Magnolia Plantation and Gardens

Welcome to the beautiful Magnolia Plantation and Gardens, near Charleston, South Carolina. While the temperatures were predicted to be around 60 degrees fahrenheit during my trip, they only reached that temperature on a couple of days. Many days saw only 45 degrees fahrenheit. But hey, that is a vast improvement over the deep freeze days experienced in Ottawa and the dump of 50 centimeters of snow while I was away.

The morning I arrived at Magnolia Plantation, I noticed icicles on some leaves in the garden. Very soon I spotted these red berries, which belong to a plant named Nandina. You probably know that I LOVE red accents. I think this is going to be my Christmas card next year. Well, what I mean is that maybe next year I will actually send Christmas cards because I love this image.

I have cropped the image closer. I wonder if I could manage to make this into a quilt? I know I could handle the berries, but the icicles would surely be a challenge!

This is what Nandina looks like if you look at the entire plant.

I found this old (maple?) leaf lying in a shrub. I picked it up and it was quite tough, not delicate like Canadian maple leaves when they get to the stage where they are brown and fall to the ground.

The mood is one of peacefulness and contemplation all around the garden. Of course that was enhanced by the fact that this is probably low season for tourists.

More red accents!

There are a number of small lakes on the property, and on a bright sunny morning the waters reflected like a mirror.

As with many old properties in the area, there are oak trees, dripping with Spanish Moss.

This photo shows the line-up of oaks along the entrance laneway.

The Magnolias were in bloom.

Love the contrasts in this shot.

I found this interesting growth protruding on the side of a tree.

It was camellia season. They were blooming everywhere.

One can walk a boardwalk over the swamp near the entrance to the Plantation. Look at that beautiful sea of green. It is actually Duckweed and not algae.