2026 PGSU Garden Story: Marilyn

As you approach Marilyn’s home, the garden gently welcomes you in — fragrant herbs, soft pathways, and mature trees creating a landscape that feels both peaceful and thoughtfully designed.

A Home with History

Nearly ten years ago, Marilyn and her husband chose this home for something that can’t easily be measured.

Character.

Older homes often carry a quiet sense of belonging — mature trees, established neighborhoods, and a feeling that life has already unfolded here. Marilyn saw that immediately. She wasn’t looking for something brand new. She was looking for a place with roots.

Since moving in, the home has slowly evolved under Marilyn’s care. Inside and out, she has shaped it into a space that reflects her love of beauty, thoughtful design, and living close to the earth.

It’s a process she genuinely enjoys — imagining possibilities and then bringing them to life one step at a time.

From Lawn to Landscape

For many years the front yard was mostly lawn.

But Marilyn had a different vision quietly forming.

She began collecting images and ideas for a garden that would better match both the Spanish-style architecture of the home and the desert climate of Southern Utah. Mediterranean gardens especially caught her imagination — gardens filled with texture, fragrance, stone pathways, and plants that thrive with less water.

The lawn worked for a time, but it never truly reflected the landscape she imagined.

Eventually the opportunity arrived.

With a rebate from the Water Efficiency Landscape Program (WELP) through the Washington County Water Conservancy District (WCWCD) and a talented landscaper who understood her vision, the lawn was replaced with a thoughtfully designed water-wise garden. What once required constant mowing and watering has now become a vibrant, sustainable landscape filled with drought-tolerant plants.

And it fits the home beautifully.

A Garden Meant to Be Walked

One of Marilyn’s goals was simple:

She wanted the garden to feel welcoming.

Not something to admire only from the sidewalk — but something people could move through and experience.

Gentle mounds replaced the flat lawn, creating natural movement in the landscape. A new sidewalk now guides visitors comfortably to the front door. Along the way, fragrant herbs like lavender and rosemary fill the air, while pea gravel paths add texture underfoot.

There is even a quiet place to sit and pause.

The mature trees that first drew Marilyn to the property continue to anchor the garden, providing shade and a sense of permanence. The new plantings blend naturally with what was already there, creating a landscape that feels both harmonious and timeless.

Rooted in a Life’s Work

For Marilyn, gardening isn’t just a hobby.

It’s woven into her life’s work.

As a holistic nutritionist, consultant, educator, and writer, she has spent decades helping others understand the connection between health, food, and the natural world. That passion naturally extended into growing food, cultivating herbs, and caring for the soil.

Her property reflects that philosophy.

Fruit trees, herbs, vegetables, and ornamental plants all share space here. Beauty and nourishment go hand in hand. Marilyn often describes her home as her “little patch of earth” — a place she feels deeply grateful for and responsible to care for.

It’s both sanctuary and classroom.

A Garden Still Growing

Like most meaningful gardens, Marilyn’s is never truly finished.

There are always new ideas forming.

In the backyard, visitors will find more of Marilyn’s creativity at work — art nestled among the plants, clay pots filled with herbs, and small spaces designed simply to enjoy the quiet of the garden.

Projects happen little by little, as time and inspiration allow.

Over the years the landscape has grown the same way life does — patiently, thoughtfully, and with care.

A Garden That Teaches

Marilyn’s garden offers more than beauty.

It offers perspective.

It shows how a yard can evolve with the people who live there. How water-wise landscaping can feel warm, welcoming, and full of life. And how one person’s vision — shaped by years of learning, caring, and stewardship — can transform an ordinary space into something deeply personal.

The plants are lovely.

But the real story is the life being lived among them.

Visiting Marilyn’s garden offers a chance to see how thoughtful choices, patience, and a love of place can transform an ordinary yard into something truly special.

Come enjoy Marilyn's garden at the Parade of Gardens; April 24th-26th, 2026.