Refreshments front and back, wear something comfortable, and don't make it too perfect because it will make the rest of us look bad.

All very good points, catsrose. Humility is a plus when trying to make others feel welcome and comfortable. It reminds me of my school field trip to the U.N. in the 60's. In one huge room on one huge, multi-story wall hung a huge Persian rug. The guide explained that one mistake was woven into the rug deliberately because the makers believed only God can make something perfect. Thanks for the reminder.

Sherry

wear something comfortable!!! You are throwing a party, woman! Dress to the nines. Refreshments are nice but you needn't knock yourself out. YOU are the star of your very own production 'Garden Magnifica'. Now get out there and enjoy yourself.

I usually start by serving wine. If the guests start noticing the weeds and imperfections, I provide more wine.

It seems to work.

Robert

I'd recommend refreshments in only one location. The more things you have to pay attention to, the more scattered you will be and the less you will enjoy yourself. It's like throwing a dinner party... you can cook a lasagne ahead of time so that you can enjoy your guests while it bakes in the background, or you can miss out on all the fun because you are away in the kitchen trying to cook an impressive 5 course meal... stress, stress, stress.

Do as much as you can ahead of time, and do whatever you can to ensure that you'll be able to spend most of the time with your guests. The highlight for them will be the time they share with you as you guide them through the garden. That's the magic they will remember.

have a wonderful time!
robert

If you have time, consider drawing up a map and making copies of it, with perhaps a little history of your garden on the side. This is something you can hand to them to show them the different plants you have so that they can have a guide. It will also free you up to hand it to some guests while you are entertaining others... something to hold them over until you can join them. Just a thought.

My Open Garden parties are actually invitation-only events. I want to know exactly who I am welcoming with that type of access to my place ... different than garden tours when my nursery is open and the public is roaming around. I welcome new-comers, and I encourage them to come ... which is why my invitations are broadcast online, but I want to know ahead of time who's coming so I can plan.

For me and the crowd I attract, pot luck buffet is the way I go. I have tables and chairs set in the shade (borrowed from the winery next door) and we can sit and eat and chat until we can't eat anymore.

Don't worry about the paint on the bench and things like that. No one but you will ever notice. Do, however, make sure your roses are tagged ... otherwise you will hear, "Sherry, what's this rose over here?" all day long.

I'm a very relaxed hostess. My guests are my friends, and I want to enjoy their company while they're here. This is the part of the party that everyone will remember.

Connie

P.S. Not to hijack, but my Open Garden Social here is June 5 ... just saying. :)

I've been to Roberts and Connies and, believe me, they have the right idea. Their laid back attitude encourages people to hang out, enjoy friends, and enjoy the garden. Keep the refreshments in one place, keep it simple (though alchohol is a good thing) and above all else - enjoy!!! And dress casual - I've done the fru fru thing and felt very awkward - you never know when you are going to want to pull up a clump of something to give someone to take home with them. In fact, if you can pull it off, its nice to have a little something for everyone to take home - but don't sweat it if its just not possible. Enjoy your garden and your guests.

I've had open gardens for members of local rose groups so many copies of a current list of roses has been essential as not all my roses are labelled. The majority of my roses are common varieties but some are rare and experienced visitors want to know about them and see them before the rest and beginners want to know the name of every rose.

Sherry, this thread was very interesting to me because I have been thinking along these lines also (for maybe next year)...the Houston Rose Society just had their open gardens tour on Sunday. I wanted to visit a few homes especially since, amazingly, there were two close to me but (and maybe you shouldn't read this next part!) IT POURED DOWN RAIN. I swear the tour started at noon and the rains came at 11:50 and it rained - not drizzled or sprinkled - for three hours. I felt SO bad for the poor people who were hosting the tours.

Anyway, I haven't personally hosted a garden tour before so can't help much but have been thinking about what it would involve. As others have stated, I would think, in order not to drive yourself insane, to keep things like refreshments as simple as possible and don't think that everything has to be perfect. Which you already said you would like them to be, ha! It tends to grow as you go along.....do one improvement and then you have to improve the area next to it and so on.

If you have some roses in your pot ghetto that you would like to get rid of, you could announce a drawing for them. Or have a nice potted plant of some kind as a door prize. I'm not sure exactly how it would work unless everyone came and went at the same time.......

