Parade of Ponds tour will benefit charities

The New Jersey Parade of Ponds pond tour, sponsored by Grounds Keeper Inc., a design and landscape firm located in Matawan, will take place on July 28 as part of the North American Water Garden Society's Parade of Ponds pond tours.

More than a dozen private water gardens will be open to the public on the day of the event.

Self-guided and guided tours will begin at 9 a.m. at Grounds Keeper, 798 Route 34, Matawan. Visitors can pick up a map and directions to the water gardens and make their donations to the American Diabetes Association (ADA) and/or Township With a Heart, Old Bridge. Donations are at the discretion of tour participants.

For more information and to register, call (732) 566-1600.

Interested individuals may also meet at 9 a.m. at Barlow's Flower Farm, 1014 Sea Girt Ave., Sea Girt, where Grounds Keeper Inc. will provide maps and a bus to usher tour-goers from site to site.