Gilded Age Splendor in the Hudson River Valley

In 1895 Cornelius Vanderbilt’s grandson Frederick and his wife, Louise, bought the Hudson River estate known as Hyde Park to use as their spring and fall country estate. Frederick Vanderbilt was a quiet man, active in the business of directing 22 railroads, while Louise was a wealthy socialite. They built a Neoclassical Beaux Arts mansion furnished with European antiques, and outfitted with all the latest innovations: electricity, indoor plumbing, and central heating. The final cost totaled $2.25 million—about $60.5 million in today’s dollars.

Hyde Park was a self-sustaining estate, providing food and flowers for the family’s needs there and at their other homes. The grounds had been shaped by several previous owners with horticultural interests. In the early 1800s, Dr. Samuel Bard planted exotic plants and trees in the European Picturesque style.

The next owner, Dr. David Hosack, had a passion for botany and established the first formal gardens on the estate, as well as extensive greenhouses to hold his exotic plants. He also hired André Parmentier, the most renowned landscape architect of that time, to design the landscape. Roads, bridges, and lawns were laid out to compliment natural features, while large areas were left wild. Today, much of Parmentier’s original design remains and continues to be admired for its grace and beauty. In the late 1800s, owner Walter Langdon, Jr., laid out the first formal gardens. He built the gardener’s cottage, tool house, and garden walls, which remain and are in use today.

The Vanderbilts added many amenities to the property to make it accessible, practical and beautiful. They installed their own railroad station (he was a railroad tycoon, after all), boat docks, a coach house, two new bridges over Crum Elbow Creek, a power station, and extensive landscaping.

A large, formal garden was common to most Gilded Age estates, and Frederick Vanderbilt, who had a horticulture degree from Yale University, established the Italian-style, terraced garden that we see today. An esplanade of cherry trees leads to a walled perennial garden, which opens up to a long reflecting pool and a brick loggia decorated with the statue of an odalisque in mid-dance. The path continues to a two-tier rose garden with a charming summerhouse.

The upper garden features formal beds, while the lower garden was planted in the Victorian “bedding out style” of annuals that swept through the country in the late 1800s. This garden exhibits a mélange of curvilinear shapes—crescents, hearts, and circular beds, all planted with bright annuals.

The Vanderbilts were part of a new wave of urban elite that moved to the Hudson River Valley to enjoy relaxed country living, the sporting life, farming, and outdoor recreation. Hyde Park saw lavish weekend parties with horseback riding, golf, tennis, and swimming, followed by formal dinners and dancing. When not hosting guests, the Vanderbilts strolled through the gardens and greenhouses twice daily and visited the farm.

These greenhouses were operational during the Vanderbilt era. When the Vanderbilts were in residence, the greenhouse staff began each day by gathering cut flowers from the carnation and rose houses, bringing them to the mansion, and arranging them in the service area of the basement. The parlor and chamber maids placed them in designated locations on the upper floors. The butler ordered flowers from the greenhouses daily, and created all of the arrangements for the Dining Room himself. If the Vanderbilts were in New York, the greenhouse staff boxed the cut flowers and shipped them to the city.

After Frederick Vanderbilt’s death in 1938, the federal government purchased the estate, thanks to the intervention of President Franklin Roosevelt. While the grounds, landscaping, and buildings were preserved, there were no funds to maintain the gardens, which suffered years of neglect. Today the landscape is restored to its 1930s appearance, thanks to the Frederick William Vanderbilt Garden Association—a group of volunteers who have worked tirelessly to bring the gardens to their former glory. The formal gardens were replanted with 3,200 perennials and 2,000 roses. An additional 6,500 annuals are planted every year. The restored gravel paths, shady arbors, ornate statues, and bubbling fountains give the visitor a glimpse of life in the Gilded Age. The mansion is also beautifully decorated and open for tours for the holidays.

Vanderbilt Mansion, 119 Vanderbilt Park Rd., Hyde Park, NY 12538, (845) 229-7770 nps.gov/vama/index.htm

Excerpted from The Garden Tourist: 120 Destination Gardens and Nurseries in the Northeast

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Irrigation is Irregular

By Antonia Hieronymus

We just experienced the driest summer ever. The weather shows no signs of abating. Grass is brown, streams are just piles of rock and the reservoir has retreated, uncovering piles of dank stinking mud. Gardens are suffering, plants are struggling to survive.

Irrigation systems protect the  garden from the effects of drought. They are relatively affordable and dependable, offering stressed gardeners peace of mind that their hard work will not shrivel up and die, and offering them the chance to get on with other tasks.

So why don’t I have an irrigation system?

I spend hours watering by hand, in this time of drought an average of two hours a day.

It feels like I don’t have the time for so much labor, and yet still I resist an irrigation system.

The truth is that watering by hand is one of the most effective things I do in the garden. Not because I’m better with a hose than an inground system could be, but because it gives me time with my plants.

When I am watering I go around each bed, each tree and shrub.  I’m keenly aware of how much water each item needs and exactly how much it has received in recent days. I look at every plant individually, to see how it is faring. If it needs staking, or is getting diseased, I will notice. If its flowers are particularly splendid, I will rejoice, and equally if it is languishing, I will figure out why.  The beds which don’t quite work from a design standpoint I will transform. I get all my best ideas when I am watering.

I give a shout of joy when it rains, as gardeners I’m sure we all do. But if it rains for days I am already disconnected.

The reason I garden in the first place is that I love the connection to the earth, feeling the soil between my fingers. I make this huge investment of time, money and soul because it is my self-expression, my art.

Giving up the watering feels like being a parent and having someone else raise your kids—sure someone could do it, even raise them well, but the parent is the one missing out. Missing out on the highs and lows, the  victories and disappointments.

For my garden I want to be that parent who never misses a parent- teacher conference and who chaperones every field trip. I don’t want to miss a single minute of the growing up.

I’ll keep my hose.

Antonia gardens in Wayland, Mass.

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Resplendent Dahlias on Enders Island

Looking for a wonderful daytrip? Enders Island is a beautiful 11-acre sanctuary off the coast of Mystic, Connecticut, and the site of St. Edmund’s Retreat, a Catholic Retreat Center. Accessible by a short causeway, the island provides an atmosphere of serenity and spirituality with its lovely gardens, seascapes and seaside Chapel.

The island was once the home of Dr. Thomas and Alys Enders, who gifted it to the Society of St. Edmund, a Catholic community of priests and brothers in 1954. It has since grown to serve a ministry of hope and healing, providing spiritual retreats, an institute of sacred art, and a ministry to people in recovery.

The gardens began in the early 1900s when the Enders transformed the barren island into their home. They built an Arts and Crafts stone house and began extensive landscape renovations. When the 1938 New England Hurricane devastated the island, the Enders commissioned the construction of the seawall that still protects the island today.

Restoration work on the gardens began in 1993. Fr. Thomas F. X. Hoar, SSE, recruited friends from throughout New England to help clean up and restore the landscape, which had become choked with weeds. In 2007, dahlia enthusiast Gayle Wentworth began attending mass on Enders Island. At the time, there were few gardens on the property, but Gayle saw the land’s potential. With a gift of tubers that were planted in two garden plots, the dahlia gardens were established.

Since then, the garden has grown to almost four acres in size, with 24 plots of dahlias. Gayle, now known as the “Dahlia Lady” continues to share her many gifts and talents, contributes dahlias from her own gardens, and obtains tubers from other growers and hybridizers. In 2021 an heirloom dahlia garden was established with contributions from heirloom growers. There are currently more than 2,000 dahilias of 400 varieties in the gardens. Peak blooming season spans mid-August to mid-September, when 90 percent of the flowers are in bloom. Many dahlias continue to dazzle until frost in mid-October.

In addition to the dahlia gardens, a rose garden with 80 rose bushes provides a lovely floral display outside the Our Lady of Assumption Chapel. Grapes, apples, peaches, pears, and peppers also flourish in the Island’s soil, later appearing in a variety of pies and jams crafted annually by staff and volunteers. Nestled into a natural rock amphitheater, the Garden of Two Hearts is a memorial to lost loved ones. Stone walls and walkways frame the gardens, and statuary enhances the reverent atmosphere.

Enders Island is located off of Mystic CT. (860) 536-0565 endersisland.org

Excerpted from The Garden Tourist’s New England, second edition, available here.

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Roses by the Sea at Fuller Gardens

Roses are the main event at Fuller Gardens. Now a test garden for the American Rose Society, it showcases more than 1,200 rose bushes. The 125 varieties have staggered bloom times, so there is color from June until October.

Fuller Gardens began as Runnymede-by-the-Sea, the summer estate of Bostonians Alvan and Viola Fuller. Alvan was a self-made businessman, art collector, philanthropist, and politician who served as governor of Massachusetts in the 1920s. The original landscape was designed by Arthur A. Shurtleff, but the garden evolved and was enlarged over the years, with the help of the Olmsted Brothers firm of Boston. The front garden was designed as the estate’s showpiece in 1938. It was meant to be appreciated from the street and utilized a “false perspective,” in which the back of the garden is narrower than the front, making the space appear longer than it actually is.

The Fullers rarely frequented the garden themselves, but they enjoyed viewing it from the upstairs bedroom windows and welcomed the public. The front garden was planted with hundreds of roses in formal parterre beds, and surrounded by hedges and flower borders filled with coneflowers, astilbe, salvias, baptisia, and geraniums. Statuary and tuteurs draped with clematis punctuated the hedges.

In addition to the front garden, you will find a second rose garden that is laid out in a circular pattern surrounding a central antique wellhead. It is enclosed by a privet hedge and a cedar fence upon which are trained espaliered apple trees. Perennial borders flank the beds of roses.

A shady Japanese garden provides a quiet sanctuary, with paths leading through hostas, ferns, azaleas, mountain laurel, and rhododendrons surrounding a pool filled with giant koi.

Near the remaining carriage house, a glass conservatory houses tropical plants, begonias, and vines. A large display bed of dahlias provides stunning color in late summer.

