Amber Kostic has participated in the southern Butler County Garden Tour before, but as a visitor. This year’s tour, Saturday, June 27, was her first as a gardener.

When the rain started early in the day, Kostic had thought the event would be a flop.

“But it has been great,” she said. “The people have been super nice.”

The damp weather and rain did not discourage sightseers from enjoying a day of exploring seven garden spaces in Butler County.

At 9 a.m., around 200 attendees started their morning at the Cranberry Township Municipal Center to pick up their driving directions and tour books for the 18th annual Garden Tour organized by the Southern Butler County Garden Club.

Gardens this year included spaces cultivated by private homeowners for many years, as well as the garden at the historic Buhl House.

Leanne Marino, the co-chairwoman of the garden club, said that this year, the lineup in the tour leaned more towards patio-type gardens, which are smaller but just as beautiful.

Marino added, “We hope that [attendees] enjoy the gardens that they visit, and they’re inspired to do more at their own homes, and get ideas for that.”

Overseeing a garden is no simple task.

“It’s a big job for whoever takes care of it,” said Marino.

One of the gardeners was Paul Vardzel, a resident of Harmony. Vardzel’s gardening journey goes back to when he first built his house in 1992 — he knew right away that he wanted more shrubbery on the 2-acre land.

“So every year, I’d add more and more, and just keep developing,” Vardzel said. The garden is nestled in, away from the hubbub and surrounded by green. “I like the way it’s laid out — it’s private.”

Vardzel described gardening as “a continual process,” and that has not changed all this time later.

Vardzel’s day starts at 7 a.m. with a cup of coffee and a little poking around the garden to figure out what he will work on first. He picks an area that needs cleaning, or may spot something he wants to dig out and move.

Vardzel said the garden itself has a little bit of everything — “You name it.” From zinnia, to hostas and perennials, a variety of flowers color adorn the backyard.

Amber Kostic’s garden is on an incline.

When she and her husband, Charlie Kostic, moved to the neighborhood 11 years ago, the hillside was mostly weeds. The couple put in a pond, a sidewalk and a pergola. Then, Amber Kostic started gardening.

She said hillside gardening, with the constant “getting up and down,” can be difficult. Charlie takes care of the digging, and Amber looks after the garden.

The inclined portion tends to be dry, and keeping it watered can be challenging too. Plus, Amber said that Pittsburgh gardeners know the local soil is not the best in quality.

“It’s clay,” she said. “It's rotten.”

Not to mention the deer, rabbits and chipmunks who love taking bites out of the garden.

“We spray every night when the daylilies are coming into bloom,” Amber Kostic said.

But the hard work pays off.

“This is our oasis,” said Amber Kostic. “This is where we hang out.”

The couple has set two patio areas along the garden to sit and relax. The Kostics’ garden even has a resident frog, nicknamed ‘Bubba,’ who likes to relax on the mulch.

The retired couple also celebrated their 56th anniversary together on Saturday.

“This is what I love to do,” Amber Kostic said about gardening. “I am hopeful that when people see something like this, it will inspire them to go home and do something themselves—something that they enjoy.”

Vardzel’s garden was part of the tour five years ago, he said.

He added that he hopes for the garden tour to be an educational experience for attendees.

“If I can help somebody with an idea, then I’m willing,” said Vardzel.

The annual tour is the Southern Butler County Garden Club’s only fundraiser event of the year.

Besides the tour, the nonprofit organizes educational field trips throughout the year. Members of the club also help maintain the gardens at Graham Park and Mars Area Public Library.