Northville, Novi Group Shows Off Serene Spaces in Garden Walk

In the back yard garden of Jacque and Guenter Albrecht's home in Northville, there's a small pond with goldfish alongside a bench to overlook it.

Sitting on their deck, the water can be heard flowing, creating a peaceful rhythm. Further back, there's a covered area with seats.

"That's where I take a nap," joked Jacque Albrecht, describing it as a "sanctuary garden."

The elaborate green space is one of eight shown on the 5th Biannual Garden Walk hosted by The Gardeners of Northville and Novi on Saturday. About 300 tickets were sold for the group's fundraising event, organizers said. The self-guided garden walk tour was held in Northville and Novi. A crafts sale was held at the Northville Art House, where the tour began.

"Gardens are very therapeutic," said Judy Vershave, co-president of the club. Creating a calming space, like the Albrecht's, is characteristic of what gardeners do.

"Gardeners are the kind of people who like to share ideas," she said. "We're all about learning from each other."

They meet each month at the . Speakers discuss a variety of gardening topics.

But the members of the club do more for each other than share gardening tips.

When Vershave’s father died, she received a lot of support from her friends at the garden club. Others echo similar sentiments.

“I don’t garden,” said group member Audrey Murphy of Novi. “But I love the people in the garden club.”

Vershave added, “It motivates you to want to take care of something.”

The club welcomes new members to its meetings. Check out its website for more details: http://gardenersnorthville-novi.org.

Editor's note: A correction was made to this story. Judy Vershave's father passed away in June.