The gardens are meticulously maintained by a knowledgeable staff headed by director Jamie Colen. The roses are protected from harsh winter temperatures with buckets of soil heaped upon their crowns in early December. Instead of using mulch to suppress weeds, the staff weed the beds twice a week and pay careful attention to soil quality, amending it regularly with compost and lime. As a result, the roses are healthy and vigorous, with few pests and almost no diseases, so chemical treatments are unnecessary. As they age and need to be replaced, new roses are purchased from Roseland Nurseries in Acushnet, Massachusetts. The colorful gardens continue to delight the public as they did almost 100 years ago, and the Fullers are probably happily watching from above.

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It’s All in the Company They Keep

Article and photos by Joan Butler

As any plant collector will tell you, once you’ve been bitten by the “collecting bug”, you acquire a kind of acquisitive madness. You begin to notice subtle details of the plants you desire – details that somehow seem to go unnoticed by friends and family. You begin to seek out nurseries that specialize in the plants you crave, and you are willing to drive great distances to get there. And if you happen to have a friend who is bitten by the same bug – watch out! You will become what I call “enablers” to each other and suddenly you will find yourself with dozens (or hundreds) of beautiful specimens planted cheek-by-jowl in your garden beds. But your collection may not actually function as a garden.

Hosta Orange Marmalade

When I was bitten by the “Hosta Bug” many years ago, I followed the trajectory I just described. I still collect, but at a much slower pace, and I have worked at making my collection function in my garden by incorporating companion plants. When I think about pairing plants, I consider color (complementary or contrasting), texture (usually contrasting), as well as form, pattern and size.

Hosta Maui Buttercup, Lady's Mantle, Sundrops

Pairing yellow hosta with yellow foliage or yellow flowers creates a “Wow” moment in the garden. Hosta ‘Maui Buttercups’ is a medium/large yellow hosta, with stunning corrugated, cupped leaves – a truly beautiful form. The fuzzy chartreuse flowers of Lady’s Mantle (Alchemilla mollis) and the pops of bright yellow offered by the Sundrops (Oenothera) really call attention to the hosta and to the entire garden area.

Hosta Allegan Fog, iris Cristata

I absolutely love our little native Crested Iris (Iris cristata), and use it extensively in my gardens. Here it is paired with the unfurling foliage of Hosta ‘Allegan Fog’. Crested Iris adds spiky texture to the front of the border and contrasts effectively with the more solid form of hostas. And its colorful spring flowers of purple, white or lavender add another point of interest.

Hosta Aventurine, epimedium, bloodroot

One thing I particularly love about pairing epimedium with hosta, is that the shape of most epimedium leaves echoes the shape of the hosta leaves, but on a more delicate scale. I also appreciate the changeable colors of epimedium foliage, which allows them to influence neighboring plants differently depending on the season. Here, the early spring foliage of Epimedium x versicolor “Cupreum” contrasts and complements the sturdy blue Hosta ‘Aventurine’. The groundcover behind the two is our native bloodroot (Sanguinaria canadensis). As the season progresses, the Epimedium leaves will become solid green, the bloodroot foliage will expand, and the hosta will produce flowers and its foliage will take on greener tones. All working together to produce different garden scenes.

Hosta Sagae, ferns, epimedium

The fine-textured foliage of ferns makes them perfect partners for hostas – that textural contrast elevates both! Hosta ‘Sagae’ is a large, upright, vase-shaped hosta that can be grown in sun or shade.  When grown in shade, pair it with Maidenhair fern (Adiantum pedatum) for textural contrast and Japanese Painted fern (Atherium niponicum) for textural and color contrast. Add an Epimedium grandiflorum cultivar into the mix and you have an eye-catching quartet from spring until fall.

Hosta Salute, Viburnum.

Woody plants with variegated or non-green foliage can bring a different level of interest to the hosta garden. The leaves of some trees and shrubs have variegation similar to many hostas (such as green leaves edged in white) and some have mottled variegation that pick up on the colors of the hosta planted in their midst. The leaves of Viburnum lantana ‘Variegatum’ have splashes of blue that echo the blue of Hosta ‘Salute’ and other blue hosta planted nearby. And its woody, open form adds year-round interest to the garden.

Hosta, hellebore

Hellebores also add year-round interest to the hosta garden. Their palmate evergreen foliage adds textural contrast during the hosta growing season and winter interest when the herbaceous plants have died back. Last year I planted a lovely hellebore with variegated foliage, including pink venation, called ‘Penny’s Pink’. Its dusky purple flowers were a welcome sight this spring and its gorgeous foliage contributes to its companion hosta throughout the growing season.

Hosta Ann Kulpa, Hosta Mabel-Maria Herweg, Heuchera

There are nearly 300 different hosta cultivars growing in my gardens and I try to get them to work together. For example, I pair blue hosta and yellow hosta for contrast and interest. And I might add a blue hosta with a yellow edge into the mix to tie it all together. I also pair variegated hostas that have different patterns. Here Hosta ‘Ann Kulpa’, green with a central yellow stripe, complements Hosta ‘Mabel-Maria Herweg’, green with a yellow edge. I complete the picture by including purple coral bells (Heuchera), a companion plant with a contrasting color.

Hosta Sugar & Spice, Corydalis

Other suggestions for great hosta companion plants include Yellow Corydalis (Corydalis lutea), Solomon’s Seal (Polygonatum), Fringed Bleeding Heart (Dicentra eximia), Foamflower (Tiarella), Columbine (Aquilegia), Astilbe and Japanese Fountain Grass Hakonechloa).

Gardening with a collection is an adventure: a collector’s garden can contain an extraordinary number of plants. Incorporating companion plants and using design elements (color, texture, pattern and form) can transform an obsession into a garden.

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Beauport: An Eclectic Seaside Getaway

If you are interested in interior design, architecture, historic homes, and antiques as well as gardens, you will thoroughly enjoy Beauport. Beauport was the summer home of Henry Davis Sleeper, one of the country’s first professional interior designers. Perched in a dramatic setting on Gloucester’s Eastern Point, Beauport showcases Sleeper’s unique vision and artistic talent in 40 beautifully preserved rooms and a small lush garden.

Eastern Point was developed as a wealthy summer enclave in the early 1900s. Sleeper came from a prominent Boston family and was introduced to the area in 1906. He was “clearly besotted” by the site’s natural beauty, purchased a waterfront lot, and began constructing his esoteric residence. The home looks like it belongs in a fairy tale, with a blend of Gothic, medieval, early Colonial, and Arts and Crafts architecture. Built of stone and wood, it features steeply pitched roofs, round towers, a belfry, ornate chimneys, and diamond-paned leaded-glass windows.

The interior is a warren of eclectic rooms connected by alcoves and stairways and packed with more than 10,000 furnishings, salvaged architectural details, and decorative objects. Each room has its own theme based on literature, a historical event, or a collection.

You will see a Jacobean-style dining room that feels like an English pub; a colonial-era kitchen; a marine master parlor overlooking Gloucester Harbor; a two-story, balconied book tower; and the “China Trade” room, with its pagoda-inspired balcony and 1780s hand-printed Chinese wallpaper.

Beauport was both a home and a professional showcase and led to a successful interior design career that included clients such as Isabella Stewart Gardner, Henry Francis du Pont, and Hollywood celebrities. After Sleeper passed away, the mansion was purchased in 1935 by Helena Woolworth McCann who preserved it mostly unchanged. Her heirs donated it to Historic New England in 1942.

Like the house, the garden evolved over several decades and is characteristic of an Arts and Crafts design. It is divided into several formal outdoor rooms and intimate spaces accented with sundials and classical statuary. The entry garden’s boxwood hedge and gravel paths enclose a small cottage garden of lush perennials. Brick patios and flower-edged terraces at the back of the house overlook the harbor. Further from the house, the materials change to rough stone, flowing lines adapt to the natural contours of the site, and plantings feature native shrubs and perennials and Pennsylvania sedge lawns. The garden was restored in 2012 to its 1920s appearance.

75 Eastern Point Blvd., Gloucester, MA 01930, (978) 283-0800, historicnewengland.org/property/beauport-sleeper-mccann-house

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Rhododendrons with Attractive Foliage

By Joe Bruso, President, Rhododendron Society of America, Massachusetts Chapter

Rhododendrons are very popular spring-blooming shrubs with flowers in most colors.  The larger-leaved types available at garden centers bloom primarily in May, while most of the smaller-leaved types bloom in April.  Once the colorful blooms have faded, these plants are generally thought of as just green bushes.  What if they could be a focus of attention for more than the 2-4 weeks during which each individual plant is blooming?  Fortunately for those of us who love this genus, there are many plants that have attractive new growth and foliage that makes them a focus of attention all year.  While most long-time rhododendron growers know this, it may not be so well known among our newer members. This article provides an introduction to some of these plants.

New Growth

For some rhododendrons new growth can rival the blooms themselves for color and attractiveness.  It can be equivalent to a second bloom period, except sometimes lasting much longer than the blooms themselves.  For such plants, attractive color and texture can be seen on new shoots, bracts on those shoots, and hairs on the stems and leaves.  Bracts are modified leaves that originate as inner bud scales – the small, overlapping structures that protect dormant buds.  When these buds begin to grow, the bracts expand to look like small leaves, becoming very colorful, typically pink to bright red.  Bracts are temporary, withering and falling off as the new growth continues to expand and mature.  Some of my favorites include hybrids that have the species Rhododendron rex, R. macabeanum, and R. strigillosum in their parentage.  Although these species themselves are too tender for much of New England, they pass their colorful attributes on to their hardy hybrid progeny.  R. auriculatum can be grown as-is in much of New England, providing very dramatic late new growth.

R. auriculatum (left) and R. macabeanum hybrid (right) new growth showing colorful bracts

Foliage Shape and Size

A number of rhododendron species and hybrids have distinctively shaped leaves.  At their extremes, leaves can range from perfectly round to extraordinarily long and narrow.

Large Leaves

Some rhododendron species have leaves significantly larger than those of most rhododendrons grown in our area.  Although they are not hardy enough to grow in the colder parts of New England, many hybrids between these “big leafs” and hardy rhododendrons have been made, resulting in hardy hybrids that approximate the look of the species.  Mostly robust growers, these hybrids need space.  One of the features found in some of these hybrids is an interesting texture to the leaves.  One of my favorites is an R. rex hybrid with the hardy species R. brachycarpum.

