Hi GPODers!
When David Sabio first shared his beloved Yarden on Garden Photo of the Day in 2014, he had long been an active member of the community, sharing supportive words and praise regularly in our comments section. Located right outside Raleigh, North Carolina, the incredible landscape David shared with his wife, Christine, quickly received droves of acclaim and admiration by fellow GPODers. Although he stopped sending photos to Garden Photo of the Day after 2016 (Check out his submissions: David’s Garden in North Carolina, Day 1, Day 2, and Day 3 and Amazing Maples in the Yarden), many GPOD subscribers continued to follow his Yarden updates on his Instagram profile (@d_a_sabio). David was incredibly generous with what he shared from his passion project, even after he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in 2021.
Tragically, on February 27th, David lost his long battle with the terrible disease. The Instagram post announcing his passing flooded with comments from friends, family and gardeners from all over who were impacted and inspired by David’s positivity, passion, and talents. In that comment section, frequent contributor Cherry Ong gave me the brilliant suggestion to pay tribute to David here on Garden Photo of the Day with photos he previously shared of his magical garden masterpiece. After hearing this story and going back to look at his previous submissions, I was more than happy to oblige—as well as encourage more GPODers to visit David’s Instagram, enjoy the many photos and videos he has shared from his Yarden over the years, and leave some kind words in the comments. You can also make a donation in David’s memory to Project Purple or to David’s Silver Linings Team for the Pancreatic Cancer Network 2026 Purple Stride walk.
The following photos come from all four of the GPOD posts featuring David’s garden, which I linked above.
Lewis’ mock orange (Philadelphus lewisii, Zones 3–9), ‘Second Chance’ hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa ‘Second Chance’, Zones 6–9), ‘Fire Power’ nandina (Nandina domestica ‘Fire Power’, Zones 6–9), Horstmann blue atlas cedar (Cedrus atlantica ‘Horstmann’, Zones 6–9), and ‘Green Giant’ arborvitae (Thuja ‘Green Giant’, Zones 5–8)
Weeping snowbell (Styrax japonicus ‘Carillon’, Zones 5–9), ‘Lemon Thread’ Japanese falsecypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Lemon Thread’, Zones 5–9), and ‘Black Stockings’ meadow rue (Thalictrum ‘Black Stockings’, Zones 5–9) (the little pink flowers peeking up in the back) with butterfly house
Patio beneath the ‘Shoal Creek’ chaste tree (Vitex agnus-castus ‘Shoal Creek’, Zones 6–9), ‘Hogyoku’, ‘Beni shichihenge’ and ‘Sagara nishiki’ Japanese maples (Acer palmatum ‘Hogyoku’, ‘Beni shichihenge’ and ‘Sagara nishiki’, Zones 5–9), ‘Hetzi’ juniper (Juniperus virginiana ‘Hetzii’, Zones 3–9), ‘Plumosa Aurea Nana’ dwarf plume sawara cypress (Chamaecyparis pisifera ‘Plumosa Aurea Nana’, Zones 5–8), dwarf globe blue spruce (Picea pungens ‘Globosa’, Zones 2–8), ‘Little Honey’ oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia ‘Little Honey’, Zones 5–9)
Keiko™ (Adored) Itoh peony (Paeonia ‘Pink Double Dandy’, Zones 4–8), ‘Blue Shag’ eastern white pine (Pinus strobus ‘Blue Shag’, Zones 3–8), ‘Spring Fleecing’ fringe tree (Chionanthus virginicus ‘Spring Fleecing’, Zones 4–9), and ‘Tansu’ dwarf Japanese Cedar (Cryptomeria japonica ‘Tansu’, Zones 5–9)
Hybrid red clematis, Daub’s Frosted juniper (Juniperus chinensis ‘Daub’s Frosted’, Zones 4–9), tumbleweed onion (Allium schubertii, Zones 5–8), golden larch (Pseudolarix amabilis, Zones 4–7), ‘Seiun kaku’ dwarf Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Seiun kaku’, Zones 5–9)
‘Rhode Island Red’ dwarf bloodgood Japanese maple (Acer palmatum ‘Rhode Island Red’, Zones 5–9), ‘Palace Purple’ coral bells (Heuchera micrantha var. diversifolia ‘Palace Purple’, Zones 4–9), ‘Solar Eclipse’ heucherella (Heucherella ‘Solar Eclipse’, Zones 4–9), and ‘Angelina’ stonecrop (Sedum rupestre ‘Angelina’, Zones 5–8)
View from end of the driveway, a little of everything
Rhododendron bonsai
‘Higasayama’ and ‘Shishio hime’ Japanese maples (Acer palmatum ‘Higasayama’, Zones 5–9)
Variegated Taiwanese striped-bark maple (Acer caudatifolium ‘Variegatum’, Zones 7–9)
Like I said, I really just love plants!
I want to send my deepest condolences to David’s family and friends, and anyone who got to spend time with him in this sensational garden oasis. The gardening world was made better because of David’s love for plants and his generosity in sharing that passion.
And thank you to Cherry Ong for notifying me and sharing this idea—it is people like you that make GPOD such a special community.
Follow the NEW directions below to submit your photos to Garden Photo of the Day!
We want to see YOUR garden!
Have photos to share? We’d love to see your garden, a particular collection of plants you love, or a wonderful garden you had the chance to visit!
To submit, fill out the Garden Photo of the Day Submission Form.
You can also send 5–10 photos to [email protected] along with some information about the plants in the pictures and where you took the photos. We’d love to hear where you are located, how long you’ve been gardening, successes you are proud of, failures you learned from, hopes for the future, favorite plants, or funny stories from your garden.
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