Are you ready for spring? I sure am, especially after the unrelenting cold this winter. It’s late February as I write, and thankfully, the telltale signals of the season are springing to life. Amid the camellias in full frilly display, elegant saucer magnolias perch on barren branches, while azaleas and forsythia begin to bud, promising color and cheer—and not a moment too soon. 

In April, Charleston proves its reputation of a “city set in a garden”—window boxes spilling over with blooms, vine-covered walls, and verdant sanctuaries beckoning beyond wrought iron gates. In this Home & Garden issue, we celebrate the hands and horticultural wonders that helped shaped our Lowcountry Eden. 

For our feature “The Garden Artist” (page 94), freelance writer James Hutchisson recounts the lasting impression of landscape architect Loutrel W. Briggs, whose numerous designs—more than 100 in the historic district alone—defined the Charleston garden style we appreciate today. From intimate downtown courtyards to sweeping Lowcountry estates, his influence endures in the proportions of a parterre, the placement of a fountain, and the way a path gently reveals what lies beyond. Briggs understood that a garden here is never just ornamental—it is architectural, atmospheric, and deeply rooted in place.

Because Briggs was famously exacting about his plant palette, we decided to unarchive “Charleston’s Botanical Treasures” (page 106) as a fitting companion piece. In it, contributor Melissa Bigner takes a closer look at five classic Lowcountry plants—from beloved camellias to our homegrown Noisette rose—offering histories, planting tips, and harvesting how-tos, all illustrated with gorgeous antique prints.

Together, these features remind us that Charleston’s beauty is not accidental; it is cultivated, tended, and preserved. As you turn these pages, I hope you’ll feel inspired to look more closely at the gardens you pass each day—and perhaps to imagine what you might plant, protect, or reimagine in your own corner of the Lowcountry. After all, in Charleston, home has always extended beyond the front door.