2019 Gate & Garden Tour
Successful Tour & Fundraiser
The Laguna Beach Garden Club hosted its 15th annual Gate & Garden Tour on May 3, 2019 — a major fundraiser that netted $25,000 to help support educational school gardens, student scholarships and community projects.
Four hundred ticketholders visited eight private gardens — four inside the gated community of Emerald Bay and four in the adjacent neighborhood. One hundred club volunteers worked in shifts to ensure the event went off without a hitch, including multiple docents in each garden. Major sponsors for the 2019 tour were Tracy and Jeffrey Katz of Laguna Beach, the Laguna Beach Water District and Tequila Corcel.
Some Highlights
This year, the water district launched its first annual “Most Waterwise Gate & Garden” Award for the event and gave it to garden owner Stacy Simone. Her eye-appealing Zen garden evoked a sense of serenity and utilized water-efficient design, plant and irrigation choices.
The largest garden on the tour was a showstopper – Greg Salmeri’s in Emerald Bay. As the owner of Rolling Greens Nursery in Los Angeles, he personally oversaw the creation of a terraced Mediterranean garden on his double-lot. As a special surprise, Greg opened his magnificent home to tourgoers and served them breakfast and lunch in the garden.
Festive Reception & Raffle
The start and end point of the tour was Arabella Laguna Guest Cottages, the location of tour reception and raffle. Cinco de Mayo festivities there lasted from 9 am to 4:30 pm. Tourgoers enjoyed premium margarites from sponsor Tequila Corcel, as well as mimosas, beer, wine, tacos and burritos. Complimentary homemade cookies ran out by the end of the day.
The raffle featured more than 35 prizes donated by local artists and businesses totaling over $7,000. For the second year in a row, Ana Sanchez of Irvine won the top prize – this year, a floral arrangement and $1,000 gift card from Dana Point Nursery.
Questions?
Please contact our tour director, using the form below.
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