farm circle garden 6 59

My Lifeline

by

Last year I spent weeks scanning old slides and photographs, most of them from my paternal grandparents. My grandfather, Martin Verhake, was an avid photographer and a passionate gardener. My grandmother, Josephine—whom I called Nanajo—was a meticulous scrapbooker and record keeper. Together, they documented their life with remarkable care, leaving behind a detailed record of their home and, especially, the gardens they created over the years.

split black and white photo record keeper and photographer
Nanajo recorded the story in words, Martin captured it in photographs. Today, I continue the tradition—documenting life and garden moments in my monthly blog.

As I scanned the images that revealed my family history, I realized how deeply the Michigan garden they created in retirement shaped my own story.

I first recognized that connection during my initial landscape design course at the Morris Arboretum in Chestnut Hill, Pennsylvania. By then, I had worked in healthcare IT for decades, but felt energized by my newly discovered passion. For our first assignment, the instructor asked us to draw a garden that had made a lasting emotional impact. Without hesitation, I drew my grandparents’ garden in Freeport, Michigan.

When I shared the drawing with my parents—who knew the farm intimately—they told me I had captured it perfectly. What surprised me most was realizing that I had been only seven years old when my grandparents sold the farm and moved to Florida. Just seven, yet the image of that garden remained crystal clear, and my memories of exploring it felt just as vivid.

My grandfather planted the “circle garden” with annuals every season: pansies in spring, petunias in summer, and mums in fall. I eagerly awaited each visit to see the new patterns he designed. I raced down the gravel paths to the frog pond, my favorite destination, and almost always caught a frog. Years later, when I returned to the farm and met its new owners, I felt a surge of joy watching the owner’s daughter kick off her shoes, jump into the same frog pond—still there after all those years—and catch a frog herself.

cirlce garden with pink petunias surrounded by white ones
The circle garden evolved through the seasons, bursting with petunias each summer.
young boy with net catching frogs and frog in net in insert
My dad catching frogs in 1935 and one caught in 2022 by the current owner’s daughter. Nearly a century apart, the joy of interacting with nature endures.

I also loved the cut-flower gardens. Delphiniums and peonies stand out in my memory, along with a dedicated rose garden near the outdoor grill where countless family gatherings took place. Today, in my Berwyn, Pennsylvania garden, I grow divisions from those very peonies. They remind me of my family’s legacy and the passion for gardening that runs in my blood—passed from great-grandparents to grandparents, from grandparents to parents, and finally to me.

purple and white delphinium in a garden bed
Spikes of vibrant purple delphiniums brought color and height to the cut-flower garden.
Verhake Family portrait early 1960s with young carol holding pink peony
With a peony in hand, I stand before the gardeners who inspired me most—my parents and grandparents, deeply loved and deeply missed.
split photo young blond girl in pink in rose garden with red roses
Standing in the rose garden at my grandparents’ farm and photographing flowers on a trip—just as my grandfather did before me.
Split photo on left muddy landscaper with blue jacket and right old black and white photo of young man in work clothes
An uncanny resemblance—my father in his work clothes, and me in mine.
elderly man in gray suite standing in garden with a pond in front
Though I never knew him, my great-grandfather—shown here—nurtured a love of gardening that blossomed through my grandparents and parents.

This journey down memory lane has been both a privilege and a joy. It left me deeply grateful for the photographs, the memories, and the inherited passion to create and photograph inspiring garden spaces—like the garden that has held a place in my heart since I was a young girl.

 

14 Responses

  5. Astrid

    Just wow! You know how I love the old photos & seeing yours reminds me of my grandparents flower garden in Norway! The picture of you with your parents & grandparents is the sweetest! The gardens on the farm were stunning! Love the Delphiniums so much, they give such a cottage feel.
    I remember that muddy day oh so well working in Fran’s garden, LOL!!
    How awesome it is for you to have all the memories & many photos from a beautiful past!

  6. Joan Dupnock

    Carol,
    This post was wonderful. You continue the legacy your grandparents started.

    Thanks for sharing!
    Joan

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