Brothers Tom and Louis have gardening in their blood. How did it get there? They have fond memories of growing up with gardens. During their childhood, it seemed that everyone in the family grew a vegetable garden and many home gardens had perennials that had wonderful smells and fond memories. Starts of these perennials were always shared with family and friends. Gardens are therapeutic and are a great place to use all five of our senses.

The Mays Garden is a residential garden located at beautiful Lake Waynoka in southern Ohio, which is considered a part of Appalachia. Lake Waynoka is a private, gated community, but visitors are allowed to enter with a pass from a resident of the lake. Tom and Louis are always happy to give tours of the garden and welcomes visitors.

The garden is a work in progress, as is most gardens. It consists of four lots around a private home and has been in existence for over twenty-five years. The garden is totally landscaped, complete with raised beds, outdoor paver patio areas, an arbor, gold fish pond, raised-bed vegetable garden, a small orchard, and numerous perennial and annual flower beds.

The garden is dotted with a variety of unusual and flowering trees and shrubs. Some varieties of trees include both the red buckeye and red horse chestnut, fringe, kwanzan cherry, tricolor beech, redbuds, Japanese snowbell, Kentucky coffee, yellow wood, golden chain, many varieties of Japanese maples, Japanese ornamental trees, dogwoods, crab apples, and a variety of magnolias. The garden consists of some beautiful shrubs, including rhododendrons, azaleas, deutzia, viburnum, weigela, crape myrtle, and many others.

Each year we plant a vegetable garden. It’s never the same, but we plant some staples annually. Some of the vegetables we plant include a variety of green beans including a greasy string bean that has been handed down through generations in our family. The vegetable garden is planted with potatoes (which are always planted by the dark of the moon), tomatoes, cucumbers, green peppers, cabbage, lettuce, asparagus, peas, okra, pink-eyed peas, and squash. Containers dot the garden, filled with herbs and green onions. Produce is eaten fresh and neighbors and friends enjoy these fresh vegetables during cookouts at the Mays Garden.

The garden was created as a place of tranquility and relaxation. Since birds are fed in the garden, visitors will find numerous varieties and often marvel at the number of birds that visit the garden. About fifteen years ago, we found an albino bluebird in our vegetable garden. The photo was used by the New York Audubon Society on their web site.

A Buddhist bell welcomes visitors to the water garden and gives a beautiful meditative tone. Feng shui is used throughout the garden to provide certain illusions for the visitor. Users can also use free WIFI as the garden is a hotspot. A variety of outdoor furniture is located throughout the garden and visitors can even use the hammock for relaxation. Often visited by local garden clubs, artists, high school biology students, card players, and other organizations, the Mays Garden is there for the enjoyment of others and visitors and groups are always welcome. For more information, you can visit the Mays Garden on Facebook and contact the Mays brothers there.