R. sinogrande – very large leaves but tender, in UK garden (left), R. brachycarpum x R. rex (hardy “Big Leaf” hybrid) with textured leaves (right).

Round Leaves

Several rhododendron species have almost perfectly round leaves.  They range in size from less than 1” for the tender species R. williamsianum to several inches in diameter for two recently introduced and hardier species, R. yuefengense and R. platypodum.  One of the best williamsianum hybrids for our area is ‘Minas Grand Pre’, which is a hardy, slow growing mound with attractive, pink bell-shaped flowers.  Hybridizers are working hard with the other species mentioned and are producing some very attractive, round-leaved plants with much larger leaves than ‘Minas Grand Pre’.

Rhododendron ‘Minas Grand Pre’, R. yuefengense (left) and R. yuefengense x R. platypodum (right).

Narrow Leaves

Several species have long, narrow leaves.  The best example of this characteristic is found in R. makinoi.  It is very hardy in our area, and has many other desirable characteristics besides the leaf shape, including silvery hairy new growth, compact habit and retention of leaves for several years.  It is one of my favorite species, both as-is, and for use in hybridizing.

R. makinoi (left) and R. makinoi x R. strigillosum (right) showing narrow leaves and colorful, hairy new growth.

Hairy Foliage

Attractive hairs on stems and foliage (called indumentum) is perhaps the trait that most excites rhododendron foliage enthusiasts.  These hairs come in a wide range of colors.  They can appear on all parts of the new growth:  expanding and mature stems, and both the upper and lower leaf surfaces.  On the upper surfaces, hair color can be a bit muted, ranging from pure white, silvery, blue-green and muted burgundy, but also through light rusty-orange. 

Hairs on the upper leaf surface can last for several months with rain gradually wearing them off.  Examples include R. yakushimanum and R. makinoi and their hybrids, and R. bureavii and R. pachysanthum hybrids.  R. yakushimanum was one of the first species introduced into New England that showed these characteristics.  It has been extensively hybridized so there are many hybrids available, some of which can be found at local garden centers.  Two of the more common and attractive hybrids are ‘Mist Maiden’ and ‘Ken Janeck’.

Rhododendrons grown for foliage showing range of hair color on upper leaf surfaces. R. ‘Golfer’ appears in the foreground, R. makinoi behind that.

In contrast to hairs on the upper surface, the color of hairs on leaf undersides can be intense.  A favorite group for this characteristic is R. bureavii hybrids which have a thick layer of orange-rusty-colored indumentum.  The hybrid ‘Cinnamon Bear’ is an outstanding example.  Some types hold their leaves at an angle or even upright, allowing the colored undersides to be viewed from a distance.  Hairs on the leaf undersides are permanent, changing in color over time from pure white or light-colored to a darker color, often orange or reddish.

‘Cinnamon Bear’ (left) and ‘Cinnamon Bear’ x ‘Jade ‘n Suede’ (right).

Pigmented Mature Foliage

Some rhododendrons have deeply pigmented new leaves.  A subset of these retain this pigmentation for an extended period of time.  A great example is a form of the species R. fargesii called ‘Rudy Berg’.  Its leaves retain their burgundy color for up to 2 months.

 Another group of rhododendrons, selections of our native R. maximum and some of its hybrids, show what I call the “Red Max Effect”.  Decades ago a small colony of R. maximum was found in the Appalachian Mountains showing an unusually high degree of red pigmentation in stems, leaves and flowers.  These traits are passed on to some of its hybrids.  Particularly noticeable are reddish leaf centers.  This trait is visible all year long.

R. maximum (left) and R. maximum x R. adenopodum (right) foliage showing “Red Max Effect”.

“Red Max Effect” as seen in the flowers:  bicolor pink truss in foreground, red truss in background, on the same plant.

A selection of the species R. neriiflorum called ‘Rosevallon’ maintains red leaf undersides throughout its life.  This trait is passed on to a high percentage of its hybrid offspring.  Several named hybrids have been marketed, including one called ‘Everred’.  While this and similar hybrids may be marginally hardy in parts of New England, I’ve made successful crosses between ‘Rosevallon’ and hardy plants such as R. ‘Janet Blair’ that produced fully hardy plants with red foliage.

R. fargesii ‘Rudy Berg’ (left) and ‘Janet Blair’ x ‘Rosevallon’ (right)

Fall Color

Some rhododendrons display spectacular fall color before dropping some or all of their leaves.  Deciduous azaleas, which are within the genus Rhododendron, often develop bright yellow to crimson color in the leaves before they drop.  Similarly, many of the small-leaved type of rhododendrons (PJM being an example of this type) also develop bright colors in the older leaves before they are lost.  R. quinquefolium, a species from Japan, often has picoteed leaves, both on new spring leaves and on fall foliage.

Fall Color: R. quinquefolium (left), R. vaseyi (right).

Conclusion

Rhododendron flowers are beautiful and are the primary reason most people grow rhododendrons, but consider selecting and growing plants for foliage as well.  Colorful new growth can provide a second “bloom” season.  Colorful hairs, leaf shape, texture and leaf size can add many additional months of interest to your garden.  Of course, all of these rhododendrons bloom as well.  Unfortunately, many of the foliage plants discussed here are not readily available from garden centers, but they can be obtained from some specialty growers, mail-order companies and from the Massachusetts Chapter’s Plants for Members (P4M) program.  To find out more about P4M, contact one of the P4M chairmen listed on our website (MassRhododendron.org), including me at jpbruso@aol.com.

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Entering Rhododedron Trusses in a Flower Show

The following advice on preparing a truss for showing was written in 1983 by Evie Cowles for the Mass. Chapter of the Rhododendron Society Newsletter. It is a useful guide for those who wish to enter a rhododendron truss in a flower show.

1. Perfect condition is essential. This means healthy, unblemished foliage to set off the florets.  If you think of the leaves as a frame for a picture, you will appreciate how insect bites or browning reduces aesthetic appeal.  The large-leaved variety, ideally, is presented as a truss sitting on a perfect circle of leaves.

2. Blossoms should be open, but not over-mature.  One with a still-closed bud is preferable to another with florets on the point of dropping.  This particularly applies to the selection of azaleas. 

3. As with most cut flowers, rhododendrons benefit from a 24-hour hardening-off period to prevent wilting during the show.  The stem is trimmed before plunging the truss up to its neck in lukewarm water. Set the truss in a cold, draft-free spot for 24 hours. If a heavy rain is predicted before the show, cut your perfect trusses and extend this for a few days.

4. Before the truss is placed on display, it’s a good idea to make a fresh cut of the stem base. 

5. Very early rhododendron varieties can be shown out of season if they have been kept in cold storage.  The truss is stored dry in a sealed plastic bag in a refrigerator until the day before the show.  (It is also helpful to inflate the bag by blowing air into it, as if it were a balloon.  This will prevent the plastic from damaging the tissues of the truss).

 6. All the care in the world up to this point is useless if the trusses are bashed en route to the show.  For a short drive, it’s fine to lay them in shallow boxes.  For a longer distance, it’s better to put them upright in water in pop bottles or cans that are braced to prevent tipping or crowding.

7. If you have a truss of an unusual, difficult, or particularly beautiful variety, even if the foliage is in poor condition, enter the truss and you will likely get at least an Honorable Mention.  Many times, your newest plants are still quite small so that if gypsy moths or weevils chew the foliage, there are not a lot of other trusses to choose from – and these are the very cultivars that others are eager to see.  So be brave and enter your new or unusual less-than-perfect trusses.

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How to Create Soil That Last

One of my gardening friends is a big proponent of using biochar in her garden, so I asked Pat White, founder of Kalanso Biochar, to tell us about its history and benefits.

By Pat White, Kalanso Biochar 

Many moons ago I asked complete strangers what their biggest challenges were with their soil. I got a lot of different responses. But a common theme emerged. Folks wanted to figure out how to make their soil low-maintenance. They grew tired of having the bring in new soil every year. They wanted their soil to be dependable and long-lasting. One response even said, “To figure out how to make it better after 25 years of adding compost and not getting anywhere.”

That last one tickled me.

You see, several years ago I travelled to this tiny, little six acre organic farm in a small, rural Massachusetts town to visit with a man who was answering that very same question! His name was Dan. And there was a time when he didn't actually know if his farm was going to make it.

Dan had this daily ritual where he would take these walks through his fields to inspect (i.e. "collect data like a scientist") how things were going. After doing this day after day, it got to the point where, as much as he wanted to, he couldn't deny the truth any longer. What he saw was that his soil was falling apart.

Farmer Dan was no spring chicken. He was a trained and certified organic farmer, meaning:

• He was using organic fertilizers (in the correct ratios.)

• He was composting.

• He was mulching.

• Planting cover-crops.

• Tilling.

In other words...he was doing everything he had trained to do. And his soil was still falling apart. No soil, no farm. No farm, no livelihood. So what did Dan do? Did he decide to just call it quits? Nope.

Remember, he's a scientist. And what do scientists do? They go to conferences! So that's what he did. He went to conferences to learn. And at one of them he learned a lesson that sticks with him to this very day. The soil runs on autopilot when all of its parts are working together.

And Dan learned the fastest, quickest, and easiest way to get all the parts of the soil working together is by using biochar. Biochar is a soil amendment. It’s created naturally anytime there’s a forest fire. (Or anytime you fire up your wood stove.) And its Mother Nature’s secret code to running on autopilot. You can use it in your gardens and landscapes, too, to create the lasting soil you’ve wanted.

Pat White adding Biochar to plantings on the Esplanade in Boston

On the surface, biochar kind of looks like charcoal. And that’s how you’ll hear people compare it. However, I think comparing it to charcoal does it a disservice.  Chemically, it’s much closer to graphite - like from a graphite pencil. And that distinction is important, because it carries with it several well-studied scientific principles.

First is the principle of “cation exchange”. See, your plants don’t use most of the fertilizer you give them. A lot is actually wasted. And that means you need to go out and buy more and use more (which isn’t all that good for the environment).

