If you drive or walk through Bermuda Run West on a late spring or summer afternoon, you can’t miss the burst of color that surrounds Diane Guthrie’s home on Orchard Park Drive. Beds of annuals and perennials spill over the walkways, each bloom a note in the symphony of her lifelong love affair with flowers. It’s more than a garden—it’s a living testament to heritage, joy, and community.

For Diane, gardening isn’t just a pastime; it’s a legacy deeply rooted in her family’s story. She credits her grandmother, Flora Upchurch Cameron—“Ms. Florrie” to everyone who knew her—with planting the first seeds of passion that continue to blossom decades later.

“My grandmother was well known in the small Sandhills community where I grew up,” Diane recalls, “for her blooming shrubs, flowers, and a bountiful vegetable garden that even provided soup for the first school cafeteria in the county. By the time I was old enough to hold a trowel, she was struggling with arthritis and delighted to have me ‘help’ in her garden.”

It was Ms. Florrie who encouraged a young Diane to plant her own flower garden around her backyard playhouse. When a local Women’s Club Flower Show came around, she persuaded Diane to enter an arrangement. That first entry earned her a blue ribbon—and a lifelong calling.

From that day forward, flowers became part of Diane’s rhythm of life. Over the years, her love of gardening and floral design has grown from a personal joy into a gift she shares widely. As an active member of the Bermuda Run Garden Club, Diane works alongside fellow members on projects that bring beauty and warmth to the community. Together, the club’s floral design committee has created table centerpieces for community celebrations, including the Town of Bermuda Run’s 25th Anniversary, and crafted festive holiday arrangements raffled to benefit Storehouse for Jesus. These efforts reflect not only Diane’s artistry but the collective creativity and generosity of the entire Garden Club—neighbors coming together, using their shared love of flowers to make a difference.

Creating floral designs has become one of Diane’s favorite pursuits in retirement, and with the encouragement of her fellow Garden Club members, she’s begun competing in both local and statewide shows. Her talent and imagination have earned her numerous honors, including a Blue Ribbon, the Designer’s Choice Award, and the People’s Choice Award at the 100th Anniversary North Carolina Garden Club Flower Show for her elegant “Roaring ’20s” arrangement.

At the Carolina Classic Fair, Diane entered a floral design and 20  individual floral specimens—ten of which received blue ribbons, along with several second and third-place awards. Her floral design, “Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie,” was created for the show’s “Cowboy Songs” theme and beautifully blended rustic western charm with graceful artistry—a perfect reflection of Diane’s creative spirit.  It won a blue ribbon.

When asked what keeps her inspired after all these years, Diane doesn’t hesitate. “It’s simple,” she says with a smile. “Flowers make people happy. They made my grandmother happy, and they make me happy. I can’t imagine my life without them.”

That joy is visible to anyone who passes by her home. Even in winter, something beautiful is always growing—a flash of color, a hint of fragrance, a whisper of life continuing. Much like her grandmother’s garden, Diane’s is never without warmth, color, and love.

And just as Ms. Florrie once shared her garden’s bounty with her community, Diane continues to do the same—through her blossoms, her artistry, and her generous spirit. In Bermuda Run West, the beauty she cultivates is more than what’s planted in the soil; it’s what she nurtures in the hearts of all who stop to admire the view.

If you ever doubt Diane Guthrie’s passion for flowers, take a drive down Orchard Park Drive. You’ll find the answer blooming right there in her front yard—a garden in full bloom, and a life that’s just as radiant.