Arts & Gardens

Gibbs Gardens

A photographer’s paradise.  Located just 25 minutes from Forrest Hills Resort, Gibbs Gardens is a delightful way to spend the day. 220 acres of artistically landscaped gardens set in the rolling hills of North Georgia; surrounded by majestic forest, spring-fed ponds, streams, waterfalls and bridge crossings. Highlights in June include hundreds of roses, hydrangeas, thousands of daylilies, waterlilies and crape myrtles. The Japanese Gardens with 40 handcrafted lanterns, feature hundreds of Japanese maples that offer exquisite beauty, no matter what the season.

NOTE: You will go right by the Atlanta Motorsports Park, the Edge Of The World and Big Canoe on your way there.

A garden designed for your comfort and enjoyment

Jim Gibbs designed his beautiful gardens with your comfort and convenience in mind. Every aspect of Gibbs Gardens – from the minute you arrive until you leave – is planned to provide you with the most unforgettable garden experience ever. A spectacular allée of 120 Sunset Maples greets you as you turn onto Gibbs Drive, the entrance to Gibbs Gardens. As you follow the road through the Sunset Maples toward the parking areas don’t miss the spectacular view of the North Georgia Mountains as soon as you exit the allée.

Visitors to Gibbs Gardens will experience what Jim Gibbs describes as “the harmony of nature” as they stroll through his 16 garden venues. The seamless integration of nature and artistic design provides a breathtaking canvas for his four feature gardens:

  • Japanese Gardens, the largest in the nation
  • Water Lily Gardens, the nation’s largest display of 140 varieties in a natural environment
  • Daffodil Gardens, the largest display in the country
  • Manor House Gardens with seven flowering terraces covering 150 feet change of elevation from the Manor House to the Valley Gardens.

Click here for directions to Gibbs Gardens

Gibbs Gardens
1987 Gibbs Drive
Ball Ground, GA 30107

770-893-1881

Around Back at Rocky’s Place - Art Gallery

Around Back at Rocky’s Place is a folk art gallery featuring the works of over 200 folk artists, potters, wood carvers, fabric artists, and metal sculptors!

The gallery is located at 3631 Hwy 53 East at Etowah River Road in Dawsonville, GA 30534.

Feel free to stop by the gallery, visit our website at www.aroundbackatrockysplace.com, or call 706-265-6030. Our hours are Saturday 11-5 and Sunday 1-5, or gladly by appointment.

Around Back at Rocky’s Place features pieces from artists around the North Georgia area as well as those in the Southeast. Rocky’s showcases a variety of pottery, from face jugs, churns, pitchers, etc. to whimsical pieces.

Other attractions are the paintings of some of the South’s best folk artists. We also carry canes, birdhouses, pillows, whirligigs, jewelry, and more. Note that folk art is not perfect, and any piece of work listed is sold as is; many times an artist’s work may be retrieved from an old barn or out from under a bed. These are truly the treasured pieces.

The main feature is our “Folk Time” watches. No one should be without a timepiece depicting R. A. Miller’s “Blow Oskar” and Cornbread’s “Fox and Guineas.”