The South Carolina Cotton Trail invites travelers to return to a time when cotton was the king of the state's economy. Today this 90-mile stretch west of the I-95 corridor is mostly an economically depressed area, but look again - there are some hidden treasures.

Our target for the day was Hartsville, SC, to visit Kalmia Gardens, a 35-acre botanical garden and historic house. Adjoining the garden is the Segars-McKinnon Heritage Preserve, 795 acres of flood plain and higher ground. These two properties fall just shy of New York's 843-acre Central Park - earning Hartsville the nickname of "the park with a city in it."

The geological history of Kalmia Gardens is one of ancient deposits of sand and clay, the advancing and retreating of the Atlantic Ocean, and the carving of a 60-foot bluff. The 60-foot drop in elevation from the bluff to the creek below is the essence of the Gardens, creating a terrain unique in this area of the state.

In recorded history, this land was part of a colonial land grant in 1772; in 1817 it was purchased by Thomas Hart. Hart used timber cut on the property to build his house near the bluff overlooking the flood plain of Black Creek. He brought his wife to the new home, where they raised eight children and the plantation expanded to over 1200 acres of cotton, tobacco and other crops. Thomas Hart was the first postmaster of the area, a merchant, justice of the peace, and captain of the local militia company. By 1837, the town became known as "Hartsville."

The property changed hands many times and by the 1930's, it had become a neglected dump site.  It then came into the hands of May Coker, an avid gardener and humanitarian who proceeded to turn the neglected site into a public garden.  Her project promptly became known as "Miss May's Folly,' for no one could see how this lovely lady could carve a garden from a neglected wilderness on a high, steep bluff.

Miss May renovated the house to make it comfortable for her family, but her greatest task was to carve trails down into the heart of the property.  With the help of several men and a mule, she created her garden, which was named "Kalmia" for the mountain laurel (Kalmia latifolia) that covers a large portion of the hillside.

Since 1935, Kalmia Gardens has been open to the public - free of charge from dawn until dusk, every day of the year.  In 1965, Miss May gave the gardens to Coker College, which maintains the property as an outdoor classroom and public garden.

Our first impression of the garden was of sticks, pine cones, leaves and flower petals everywhere. A huge storm came through over the weekend - lots of rain, thunder and lightning, wind and hail - what a mess! Lots of flowers and tender new growth were battered, but it's not hard to see past the damage to appreciate Miss May's hard work.

After a picnic under the trees, we walked the 97 steps down the 60-foot bluff to the flood plain below. The bluff was cut millenia ago when Black Creek, flowing south, ran into iron-rich sandstone and was forced to turn east.

 At the bottom of the stairs, we followed the boardwalk to the wooden bridge that arches over Black Creek. The creek has its source near Pageland, SC, and meanders some 80 miles to enter the Great Pee Dee River. The water is acidic and slightly discolored by dissolved tannins and other organics from decayed vegetation.

The dominant trees here are bald cypress and swamp tupelo, which are typical of flooded soil conditions. Both have swollen or buttressed bases and and the cypress trees are surrounded by knees, which provide stability in an unstable environment.

Near the end of the boardwalk, an artesian well provides welcome refreshment. In earlier times, this well supplied the Hart house, as evidenced by the remains of a rusted-out cistern.

This walk was mostly botanical, but our guide Dan had sharp eyes and quick hands. This little garter snake wasn't too happy about show-and-tell time.

As the trail rises, the mountain laurel, which gave the gardens its name, is thick along the hillside. Bursting with blooms, this is a sight usually reserved for the mountains of North Carolina.

Heading up the hill, we passed a beautiful white native azalea.

On the walk up the hill, we walked by a pond that was dug by Miss May's workers. It was originally fed by an artesian well. It's surrounded by azaleas and camellias, somewhat the worse for wear after the weekend storm.

The Hart house is typical of farmhouses of the era - two rooms on either side of a central hallway upstairs and down. The formal gardens surrounding the house are manicured and trimmed, and the rocking chairs on the wide front porch looked really good at the end of our walk.



On the way back home, we stopped in Bishopville for ice cream and a quick look at Pearl Fryar's topiary garden (See http://www.pearlfryar.com/).  When Mr. Fryar moved here in 1976, the three acres surrounding his home consisted of nothing but flat, barren cornfields.  In the early eighties, he began planting and pruning trees and shrubs - most of which were throw-aways from local nurseries.  After two-and-a-half decades of near constant labor, he has transformed his yard into an internationally-known topiary garden that attracts over 5,000 visitors a year.  These two were quite impressed.