Tour timeline
Brian Helgoe, general manager of Estate Gardens by ValleyCrest in Calabasas, offers the following timeline for gardeners preparing to host a tour. The advice is just as relevant for anyone sprucing up the yard before a big party.Three to four weeks before: Get rid of anything that no longer fits your design plan. That may include overgrown plants, outdated furniture, maybe a water feature. Editing the old will help you decide what to do new.
Two to three weeks before: Find plants to add spice to your space.
The week before: Lay down dark mulch to make colors pop.
Two days before: Give the garden a deep watering. By tour day, it will be dry and people walking in the beds won’t compact the soil.
Hours before: Pull off damaged leaves and do a final sweep.
— Janet Eastman
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