Kalmia Gardens
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A project of Coker College—but on the other end of Hartsville from that campus—is scenic Kalmia Gardens (1624 W. Carolina Ave., 843/383-8145, www.coker.edu/kalmia, daily dawn–dusk, free).
This small but colorful garden, first planted in 1935, has several components: the 1820 Hart House, former home of the town’s founder, Thomas Hart; a formal garden near the parking lot; a steep boardwalk down a 60-foot bluff (the gardens straddle the Fall Line) populated by the distinctive species of mountain laurel (Kalmia latiflora) for which the gardens are named; a small bridge over the Black Creek; and the contiguous (and somewhat dense) Segars-McKinnon Heritage Preserve just over the bridge.
The mountain laurel generally blooms in May; other notable floral displays are azaleas, camellias, day lilies, tea olive, and wisteria.
Getting to Kalmia Gardens
Get to Kalmia Gardens by taking West Carolina Avenue south of downtown and look for the entrance on your right.
© Jim Morekis from Moon South Carolina, 4th Edition
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