What if you could stick a plant nutrient magnet in your soil that could hold onto all the unused plant nutrients? And what if it could slow release them back to your plants when they need them. On demand? 

Enter biochar. Biochar keeps those unused nutrients in the soil longer, and releases them back to your plants when they need them. That’s a big deal because now your plants can access nutrients on-demand and you can stop having to micromanage your soil chemistry.

The second principle is “surface area”. What if you didn’t have to water your plants as much? Or... What if you got hit by drought? How would your plants handle it? Below you see tomato plants grown during drought. The one on the left is in regular soil, the one on the right has Biochar added to soil.

Or... What if you didn’t have to worry about heavy clay soil? Biochar is incredibly porous. In fact, one gram has the surface area of a football field. And it helps the soil hold onto water for longer. And it helps the soil breathe. (Oxygen in the soil is important, too!)

The relationship between your plants and soil microbes is incredibly important. The stronger that relationship is, the more low-maintenance your soil is. And biochar helps strengthen that relationship the moment it sets foot in your soil because soil microbes of various shapes and sizes build their forever homes in it.

And last but not least, the third principle is “stability.” Biochar is very WYSYWIG. That means “what you see is what you get.” It has well understood “cation-exchange” benefits. It has well understood “surface area” benefits. And it has another benefit, too, that is well understood. (And this benefit has people in climate change circles around the globe very giddy.) Properly made biochar has a theoretical life-span of one million years.I know that number is too big to be meaningful to anyone. But that’s why you may hear it referred as “stable carbon.”

Biochar is a “permanent” soil amendment. That means when you add biochar to your soil, it stays there. Year after year. With all the benefits of “cation exchange” and “surface area” compounding over time. How cool is that?

What’s interesting to me about that is that lasting soil is within our reach. And the vehicle for it has been under all our noses for billions of years... ever since the very first time Mother Nature set wood aflame.

Anyhoo...I hope that’s helpful. I hope you decide to learn more about biochar and use it with everything you grow. If you’d like to learn more, you can visit: https://www.successfulgrowersecrets.com/jm Just confirm your email address for me, and I’ll give you a mini-class I created called “How To Create Soil That Lasts” where I go more in-depth than I could in this article. The mini-class even includes a biochar “garden tour plant trial” we did in California during a drought, which was pretty cool to see.

And as for farmer Dan? You’ll have to watch the mini-class to find out.

Here’s to lasting soil!

For more information: successfulgrowersecrets.com/jm

Best Spring Bulb Displays in the Northeast 2022

Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Ready to welcome spring after a long Northeast winter? Nothing lifts the spirit like a stroll among masses of daffodils, tulips and other spring bulbs. Here’s my list of wonderful spring bulb displays to enjoy this year.

Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Mid-April to late May, Boylston, MA

Enjoy a changing bulb display at Tower Hill Botanic garden, beginning with Reticulated Iris and Hyacinths in mid-April, fields of 25,000 daffodils in late April to early May, and gorgeous tulip displays in mid to late May. Daffodils Day May 4-5. towerhillbg.org

Tower hill Botanic Garden

Tower Hill Botanic Garden

Spring Bloom Fest at The Stevens Coolidge House and Gardens

Spring Bloom Fest at The Stevens Coolidge House and Gardens

April 21—May 15, N. Andover, MA

Immerse yourself in the beauty of more than 175,000 tulips and other bulbs, filling nine display gardens with the exuberant colors of spring.. the trustees

Naumkeag Daffodil and Tulip Festival

April 21—May 15, Stockbridge, MA

Stroll through the 8 acres of our world-renowned gardens decorated with over 75,000 daffodil, tulip and minor bulbs as we celebrate spring in the Berkshires. the trustees

Nantucket Daffodil Festival

Nantucket Daffodil Festival

April 22-24, Nantucket, MA

Nantucket’s annual daffodil celebration includes the Nantucket Daffodil Flower Show, a window decorating contest, antique car parade, tours, and art shows. Come in costume to the Daffy Hat Contest and children’s parade. daffodilfestival.com

Nantucket Daffodil Festival

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Late April–late May, Boothbay, ME

Coastal Maine’s display gardens feature thousands of tulips, daffodils and other spring bulbs from late April to late May in one of New England’s premier public gardens. mainegardens.org

Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens

Blithewold Daffodil Days

Blithewold Daffodil Days

April through Mid-May, Bristol, RI

The Bosquet, a cultivated woodland, features more than 50,000 daffodils at Blithewold Mansion Gardens and Arboretum. You will also see many woodland wildflowers in bloom.  blithewold.org

Heritage Museums & Gardens

Heritage Museums & Gardens

Mid April–mid May, Sandwich, MA

A spectacular Bulb River of 35,000 grape hyacinths highlighted with 1,500 white daffodils flows on the grounds of Heritage Museums & Gardens in spring. The grape hyacinths begin to open in mid April and reach their peak around Mother’s Day. heritagemuseumsandgardens.org

Wicked Tulips (photo by Beth Reis)

Wicked Tulips Flower Farm

Late April–mid May, Exeter, RI and Preston, CT

Wicked Tulips has the largest u-pick tulip field in New England, with 600,000 early, mid, and late blooming tulips. Enjoy the fields of color, and bring home a fresh hand-picked bouquet. The early tulips begin blooming in late April, followed by waves of later blooming tulips until Mother’s Day. The website Bloom Report provides important updates and allows you to see what is in bloom. Advance tickets are required and must be purchased online. wickedtulips.com

Newport Daffodil Days

Newport Daffodil Days Festival

April, Newport, RI

Now in its 6th year, the Newport Daffodil Festival has beautified the city with more than 1 million daffodils. The week-long celebration includes a garden party, classic car parade, concerts, tours, dog parade and much more. Don’t miss the display of 11,000 daffodils of 29 varieties and the Green Animals Topiary Garden. newportdaffydays.com

Elizabeth Park

Elizabeth Park

Mid-April–mid May, Hartford, CT

Daffodils in mid-April give way to a beautiful display of 11,000 tulips that peak on Mother’s Day. elizabethparkct.org

Colorblends

ColorBlends House and Spring Garden

April 1–May 8, Bridgeport, CT

 Stroll through an evolving display of color as snowdrops, crocuses, daffodils, tulips and other spring-flowering bulbs come into bloom at the ColorBlends House and Spring Garden. Located in Bridgeport’s  Stratfield Historic Distric, the 1903 Colonial Revival  mansion is surrounded by an intimate garden designed by distinguished Dutch  garden designer Jacqueline van der Kloet for Colorblends Wholesale Flowerbulbs..colorblendsspringgarden.com

Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens

Bartlett Arboretum & Gardens

Late April–mid May

Enjoy planting of early bulbs, daffodils and tulips blooming in 93-acres of formal gardens and natural habitats. bartlettarboretum.org

Meriden Daffodil Days

Meriden Daffodil Festival

April 30—May 1, Meriden, CT

One of Connecticut’s favorite celebrations, the Meriden Daffodil Festival features a juried craft fair, rides and food vendors, and an amazing fireworks show, all set against a spectacular display of 600,000 daffodils. daffodilfest.com

New York Botanic Garden

New York Botanic Garden

April–May, Bronx, NY

Explore the Rock Garden for tiny species daffodils, and Daffodil Valley, where the Murray Liasson Narcissus Collection is located. See the latest hybrids on the Daylily/Daffodil Walk, and antique cultivars planted in a seal of yellow and white on Daffodil Hill. nybg.org/garden

Reeves-Reed Arboretum

Reeves-Reed Arboretum

Mid April, Summit, NJ

Celebrate spring with a "host of golden daffodils," as poet William Wordsworth wrote, at Reeves-Reed Arboretum and enjoy one of the largest daffodil collections in New Jersey. The collection, planted in the Arboretum's glacially carved 'kettle' or bowl, was started in the early 1900s by the original owners of the property. Today the collection boasts more than 50,000 bulbs and the annual Daffodil Day brings visitors from all over the tri-state area. Daffodil Day is April 14, 2019. reeves-reedarboretum.org

Reeves-Reed Arboretum

Deep Cut Gardens

Deep Cut Gardens

Mid-April–mid May, Middletown, NJ

Beautiful tulip and daffodil blooms are on display in this 54 acre formal garden. monmouthcountyparks.com

Deep Cut Gardens

Frelinghuysen Arboretum

Frelinhuysen Arboretum

Mid April-mid May, Morris Township, NJ

The formal gardens at Frelinghuysen Arboretum feature gorgeous bedding displays of tulips. arboretumfriends.org

Frelinghuysen Arboretum

Chanticleer

Chanticleer

Early April to mid-May

Chanticleer is ablaze with spring bulbs from species tulips, miniature daffodils and grape hyacinths on the hillside, to formal bedding of tulips and daffodils around the mansion. A sloping lawn, punctuated by flowering shade trees, features 80,000 white or pale yellow narcissus running in two rivers to the bottom. Virginia bluebells, trilliums, grape hyacinths and camassias create gorgeous displays in the woodlands. chanticleergarden.org

Chanticleer

Longwood Gardens

Longwood Gardens

Longwood Gardens

Early April to early May, Kennett Square, PA

Early spring bulbs like glory-of-the-snow, winter-aconite, and crocus first herald the season’s arrival, with gorgeous tulips, wisteria, and flowering trees creating a lush spring tapestry of color, fragrance, and warmth. longwoodgardens.org

Longwood Gardens

Inventors' Gardens: Edison and Ford Winter Estates

The Edison and Ford Winter Estates is a wonderful place to visit for gardeners and those interested in history, science, engineering, and automobiles. These lovely homes and gardens were the former homes of master inventor Thomas Edison and automobile magnate Henry Ford. The property includes 20 acres of gardens, historic buildings, a museum, and the 1928 Edison Botanical Research Laboratory. Open to the public since 1947, Edison Ford is one of the most visited historic home sites in America.

