Visit Gardens:
Bullivant : Driggs : Stanley-Moyemont : Olsen : Treherne-Michel : Little-Lewis

The 2008 Garden of John & Kathleen Bullivant

First-time visitors to the 5-acre woods and gardens of John and Kathleen Bullivant might think they had stumbled into a Northwest equivalent of Alice's Wonderland: a network of paths leads them from a formal English garden to shaded forests and glades populated with whimsical animal and elfin sculptures, and then through mazes of large and vibrant flowers. There's even a village green, suitable for a croquet match.

Originally from England, Manchester and Penzance, John and Kathleen initially described their gardening project as "clash of the titans: English and Northwest gardens meet." Five years later, they've renamed it "Arcadia," the term used for a region offering rural simplicity and contentment.

A long tree-lined drive leads to the main house and Kathleen's music studio, with formal English-style gardens in front and back. The summer garden, with a profusion of hot-colored flowers and shrubs, wide paths,  and raised rock-edged beds,, was established at the rear of the house in 2007 as a drought-tolerant experiment – one that is working splendidly.

Entirely owner-designed and maintained, the gardens include several areas of diverse, year-round foliage that are linked by woodland walking trails. Both John and Kathleen confer on design and plant choices, with John handling the plantings and Kathleen focusing on weeding and garden art selection.  Although an accomplished musician, running the noisy wood chipper is inexplicably one of her favorite tasks.

John is president of the Kitsap Chapter of the American Rhododendron Society, and his passion for rhodies is evident in the more than 200 varieties, over half of them species rather than hybrids, that thrive in the Bullivant gardens. They join a profusion of hardy fuchsias, pieris, hydrangeas, lilies, hostas, and heathers. And, with a nod to the garden's English heritage, a labyrinth is in the works.

AT THE GARDEN OF JOHN AND KATHLEEN BULLIVANT, MEMBERS OF THE AMERICAN RHODODENDRON SOCIETY AND RHODODENDRON SPECIES FOUNDATION WILL BE AVAILABLE TO PROVIDE INFORMATION AND ANSWER QUESTIONS.

The  American Rhododendron Society  is a non-profit organization whose purpose is to encourage interest in and to disseminate information about the genus Rhododendron.  Members' experience ranges from novice to expert.  Society activities include public education, flower shows, seed exchanges, scientific studies, and communication through publications and local and national meetings.  ARS chapters are located throughout the United States and Canada and in Denmark, Holland, Scotland, Sweden and Sikkim.

The Rhododendron Species Foundation is a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation, research, acquisition, evaluation, cultivation, public display, and distribution of Rhododendron species. The Foundation provides education relating to the genus; and serves as a unique resource for scientific, horticultural, and general gardening communities worldwide.

Vist more gardens:
Bullivant : Driggs : Stanley-Moyemont : Olsen : Treherne-Michel : Little-Lewis

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