Elizabethan Gardens

So I spent the Thanksgiving holiday in Duck, North Carolina. Whenever I'm down here I like to make a trip down to Manteo to visit the Elizabethan Gardens. It's a really nice small botanical garden with a great plant shop. If you're ever looking for poet's laurel at an affordable price this is the place to go!











One of the things I noticed on this visit this time were the simple and elegant pathways in the formal garden near the entrance. The paths are lined with brick and paved with - pine straw! I've always thought that pine straw mulch looked kind of messy but I love the way it's used here. Using this readily available natural material gives the garden a real sense of place and the minimal brick edging gives it nice definition.