 |
Above: The Charleston Historical Society is surrounded by flowering trees and shrubs. The local garden club encouraged residents in the 1950s to plant dogwoods. Missouri Division of Tourism photo
Below: The courthouse in Jackson has a fresh appearance in spring with flowering dogwood trees surrounding the building. Bollinger Mill, a state historic site, is nearby. Deborah Reinhardt Palmer photo |
 |
In southeast Missouri, fans of flowering shrubs can take in the Charleston festival, enjoy a scenic drive through the Mississippi River Valley and tour a charming family-owned public garden. The central part of Missouri welcomes spring with the Dogwood Festival at Lake of the Ozarks. Should you be too busy to squeeze in a day trip, stop and smell the flowers at two urban botanical gardens.
It’s spring and time to enjoy one of Mother Nature’s dressier moments. Here are three ideas for a day trip or overnight getaway.
A touch of the South in Charleston
A girlfriend getaway to Natchez planted the idea of bringing azaleas to southeast Missouri. Diane Petersen is a 25-year member and past president of Charleston’s Molly French Garden Club. She said a group of Charleston ladies visited Natchez in the 1940s and returned home inspired to try planting azaleas at home.
The garden club was organized in 1951 and encouraged residents to plant dogwood trees for spring color. More than 100 trees were planted. Two years later, the club held its first spring plant sale. “That gave everyone the opportunity to get azaleas and dogwoods for themselves,” Petersen said.
Because of the growing profusion of blooms, the chamber organized the first festival in 1968 to show off its charming, colorful town. And just as Natchez has developed a following for its spring pilgrimage, visitors to Charleston have come to expect the town’s Dogwood and Azalea Festival as a harbinger of spring to southeast Missouri. What began as a country fair has blossomed into the region’s premier spring festival. Last year, 31,000 visited Charleston during the weekend event, according to Claudia Arington, director of the local chamber of commerce.
The 41st annual Dogwood and Azalea Festival this year will be April 16–19, and will include home tours (including the candlelight tour with candle luminaries lighting the six-mile trail), a plant sale, parade, art show and carnival. Most of the floats incorporate flowers into the design. There’s even a dogwood queen to be crowned.
Visitors can pick up a brochure at the chamber, 110 E. Commercial, that is a helpful guide to the festival’s many activities. But you won’t want to miss the home tours (Thursday and Friday, 1 and 5 p.m., $10), the candlelight tour on Saturday evening, parade (11 a.m. Saturday, downtown) or the popular piano concerts (First Baptist Church, Saturday at 1:30 and 4 p.m. or Sunday at 3:30 p.m.). Arington recommends getting to the church at least 30 minutes before the concert–featuring eight pianos, 16 pianists and an organist–begins. And stop by the garden club’s plant sale for quality spring plants and tips to take home.
The blossoms usually are at their peaks during the festival, but late frosts can put a damper on the number of blooms. Regardless, the fun goes on in Charleston, usually with plenty of spring color.
“The first year I was here, more things were in bloom than had been in 25 years,” Arington said.
Azaleas love the alluvian soil in the area, Petersen said. She added it’s also important to select the right plant for Missouri’s climate.
“We’ve been educated enough to only sell azaleas that are zoned for our area. And azaleas do require acidic soil so it’s good to leave two or three inches of oak leaves or pine needle mulch around the plant,” she said.
Another common mistake weekend gardeners make is planting the azalea too deep, which smothers the roots that tend to stay close to the ground level. Dig a hole the depth of your plant’s container, but dig out to the sides to extend the root area. And be careful when raking and planting near the azalea so roots are not damaged, Petersen said.
Following Charleston’s festival weekend, the nearby town of Sikeston offers its Sikeston in Bloom festival on April 25 that will include local nurseries selling spring plants. Food and crafts also are available during this event that takes place at American Legion Square downtown. Collectors may want to stop at the Depot Museum for its annual Back Door Sale that features antiques and other treasures for sale.
A colorful driving tour
“People say we’re the best-kept secret in southeast Missouri,” said Linda Penzel. She and her husband, Gene, own the 52-acre Pinecrest Azalea Garden that was opened by his parents, Carl and Mettie, in 1963.
Located in Oak Ridge off county road 472 near Jackson, Pinecrest is open March through May. Although the azaleas are gorgeous, there is much more to enjoy, including a profusion of daffodils and jonquils in March, followed by the azaleas and then in May, the rhododendrons. Tens of thousands of blooming flowers, shrubs and trees–all planted by the Penzel family–are found in the 25 cultivated acres. Walkways meander through the gardens and there are benches placed along the paths for visitors to rest and enjoy the beautiful colors and songbirds. There’s also a driving route for people who can’t walk the paths. It’s amazing that just a few people created this garden, and it’s also hard to believe that there is no charge to see it.
Pinecrest Azalea Garden is part of the 19th Annual Mississippi River Valley Scenic Drive April 25 and 26. With stops off U.S. Highway 61 and Interstate 55–including Cape Girardeau, Trail of Tears State Park and Bollinger Mill State Historic Site–the driving tour has a little of something for everybody.
A map for the drive is available through the Cape Girardeau Convention and Visitors Bureau, 400 Broadway. Because participants are driving through a rural area, it’s important to get this map before embarking on the tour.
