Beautiful gardens in Avon, CT

I drive by this house almost every day on my way to work.

Once each year Chrissie and John D'Esopo, open their house and gardens to visitors... this year the "My Sister's Place" was the lucky recipient of their genrosity. The house in Avon Connecicut is known for its lush gardens and charming...

Another garden view.

The Connecticut Horticultural Society sponsored an open garden tour today of a landmark house that sits on a busy street where the exuberant gardens routinely stop traffic. This private home is well known --- Chrissie D'Esopo's gardens have been featured in Fine Gardening magazine and others. You just can't miss all the stuff going on in the front and side yards as you pass by on the street. The house itself is classic New England Greek Revival, beautifully kept among riotous gardens and…

Rainy days and Mondays, according to an old Carpenters' song, always get folks down. Guess it's even worse when you get a twofer, and it rains on a Monday. But my friend Chrissie D'Esopo makes the most of it. Her amazing Avon, CT garden--a color-drenched collection of many thousands of annuals--is on tour this weekend, so she's pampering petunias and anything else that may get hammered by today's downpours. To protect those tender treasures, she deploys a slew of strategically placed…

Stopped by the other day at gardening juggernaut Chrissie D'Esopo's for a look at what she's been up to this season, and...wow! This hillside, top, is her latest evolving project and it's going great guns. It's been a good year for establishing new areas--with all the rain there's no need to water, and boy has this area ever been catching on as a sizzling example of her typical no-holds-barred approach to color. Of course, all the rain has meant lots of slugs, fungal diseases, and other fun…

The Connecticut Horticultural Society sponsored an open garden tour today of a landmark house that sits on a busy street where the exuberant gardens routinely stop traffic. This private home is well known --- Chrissie D'Esopo's gardens have been featured in Fine Gardening magazine and others. You just can't miss all the stuff going on in the front and side yards as you pass by on the street. The house itself is classic New England Greek Revival, beautifully kept among riotous gardens and…

Since everything outside is either white or brown, it seems like a good day to think about some other colors, lots of other colors. I'm starving for them. So where better to turn than to my friend--and garden juggernaut--Chrissie D'Esopo (remember her dragon?), who loves color and is not shy about it. I don't know too many other gardens that put on such a lavish display, with big blocks of color jammed higgledy, piggledy against other blocks of color. Wowsa! What a show. She does it almost…

Once each year Chrissie and John D'Esopo, open their house and gardens to visitors... this year the "My Sister's Place" was the lucky recipient of their genrosity. The house in Avon Connecicut is known for its lush gardens and charming...

The backyard is just as spectacular as the front!

Chrissie and John D'Esopo's Avon Home. READ MORE LINKS: My Sister's Place | Interval House

Since everything outside is either white or brown, it seems like a good day to think about some other colors, lots of other colors. I'm starving for them. So where better to turn than to my friend--and garden juggernaut--Chrissie D'Esopo (remember her dragon?), who loves color and is not shy about it. I don't know too many other gardens that put on such a lavish display, with big blocks of color jammed higgledy, piggledy against other blocks of color. Wowsa! What a show. She does it almost…

Chrissie and John D'Esopo's Avon Home. READ MORE LINKS: My Sister's Place | Interval House

Chrissie and John D'Esopo's Avon Home. READ MORE LINKS: My Sister's Place | Interval House