And you have to try not to be driven crazy by the fact that some of your roses will not cooperate and be finished blooming the day before your tour. Every time I would go visit my dad and his garden, his comment was ALWAYS "you should have been here last week!"

Lynn

I've been at it for ten years now. Rosalia has become almost more of an event than a party. We send and hand out invitations that include directions and state the time 11 to 5. We have two young men directing traffic. We now hire a caterer because I can't do it all. When you have to hostess a huge party it's very difficult to be worrying about the food. It has to be worried about all day, not just ahead of time. At least get some friends to help with that part. We move out the dining room chairs and put the food there. Nearby outside we have a table for drinks. Remember coolers and ice. Check all your tableware, napkins, etc. a head of time. Outside near the kitchen there are garbage cans, one for recycling. Do as much delegating as you can. You will be exhausted. Of course you should dress up prettily. You'll be the star of the show. Be prepared for many compliments. I hope you have a perfect day.

Sounds like you are going to have alots fun. I wish I am in your area!

1.Make trash cans marked big, and place them by your tea area so guests can threw away cups easily. What I did is bring back a carton box that had copy papers in from my office, tape the lid and box part together, let it stand up, open the top part, then put a garbage bag. If the box gets dirty, threw away the bag and box together.
2.Drink area is just 1 place, so you only have to think about 1 location not 2. You can not possibly check 2 places when you are only 1 person while talking to the visitors.
3.Have chairs and benches (with an unbrella if possible )in your garden not only around drink area, so tired guests can sit down and enjoy your garden.
4.Garden map with the name of plants is always nice.
5.Prepare for strong wind - put paper napkin in a basket, plastic cup in a bigger basket, etc. They make it look pretty, and also easier for you to carry to your garden.
6.Get bags of mulch so you can fill the wet area of your walkway. Noone enjoy having their shoes muddy.
7.Most of all - relax. Your visitors do not know the unperfect part of your garden, just you.

Hope you have a wonderful day!

One lovely rose gardener in our area always had a Mother's Day open garden (she's now moved and the garden is gone, alas). She gave away self-seeded foxgloves that she had potted up for visitors. It was such a nice gesture. Her roses were all labeled, and it was so lovely. I think that she did have some seats and refreshments but all I did was wander and look at the roses and companion plants.

At one point, I was looking at the first mature Zephirine Drouhin that I'd ever seen, studying how she had it supported and trained, when she swooped in and began apologizing for its powdery mildew and other problems. I hadn't even noticed.

If I ever have the nerve to invite in the public, my vow is to stay on my feet rather than dropping down to pull up weeds or do any other last minute tasks, and to not apologize for anything.

If you are expecting a big crowd, having some way for people to circulate would be good. That's a problem with my garden - lots of dead ends and narrow paths. The nicest gardens that I've visited are easy to walk through.
Anita

I'm having an open house for members of the two Italian forums I belong to on May 23, so have theories but not much experience. My get-together includes a potluck and plant exchange and will probably have only a modest attendance. However, I've hosted one or two fair-sized parties in my life and they went off reasonably well.
It helps to have some idea of how many people will be coming, so you can have adequate seating, plates, food, drink, etc; and adequate shelter in case it rains.
If the garden is going to be muddy or otherwise inhospitable to delicately shod people, make sure they know it beforehand. Ditto for any difficulties of access (my garden is steep).
If people are coming by car make sure there's adequate parking.
If Americans share the Italian habit of taking their dogs everywhere they go, have a dog policy.
If children are going to be part of the mix, you may want to think about how they can be happy and safe.
Do the drinks and grocery shopping and cooking beforehand (like, the day before).
If you're going to have a crowd, get yourself a helper.
I agree with others: DON'T APOLOGIZE. They won't see the defects if you don't bring them up. Act like you think your garden is a lovely place to be; which, of course, it is.
I think how you should dress depends on your attitude towards dressing as well as whether you've designed your open garden event to be elegant or earthy. In my case I suspect I'm going to be kneeling, poking into the ground (to show off my amazing gray clay), and otherwise getting mildly grubby; so I'll be wearing the pleasantest garden outfit I can come up with.
A list of the roses for guests, as well as labels on all plants, are great ideas if you can do them. Keen gardeners want to know the names of what they're looking at.
That's all I can think of right now.
Good luck, and have lots of fun! It's a great idea.
Melissa

Sherry, you have received some very good suggestions. I just wanted to say, "Have fun!". Never let them see you sweat (figuratively speaking, of course). :) It sounds so special. Be sure to have a friend or family member videotape parts of it. Wish we could all be there!

