The Garden That Was Waiting for Us
JOURNAL ENTRY #2
MONDAY, JUNE 15, 2026
When we first dreamed of making The Union House of Hogarth our forever home, I knew I was falling in love with the house itself. What I didn’t fully realize was that the garden had been quietly waiting for us too.
Every day seems to reveal another surprise.
In the front yard, we’ve been welcomed by blooming azaleas, a graceful white dogwood, a white crepe myrtle, purple coneflowers, lambs’ ear soft enough to make you stop to touch it, cheerful brown-eyed Susans, rosemary, red tulips, a rhododendron, and several mystery plants that are patiently waiting for me to identify them.
The backyard feels even more like a hidden sanctuary.
Towering pecan trees provide shade while patches of white clover, violets, wild strawberries, and fragrant mint spread across the ground. A peony bush stands as a reminder that beauty returns each season, and I’m already looking forward to discovering the purple tulips I’ve been told appear in the spring.
Scattered throughout are yellow and burgundy lilies, a purple crepe myrtle, a blueberry bush, four camellias, a rose bush, and even more plants waiting to introduce themselves.
Beyond that lies an orchard of possibilities — two apple trees, a plum tree, a peach tree, and an entire row of mature blueberry bushes. Though we’ve already lost the two fig trees and the French lavender before moving in permanently, they simply became part of my growing list of things to lovingly replant.
Perhaps my favorite discovery is that every pruning session, every weed pulled, every neglected corner cleaned is really an act of hope.
I’m not just tending a garden.
I’m becoming part of its story.
I can’t help but wonder what other surprises this old property still has tucked away beneath its branches and blooms. And honestly, I hope the discoveries never stop.
The Union House of Hogarth is slowly teaching me that sometimes the greatest gifts aren’t the ones you plant yourself, but the ones that were quietly waiting for you all along.
— LHogarth