The Garden Club of the Back Bay will embark on a field trip to Rolling Ridge, a Fletcher Steele designed landscape in North Andover, 25 miles north of Boston and situated on a half mile of lakefront property, with 38 secluded acres of woods and rolling hills. The field trip will take place Tuesday, May 14, leaving from Back Bay at 9 am. Members will receive a car pool notice in the mail. The gardens feature a double labyrinth nestled in the peaceful woods, an outdoor chapel on the edge of Lake Cochichewick, and the award winning landscape features historic fountains, walking trails, and meditation benches.  In the past, it was a country estate owned by wealthy New Yorker Ethan Allen, who, in 1915, commissioned renowned landscape architect Fletcher Steele to design and construct the gardens on the property. The commission was Steele’s first independent Country Place Era Estate project. The scenery and lake views were so important to Mr. Allen that he wanted the landscape and hardscape completed before beginning construction of the house (a forty room Georgian mansion). The features of the garden and hardscape are remarkably well-preserved and the intent of the use and design is readily apparent. It is said to be one of the best extant examples of a Fletcher Steele landscape.

Our guide is Maureen O’Brien. She has studied in depth the Fletcher Steele garden at Rolling Ridge. She co-authored the Cultural Landscape Report (CLR) and authored a Treatment and Maintenance Plan for Rolling Ridge. Maureen has a certificate in Landscape Preservation from the Landscape Institute at the Arnold Arboretum at Harvard University and the Boston Architectural College. She is vice president and member chair of the New England Landscape and History Association (NELDHA), is on the Editorial Board for Perspectives, a landscape design and history publication with special emphasis on New England, and has been involved with a number of historic properties in Massachusetts. Coffee and scones will be served prior to Maureen’s talk, followed by a buffet lunch and walking tour. $15 for GCBB members, $20 for guests. For more information email info@bostonflora.com.