World-renowned inventor Thomas Edison first came to Fort Myers in 1885 in search of a warm escape from cold northern winters. He purchased more than 13 acres along the Caloosahatchee River, and shortly after he designed his plan for a winter retreat, including houses, a laboratory, and extensive gardens. The estate became known as Seminole Lodge and was enjoyed by Edison, his new wife, Mina, and their family for six decades. The Edisons hosted many friends, including Henry Ford, Harvey Firestone, and president-elect Herbert Hoover, and they purchased the adjacent house for a guesthouse. They also converted an original cracker-style house that was onsite into their caretaker’s cottage. It was one of the oldest buildings in Fort Myers and had been used by cattlemen as they drove their herds south.  

Henry Ford was a close friend of Edison since the 1890s. When he and his family visited the Edisons in Fort Myers in 1914, they also fell in love with the area. In 1916 Ford purchased the Craftsman bungalow next door and named it The Mangoes. The property included lush grounds with citrus trees and a rose garden that Ford’s wife, Clara, planted. 

The museum at the Edison and Ford Winter Estate

In 1927 Edison, Ford, and Firestone became concerned about America’s dependence on foreign rubber sources for its industrial enterprises. They formed the Edison Botanic Research Corporation whose mission was to find a plant source of rubber that could be grown and produced quickly in the US. A research laboratory was built on the Edison estate and acres of plants were grown. After testing more than 17,000 plant samples, Edison eventually selected goldenrod as the most suitable.

This 100-year old banyan tree was a gift from Harvey Firestone, and began as a 4’ tall sapling. It is now the 3rd largest banyan tree in the world, at 3/4 of an acre in size. It has to be pruned regularly to keep it from encroaching on neighboring buildings.

In 1947 Mina deeded the estate to the City of Fort Myers. All of the historic structures, including the homes, gardens, and other buildings, have been restored to the 1929 time period. You will find more than 1,700 plants on the property representing 400 species from six continents. Some of the most notable include a banyan tree planted in the 1920s and reputedly the largest in the US, allées of elegant royal palms planted by Edison, a palmetum of 60 species of palms, and more than a dozen varieties of bamboo. Some of the bamboo is original to the grounds and was used by Edison in his light bulb experiments.

A collection of beautiful orchids greets you at the entrance to the grounds. Orchids can be seen growing on the trunks of palms throughout the gardens. Adjacent to Edison’s study is the Moonlight Garden, designed in 1929 by landscape designer Ellen Biddle Shipman. Filled with night-blooming fragrant shrubs and flowers, the garden features an ornamental pool that reflects the moonlight. A tropical fruit orchard features citrus, sapote, tamarind, papaya, lychee, longan, guava, jackfruit, loquat, calamondin, and starfruit. The Edisons and Fords shared a passion for growing their own food, and the tradition continues today in the Heritage and Community Gardens.

When you visit the Edison and Ford Winter Estates, sign up for a guided tour — the guides are all historians who provide wonderful background information and anecdotes about the Edisons, Fords, and the property. Be sure to tour the museum and laboratory, and visit the onsite plant nursery and gift shop.

Edison and Ford Winter Estates, 2350 McGregor Blvd., Fort Myers, FL 33901 239-334-7419 edisonfordwinterestates.org

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12 Terrific Seed Companies for 2022

Will you be growing vegetables this year, or starting a cutting garden? Here are ten terrific companies to order seeds from this year. Warning: you will have a tough time choosing a company to order from and narrowing down your seed selections!

(1) Park Seed

Founded in 1863, Park Seed has a long history of supplying vegetable and flower seeds to customers all over the US. You will find cutting and bedding flowers, organic vegetables, heirloom varieties, herbs, as well as garden-ready plants, fruits and seed-starting supplies.

parkseed.com

(2) Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Baker Creek promotes and preserves our agricultural and culinary heritage by offering one of the largest selections of seeds from the 19th century, including many Asian and European varieties. A family business located in Missouri, you feel find their personal touch and photos of family and employees on their website and in the catalog. All orders have no shipping and handling charges in the US.

rareseeds.com

(3) Hudson Valley Seeds

Hudson Valley Seeds is best known for their Art Packs, which unite practical aspirations in the garden with the universal human desire for beauty, meaning, and joy. The company has its roots in the public library of Gardiner, New York. Co-founder Ken Greene, then working as a librarian, had been interested in the local food movement and, realizing there was little discourse about the seeds that grow our food, started the country's first seed library program in 2004. The more he delved into the subject, the more he realized that working with seeds was a way to work with issues concerning the environment, health, history, culture, and more, and Hudson Valley Seeds was born in 2008. The company offers heirloom and open-pollinated organic garden seeds only.

hudsonvalleyseed.com

(4) Pinetree Garden Seeds

A family-owned business operating out of a 300 year old farmhouse in Maine, Pinetree offers more than 1300 varieties of seeds at low prices for the home gardener. Their seeds are sold in smaller packets so that you can try a larger variety of flowers or vegetables. All seeds are non-GMO. Their Bring in the Butterflies Collection includes annuals and perennials that will lure the butterflies to your garden. In addition to seeds, the company sells spices and teas, essential oils, soap-making supplies and other crafting materials.

superseeds.com

(5) Johnny’s Selected Seeds

Also located in Maine, Johnny’s has been selling a diverse selection of vegetable and flower seeds for 45 years. In addition to seeds, they offer an impressive array of seed-starting and gardening supplies and tools for both homeowners and professional growers. The website has a terrific grower’s library section with lots of tips and resources.

johnnyseeds.com

(6) Renee’s Garden

Renee’s Garden is a company run by gardeners, for gardeners. Renee harvests and uses the vegetables and herbs in her kitchen to choose the most delicious, and cuts the flowers for bouquets to select the finest colors, forms and fragrances. She offers only non-GMO varieties of vegetables, herbs and flowers that are very special for home gardeners, based on great flavor, easy culture and exceptional garden performance.

reneesgarden.com

(7) Swallowtail Garden Seeds

Located in California, Swallowtail has an impressive collection of flower seeds - both perennials and annuals. They even have a separate web page for flowering vines, if you want to try clematis, passion vine, cardinal climber, cup and saucer and many others from seed. You will also find heirloom vegetables and herbs. Shipping and handling is $5.99 for all orders.

swallowtailgardenseeds.com

(8) Burpee Seeds

When W. Atlee Burpee began selling seeds in the 1880s, he toured Europe every year, beginning in the south in early spring and making his way north, obtaining seed stock as he traveled. He found that most of the best vegetable breeders of the time were German, Dutch, and Scandinavian. By late summer he was in England, where he found the best flower breeders. He kept a field book of data and observations, and during the voyage home he studied all his notes. The field book, with corrections and deletions, became that year's Burpee catalogue. Not all European seeds performed well in America’s climate, so in 1888, Burpee bought a farm near Doylestown, Pennsylvania, and transformed it into a world-famous plant development facility. Successful plant hybridizing by Burpee has led to some of the best vegetable and flower seeds for American growers. Burpee also acquired The Cook's Garden 10 years ago, and now offers some of the best gourmet veggies, greens, and herbs from around the world.

burpee.com

(9) Floret Farm

If you are familiar with Floret Farm’s Cut Flower Garden book, then you will enjoy browsing through their extensive selection of cut flower seeds. Floret Farm is a small family-run flower farm in Washington that has earned accolades from numerous gardening and lifestyle magazines. I was bowled over by their gorgeous varieties and color selections of cut flowers that no other company seems to order.

shop.floretflowers.com

(10) Botanical Interests

Owners Curtis and Judy started Botanical Interests because they believed that gardeners were not getting the information they needed on seed packets. Their created a unique seed packet that includes art, garden history, landscape ideas, organic gardening know-how, recipes, fun facts, and of course, high-quality seed. Botanical Interests’ website is also very user-friendly. You can search flowers, herbs and veggies by attributes such as cold tolerance, good for containers, attract hummingbirds or pollinators, color, height, and exposure. You can also download a seed-starting e-book from their website.

botanicalinterests.com

(11) Fruition Seeds

Located in the Finger Lakes region of New York, Fruition Seeds specializes in organic seeds that are adapted to thrive in the short seasons of Northern gardens, with early maturity, cold hardiness and disease resistance. With the exception of a few tomato varieties, all their seeds are open-pollinated heirlooms for you to save and share. Selections include both historical heirlooms as well as develop their own varieties.

fruitionseeds.com

(12) Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds

Baker Creek offers one of the largest selections of 19th century heirloom seeds from Europe and Asia, and its catalogs feature about 1,000 stunning heirloom varieties. Founder Jere Gettle started Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Co. in 1998 as a hobby, and it has since grown into North America’s largest heirloom seed company. In addition to seeds, the company sells, fruiting plants, flower bulbs, and garlic/onion starts.

rareseeds.com

Jewelbox Gardens of The Society of the Four Arts

If you’re vacationing in West Palm Beach, be sure to visit the gardens at The Society of Four Arts. These two adjoining small gardens are little jewels in the heart of the city, and are open to the public with free admission.

Founded in 1936, The Society of the Four Arts is one of Palm Beach’s top cultural destinations, offering art exhibits, lectures, concerts, films, and educational programs. It is also home to two libraries and two beautiful gardens—the Four Arts Botanical Gardens and the Philip Hulitar Sculpture Garden.

As you enter through the magnificent wrought iron gates, you find yourself in the botanical gardens, which were designed in 1938 to showcase the horticulture and popular gardening themes of southern Florida. A beautiful Asian-style gate with a blue tiled roof welcomes you into the Chinese Garden and its formal square water lily pool. The surrounding garden features trees and shrubs pruned in cloud formations, bonsai specimens, and Asian statuary and lanterns accented with liriope, white orchids, and camellias.

As you step into the next garden spaces, you travel through a Tropical Garden, Jungle Garden, Palm Garden, and Bromeliad Garden. The central Formal Garden is adorned with a pool and fountain flanked by sheared hedges, liriope, and roses. The Madonna Garden in the corner provides a seating area for quiet contemplation, with a marble relief of the Madonna overlooking a circular pool surrounded by white begonias. The Spanish Facade Garden features a well overflowing with succulents and vines and a bench decorated with Spanish tile. The botanical gardens are maintained by the Garden Club of Palm Beach.

The adjoining two-acre sculpture garden was designed by Palm Beach resident and prominent American couturier Philip Hulitar and opened to the public in 1980. It is home to 20 sculptures by world-renowned artists such as Augustus Saint-Gaudens, Jim Dine, and Lawrence Holofcener, whose Allies depicts Franklin D. Roosevelt and Winston Churchill.

