Surreybrooke: A Destination Nursery

Photos by Lauren LaRocca

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Surreybrooke:

A Destination Nursery

By Lauren LaRocca

When Nancy and Ron Walz bought a farm in Middletown in 1977, the land was bucolic, but far from ideal.

Nancy and Ron transformed it into Surreybrooke garden center and nursery, and the site now draws people from counties away who want to find, learn about and buy exotic plants, shrubs and trees for their yards and gardens.

Others come to Surreybrooke for workshops and events, such as the popular Make Your Own Succulent Garden workshop or Music in the Garden Twilight Walk. School groups visit to learn about plants at the Children’s Garden. And this summer, the American Public Gardens Association is coming for a tour of the grounds and private gardens, which Nancy is pretty thrilled about.

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GROWING HER VISION

“I just started with raised beds on the side of the house,” Nancy said, walking through the Surreybrooke grounds on a sunny weekday afternoon. “I just had a little greenhouse and plants up at the house.”

Her vision would expand rapidly in the ensuing decades to include multiple gardens (including what she calls her “secret garden”), greenhouses, several benches to relax and take in the environs and an onsite shop for all your garden and potting needs.

There’s even a pavilion area now, which is used for parties and receptions.

In short, at Surreybrooke, Nancy has created a destination nursery, one that people are willing to drive a little farther for to come see, one where they take their time and spend all afternoon.

It’s an enriching place that offers much more than your typical graband-go garden center. Paths wind throughout the property, revealing flowering plants and shrubs and vines around every bend and an entire greenhouse filled with succulents and another filled with flowers. Literally thousands of plants and trees fill the grounds, which are large enough for you to roam around for hours.

Curiously, gardening wasn’t something that Nancy learned from either of her parents as a child. Rather, it was something she simply fell in love with and learned by doing, like a mad scientist in the fields.

She read a lot of English garden books and began planting things in part so that people could see what they looked like once they were growing. But it’s as if she couldn’t stop, and indeed she continues to grow the garden center, planting new areas each year to expand its variety of colors, textures and learning opportunities.

Photos by Lauren LaRocca

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As the years passed, she ultimately realized her vision, creating a breathtaking haven for garden lovers and plant enthusiasts throughout the area.

Meanwhile, in the process of creating Surreybrooke, she and her husband have saved five historic buildings that are located on the property, including a sweet, little log cabin built in the early 1700s that predates the founding of Middletown. Nancy once used another historic building on the grounds to run a small shop, where she’d make and sell dried floral arrangements, but she has since closed that part of her business.

EXPLORE THE GROUNDS

Nancy used to raise trees, so all the trees on the property came from little whips that she planted and kept until they were big enough, usually about seven years or so. Now, many of them loom above, and others form small groves (hint: her “secret garden” is hidden in one such place).

Now that the trees afford more shade on the property, Nancy has been able to plant shade-loving plants, such as hostas. Some of the hostas onsite are absolutely massive.

The Children’s Garden area includes the Alphabet Garden, with plants running along a long fence, each representing a letter of the alphabet, ending with zinnias (Nancy had to include a few Latin names to make it work). Children and parents, as well as area school groups, come to the garden to deepen their knowledge of the natural world, learning by seeing, smelling and, in some cases, tasting.

A Pizza Pie Garden (with basil, oregano and tomatoes growing) is alongside the Salad Bowl Garden. The Fairy Garden is also nearby, as is a walk-through maze that winds through a tall grove of pine trees.

Photos by Lauren LaRocca

Nancy started creating the Children’s Garden nearly 20 years ago, when her first granddaughter was born.

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In another area, a rippling creek cuts through the property and feeds a small pond, which makes for a relaxing view and hangout spot for people — as well as geese (baby geese, too, depending on the time of year).

Nancy has planted native species along the creek and has gotten rid of invasive plants, such as honeysuckle and grapevine, to help filter the spring water, which is the source of water for her home on the property and Surreybrooke.

Some people come by and just hang out all day, taking in the sun and the lush space. With plenty of tables, benches, chairs and quiet, whimsical spots, it’s easy to lose track of time here.

Although Nancy has a coveted commute to work — ambling along this lush environment of trees and flowers — you’ll seldom see her resting. She’s always moving, digging, planting, watering, wheeling a wheelbarrow, hands filled with some variation of plants and mulch and soil.

Even when giving a tour of the grounds, she stops to take a phone call from her daughter, Jessi Hollis, who also works at Surreybrooke and has a question for a customer.

“That’s not angelica; that’s white valerian,” Nancy tells her. “It totally looks like angelica, but it’s not. If she comes back, I’ll just dig her one.”

Nancy hangs up the phone and then gets right back to it. Does she have a favorite plant? No. How could she?

For someone so passionate about the world of plants, it would be way too difficult to choose just one.

Photos by Lauren LaRocca

Surreybrooke 8610 Baltimore National Pike, Middletown 301.371.7466 surreybrooke.com

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