Mary Calvo Garden Featured on 2026 Garden Tour
The upcoming DCMGA Garden Tour on May 9 will feature seven beautiful gardens, including the garden of Mary Calvo, as one of the stops on this year’s tour.
Welcome to the garden of Mary Calvo (DCMG Class of 2025), which has been thoughtfully conceived to complement the storybook architecture of her French Norman style house, which was built in 1929. You can’t miss the house, as it dominates a prominent corner of the neighborhood and also features a trio of highly unusual eyebrow dormers set into the roof.
Large formally clipped Holly (Ilex sp.) and Boxwood (Buxus spp.) shrubs planted by former owners of the house ensconce the right side of the front yard and set the tone as a scenic backdrop, while Dwarf Yaupons (Ilex vomitoria ‘Nana’) and additional smaller Boxwoods and Abelia (A. × grandiflora ‘Kaleidoscope’) have been planted by Mary after the 2021 winter storm took much of the landscape. She also chose to transform this side and the opposite side of the house with a grouping of purple-leafed Chinese Fringe Flower (Loropetalum chinense) shrubs to add a layer of texture and color. She had found the original formality of the landscaping too symmetrical and boxy, and so she has evolved the planting design over the years towards a “softened” look.
A recently added retaining wall mirroring the gentle curve of the sidewalk along the front of the lawn is made of native sandstone, and it perfectly echoes the same kind of stone used decoratively at the base of the house’s chimney on the front façade. This too contributes to the “bones” of the yard’s structural design.
The large terrace adjacent to the front door of the house is a favorite place for Mary and her husband Steve to relax in the front garden and to welcome neighbors who are passing by. The terrace is bordered by a water feature and a stone path mixed with a variety of ground cover, various cultivars of Coral Bells (Heuchera spp.), Lambs’ Ears (Stachys byzantina), Nandinas (Nandina domestica ‘Firepower’), and two more varieties of Chinese Fringe Flower. This part of the yard is also dominated by a large Live Oak (Quercus virginiana) tree whose challenging canopy of shade defines the planting scheme. Framed by Asian Jasmine (Trachelospermum asiaticum) is a woodland shade garden featuring an assortment of plants, including Japanese Holly Fern (Cyrtomium falcatum), Spotted Leopard Plant (Farfugium japonicum ‘Aureomaculatum’), English Ivy (Hedera helix), and Cast Iron Plant (Aspidistra elatior).
The woodland terrace garden in particular demonstrates Mary’s approach to planting: “eclectic” pops of different colors
and textures in foliage and flowers, splashed here and there in a pleasingly informal way. For example, the use of Golden Creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia), also known as Moneywort, cascading from bowl-like planters illustrates how a bright color such as the chartreuse of its foliage can punctuate a garden scene.
A prized clump of Cast Iron Plant (Aspidistra elatior) was brought to this yard by Mary when she and her husband, who participates actively as the partner gardener here, moved to this house from their former home in The Woodlands thirteen years ago. Mary says that it reminds her of the Gulf Coast and most especially of her mother, “who taught me everything I ever knew about gardening”—until, of course, she joined the Master Gardeners!
Mary’s back garden might well be nicknamed “the Goldilocks yard,” since its compact size is “just right,” neither too big nor too small. The very unusual pie-shaped plot is of an ideal size for anyone who desires a manageable private outdoor space at their home: just enough space to do something creative with, without it requiring major maintenance. The couple took advantage of a shady corner at the back of the house to create an inviting outdoor kitchen and seating area that beckon visitors to sit and enjoy. Since the space has been roofed, it functions effectively as a year-round retreat.
A large ceramic urn converted to a burbling fountain serves as the primary focal point at the rear of the triangular garden. This space too demonstrates Mary’s style of planting with a variety of colors and textures. Flanking a small simple green lawn are arc-shaped border beds planted with layers of Creeping Jenny (L. nummularia), Blue Salvia (Salvia farinacea), and Lirope grasses (Liriope muscari) framing Burford Hollies (Ilex cornuta ‘Burfordii’) and Japanese Yews (Podocarpus macrophyllus).
Small can be beautiful. Come to Mary’s garden to see just how beautiful it can be!