Just one more suggestion -- If your patio is shaded, maybe this isn't essential, but MAKE SOME SHADE, and put a few chairs there.
If the day turns hot, some people are sure to need a chance to sit in the shade for a bit.

Jeri

You all always come through for me!! Everyone offered practical and useful things, and, of course, the encouragement is wonderful. DH is very supportive, so it's a definite go. I'm taking next week off for vacation so I'll have time to get everything done with a minimum of stress. :)) I'm really excited but a little unsure of how to circulate. Do you think I should place myself near the front entrance and stay there a while, greeting the arrivals? I'm assuming there won't be huge hoards arriving nonstop but only a few at a time, I guess I could continue on with the small group until another arrives, but what if a lot of people come and they're everywhere at once? Also, I'm planning to make up a garden layout (don't know how yet) to hand out which I guess should be done at the curb. DH thinks it should have photos of individual blooms to pinpoint each bush on the map. We'll see if I go that far. We have a good bit of shade to rest in so that's a plus, and the circulation is good. No muddy areas - all gravel or dry pine bark mulch. I'll put the refreshments on the front porch. I wish I could afford to have it catered - maybe in year five! Pot luck would be nice but not the first time. And I promise I won't apologize for ANYthing!!! I have felt awkward when others keep apologizing for stuff that doesn't even matter, and it detracts from an otherwise pleasant experience. Do you thing I should ask folks to RSVP? DH says no rainchecks! Rain doesn't usually last long here, so we'll just hope that it's seasonably dry. I'm thinking of 10:30 - 3:30.

Thanks again so much! You're each priceless.

Sherry

Photos-we will need photos!!
Not on the day of of course, you will be way too busy.
So how about the day before.

My small suggestions: I was just a hostess at a home tour house and our club had people stationed in various spots. Do you have friends? Relatives?
I would cut the time down making it 10-2, people will be early but not late.

Have fun! But did I mention we need photos?

Denise

Sherry- Is anyone helping you co-host? Maybe DH?

When my mom has summer parties, she always asks me to "help" so I'm the one that is overseeing the food (mostly trays of cocktail type foods and little desserts) and drinks (punch, coffee and wine) while she is free to greet the guest and point out the garden. (She is just starting to get interested in roses, now that she's retired, but she's always had beautiful gardens.)

It's too hard to greet guests and serve food at the same time. If you don't have help, maybe set up finger food and drinks and point people in the right direction, as they arrive. The garden maps are a great idea...I'm going to suggest that to my mom :)

Oh, and mom always dresses up a bit, but more of a casual/nice, not too fancy, because she usually ends up potting something up for a friend LOL.

In my rose club open times are usually 2 to 6 o'clock, but people kept calling to say they couldn't make it then and ask if they could come later. One reason was that it had rained hard all morning but cleared just before 2. In the end my husband and I were receiving people as late as 9 o'clock, most of whom had not called in advance. I don't think I'll have any more open gardens, garden parties for friends is a different thing.

Go to the Florida Forum and put out the question there .
Most GWs have hosted tours/swaps and have lots of experience .
Ask guests to bring food , serving pieces , drinks and chairs .
Florida GWs are amazing cooks and usually bring dishes made with produce form their own gardens .
Keep the time short .
In Florida , it can start to heat up by 10 a.m.
Be sure to include a plant swap .
Limit it to herbs or roses or whatever you like .
Wear your garden clothes and ask guests to do the same .
You will all feel more at home since the garden is the star .
Only you know what you didn't get to or what you planned to do .
Guests only see how much you have accomplished .
Take deep breaths and relax .

It would be a blast to come and visit with you and see your garden!

I know it will be great, just relax and have fun. I liked Robert's advice.

Gean

It is really a good idea to get someone else to look after food, so you can focus on the garden part.

