Ken and Judy Dotson’s home at, 10819 Collington Drive, is the October “Collington Yard of the Month”!  They have lived there for 13 years, and are native Virginians. Ken also has a family home in Wise County, in SouthWest Virginia.He keeps busy tending that 5 acre property. He is also a volunteer at The Virginia Museum Of Fine Arts, tending their gardens.

​Their Collington lawn is regularly irrigated and fertilized, with Lyme applications as warranted.The annual Impatiens are now surrounded by seasonal Mums that re-emerge every year. Their philosophy for a beautiful yard is persistence and lots of color!

Congratulations to the Dotsons! In addition to having the yard of the month sign in their yard they will receive a $25.00 Lowe’s gift card.

This is the last monthly selection for 2018 and will be followed by the 2018 House of the Season so make your decorating plans now. 

The Collington Grounds Committee is proud to announce the Yard of the Month for September 2018 is 14549 Parracombe Lane. The owners are Richard and Vicki Gentile who have lived in Collington for five and a half years. 

​Their yard is well trimmed and totally weed free. All their trees and shrubs are well maintained. They have a wide variety of colors and they have designed and planted their front and back yards to include roses, inpatients, crepe myrtles, cana lilies, and arbivities. While they did the design and planting they do use a landscaper to maintain the yard. 
Their back yard is nicely planted and offers a great escape. As their plantings mature and grow they will have their own little island of sanity. 

For all their efforts the Gentile’s received a $25.00 Lowe’s gift card which will probably be used for more plantings. 

The August 2018 Collington Yard of the Month goes to Barbara Taylor of 9918 Fawnhope Court.  Barbara moved into our community about a year ago (July of 2017) from the far west end of Henrico county.  She finds 'putt[ing]' around in her yard is a form of therapy--being a retired nurse, transferring her care for patients to her yard and surroundings. Her biggest tips for a beautiful yard include plenty of water, adequate fertilization, and constant attention to the yard and plants. Keeping her yard well trimmed and weed free is a full time job.

​Barbara enjoys playing with her puppy, Winny, her aquarium, and her three grandchildren.
For all her hard work,

Barbara will receive a $25.00 Lowe’s gift card which she will no doubt use for more lawn investments. Congratulations Barbara.

​The July 2018 Yard of the Month goes to Kenny and Darlene Williams of 10813 Tealby Ct.  Kenny just loves being outside and his love of nature shows.  His yard is wed free and well tended. He makes good use of his potting bench in the backyard and often starts plants out in pots before transplanting them to just the right spot in his colorful yard. You can often find him hand watering his many potted plants that cover his backyard patio and hang from his fence and deck.  His plants thrive from his watchful eye.  The happiest plant is one that lives in the shadow of the gardener.  When asked for words of wisdom about gardening, he replied, “I got it all from my Grandma.”   He added, “I just love being outside.  Gardens change from day to day, just like life.”  Wisdom indeed. Some of his favorite species are daylilies, sunpatients and lantana that tolerate his west facing frontage of his home.  He has planted maples and ornamental cherry trees to provide privacy in the rear of his home.  His more shaded backyard houses hostas, ferns, impatients, begonias trumpet angel lilies and mandevilla. Congratulations to the Williams on a lovely lawn and cheery flower beds.
For all their efforts the Williams’ have received a $25.00 Lowe’s gift card so they can add to their collection of plants.

​The June 2018 Yard of the Month is 10543 Pembrooke Dock Place which is owned by Joel and Marilyn Meese. While they have lived in this house for only twenty one months they have been able to create a weed free manicured lawn, thanks to Joel, and plantings that keep changing colors all spring, summer, and fall, mainly due to hard work by Marilyn and some assistance from Joel. This property is well worth the trip to see.
Starting in the front yard they have created a raised bed area with lariope, nandina, and others. Throughout the rest of the front yard are tiger lilies, purple fountain grass, inpatients, crepe myrtles, yellow hybrid tea roses, and sweet alysm.
 
The back yard is a memorial garden to the Confederate and Union soldiers who traversed Chesterfield County so many years ago. The statues are shaded by beautiful trees that create a space for contemplation and reflection.
 
It is very obvious the Meeses love their Collington home and are willing to put in extra effort to make it a model for other Yard of the Month candidates in the future. To reward them for all their hard work the HOA has awarded them a $25.00 Lowe’s gift card so they can, you guessed it, buy more plants for the yard. Make the trip to see this beautifully planted yard. Who knows, maybe your yard will win next month.

The May Yard of the Month is 15012 Wooferton Dr.   John Hart has lived in this home for 2 years.  The impeccably maintained lawn and clean lines of the landscape present this home as an example of a modern gem.  John Is partial to roses as an accent that provide a splash of three season color.  He has designed an attractive side yard bed of cypress, abelia, roses, ornamental grasses and crepe myrtle to serve as an organic privacy divider.  Mr. Hart uses a lawn service to help control weeds which is always appreciated by neighbors. His gardening advice is to focus on “consistent maintenance; don’t let it get away from you.”  Good advice. Thanks neighbor.

​All the lights have been strung and the judging has been tabulated. Our judges rode out all of Collington, through all the communities and found what they believed to be the most beautiful, bright, and colorfully decorated houses. There were so many potential winners that the selection process dragged on till the committee could get the list down to a manageable pool. We developed a short list and then a finalist.
 
Our winners this year are James and Kimberly Laino at 10806 Wycombe Road in the Tealby community. Jim, Kimberly and their daughter have lived in Collington for ten years and love decorating their house every year. They started collecting lights and ornaments back in 1996 and never stopped. They work as a team with Kimberley doing the design work and Jim doing the manual labor. They do all the work themselves and it shows a real love of the holidays.
 
Shortly the HOA will post a sign designating them as the winner this year and they will receive a $100.00 Lowe’s gift card, so they can buy more decorations.

The October Collington Yard of the Month is awarded to Linda Morris Schackleferd of 14449 Ashleyville Lane.  Linda's yard welcomes in the Fall Season with beautiful purple "mums" and a handsome fall wreath.
The yard is kept in bloom with spirea, phlox,iris, grape hyacinths, hydrangea and knockout roses.  The mail box is surrounded by lantana. Ferns flank the garage.  While foundation shrubbery is essential
Linda's thoughtful planning of perennials are what add color for the seasons.  Son Tyler willingly does the heavier work to keep the lawn neat and weed free.

Congratulations to Linda and Tyler and your HOA is pleased to award them a Lowe's $25 gift card.

​We will finish up the 2017 Yard of he Month program in October but we will have a special award for the best decorated house for the holiday season, not to be confused with Tacky Lights.

More on this new award program next month. Stay tuned.