Both the botanical and the sculpture garden were redesigned in the mid-2000s by the firm Morgan Wheelock, Inc. New walkways, seating areas, and plantings were installed along with the elegant plaza paved in yellow and green Brazilian quartzite, the classical garden pavilion, vine-covered pergolas, reflecting pools, and fountains. The sculptures continue in the parking area, where Isamu Noguchi’s dramatic Intetra, a huge tetrahedron, overlooks the Intracoastal Waterway.

The Society of the Four Arts, 100 Four Arts Plaza, Palm Beach, FL 33480, 561-655-7227, fourarts.org

For more information, see The Garden Tourist’s Florida: A Guide to 80 Tropical Gardens in the Sunshine State

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Leave the Leaves

By Joan Butler

I am very lucky to have a mature red oak, Quercus rubra, and an Eastern Red Cedar, Juniperus virginiana, in one corner of my property. The cedar produces beautiful berries that provide food for birds in winter, and for flocks of migrating birds, such as cedar waxwings and robins.

While I have planted a perennial garden beneath the cedar, the area under the oak has been left “messy”. Fallen leaves stay in place year-round. Many creatures require this type of undisturbed leafy environment for part of their life cycle. Wooly bear caterpillars overwinter here, as do many butterfly and moth pupae such as the pupae of the hummingbird moth. Bumblebee queens dig burrows here in autumn, staying safely underground until spring. And fireflies require this environment for every stage of their life cycle, except for the 6-8 weeks when they are in flight.

As I learn more about the ecological benefits of undisturbed “natural” areas in the home garden, I am transitioning other areas in my landscape into “habitat zones”. The concept does tend to conflict with our neat-and-tidy suburban ethos. But I have found that a number of our native plants serve as excellent groundcovers that bring order to “untidiness” while providing the benefit of added diversity.

Foamflower, Tiarella cordifolia, is a clump forming perennial that spreads fairly quickly by stolons and will also set seed. The lobed leaves are heart-shaped and are often delicately patterned with red. Beautiful spring blooms of white flowers are profuse and are held upright like small bottlebrushes on wiry stems above the leaves. Foamflower will grow in dense shade, but flowers best with some sun. Semi-evergreen, hardy to Zone 4, 7-10” tall.

The heart-shaped foliage of wild ginger, Asarum canadense, adds wonderful texture to the garden. This vigorous, rhizomatous spreader simply covers the ground, even in dense shade. Inconspicuous brownish flowers are held close to the ground, beneath the leaves, where they are pollinated by ants and crawling beetles – and interesting adaption. Deciduous, hardy to Zone 3, 8” tall.

Woodland geranium, Geranium maculatum, grows from a woody rhizome and will self-sow, flinging its seeds 10-20 feet from the mother plant, which is of great benefit in woodland settings. Also known as spotted geranium, its attractive lobed leaves are held in loose clusters. It blooms for about a month in late spring-early summer, with flower colors ranging from white to lavender to dark pinkish-purple. The flowers are followed by seed pods that, when dry, resemble tiny delicate candelabra. Woodland geranium will not grow in dense shade, and flowers best in part sun. Deciduous, hardy to Zone 3, 12-18” tall.

Bloodroot, Sanguinaria canadensis, is an absolute delight. Its early spring blooms (white petals with gold anthers) are followed by rounded, greyish-green lobed leaves that last well into autumn and provide bold texture to the garden. Bloodroot spreads by rhizomes, and by seed. Seeds are often relocated by ants that store them for winter consumption, when they will dine on a fleshy appendage attached to each seed – an interesting relationship for seed dispersal. Deciduous, hardy to Zone 3, flower stalks: 4”, leaf height: 12-15”.

I also have had success with Allegheny Spurge, Pachysandra procumbens, with its delicately mottled evergreen leaves. It spreads easily by rhizomes and is quite tolerant of dry shade. White, scented flowers appear in late April, before the new leaves expand. It is well-behaved groundcover unlike the more commonly planted aggressive Japanese species. Evergreen, hardy to Zone 4-5, 8-12” tall.

 If you have areas of your property that can transition into leafy habitat zones, have a go at it! The benefits are many. Reduces fall clean-up time! And the leaves that are left in place will return nutrients to the soil as they decompose – nutrients that are otherwise removed. Many insects, reptiles, birds and other creatures use undisturbed areas in ways we are only now exploring. We are beginning to learn about the importance (and joys!) of mimicking the natural world in our gardens.

We would love to hear about native plants you are using in your gardens that could be included in “leafy habitats”. Please leave a comment below.

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Vizcaya: Miami's Gilded Age Estate

Vizcaya is one of the gardens included in The Garden Tourist’s Florida Tour in March 2022. See Garden Travel.
This article is an excerpt from The Garden Tourist’s Florida book, available for preorder here.

Vizcaya is a stunning Gilded-Age mansion surrounded by formal gardens overlooking Biscayne Bay in Coconut Grove. The gardens are notable for introducing classical Italian and French design aesthetics into a subtropical habitat and climate, and creating formal gardens using tropical and exotic plants.

Born in 1859 in South Paris, Maine, James Deering was a retired millionaire and a bachelor in his early fifties when he began to build his magnificent estate in South Florida. He was afflicted with pernicious anemia, a condition for which doctors recommended sunshine and a warm climate. Vizcaya became the place where he hoped to restore his health. He loved sailing and boating, and was greatly interested in landscaping and plant conservation. The creation of Vizcaya incorporated both hobbies, and became the engrossing pastime of the last years of Deering’s life.

James Deering by John Singer Sargent

Deering collaborated on the design of the villa with architect F. Burrall Hoffman, Jr. and interior designer Paul Chalfin. Deering and Chalfin spent many years traveling through Europe, collecting ideas for the Florida estate and purchasing art, antiquities and furnishings. The duo imported gilded panels, carved mantels and fresco ceilings from Tuscany and France to line the villa walls. Construction began in 1914, but it took years to perfect the mansion’s 70-plus rooms, half of which overflow with treasures dating back to the 15th century. Inlaid marble floors, stained glass doors, silk-crowned beds, hand-painted murals and Chinese ceramics all combine to create sumptuous interiors that rival palaces in Europe. Although historic in architectural style, the home incorporated all of the modern technology available at the time, such as a telephone switching system and a central vacuum system.

The gardens were designed by Colombian-born landscape architect Diego Suarez. Suarez adapted classical European Renaissance and Baroque landscape design to Miami’s subtropical climate, terrain and plant material. The gardens were divided into garden rooms and enclosed by ornate walls and hedges. Chalfin adorned them with an abundance of architectural structures, columns and urns, elaborate fountains, and antique and comissioned sculptures. Many of the architectural elements were made of local coral stone which is very porous, and weathers quickly. To further the appearance of age, mature trees were planted in the garden, along with vines and plants that would drape themselves over the garden structures.

the garden mound

The gardens are connected to the house by the large South terrace. The terrace overlooks a large geometric parterre garden bordered by two semicircular pools. A third large pool with a central island is surrounded by low hedges whose exaggerated perspective lines that dramatize the formal geometry of the gardens. The Garden Mound is the focal point of the gardens, crowned with an ornate summerhouse known as the Casino, and adorned with a grand cascade and grottos. Other garden areas include the evocative Secret Garden, the intimate Theater Garden, the playful Maze Garden, the Fountain Garden, and a charming Tea House overlooking the Bay. The formal gardens are surrounded by 25 acres of Rockland Hammock, which is the native forest in this part of Florida.

The Teahouse

The East Terrace faces Biscayne Bay and the Barge, a breakwater built to protect the house and terrace from waves. The Barge was designed to look like a boat with fancy balustrades and statuary sculpted by American artist Alexander Stirling Calder. It was constructed of local limestone, which is very porous. The salt water and storm waves have eroded the structure and its decorative reliefs, and rising water has submerged the lower landing steps.

the barge

Deering’s occupancy of Vizcaya began on Christmas Day, 1916, with an elaborate ceremony complete with gondolas, cannons and friends dressed in Italian peasant costumes. From then until his death in 1925, Deering spent the winter months at Vizcaya, usually with family and celebrity guests. A staff of 16 was required for the house, while an additional 26 gardeners and workers maintained the gardens and outbuildings. Vizcaya was designed to be a self-sufficient estate to compensate for the limited commodities and services of early 1920s Miami. Some of the staff lived in the main house, while others resided in the Village–a complex of cottages, greenhouse, garages, workshops and farm buildings that supplied fresh flowers, fruit, vegetables, milk and eggs for the household. The Village is currently being restored to tell Vizcaya’s full story and provide additional spaces for programs and community outreach.

The village, photo by 305hive.com

After Deering died in 1925, Vizcaya was eventually passed down to his two nieces. The property suffered major damage from two hurricanes, which destroyed many garden statues and furnishings. In 1945, the family transferred the Lagoon Gardens and the southern grounds to the Diocese of St. Augustine and Mercy Hospital. It opened as a public museum in 1953. Restoration efforts continue on the mansion, gardens, and historic Village. In 2021, Vizcaya restored its historic Rose Garden, which had been destroyed in the Great Hurricane of 1926. Eighty-five antique roses were selected from the Antique Rose Emporium in Texas, ensuring that the new plants will be suitable for Miami’s tropical climate. 

Vizcaya: 3251 S. Miami Ave., Miami, FL 33129. 305-250-9133. vizcaya.org
Vizcaya is open Wednesday–Monday, 9:30–5:30

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Innisfree: A Garden for Contemplation

Innisfree garden is the result of a deep friendship and collaboration among three people: owners Walter and Marion Beck and landscape designer Lester Collins. In the late 1920s, artist Walter and his avid gardener wife, Marion, bought their country residence, which they named Innisfree, and began to study garden design and philosophy. Walter Beck discovered the work of eighth-century Chinese poet, painter, and gardener Wang Wei. Studying scroll paintings of Wang’s famed garden, Walter was drawn to the carefully defined, inwardly focused gardens sited within a larger, naturalistic landscape that Wang created. Wang’s technique influenced centuries of Chinese and Japanese garden design, and the gardens of Innisfree. Drawing on Wang’s approach, the Becks created vignettes in the garden, which Walter called “cup gardens,” incorporating rocks from the site with trees and plantings. Unlike Wang Wei, the Becks focused more on individual compositions. Relating these to one another and to the landscape as a whole was the role of Lester Collins. 

