden have become a trademark. The old wire road mile markers, some with the mile number still visible, add another dimension to the garden. 

More than a thousand varieties of camellias are here, plus sasanquas, fragrant tea olives, Lady Banksia roses, and delightfully scented daphnes.

Enjoy a walk down Dave's Ville Walk - lined with his favorite camellia, 'Ville de Nantes', and admire his handiwork and smell the delicate aromas of tea olives. Always feel free to leave the pathways and walk among the camellias to find your own personal favorite."
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The daphnes & tea olives were blooming, and almost overwhelming.


4 comments:

hidden art of homemaking said...

I really, really enjoy your blog...e.v.e.r.y day..your pictures speak to me and your landscape advice is very good...I live in Winterville so I am a fellow Georgian...and have always wanted to go to Massee Lane..so thank you for these pictures..the garden is beautiful..
Mona

Barbara Pilcher said...

Thanks for taking us along. What a treasure those millstones are. I have seen some convincing ones made of hypertufa. Of course, the history isn't there, but they serve to faux-age a garden. Love your descriptions here and naming names.

Renée Finberg said...

i am totally loving the ROUND stones!!!

great work

xx

French Basketeer.com said...

Tara, really love how these mill stones are used in this garden....thank you for the photos~