Tour shows beautiful gardens in Wichita are possible, despite water restrictions
With the city of Wichita still limiting outdoor watering because of low levels in Cheney Reservoir, garden-loving residents may wonder if it’s possible to enjoy pots and plots of flowers and other landscaping plants this summer.
The short answer, according to experts, is yes.
And if you need to see it to believe it, check out the six area gardens in this year’s annual garden tour sponsored by the Sedgwick County Extension Office’s master gardener program.
“What we’re really trying to showcase in this year’s garden tour is that there’s still a lot of ways that you can have beautiful and resilient gardens, even when we’re faced with environmental extremes like drought or water restrictions that resulted from the drought,” said Matt McKernan, a horticulture agent with the extension office.
“Each of the six gardens that you’ll go to on this year’s tour has a different kind of approach (in) how they manage water and some of the ways that they save water. … There are ways that we can be good stewards of our water and follow water restrictions and still have beautiful landscapes,” he said.
Four private residences and two gardens on the Wichita State campus comprise this year’s tour. The gardens can be visited from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, May 30 and June 1, and noon to 4 p.m. on Sunday, June 2.
Tickets, good for the entire weekend, are $10, with children 12 and under admitted free with an adult. Tickets can be purchased three ways: in advance in person at the Sedgwick County Extension Education Center at 21st and Ridge Road from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays, online at sedgwick.ksu.edu/gardentour or at any of the gardens on the tour (cash or check only).
At the sole garden outside of Wichita, at 1161 N. 151st St. West in Goddard, visitors can see a variety of drought-resistant oak trees that will grow in Kansas. More than 30 trees of 15 varieties are on the expansive property. Other examples of water-wise practices include plenty of drought-tolerant native plants and drip irrigation systems.
“Drip irrigation really eliminates water from blowing away in the wind and evaporating off the leaves of the plants by … applying it right at the soil level where the roots of the plant need it,” McKernan said.
The Goddard garden also offers “some of the best examples of vegetable gardening for people that are interested in that,” McKernan said.
The gardens at Woolsey Hall on WSU’s Innovation Campus are another good example of blending sustainability with beauty, according to the extension office.
Because Woolsey Hall is an LEED-certified building, the surrounding gardens also need to meet sustainability standards for the building to keep its gold certification status. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) is a widely recognized green-building rating system.
The Woolsey Hall gardens were created by WSU landscaping crews with the help of WSU’s first gentleman, Rick Case, whose gardening and agriculture background stretches back to his childhood on a farm in Wakefield, Kansas. He spent 37 years with the U.S. Department of Agriculture before retiring in 2021.
The gardens contain forbs, which are native flowering plants, and other native perennial plants.
“Once established, they use less water because the plant root system goes deeper in the soil for water,” said Lowell Kaufman, a WSU landscaping supervisor. Annuals help bring extra color, especially ornamental peppers because “they remain for the entire summer with lots of varieties of colors,” and are also very drought tolerant, Kaufman said.
The pond near Woolsey Hall was created with good water management practices, McKernan said.
Other gardens on the 2025 tour are:
The WSU president’s residence at 1820 N. Hillside. Features to look for include hardscaping, shade gardens and containers filled with heat-loving annuals.
236 N. Glendale. The garden incorporates colorful, water-wise, familiar plants like black-eyed Susan, coneflower, Shasta daisy, yarrow and daylilies. It also has an interesting historical feature: The 48-foot-long, 33,200-gallon swimming pool in the backyard was hand-dug in 1948 by the original owners and served as a practice pool in years past for some local swim teams.
1748 N. Illinois. The longtime homeowners use art pieces and lots of pots throughout the property, which also has a reflection pond.
312 S. Grand Mere. Several Kansas native plants happen to be among the homeowner’s favorites, so look for coreopsis, salvia and other plants that have been incorporated into the yard that also features plenty of hostas.
Downloadable and interactive digital maps, along with more details on the gardens, can be found at sedgwick.ksu.edu/gardentour. Look for signage for help locating and parking around the gardens.
Annual Master Gardener Garden Tour
What: tour of six gardens in Wichita and Goddard that benefits the Sedgwick County Extension Office master gardener program
When: 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Friday and Saturday, May 30 and June 1, noon-4 p.m. Sunday, June 2
Where: 312 S. Grand Mere, 236 N. Glendale, 1820 N. Hillside and Woolsey Hall on the Wichita State campus, 1748 N. Illinois in Wichita and 1161 N. 151st St. West in Goddard
Admission: $10 with children 12 and under admitted free with an adult; good for all three days. Purchase in advance in person at the Sedgwick County Extension Education Center at 21st and Ridge Road from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. weekdays, online at sedgwick.ksu.edu/gardentour, or at any of the gardens on the tour (cash or check only).
More info: sedgwick.ksu.edu/gardentour