““Western gardens are usually designed to embrace a view of the whole. Little is hidden. The garden, like a stage set, is there in its entirety, its overall design revealed in a glance.… The traditional Chinese garden is usually designed so that a view of the whole is impossible. The Chinese Garden requires a stroll over serpentine, seemingly aimless arteries. The observer walks into a series of episodes, like Alice through the looking glass….” ”

— — Lester Collins, in his book, Innisfree: An American Garden

The Becks met Collins early in 1938 and began their creative collaboration. He spent several years in Asia, and was dean of Harvard’s landscape architecture department before starting his own private practice. His study of Chinese and Japanese garden design jived perfectly with the Becks’ aesthetic. In his 20-year association with the Becks, Collins was able to create a magical garden that brought the Becks’ “cup gardens” into a unified whole.

Having no children, the Becks decided to endow a foundation for the “study of garden art at Innisfree” that would make it into a public garden. Collins became the estate’s manager, orchestrated its transition to a public garden, and continued to design and expand the landscape according to his and the Becks’ vision. As funds allowed, he cleared portions of the densely wooded site, carefully editing existing vegetation to leave magnificent trees and swaths of natives, including blueberries, iris, and ferns. He created the first route around the lake; added new cup gardens; designed such memorable water features as the Mist, the Water Sculpture, the Air Spring, and the Fountain Jet; sculpted fanciful berms like those along the Entrance Drive, and added new plantings of native and Asian varieties to create a garden that is natural, unpretentious, and sustainable. His involvement with the garden continued for 55 years until his death in 1993. Today, the garden is run by the Innisfree Foundation. 

Innisfree is unlike other gardens, in that it is a naturalistic stroll garden in which the hand of the designer is almost invisible. The design comes from the study of the natural site. The gardens at Innisfree are based around the 40-acre lake framed by wooded hills and rocky cliffs. Rocks are an important element—from stone walls and staircases to single monolithic stones creating a strong vertical in the landscape. Most of the stones were collected on the property and carefully placed in their current location. Dramatic water features provide movement and energy within the garden. Innisfree is a unique combination of Asian and American aesthetics. It is a garden of quiet beauty, serenity, and contemplation.

Innisfree, 362 Tyrrel Rd., Millbrook, NY 12545, (845) 677-8000, innisfreegarden.org 

Hours: May–Oct: Wed.–Fri. 10–4, Sat.–Sun. 11–5

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Greenwood Gardens: an Arts and Crafts Gem

The Teahouse

Although just forty-five minutes from Manhattan, Greenwood Gardens is totally removed from the sights and sounds of city life. The 28-acre garden, surrounded by 2,110 acres of forest and meadows of the South Mountain Reservation, was a private estate until 2003, when the Blanchard family decided to transform it into a public garden.

The front entrance

Entrance Garden

Two very different American families left their marks on Greenwood Gardens. In the early 1900s, Joseph P. Day, a real estate auctioneer and self-made multi-millionaire, built the mansion and gardens as a retreat from hectic city life. Architect William Whetten Renwick designed both home and garden in an exuberant, heavily ornamented style. The garden was influenced by both Italian and Arts and Crafts styles, and laid out with strict axes and vistas. A series of lavishly planted terraces descended from the house, and an extensive system of paths made from exposed aggregate pavers led through lush, colorful plantings and recreational areas. The family could enjoy a croquet lawn, a tennis pavilion, a nine-hole golf course, a wading pool, shady pergolas and grottoes, a summerhouse, and a teahouse. The gardens were decorated with statuary and rough local stone embellished with colorful Rookwood tiles of the Arts and Crafts period. 

The Summerhouse

In 1949 Peter P. Blanchard, Jr., purchased the property, and he and his wife, Adelaide Childs Frick, brought a more restrained classical formality to the estate. They replaced the flamboyant house with a Georgian brick mansion, and supplanted the extravagant flower beds with simple hedges of boxwood and yew and allées of London plane and spruce trees.

The Garden of the Gods

In 2000, following his father’s wishes, Peter P. Blanchard III and his wife, Sofia, began restoring the garden to its early 1900s appearance and converted it to a nonprofit conservation organization with assistance from the Garden Conservancy. The garden needed extensive work. The walls, terraces, stairs, pools, statuary, and colonnades all had to be repaired. Trees and hedges were pruned or removed, and 28  acres of plantings were recreated from old photographs and notes under the direction of Louis Bauer, formerly of Wave Hill. After more than a decade of planning, fundraising, and restoration, the garden opened to the public in 2013.

The main terrace

In 2020, the garden went through another extensive renovation, focusing on the main axis and fountains, and on the Garden of the Gods. Fountains were restored, walls were repaired, paving stones were reset, views were cleared, and new plantings were installed. When you visit the garden today, you are greeted by an allee of London plane trees. A towering, hand-wrought iron-grill gate, decorated with vines, ferns, parakeets, and birds of paradise is displayed at the entrance to the garden. The Main Terrace, complete with loggias, connects the house to the formal gardens, which descend downward on several more terraces. An elegant reflecting pool serves as a focal point of the first terrace. The Croquet lawn forms the next terrace, and and a bronze sculpture of a boy holding two geese holds center stage in the Garden of the Gods. As you stroll through the garden, you will find ceremonial granite hand-washing basins and whimsical oversized chess pieces that frame the stone Tea House, granite lanterns that adorn the walls of the Cascade terrace, and Chinese Fu dogs that flank the stairs.

The horticulturists at Greenwood Gardens are keen on educating the public about new and noteworthy plants, so you will see unusual trilliums, calycanthus, hellebores, viburnums, phlomis, and the newest varieties of beloved perennials such as rudbeckia, pulmonaria and baptisia, all labeled for visitors. The combination of interesting horticulture, strong classical design, and whimsical Arts and Crafts details make Greenwood Gardens a truly unique destination garden in the Northeast.

The D Shaped Pool

The main Terrace

Greenwood Gardens, 274 Old Short Hills Rd., Short Hills, NJ 07078, (973) 258-4026, greenwoodgardens.org 

Open May–Oct.: Thurs–Sun 10–5, select holidays

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Counting Callerys

By Joan Butler

During the past year, I decided to make use of my “down time” by taking advantage of lectures on gardening and horticulture that were offered via Zoom. Thank goodness for Zoom! I also decided that this would be the perfect time to continue my studies in the National Garden Club’s Environmental School program. The State Garden Club of Missouri was offering Course 2 remotely in March at a time that worked for me, so I signed up. It was a great course, and it was especially relevant because, although many of the environmental issues affecting Missouri are different than the issues that affect us here in New England, I found that many of them are exactly the same.

Malissa Briggler, the head botanist of the Missouri Department of Conservation, was the instructor for the class on “Endangered Plant Species of Missouri”. She also talked about plants that are on the Missouri invasive plant list and their impact on native plants. According to the World Wildlife Fund, Massachusetts is in the “temperate broadleaf and mixed forests” biome, and Missouri is in the “temperate grasslands, savannas and shrublands” biome. Two very different environments, but the overlap of invasive plants on the list for both states was sobering: Japanese knotweed, burning bush, Autumn olive, purple loosestrife, Oriental bittersweet, garlic mustard, mutiflora roses – and the list goes on and on. At first, it was discouraging to realize that the thugs we battle here in Massachusetts are so widespread beyond our state that it is obvious they are here to stay. But it also underscored the fact that environmental issues are not just local issues, they are national/global issues that involve us all. 

Bradford Pear saplings on the side of the road

One of the plants on the Missouri invasive list is Bradford or Callery pear. This was discussed at length because of its impact in displacing native plants and overtaking open fields. This reminded me that Doug Tallamy (author of Bringing Nature Home) spoke about the invasive tendencies of Bradford pear at a program I attended a few years ago. And recently, Uli Lorimer, of the Native Plant Trust, said that Bradford pear was a plant that was being watched.

Callery pear is native to Asia. It was brought to the US in the early 1900s because of its resistance to fire blight. Hybridizing efforts ultimately produced a cultivar with an upright rounded shape, white flowers, no thorns and red fall foliage. It was named ‘Bradford’ and was introduced by the US Department of Agriculture as an ornamental landscape tree in the 1960s. Bradford pears are considered self-incompatible, which means they cannot be self-pollinated, nor can they be cross-pollinated by another tree of the same cultivar because they are all genetically the same. But, in time, other cultivars were introduced commercially (eg. ‘Chanticleer’, ‘Aristocrat’, ‘Autumn Blaze) which led to opportunities for cross-pollination and abundant fruit formation. Birds and other animals eat the fruit and spread the seed far and wide.

As is typical of apple or other pear trees, the seeds produced by Callery pear cultivars do not come true to type. They are often more like the original wild types, and many now bear thorns just like the wild types. They grow densely along roadsides, fields, disturbed areas at the edge of woodlands and in open woods. Although pollinators may be attracted to the flowers, our native insects do not feed on the leaves, which means that Callery pears are a “food desert’ for many songbirds that rely on insects for food. Additionally, they leaf out before many of our native trees do and hold onto their leaves longer in the fall.

Bradford pears are nearing the end of their bloom cycle here in Metrowest Boston. They are very identifiable because of their early bloom time, profusion of white flowers and upright rounded shape. Because I had learned more about them so recently, I became very aware of just how prevalent they are here. They are street trees, neighborhood trees, lawn trees, park trees – they are everywhere! I noticed some areas where they had shown up along roads, and one area with a dozen or so along the edge of a vacant lot. I’ll be on the watch for fruit later in the season. 

In Missouri , in celebration of Arbor Day, homeowners have been offered a free sapling of a native tree if they show pictorial proof that they have cut down a Callery pear cultivar on their property. Clemson University Extension in South Carolina has offered a similar “buy back” program. It’s hard to predict if it will come to that here in Massachusetts, but in light of the fact that so many of the plants that are on our Invasive Plant List are also on the Invasive Plant Lists of other states, it is certainly something of which we should be aware.

