Our next video in lieu of in-person garden tours comes to us from a small townhouse in Old Greenbelt – a middle unit with no side yards, no less.

Amethyst Dwyer and Dorian Winterfeld bought their GHI unit 21 years ago, after living next door to it, admiring its gardens and interior renovations, and buying it as soon as it went on the market. The garden’s established plantings, pond and amenities had been installed back in 1982 by a previous owner who was a landscape designer. The designer had smartly focused on privacy and screening – in the front garden with small trees and shrubs along the sidewalk and in the back, with extensive privacy screens.

The couple enjoyed their gardens without becoming gardeners until two years ago when Amethyst got the gardening bug. And this year during the pandemic shutdown, she’s upped her game by growing not just exotic flowering plants but edibles, too. In pots, no less. And adding shade plants in the Meditation Garden out back.

So I asked Amethyst to record some videos of her garden to add to our growing collection of Virtual Summer Garden Tours, and she delivered, sending me three video clips that included a cute dog and cheering husband! I cobbled them together using a new video editing program I’m learning –  Movavi. It’s cheap, easy to use, and reasonably comprehensive.

News reports tell us there are hoards of Americans turning to gardening during the pandemic shutdown – one of those rare silver linings in all the horribleness. That means that more than ever, Amethyst has plenty of company in her newfound joy in gardening. It’s music to the ears of this lifelong gardening advocate!

You can see why Amethyst is my guru and inspiration when it comes to color. For me, what she calls color therapy really works!

NOTE: By contributing these pandemic stories, photos, et cetera, Greenbelters are making an unconditional donation of the material to the nonprofit Greenbelt Online.org and the Greenbelt Museum/City of Greenbelt, which reserve the right to keep, lend, or otherwise dispose of the donated material, and may use the material on our website, for social media or other postings, in promotional materials or in future exhibits.