Lone Star State 2008 - Abel Garden

Garden Tours -- The Marney and Roger Abel Garden

We had eight buses, and the tours of the guest gardens were on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. Unfortunately, we had a lot of very warm weather in March and early April, and many of the gardens were already past their peak bloom periods. There were three gardens in the immediate Austin area.

The Marney and Roger Abel Garden in Austin had the most spectacular setting of any of the gardens on tour. It is a backyard garden, and the Abels’ ornate home is located on a sloping lot with winding paths and multiple garden plantings bordered by white Texas limestone. A lovely fountain with sculptured dolphins and a beautiful swimming pool added further elegance to their garden. Another special attraction was Seeger, Marney and Roger’s beautiful Akita, which looks ferocious, but was gentle and submissive when Marney brought him out side to greet some of us as we were about to depart. Marney has also served as the president of the Iris Society of Austin for the past two years.