Take time to see some of Cape Girardeau. Check out the River Heritage Museum or the Red House Interpretive Center, which tells the story of Lewis and Clark and the explorers’ visit to Cape Girardeau.
Just north of Cape Girardeau off state Route 177 is Trail of Tears State Park, a beautiful 3,415-acre site on the Mississippi River where 13 groups of Cherokee Indians crossed during the harsh winter of 1838-39. The Trail of Tears tragedy is interpreted in the park’s visitor center. Outside, guests can make use of the many hiking and horse trails, picnic shelters, fishing spots and campgrounds. The spring dogwood trees are thick and make nice photo opportunities at scenic river overlooks.
Another scenic spot is Bollinger Mill State Historic Site west of Jackson off state Route 34. This early 19th-century water-powered mill becomes the site for music, restored farm equipment and special tours during the scenic drive weekend.
Other driving tour activities include food, crafts, living history events, folk music and more. Attractions in the area include Jackson’s Oliver House Museum, the Victorian home of Marie Oliver, the state senator’s wife who designed Missouri’s flag.
Blooms at the Lake
Central Missouri’s Lake of the Ozarks is well known for water recreation and golf, but each year, a local community ushers in spring with a dogwood festival.
The 59th annual Camdenton Dogwood Festival will be April 16–19. It’s a long weekend of music, arts and crafts, food and fun that also includes “the promise of dogwoods,” said Bruce Mitchell, executive director of the Camdenton Area Chamber of Commerce. The oldest festival at Lake of the Ozarks also includes a parade on Saturday and a large carnival that’s set up at the local middle school parking lot. Dogwood kings and queens will be crowned during several pageants.
“The first Dogwood Festival was held in 1950 and since then it’s become the granddaddy of all the festivals in the Lake of the Ozarks area,” Mitchell said. “Weather permitting, we usually have about 10,000 visitors.”
While there’s no specific trail or driving route to follow at the lake, Mitchell said there are plentiful dogwoods to enjoy while touring around the lake. Local state parks also are good for dogwood viewings. At Ha Ha Tonka State Park in Camdenton, take an easy quarter-mile hike on the Castle Trail that provides good views of Ha Ha Tonka Springs and the lake. The “castle” is the ruins of a stone mansion built by a wealthy businessman, but it makes for an interesting walk. Spring Trail is a 1 1/2-mile hike that leads to an old post office above the spring bluff. Participants will tackle 316 wooden stairs during this hike, but park personnel say it–along with the Castle Trail–will provide a chance to enjoy dogwood blossoms.
More outdoor adventures are at Lake of the Ozarks State Park–Missouri’s largest–located at Osage Beach off state Highways 54 and 42. Part of the Lake of the Ozarks State Park south of Highway 42 and west of Highway 134 has been designated as Patterson Hollow Wild Area. This area produces an impressive spring dogwood display.
Urban gardens
If a busy schedule will not allow a weekend trip this spring, don’t despair. There’s probably an urban garden near your home to provide spring color.
Powell Gardens in Kingsville (near Kansas City) is busy preparing for the opening of its Heartland Harvest Garden later this year, but don’t forget about the beautiful April azaleas. Callen Fairchild Zind, director of marketing and events for the garden, said the Rock and Waterfall Garden has the best azalea viewing. A short path from the Visitor Education Center to the Island Garden is called the Dogwood Walk, and you’ll find a good collection of white and pink blooms.
Powell Gardens is located at 1609 N.W. U.S. Highway 50. For information, call (816) 697-2600 or click on http://powell gardens.org.
The Missouri Botanical Garden in St. Louis this year celebrates 150 years of horticultural excellence. Check out the floral clock created as part of the yearlong celebration. The 20-by-20-foot working clock is made entirely of plant material and can be found near the reflecting pools adjacent to the Climatron® dome. It’s on view April through October.
The standout Japanese Garden has stunning displays of red, pink and white azaleas. Dogwoods, redbuds and azaleas also are found along the pathways of the Rhododendron Garden. Amazing tulip beds also provide plenty of color.
Missouri Botanical Garden is located at 4344 Shaw Blvd., with convenient access off Interstate 44. For information, call (314) 577-9400 or click on www.mobot.org.
Travelers’ Tips
Southeast Missouri’s lodging choices include national brands in Sikeston, Cape Girardeau or Jackson. An alternative is the AAA three Diamond Bellevue Bed-and-Breakfast Inn in Cape Girardeau. Dining options include a little of everything, from AAA three Diamond restaurants in Cape Girardeau (Bella Italia, Mollie’s Café and Bar, and Royal N’Orleans) to Lambert’s fun and casual eatery in Sikeston that features home-cooking and rolls tossed by servers.
Lake of the Ozarks offers a variety of accommodations. The AAA three Diamond Tan-Tar-A Resort has a marina, golf club and an indoor water park to offer its guests. It’s in Osage Beach, off Highway 54, not far from Lake of the Ozarks State Park.
Bring the family, friends and especially the camera and explore Missouri’s many scenic spring trails.
Deborah Reinhardt Palmer is managing editor of AAA Midwest Traveler.