Also, since I usually end up cooking for all our extensive family parties, my few advices would be:
* Serve food which your guests can put easily in their plates. It is usually not a good idea to serve something that needs precise cutting, can dribble and so on. I usually go for small sandwiches (few layers pricked with cocktail stick), small salad bites in shells (shells I buy ready-made, to save trouble), olives and so on.
* Make sure that the food can stay out of fridge for a couple of hours. For example, some salads are really lovely when freshly made, but become yukky mess if kept out of fridge for 3 hours.
* serve cookies, brownies, pre-cut pies and so on. Chocolates can also go nice with the coffee.
* if it is really hot, you may want to serve some ice-cream. It is a bit of trouble, but simple ice-cream with chocolate or berry sauce can be very lovely on a hot day. You can keep it in the cooling box even on the table, just make sure there is some sticker that says it is ice-cream in there.
* coffee and tea you can put in thermos thingies, so you do not have to make hot drinks for everyone. Or put out senseo thingie outside, so people can make coffee themselves.
* Don't forget cold drinks. Also wine and beer is a good idea, just better serve both, since not all people like wine and not all like beer.
*Buy as much things as you can ready-made and prepare everything beforehand. Home made food is nice, but it is garden show and you do not want to be dead from the kitchen work.
*For the give-away you might want to make some pot-poury. Just dry some rose petals + lavender, put them in tiny bags (which you can buy premade), add nice ribbon to it and you have a rosy gift. :)

Those maps sound nice but unnecessary. I went to an Open Garden at B&B nursery (she had hundreds of roses), and her solution was to put laminated signs up in the flower beds that had the plot layout, numbered, with the roses listed by location. That was nice but detracted a bit from the photos.

Speaking of photos - is there anybody who can take them for you? I never get my camera out during the cemetery open garden - there's just too much to do. But I love, love, love other people taking snaps and sharing them.

I wouldn't focus too much on food or giveaways. The garden, and you, are the stars of the day. So long as people have something to drink, and to nibble on, that should be ok. I wouldn't want food that needs to be refrigerated, either, if it goes on for hours - wouldn't want to poison anybody. I held a tea once years ago, and people were unaccountably crazy about cucumber sandwiches on buttered bread. I made them the day before and refrigerated them - also made other things that I thought were much more tasty and the cukes went first!

You can't be everywhere at once, and there's no way you can both greet and show people around unless people trickle in very slowly. I think that you should just pick a spot you'd like to be and let people come to you.

Sure wish I could come. You may even convince me to open up my garden someday (probably not).
Anita

Sherry, 50's housewife is always a good idea. You're not hopeless. But you probably shouldn't listen to me. I wear ridiculous things all the time. You could go 50's housewife, but keep it comfy by going with a lovely sundress and keeping the rest of the outfit simple. (Leave It To Beaver?) :)

Maybe you could try fixing a few foods that can be fixed in advance... like say... stroganof or something. Make it easier on yourself so you aren't stressed out the day of?
I always like cucumber sandwiches, frankly.
You could even order a tray of something from a local bakery.

I agree that laidback is nice. :)

We have a big kitchen island and we tend to just put a lot of fun foods there so people can gather around and chat, or they can go to the attached living room with foods. We don't have a huge place though. I think the suggestions people are giving you are pretty fabulous. :)

We tend to throw themed parties that center around some movie or tvshow coming out, so we'll pick foods that echo the tv show. (I'm a total nerd.)

Open gardens here tend to run in waves. No one comes and then suddenly there's a group of folks who arrive. I always have coolers with ice and sun tea available, bottled water, a little bit of fruit (somebody always takes a banana; I think it's for potassium on a hot day), berries are good. I serve something sweet, a couple of varieties of cookies. There are lots of places to sit, most in the shade, and if I'm with a group, other visitors come with questions. I like tours best because I can direct the time, number of people, and path through the garden before everyone goes off wandering. I have to dress in gardening clothes because there are always cuttings or divisions people request. Last year, r. glauca was in heavy demand, tucked in the back of the huge border and I had to climb through two shrubs to get the cuttings. Marji takes photos and handles bathroom requests (don't forget that part!), while I do crowd control. We're having our club come in August and will also have parties and an open garden in June. You'll have a wonderful time and I can promise you one thing - betcha can't have just one!

Sue

Finger food only! And I agree with Marianne, no rain checks--if you have the willpower needed to enforce the rule.