Many have admired Washington’s historic homes from afar, on foot or driving by. On April 23, home and garden lovers are invited to take a closer look at some of these historic homes during the Washington Area Historic Foundation’s “Spring Homes and Garden Tour.”

Featuring eight homes and two gardens, the self-guided tour runs from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m. Participants can start the tour at any home or garden and visit the sites in the order they wish.

Homes on the tour range from the Italianate splendor of Elmwood, built in 1820 and now Washington’s newest bed and breakfast, to Sue Nicholson’s new townhome, to a waterfront West Main Street house that served as both home and doctor’s office to the Dr. John Rodman family. Others include the neoclassical Potts-Bragaw House on East Second Street, the Henry Bridgeman house, impeccably restored to its 1915 origins and the Fenner T. Phillips home, a turn-of-the-19^th-century mix of old and new on West Second Street. The two gardens included on the tour are a brick-pathed garden bursting with tea olive, Sweet Betsy, holly and rosa rugosa, and its opposite, a formal English-style garden featuring boxwood hedges and an iron pergola.

According to Washington Area Historic Foundation’s Dee Congleton, proceeds from the homes and garden tour are funneled back into the community by supporting many projects over the years, including the renovation and upkeep of Harding Square, at the end of Market Street, and Festival Park, a city-owned event space at the east end of the Washington waterfront.

Washington Area Historic Foundation asks that tour-goers wear soft-soled shoes to protect the floors of these historic homes. Strollers, photographs and videos are not permitted.

Tickets can be purchased at the Washington-Beaufort County Chamber of Commerce, Washington Visitors Center, Coffee Caboose and Little Shoppes of Washington. Tickets are $20 in advance; $25 the day of the tour.