INDIANOLA — Stepping onto the path, bright, sweet smelling flowers brush delicately against faces, arms and legs. Different statues greet guests around each corner, and bees buzz through the colors as they collect pollen. Residents of Indianola and beyond seemed to relax even before they neared such locales Aug. 5 during garden tours hosted by those with green thumbs in Indianola.

The founders of the Trillium School helped arrange the tours in the hopes of converting green leaves into currency, but unlike in fairy tales, the money did not turn back into shrubbery after a few hours. The tours benefitted the school, which is opening its doors for the first time this fall, when Indianola’s greens have transformed into reds, oranges and yellows.

The day’s events educated visitors about plants and were devoted entirely to the beauty each garden presented. Residents and visitors mingled among the plants and enjoyed the surprises in each setting, from the smallest private garden to the large Persephone Farm.

“There has been exceptional, incredible turnout,” said Trillium School Founder Elisha Rain, adding that everyone she spoke with who journeyed through the gardens was appreciative and impressed. “We’re up from Oregon,” said landscape designer Linda Lee, adding that she was gaining insight and ideas from the unique Indianola greenery for her future projects.

“We’re really enjoying the combos,” said fellow landscape designer Jan Main. “It’s noteworthy to see how the designer or owner set everything up.”

“It’s going so good,” said Trillium School founder Kelly Asadorian, who opened up her own garden for the tours. “There are so many people here.”

Describing the days that led up to the Saturday event, Asadorian said tickets were selling like corsages on prom night, which is excellent for the school, since it is a fledgling venture.

“This money will go to our operating budget for the year,” Rain said, adding that the founders are also trying to raise $350,000 for a long term site for the school, which is currently housed in a private residence.

The school itself is not without a solid foundation and is “built” on the grounds that students should be entrusted with their own education. It is an alternative form of learning created from education ideas from the Sudbury Valley School in Massachusetts. The founders of the Trillium School are all Indianola residents who felt that conventional schooling was not for their children. The school is K-12, and already has 15 students enrolled. Now, the founders are trying to grow a fund that will increase the number of children who can attend.

“This is probably our biggest event so far,” said founder Mara Lindbergh, adding that the founding members are also raffling off a playhouse. “We’re looking for something like the annual auctions other schools hold. This event might compare to that.”

Lindbergh came up with the idea of the fund-raising garden tour, because she is an avid gardener herself, Rain said.

Cyndi Sterling opened her private garden and art studio up to curious members of the public, showing off little treasures that were tucked in with her flowers, such as a fairy made out of random pieces of what otherwise might be trash. If tossed on the ground, the materials would have looked ugly and sad, but folded in with the rainbow of foliage, they looked just right.

“A lot of this was already here,” Sterling said, speaking of the plants decorating the area in front of her house. She added that she simply built upon what the previous owners had left behind.

“We’re hoping to make this an annual thing,” Lindbergh said. “We’d keep it in Indianola. There are so many little gardens tucked away here. We’d never run out of gardens to show.”