These green-headed coneflowers are just some of the native beauties you will see at JoAnn Dickey's garden in this year's GardenWalk Cleveland.

CLEVELAND, Ohio -- The height of summer is here and to celebrate, gardeners around the Cleveland area will be opening their gates for a charming tradition called GardenWalk.

In a world where doorbells double as security cameras, GardenWalk is a reminder of a more neighborly time. GardenWalk Cleveland was started after the founders attended GardenWalk Buffalo in 2010, which in turn began in 1993 after the founders attended an urban garden tour in Chicago.

Several communities now host GardenWalks, including this month in Cleveland and Cleveland Heights. The concept is simple: gardeners in a community register their garden with the host organization, the host organization publishes a garden guide, and on the designated days, visitors take free, self-guided tours of the gardens for inspiration, education, and neighborhood exploration.

The first Cleveland GardenWalk was in 2011 and now includes 10 neighborhoods in all corners of the city. Always held the first weekend after the 4th of July, it takes place this year on July 9 and 10. The tour is split into two days, so gardeners can show their garden one day and go tour the other.

When I asked Mary Hosier, a GardenWalk Cleveland volunteer, how gardens qualify for GardenWalk, I imagined an intimidating judging process combining elements of “American Idol” and the county fair. Instead, she told me that all you have to do is sign up on their website, and in fact, some of the proudest gardeners are those who have just started out. One such gardener is JoAnn Dickey, who started included her Detroit-Shoreway garden in GardenWalk Cleveland the year after moving into her house five years ago.

With inspiration and advice from her mom, consultation from a landscape designer at WildOnes native plant nursery, and muscle from a hired young man, JoAnn set about transforming the overgrown backyard into a native paradise for pollinators and birds. Her first year participating in GardenWalk, her plants were so small that she printed out pictures of what they would look like when they were fully grown and displayed the pictures on twigs she stuck in the ground.

Fast forward to this year, and her backyard is an unexpected oasis in the heart of an urban neighborhood. Banners on the eight-foot fence cleverly conceal the fact that her lot backs up to a parking lot on Detroit. She sets out books for people to browse and her experience has inspired other people to go native in their yards.

JoAnn Dickey's Detroit-Shoreway garden is part of this year's GardenWalk Cleveland and is a beautiful oasis that she has created in just a few years.

When I ask what advice JoAnn would share with new gardeners, she mentions how much time she took to research the perfect plants, only to find the same plant can grow completely differently depending on the specific garden soil and conditions. “Don’t be afraid to throw stuff in the ground and see what happens,” she says, adding, “When I get stressed, I remind myself that this is my zen time so I relax and enjoy it and let it be what it is. We’re not saving lives here, we’re putting flowers in the ground.”

Then and now photos of a shade garden in JoAnn Dickey's Detroit-Shoreway garden.

Gardenwalkcleveland.org has maps, histories, and garden descriptions for each neighborhood, and most importantly, suggestions for where to stop for lunch.

GardenWalk Cleveland Heights takes place the weekend after GardenWalk Cleveland, on July 16-17 between noon and 5pm each day. The tour will include 50 gardens, including Harcourt Manor. Information for GardenWalk Cleveland Heights is at gardenwalkclevelandheights.com.

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