The house.
Beautiful Gardens Pat Uptegrove
Victoria Cross, Prince Edward Island Story and photos by Shauna Dobbie
P
at Uptegrove has lived all over the world, pursuing the corporate life. On vacation a few years ago, she almost bought a retirement home (for use eventually; she still hasn’t retired) in Lunenburg, but that fell through. So, she wandered over to PEI and when she saw this house she thought, “I’m in
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really, really big trouble.” She knew she was about to start a love affair with this old manor. The house was decrepit, but it looked just like her grandmother’s place on Georgian Bay in Ontario. Pat is a project manager by profession, and she needs that experience in planning and problem solving to make this century home into a beauty again. But when she took possession, there were rattling old windows, no locks on the doors, and raccoons had taken up residence inside. There were also four big maples between the house and the road. They were enormous and majestic, but near the end of their lives, so she’s had to remove three of them so far. She has planted many, many trees since arriving, though. One of the first things she did was order 42 eastern hemlock trees and plant a hedge. Her neighbours thought she was crazy. The trees were only about a foot high, but now, after almost 10 years of growth, they make a lovely backdrop for that part of the garden. “It’s a windbreak. It’s a snow break. It’s privacy. Although there’s a barn on the other side, I don’t see it.” She also planted several eastern redbuds, and now they’re producing seed pods. She’s collected the seeds Issue 2
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