​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.

​Summer is almost over and the trees are about to change. But we are still rewarding residents who do an exceptional job of taking care of their yard. The September 2017 Collington Yard of the Month goes to Shakil and Hina Rehman who live at 14100 Hockliffe Lane. The Rehmans have lived in Collington for seven years and have done a magnificent job of taking care of their property. They have an abundance of roses across the front of their house and a stunning row of beautiful crepe myrtles along the street on their side yard. Their weed free lawn is well cut and trimmed. All their boxwoods and other shrubs are manicured and meticulously trimmed. While the family does most of the work, they do use the services of a contractor for fertilization and weed control. Take a ride by to see for yourself what can be done to keep our community looking good. In addition to having the Yard of the Month sign in their yard they also received a $25.00 Lowe's gift card.

​The Grounds Committee has selected 11006 Collington Drive as the Yard of the Month for August 2017. Long time residents of the Tealby section of Collington, Valerie and Kenneth Hegeland have done a phenomenal job of developing and maintaining their home and yard. The house is kept neat and clean, inside and out. The yard has a wide array of positives from the well tended, weed free, trimmed and manicured lawn to the mature hydrangea bushes and beautiful crepe myrtles throughout the front and back yards. The tall grasses and Black Eyed Susan's are used as accents to conceal the utility pedestals. The front walkway has a flowerbed that is bordered by ornamental stone. All the design and plantings were done by Valerie in addition to her demanding job. Take a ride by their house and see another example of what can be done to make a beautiful home look even more inviting. The Hegelands were given the pleasure of having the "Yard of the Month" sign in their front yard and a Lowe's $25.00 gift card so they can make even more additions to their yard.

​The  Yard of the Month for July is 11406 Longtown Drive. Owned by Jerry and Paula Jarvis, their home sits on a secluded lot in the Longtown section. They have lived there for four years and Paula selected the flowers and their layout. Their manicured, weed free, yard is highlighted by dragon wing begonias which helps keep the deer from feasting  on their plantings.
 
Their house is decorated in a festive patriotic theme with beautiful red flowers that set the house off nicely.
 
For all their hard work, mostly done by Paula, they received a $25.00 Lowe's gift card and will be the envy of all Collington. 

​The June Collington Yard of the Month is awarded to Jerry Whitaker of 9900 Brading Lane. His front porch welcomes you to the sound of twin fountains and boxes of pink geraniums.  He also has 5 more fountains gurgling in the back yard and deck, which are visible from Forrest Row Trail on this corner lot. His tip for fellow gardeners is to properly prepare the soil when putting in a new bed.   This may mean replacing the clay soil with garden soil, sand and humus mixture 12 to 14 inches down.  If that is not possible try loosening the soil with lime, humus/manure mixture and garden sand.  You can also top off established beds with the same amendments. This certainly paid off for Jerry as his beds are full of thriving evergreen shrubs and lots of blooming bulbs and colorful annuals. Jerry’s careful planning allows for succession of blooms throughout the season—pansies, azaleas, geraniums, calla lilies, dahlias, daises, peonies, knock out roses and other annuals.  Jerry also put in 3 April blooming and 3 June blooming dogwoods for extended bloom time.  His deck is afforded privacy with 2 stunning Blood-good Japanese Maples.  His lawn is weed free, well trimmed, always cut and he does it all himself. He has been at this residence for 10 years and his neighbors appreciate his passion for a beautiful yard.