Martinez gardener gives final tour

Dana Hearn was skeptical when the bus she was traveling in pulled into Barrington subdivision June 4 to take a tour of Sharyn Altman’s gardens.

“When you pull into a lovely neighborhood like this, you think they’re going to a have a couple of hydrangeas, and it’s like ‘oh my goodness,’” said Hearn, who called the gardens “amazing.”

Hearn was part of a group from Wing Haven in Charlotte, N.C. who came to the area to view three locations including Altman’s 1.2 acres in Columbia County.

A lifetime Master Gardener, Altman and her husband, Roy, have lived in Barrington for 30 years and have created a haven in the back yard. It’s been a stop on many events including Sacred Heart’s annual garden tour, and Sharyn Altman has conducted dozens of walkthroughs for other groups and individuals over the years.

June 4 marked the end, however. Citing age and health reasons, Altman will no longer conduct tours.

“We are winding down,” she told them.

But on Tuesday, the Altman gardens, in all of their grandeur, showed off for the guests.

Hearn had joked about only seeing hydrangeas. While the garden sports many of them in their rich full blue blooms, they aren’t the only flowers in her yard. Calla lilies, which Altman said are easy to grow, are also in place. One of the guests spotted a yellow calla hidden among the hedges, much to Altman’s delight. Another flower Altman doesn’t have to attend to much is the larkspur. Each year, the blossom comes back in abundance.

Other lilies in the yard include the gloriosa, sometimes called the fire lily because of its red, flame-like blooms. Altman offered a word of warning when it came to them.

“Plant them in pots,” she said because they tend to spread.

Magnolias, wildflowers and sunflowers are among the other flowers currently in bloom.

Not only does she have extensive florals, Altman has a large vegetable garden and a greenhouse. There are multiple blueberry bushes, fig trees and a muscadine vine on a trellis made by her husband.

Altman loves butterflies. She has a butterfly-shaped bench in her yard and another bench with blue butterfly upholstery. For many years, she caught and tagged Monarch butterflies. She let the group in on the secret to catching butterflies – use a large fishing net and be quick.

Her husband made a butterfly enclosure. She lamented that there were no butterflies in the house. She’s seen fewer of them each year.

However, part way through the tour, Altman noticed a lone monarch butterfly fluttering through the area.

Suzanne Holmes, with the University of Georgia extension agency, has known Altman for many years and joined the tour to answer any questions people might have. It was a bittersweet day for her.

“She’s one of the most wonderful gardeners. She’s the kind of person who gives and gives and gives,” she told the group.

 What’s unique about her home, said Holmes, is that Altman is a collector and has species of plants that people don’t always see.

While the warmer months have more varieties of flowers in bloom, Altman has beautiful flowers at other times of the year, and that’s a good thing.

“I love spring,” she said. “If everything bloomed at one time, it would be too much. We couldn’t stand it.”

Charmain Z. Brackett, the publisher of Augusta Good News and Inspiring: Women of Augusta, has covered Augusta’s news for more than 35 years. Reach her at charmain@augustagoodnews.com. Sign up for the newsletter here.