23 August 2014

Long Day At Longwood

This gardener of over a decade has never been to Longwood Gardens in Pennsylvania, or to the other nearby gardener ports of call. Longwood Gardens was on the list of staycation day trips assigned to any weekend with nothing else planned.

The battle plan was to attack on Saturday in August. The weather was to be glorious. The route was arranged, camera batteries charged, and walking clothes readied. Then it rained Friday evening and the meteorologists changed their tune to Saturday showers. Dark overcast skies ready to burst open greeted Saturday morning so the trip was off.

After plans were cancelled, the sun then came out, and rain on the radar map evaporated. I flew into the car and peeled out at the last minute, calculating an arrival time before lunch.

The woods were the first stop. Towering mature trees filtered light down to open glades with peaceful water.

The property was owned by the Pierce family as a farm, with the owners planting specimen tress on a section of the grounds through the 1800s. It was called Pierce's Park, but the Pierce family wanted to sell the property, and a lumber company had a deal to buy the property partly because of the great trees.

The bench beckons for a rest in the woods. But, there is an entire botanical garden to explore.

Pierre duPont, industrialist head of the duPont Compny, was an amateur gardener as most in his famous family. He was appalled that the lumber company was planning to harvest the trees in Pierce's Park, so he purchased the lumber company, then obtained the property and made it his summer home.

The water tower at the edge of the woods.

Pierre duPont laid out and planted gardens on the property, built a spectacular conservatory greenhouse, collected more specimens, built an outdoor theater, and installed grand fountains. He entertained, sponsored theater performances, and kept the park open to the public.

This is the new meadow, still filling in, reminding me of an Andrew Wyeth painting.

The property was set up in a well-funded Longwood Foundation for the preservation of the gardens and for improvement of horticulture. After his death in 1954, the foundation undertook expansion and education. Today, Longwood Gardens and the estate cover 1,077 acres (4.2 km2) and employ over 1000. The newest addition is the 86 acre (0.3 km2) meadow garden demonstrating ecological design with wetlands and open native habitat.

One of the trial gardens - this one of dahlias and daylily cultivars being tried (in the background.)

The main conservatory greenhouse.

I always admire little design details that are unexpected and delight the senses.

The 'white' garden in one of the 'green'houses.

One inside the orchid house. I was impressed by the shape and color. No name.

I like the color combination of the ground plantings.

Yellow and one of those plantings.

One of many in the water pond garden outside the greenhouses. The fact that this was Egyptian reminded me of a reference in the movie The Ten Commandments.

The white garden with dusty miller, nicotiana, oak leaf hydrangea, lily, cleome, lisianthus.

Yellow garden (and the orange garden peeking behind) with lily, canna, rudbeckia, lisianthus, dahlia, hibiscus.

Very happy oak leaf hydrangea, not only in specimen size, but in flower size.

I was not a big fan of coleus, but am coming around to liking them, and this one helps a lot. No name.

This trip was a shot of ambition in an otherwise dull month where gardening chores are not fun but chores. Other destinations near Longwood Gardens that I must include on the bucket list are Winterthur and Nemours Mansion and Gardens , Alfred duPont's pad.

Garden Calendar:
  • Blooming: mexican zinnia, zinnia, echinacea, cleome, marigold, mini glad, rudbeckia, hydrangea, nicotiana
  • Harvested: many peppers & tomatoes, 1 zucchini

11 comments:

  1. Coleus is 'Gay's Delight'
    Melanie in Ohio

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  2. Well who doesn't love a coleus adored by the gays?

    I've only been to Longwood one time and that was years ago.

    You've just whet my appetite for more.

    xo J

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  3. Right you are. Thanks a bunch Melanie.q

    Jane, Christmas is supposed to be a good time for a repeat visit.
    Ray

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  4. Wish I lived close enough to hop in the car when the weather changes. Longwood is one of my favorite places.

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  5. Les,
    Longwood seems to have almost everything in gardens, and I will definitely be back at a different time of year. (It's closer than Norfolk Botanical Garden.)
    Ray

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  6. What a wonderful garden to visit. I love your photo with the bench in especially, the tree in the background is amazing!

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  7. Thanks for the photos, Longwood is such a great garden and I'm long overdue for another visit!

    LOVE that chartreuse coleus, I grew it years ago. It's too bad coleus are so sensitive to cold and start looking unhappy as soon as the nights start turning chilly! Most of my subtropical plants look good right up until the first hard freeze, usually in mid-November.

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  8. Thank you, Pierre duPont! What a gem. I am glad you visited it so I can see it too.

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  9. I have that no name coleus in my garden. I have the plant tag around here somewhere. I've never been to Longwood, which is an embarrassing confession. But it's at the top of my To Do list for next year. It looks so beautiful. :)

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  10. Christa & Casa,
    The trip was on my to-do list for years. I finally did and was glad. On to the next nearby botanical gardens I have yet to see.

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  11. I spent a long day there once too. Can't wait to go back. I could spend a month there.

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