Gardens

Because our benefactor Nell Pape loved gardening, Earle-Harrison House is surrounded by 5.82 fenced acres of manicured lawn and gardens. Earle-Harrison House was sited to face the gardens rather than facing 4th St. as it did before the 1967 relocation.

Pape Gardens are an interpretation of how grand the garden could have been - and now is. Mrs. Pape's vision was not to recreate home's original minimal landscaping, she chose instead to develop an elegant large-scale garden to fit the house's stature. Landscaping began with the house's restoration in 1969, but expansion of the garden occurred as adjacent land became available for purchase with most of the major development completed by 1980. Landscape architects Hal Stringer and J. Robert Anderson were Pape Gardens' principal designers. The garden's formal and informal beds and garden rooms nestle into large expanses of lawn. Antique brick and concrete walkways allow guests to easily stroll the entire garden. A double gazebo and ancient live oak trees create an intimate shaded space perfect for gatherings, photography or solitary meditation. Other areas include various mixed perennial, annual and rose beds, a variety of mature trees, shrubs, formal statuary, a tiered fountain, and a small kitchen garden.

Each year plants are added to the property as areas are redesigned. Since Greg & Kathy Riggs began caring for the property in 2005, organic, water-wise gardening techniques have been employed. The City of Waco's Parks & Recreations Dept. supplies tons of mulch each year. Large-scale compost piles are reintegrated back into the garden beds & winter lawn. Irrigation has been reduced by one-quarter by adding 4"-6" of mulch to all the garden beds. Plant additions are mostly all native or low-moisture varieties that will provide long-term bloom or ease of care. Water catchment is a part of the garden's long-range planning. The gardens are proof that a beautiful, chemical-free garden is possible even with a small staff to care for it.