Belmont is 'Highlight' of Virginia's 80th Historic Garden Week

Gari Melchers Home and Studio at Belmont will highlight the Garden Club of Virginia's 80th annual Historic Garden Week, which begins April 20 and continues through April 27.

The connection is based in history.  Corinne Melchers opened her Belmont home for club's first garden tour in 1933.

"We are celebrating the Garden Club's 80th anniversary this year by featuring homes that were opened 80 years ago, including Belmont," Victoria Willis, chair of the Fredericksburg Garden Club, told The Baltimore Sun.

Read The Baltimore Sun's story here: Baltimore native, artist husband sowed seeds for historic Virginia estate.

Historic Garden Week in Virginia 2013 will feature tours at approximately 200 private homes and gardens open on 32 separate tours.  "Tour proceeds fund the restoration and preservation of Virginia's historic gardens," according to the Garden Club of Virginia.

The Fredericksburg tour, sponsored by The Rappahannock Valley Garden Club, is from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m. Tuesday, and features the homes of Belmont, The Snowden House, Chatham Manor, Brompton and Fall Hill.  

Tickets are $30 the day of and $25 in advance at the Fredericksburg Visitor Center and the Stafford Visitor Center. Ticket price also includes admission to

• Garden Day
• Kenmore
• George Washington’s Ferry Farm
• The James Monroe Museum and Memorial Library

Tickets may be purchased online or at tour locations.  Online ticket sales require a credit card and end 48 hours before each tour.  Tour prices vary greatly.

• A Statewide Pass is $175 per person, or $300 for two.
• Advance tickets purchased at local outlets require cash or check, payable to Historic Garden Week.  No credit cards and no refunds on advance tickets purchased locally.
• Tickets may be purchased at any of the houses or gardens on tour the day of the event.  Tour prices vary by location and range from $15 to $40 per tour. 
• Single-day admission tickets (some tours are multiple day tours) and single property admission is frequently available. Check specific tour information available here.

A complete tour schedule is attached to this article as a pdf.

Tours in the Fredericksburg region include:

• Saturday: Orange County/Somerset

• Tuesday: Fredericksburg and Richmond: Chatham Hills/Windsor on the James

• Wednesday: Northern Neck/Northumberland County and Warrenton

• Thursday: Richmond: Windsor Farms/Rothesay Circle/Loch Lomond Lane and Warrenton

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