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Spring Spectacular at the Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens

Photo courtesy of Stevens-Coolidge Place

A Spring Spectacular, running from April 21 to May 16, launches the rejuvenation of The Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens. More than 165,000 bulbs will adorn nine display gardens with the exuberant colors of spring, and visitors will enjoy a series of events and programs staged amidst the garden’s beauty.

The Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens is a prime example of a Country Place estate—a style that was popular with wealthy Americans in the early part of the 20th century. The Stevenses were one of the founding families of North Andover, farming at what was originally called Ashdale Farm since 1729. In 1914 Helen Stevens inherited the estate, and with her husband, John Gardner Coolidge, transformed the farm into an elegant summer residence.

John Coolidge was member of the Boston elite—the nephew of Isabella Stewart Gardner and a descendant of Thomas Jefferson. The Coolidges hired preservation architect Joseph Everett Chandler to remodel the house and garden in the Colonial Revival style that swept the country after the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia.

Chandler’s design for the exterior was based on a formal layout of garden rooms with informal plantings. The main gardens were sited behind the house to offer privacy. The house opened onto a shaded brick terrace that offered views of the perennial garden, which was enclosed by hedges and laid out in a pattern of rectilinear beds with colorful perennials. The Italian-style fragrant Rose Garden replaced the old barn, cow yard, and pig sty. Adjacent to the perennial garden, the Rose Garden could also be entered through an upper terrace, which provided a wonderful view of the flowers. The neighboring greenhouse complex allowed for a grapery, potted tropicals for the house, and plant propagation. 

Construction of the rose garden

The rose garden today

The Coolidges became enamored with chateau gardens while they lived in France during WWI, and Chandler designed for them a French flower garden, screened on one side by a brick Serpentine Wall. Modeled after those designed by Thomas Jefferson for the University of Virginia, the wall supports espaliered fruit trees. The garden was eventually converted to lawn, but in 2000 the original layout was restored and replanted with an incredible display of annuals, herbs, and vegetables.

The serpentine wall

The French Flower Garden

photo courtesy of Stevens-Coolidge place

Ashdale Farm maintained its agricultural heritage throughout Helen Stevens Coolidge’s lifetime. The family kept farm animals, grew vegetables in the kitchen garden, and harvested apples from their orchard. When Helen Stevens Coolidge died in 1962, she left the property and an endowment to The Trustees of Reservations. Many of her gardens, including the rose garden, greenhouse, potager, perennial garden, and cutting garden have been restored to their former appearance.

In November 2020, The Trustees announced a multi-year rejuvenation at the Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens. The plan preserves the overall architectural structure and American Country Place style, while adding new and expanded display garden spaces, featuring plantings of the latest ornamental species, varieties, and cultivars in contemporary designs. More than 5,000 plants and 165,000 bulbs were added to the gardens, as well as native shrub and wildflower displays, and nature trails through the woodlands, fields, and meadows of the historic Ashdale Farm property. You will enjoy a spring visit to the glorious Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens this spring!

Photo courtesy Stevens-Coolidge Place

Stevens-Coolidge House and Gardens, 137 Andover St., North Andover, MA 01845, (978) 682-3580, thetrustees.org/place/stevens-coolidge-house-and-gardens/

Gardens are open during the season daily (closed Wednesdays), 10 am–5 pm. Tuesday 10 am–7 pm.

Local Seed is the Heart of Local Food

Photos and text by Petra Page-Mann, Co-Founder of Fruition Seeds, Farmer, Storyteller

I absolutely love watermelons! However, as a child in the Finger Lakes, I thought watermelons were an absolute waste of valuable garden space. It’s true, practicality has never been a quality I've cultivated, but nonetheless, with long, trailing vines yielding a single fruit and sometimes none, my anticipation was almost always unrequited. Every few years we’d give them another try, only to reach the same conclusion by September: next year we'll sow more tomatoes, more lettuce, more beets, less watermelon.

I could not have been more wrong.

Like our reticent red peppers and unenthusiastic eggplants, I simply needed different seeds to have different experiences. 

Regionally adapted seed makes all the difference. At Fruition Seeds, we’ve dedicated our days to these seeds that grow us more than we'll ever grow them, right here in the Finger Lakes, so every little girl can enjoy watermelon straight from her garden.

A Brief History of Seed

Each seed tells the story of an entire life history, millions of years in the making. A few seeds, in a single generation, may travel the globe. But most will stay within their watershed and, most likely, their microclimate. In this way, seeds become profoundly adapted to place.

Agricultural seed tells an additional story--one of human relationship. For the last 10,000 years, these seeds have slowly adapted to place, spreading first on our backs, then by camel, then by boat. Fast forward to 2019: most seed companies offer seed from all over the world and nearly 80% of the agricultural seed sown globally is controlled by two companies. How did this happen?

From Commons to Commodity

If “regional seed” is seed adapted to a bioregion, then most seed before World War I was regional. Each generation selected varieties to meet the shifting conditions on each farm, in each region. Farmers largely would share their seeds as a commons—like clean water and fresh air—as precious resources to be honored and shared, not to be owned or restricted.

After World War I, F1 Hybrid corn was introduced. Met with resistance from wary farmers, the transition was slow but it came to dominate the market within 40 years, due in large part to government subsidies during World War II. In a single generation, farm-grown seed was replaced by seed from other bioregions that would not grow true-to-type in future generations, if saved. As a result, seed became just another commodity, like fertilizers and pesticides, that farms purchase annually, reflecting an industrial, one-size-fits-all mentality rather than a commons reflecting the unique values and needs of each region.

Sown Locally, Grown Globally

Most of us share a blind faith that our seed is produced by the companies selling them. This is most often not the case.

Today, most seed is grown where the climate favors commercial industrial dry seed production, such as the Central Valley of California. Unless you grow in the Central Valley, the seeds you sow are not likely to be well-adapted to your climate. We know Trader Joes doesn’t have a farm behind their stores. Most seed companies are distributors of seed rather than growers of seed, making much of the seed on the planet regionally adapted to the long, dry climates where seed is commercially grown rather than where you might sow it.

Does Regionally Adapted Seed Thrive Outside its Bioregion?

 In a word, yes!

One of our most frequently asked questions is if our seed with thrive outside our bioregion. I’m thrilled to report that though we focus on regional adaptation for our short seasons here in the Northeast, we have friends and family growing and loving, sharing and saving our seeds from our farm all across Turtle Island, from Alaska to Florida and many well beyond our borders.

This is not surprising, since seeds are impressively driven to adapt, thriving and indeed making life possible in every ecosystem on the planet, including our gardens and farms, as well.

Let's zoom out: The vast majority of us have only sown seeds from long, dry seasons where the climate is more conducive for commodity production, centered largely in China, the mid-East and American West. These seeds seed the world! One-size-fits-most has worked for several generations, though we are, individually and collectively, finding its growing edges. Decentralization of currently concentrated control, wealth and power, including seeds, is critical for our species to survive.

Here it’s vital to share that regional seed companies often share seed from outside their bioregion (we do, it's true! more soon!) and large companies often trial extensively to dial in varieties for bioregions, making it challenging (impossible!) to draw clean lines around which seeds will thrive where. But we're here to ask deeper questions rather than share conclusions, right?

Food for Thought

Friends, there are key crops where regional adaptation is particularly important for each bioregion. For example, I grew up thinking our season was too short to grow watermelon; I simply needed to sow better-adapted seed to be successful. Advantages are not always advantages, disadvantages are not always disadvantages. What are the key growing conditions in your garden?

As you're considering seed sources, keep in mind that seeds adapted to shorter seasons thrive more easily in longer seasons than the other way around.

Also, if you grow in short seasons like us, be sure your long-season crops (tomatoes, winter squash) have realistic days to harvest. If you don't have consistent heat in your summers, like the coastal Pacific Northwest, be sure to source heat-loving plants (tomatoes and eggplants) adapted to those conditions. If you have ludicrously hot summers, source lettuce that is well selected to resist bolting in heat.

The root is this: these selections can be made outside your bioregion and you can still be successful, but if you can find them within your bioregion, resilience is possible on many more levels. 

We’re seeding so much more than seeds, indeed.

Cultivating Questions

Knowing that seed companies are predominately distributors rather than growers, asking questions of your seed companies allows your dollars to amplify your deepest values. Where are your seeds grown? By what size farm? Are farmers paid to select seed or only by weight? Be kind, curious and critical as you reach out to us, Friends. Seed companies are as fabulously flawed as the humans who are their flesh, bone and soul.

This includes seed companies focused on regional adaptation:

For example, Fruition grows 60% of our seed on our farm in the Finger Lakes. Another 25% is grown in our Northeastern bioregion by an incredible network of organic seed growers (more on this to come, too!). The balance of our seed is grown in those long, arid seasons, especially for those crops we struggle to grow high quality seed of. Carrots, for example, cross with Queen Anne’s Lace up to one mile! We are grateful to source seed from an incredible network of seed growers, including about 5% from large seed companies, it's true.

And Friends, though we founded Fruition with the vision of regional adaptation, organics and sourcing transparency, we have failed with the latter. After year two we didn't keep up with updating our website on our seed sourcing and are fabulously not proud of this fact. This winter, as we're redesigning our website, we're committed to this transparency, so misleading and problematic when not present. Again, stay tuned!

Our seed system is as nuanced and problematic as our food system, exploitive and extractive by design. We’re here to grow ourselves as well as extraordinary seeds, our deepest teachers, adapting to all the ways the world is changing. Thanks for joining us on the journey!

Amid the questions, concerns and fraught constructs, we are grateful to grow acres of organic, regionally adapted seed each season to share with people we love, confident these seeds grow us so much more than we are growing them.

Hope to see you on the farm one day, when the watermelons are ripe and the dahlias are in bloom!

Until then...

Sow Seeds and Sing Songs,

Petra

Fruition Seeds, fruition seeds.com, 585.374.8903, 7921 Hickory Bottom Road, Naples, New York 14512

All photos courtesy of Fruition Seeds