Back to Krider Garden

 I live in Middlebury, which is 8 or 9 miles west of Shipshewana, and we have the most wonderful shade garden here.  I wrote about it a few years ago, in this post, but when I took my dog Velcro (also the star of a post) back to Krider Garden a few weeks ago, I thought I’d add to my previous post.  It’s still a lovely place on a hot day, and there are some new things there.

There’s plenty of parking here, and Velcro and I just started wandering around, front to back and then up to the front again. 

Here are some views we got, below.  Along with grass, trees, and shade plants, there are also lots of water features and lots of places to sit down.

Krider has always had some large art features that were brought back from the 1932 Chicago World’s Fair.  But this time I noticed some new art.  I think this column fountain and stone bench have been here forever, actually, but I’m certain the gardening man, the stork, and the tree sculpture are fairly new.  (I believe it's part of some kind of art loan program.)

Also new:  An excellent restroom building alongside the bike trail, with water available too.  There’s a rentable picnic pavilion nearby, also along the bike trail.

Krider may be pretty, but it’s not entirely magical!  I saw plenty of slug damage in a few places, and also an example of what a deer likes to do to a hosta.  Other areas needed a good weeding, but until I’m ready to volunteer there, I can’t complain about that! 

The Pumpkinvine Bike Trail runs alongside the Krider Garden.  If you follow it from the back of the garden across a wooden bridge for about a quarter mile, you arrive at Dips on the Vine, a nice ice cream place that even has pup cups for your canine friends.

Stop by this place if you need a quiet hour.  More about Krider Garden can be found here.