Garden Accents

Garden accents can be a great way to have fun in your garden and personalize your landscape. Here are some tips to help you enjoy your outdoor space while tapping into your creative side.

Accents can be any type of artistic touch. Some people use gazing balls. Others distribute statues, gnomes, wind chimes, and birdfeeders throughout their yards and gardens. A garden accent can be virtually anything — just be sure it can hold up in stormy weather.

Night lights are another way to showcase your landscape. They can show off the unique branching structure of a Live Oak or highlight a delicate Japanese Maple. The shadows they generate on a hardscape at night create an inviting atmosphere for sitting outside and enjoying the stars.

The City of Aiken, South Carolina, recently refurbished an iconic fountain in the middle of downtown. The fountain is dedicated to Thomas Redman Morgan, who was mayor of Aiken from 1899-1900. It depicts a boy and girl standing in the rain holding an umbrella. The fountain has been very popular — it appears in numerous photographs and postcards that showcase Aiken.

Brookgreen Gardens, on the coast in Murrells Inlet, is well known for its lavish display of statues and fountains among the wide assortment of flowers, plants, and trees within the botanical garden.

Gardens are a great way to express yourself. Accents that complement the design, and that are attractive year-round, will inspire you to keep nurturing and adding to your landscape.

The Morgan Circle Fountain. Photo courtesy of the City of Aiken.

December 12, 2020 Sams’ Club | Palmetto Bella

Noah’s Way and Friends Coat Drive | Scene Around Town

Noah’s Way and Friends Coat Drive December 12, 2020 Sams’ Club Photography by Allen Riddick Ronnie Young Jr., Jane Page Thompson, and Kenny Freeman Bax, Julie, and Shyla Whitesell Sue Ellis and Michael Dean Perry Roseann and Jack Mariner Noah Priester Cato and Keyatta Priester FacebookTweetPin

Northern Natives Migrate South

Snowbirds are looking for a fresh start in warmer and friendlier climates If you are lucky enough to have been born and raised in the South, or if you relocated south of the Mason-Dixon line to become a permanent resident years ago, you may be slightly annoyed when you see those pesky critters known as snowbirds. Each New Year, they migrate from the North to spend time where it is warm and sunny. They have most likely endured freezing temperatures and snow drifts during the holidays and now seek a place to nestle on a beach or golf course. They don’t realize that they are robbing you of your favorite

The Highland Park Hotel | A History

The Highland Park Hotel, Aiken’s first grand hotel, was situated on the western end of Park Avenue on the plateau overlooking what is now the Aiken Golf Club. It was constructed in 1869 – 1870. In 1874 its capacity was doubled to 300 guests with an addition on the left side. The hotel was constructed at a time when Aiken was considered a health resort because of its pine-scented air, mild climate, and sandy soil. Over the years the hotel advertised large rooms with sunny exposure, marble-top walnut furniture, and rooms lit with rosin gas and warmed with open fireplaces. All rooms had electric bells. Hot and cold baths were

The Beginnings of a New County | Cabinet of Curiosities

2021 is a special year for the residents of Aiken County — not only is it a new year of hope after a year of chaos, but it’s also the 150th anniversary of Aiken County’s founding. In January of 1871, state legislator Charles D. Hayne (Barnwell District) proposed an act to create a new county with Aiken as its seat. On March 10, 1871, the act was formally enacted by the South Carolina state legislature. While Hayne was not the first person to promote the idea of a new county, he was the one to get the bill through the state legislature successfully. Names for the new county included the