JHHD August 2026 Yard of the Month

1523 Abrams Road

Martha Heimberg & Ron Sekerak

This month’s Yard of the Month honors more than a beautiful landscape; it recognizes decades of stewardship, preservation, and service to Junius Heights.

Martha has called 1523 Abrams Road home since 1973. One of the neighborhood’s earliest homes, it is recognized as one of Dallas’ finest examples of Prairie-style architecture. Martha and her partner, Ron, have spent years caring for both the home and its landscape, creating a yard that reflects the history and character of Junius Heights.

Over the past five decades, Martha has planted twelve varieties of trees on the property, including bur oak, elm, ash, ginkgo, cedar, and two saw tooth maple saplings she gathered from Lost Maples State Park in South Texas.

Inspired by Henry David Thoreau’s advice to “Simplify, simplify, simplify,” Martha has created a landscape that relies on texture, shade, and a restrained palette of greens accented by purples and reds. Mexican petunias, daisies, and cannas enjoy the sun, while liriope, Tradescantia, coleus, and caladiums thrive beneath the mature tree canopy. The front porch is lined with a variety of plants, many of which have been shared by neighbors through local plant swaps. You’ll also notice the collection of handcrafted ceramic poppies in the yard. These were made by Martha in a pottery class, adding a personal touch to the landscape. As she likes to say, they’re “very drought resistant.”

Ron shares in maintaining the property, and Martha is quick to credit him for the lush lawn and meticulous care that make the yard stand out along Abrams Road.

The house itself is one of Junius Heights’ architectural landmarks. Inspired by Frank Lloyd Wright’s Prairie School designs, it was modeled by a local architect after a series of affordable homes published in the Ladies’ Home Journal. When Martha purchased the home in 1973, it had been divided into a duplex, but nearly all of its original architectural details had survived, allowing it to be carefully preserved over the years.

Martha’s contributions extend well beyond her own property. A longtime journalist, editor, critic, and English professor, she has earned numerous awards for her writing on historic preservation, architecture, and the North Texas prairie.

She also helped shape the future of Junius Heights itself. As one of the founders of the Historic Preservation League of Dallas, now Preservation Dallas, she worked with neighborhood leaders and the City of Dallas to secure historic protections that helped preserve East Dallas’ unique character.

Fittingly, Martha also created the Junius Heights Yard of the Month program many years ago. This August, she receives that honor herself for the very first time. Her dedication to preserving the character and history of Junius Heights has long been recognized by the neighborhood. In 2023, Martha and Ron were honored with the Junius Heights Heritage Award, the neighborhood’s highest recognition, for their extraordinary contributions to preserving and strengthening the community they have called home for more than five decades.

Congratulations to Martha and Ron, our August Yard of the Month recipients. Thank you for your dedication to preserving the beauty, history, and spirit of Junius Heights.