Photo Tour of
Nelson Water Gardens
Katy, Texas USA

by Rich Sacher
Click images to enlarge

Entrance with granite disappearing fountain	Located on three acres in Katy, Texas USA, just 21 miles west of downtown Houston, Nelson Water Gardens opened in April of 1997. This specialty garden center features waterlilies and aquatic plants, Japanese koi, and all the supplies needed to create an aquatic garden or fish pond ... plus a dazzling display of over 50 disappearing fountains, ponds, streams and an enormous selection of colorful imported pottery, a fascinating gift shop, and unusual heirloom plants.

Founded by Rolf and Anita Nelson and Mike Swize, the nursery has 18 full time employees and six part-timers. Rolf is heavily involved with sales and also manages the financial end of the business, while also acting as overall manager for the nursery. Anita Nelson has long been known as a talented garden writer and lecturer. She is also the gift buyer for their shop, writes and publishes their newsletter, keeps their website up to date, and during the course of the year, plans a dozen lectures or workshops to be held at the nursery. Their annual spring garden party can draw over 1,500 visitors to the event. Mike Swize is a degreed horticulturist and is in charge of aquatic plant production which is done on a rural property. Mike is also involved with weekend sales specializing in technical pump and filter applications. Rolf and Anita’s son Peter Nelson received his degree in landscape architecture from Louisiana State University. Along with Peter, two other staff members hold degrees in landscape architecture which puts the nursery in an excellent position to create and execute landscape designs ... which naturally incorporate water features as part of the overall plan. They are seasoned experts when it comes to installing ponds, streams, disappearing fountains, waterfalls and other water features in the landscape. Peter is also responsible for all the magnificent displays in the nursery.

The Nelson’s three girls, Anne, Mary and Emma, have all taken their turns at getting their feet wet in the nursery, helping out whenever time allows.

Rolf Nelson designed his own molds to create reservoirs for disappearing fountains, and these heavy duty reservoirs are now made exclusively for the nursery. The huge selection of pottery at the nursery allows the customer to select their favorite size, shape and color of pot, have it plumbed, and then have it installed as a fountain in their landscape.

The Nelsons with Kevin Joyce
and Rich Sacher

Large specimen pieces of natural rock are also on display, having been predrilled and plumbed as fountains. All these elegant water features, sometimes called mystery fountains or hidden fountains, have become extremely popular, and constitute an important component of nursery sales.

Nelson Water Gardens is an enchanting oasis which is a “must see” any time your travel takes you to the Houston area. Meantime, you can tour their nursery, meet the staff, and see how disappearing fountains are installed at www.nelsonwatergardens.com.