Chrysanthemums at Bellingrath Gardens
Kiku Matsuri will kick-off the Chrysanthemum Festival at Bellingrath Gardens with a Japanese flair on November 13, 2010. There’ll be displays and demonstrations of Ikebana flower arranging, Bonsai, Sumi-e and an authentic Japanese Tea Ceremony.
The Cascading Mum Display Bloom Out is November 13 through 25, 2010. It features multitudes of four-foot-long mum cascades on bridges and balconies throughout the gardens, 12401 Bellingrath Gardens Road, Theodore, Alabama — that’s about 20 miles southwest of Mobile.
Bellingrath Gardens and Home was the creation of Mr. and Mrs. Walter Bellingrath. The Gardens first opened to the public in 1932 while a national garden club meeting was taking place in Mobile. Mr. Bellingrath placed an ad in the Mobile paper, announcing that anyone who would like to see the spring garden could do so free of charge. After an overwhelming response, the couple decided to keep the gardens open year-round, beginning in 1934.
At the age of 80, Walter Bellingrath announced the creation of a non-profit foundation to assure the continued existence of his beloved gardens in perpetuity. The Bellingrath-Morse Foundation was named to give credit to his late wife’s tireless effort in creating the Gardens.
(Photo courtesy Bellingrath Gardens)