Georgian Bay Garden Tour Celebrates Banner 2025 Tour in Support of Hospice Huronia & Wye Marsh

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Like much of summer 2025, Saturday, July 26th was a scorcher, but that did not

discourage over 400 gardening enthusiasts from striking out for some Georgian Bay

adventure and green-thumb delights. Imaginations were tickled and inspiration

abundant within the twelve feature gardens, ranging from sandy beachfront dune

plantings, vegetable plots and swaths of beneficial wildflowers, to cosy backyard

retreats, trickling brooks and waterfalls, nature-decorated mossy rock retaining walls,

and exotic floral landscapes reminiscent of more tropical climes. Tour participants

delighted in varied artisan wares, scratched their heads in our reinvented Mystery

Plant Competition, and placed generous bids in our successful Silent Auction.

Recording substantial increases in ticket sales and all fundraising avenues, the

organizing committee recently presented a total of $16,000 ($8,000 each) to charity

partners: Hospice Huronia and Friends of Wye Marsh.

Tour-goers were astonished by the variety of garden styles and planting schemes

they encountered, while the organizing committee was impressed by the willingness

of our exceptional garden hosts to share both their property and their experience-

driven horticultural knowledge. “It is the anecdotes of gardening successes and

misfires communicated in one-on-one conversations between hosts & Tour

participants that many appreciate most about our garden tour,” says Wade Fornwald,

Committee Chair. “We are ecstatic that the combined efforts of all involved—garden

hosts, artisans, sponsors & silent auction donors, and the many volunteers from our

charity partners—generated a huge increase in funds that we could pass on to

Hospice Huronia, our long-time charity partner, as well as Friends of Wye Marsh,

who came on board for the 2025 Tour and will continue to be a Tour beneficiary

going forward.”

“Having been a recipient of the Garden Tour funds for 5 years, it’s amazing how the

power of the $25 garden tour fee and sponsorships and artisan contributions have

added up to be many thousands of dollars over that time. The Georgian Bay

Garden Tour has contributed close to $50,000 to our Bereavement Support

Program. It's a program that continues to see a growing demand for services and

the Garden Tour has made a significant impact,” says Debbie Kesheshian,

Executive Director of Hospice Huronia - Tomkins House. “It has allowed us to

expand our support offerings over these last few years and help many people from

communities across our region. Thank you to the Committee, the gardeners and all

those who supported the Tour again this year.”

Eric Walter, Executive Director of the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre acknowledged that

“The Georgian Bay Garden Tour has established itself as a meaningful and

memorable way for people to support local charity and marvel at the creativity,

passion, and talent of community members. The funding support we received from

this year’s event has meant the world to the staff and volunteers of Friends of Wye

Marsh, whose work in environmental education and stewardship doesn’t exist

without the support of the community.”

The Georgian Bay Garden Tour, now held annually each fourth Saturday of July, will

return for the peak of the gardening season on July 25th, 2026. The organizing

committee has already secured all of the feature gardens for the 2026 Tour and is

now actively curating the 2027 and 2028 rosters. Anyone interested in offering up

their garden for these or future Tours is welcome to contact us by email:

gbgardentour@gmail.com. The Tour organizing committee is always in need of

additional support and encourages Simcoe County gardeners to reach out and come

on board to help organize this 35-years’ strong Simcoe County tradition.