Boston Flora

Tag: Garden Dialogues

  • Saturday, October 1, 11:00 am – 12:30 pm – Garden Dialogues 2022: Roxbury, Connecticut

    The Cultural Landscape Foundation will host a Garden Dialogues event on October 1 from 11 – 12:30 at Woodland Pond in Roxbury, Connecticut. Nestled in the hills of Litchfield County, the 11-acre property was the vacation destination for family members and friends. With retirement and extended visits on the horizon, it was time to modernize a deteriorating house and landscape to suit the needs and desires of the homeowners, their kids, and grandkids.

    The pond and adjacent wetland areas greet the visitors upon arrival as they ascend to the new house. The landscape architect embraced the existing woodland natural aesthetic in developing the overall landscape site plan. Traditional lawn expanses were planted out with native species and meadow zones, while lawn terraces were selectively incorporated for designated play areas.

    Initial design conversations with the clients revealed their love and appreciation for the property, but frustration for the current lack of accessibility. The existing multi-level house required ascending a flight of steep steps, and the driveway was difficult to navigate in New England winters. The outdated pool and pool cabana a top another hill, was impossible to ascend by certain older family members.

    Selective site grading and siting of the main residence by the landscape architect resulted in a better fit, taking advantage of the mature existing trees, and providing ample space for the pool and entertainment terraces atop the main flat plateau. Positive collaboration with the project architect helped modify the overall house footprint and eliminate the need for a separate pool cabana. The lawn play terrace was reallocated to the upper old pool area and surrounded by meadow and plantings.

    This Garden Dialogue will be led by Louis Fusco from Louis Fusco Landscape Architects. All events will be subject to local guidelines on gatherings, including social distancing, wearing face coverings, and stay-at-home orders. Attendance is limited, not only to maximize the safety of those attending but to promote an intimate learning experience. If this event needs to be postponed to comply with local ordinances, registrants will be notified directly. To purchase tickets, click HERE.

    Photo by Louis Fusco, 2021

  • Saturday, September 25, 1:00 pm – 2:30 pm – Garden Dialogues, Greenwich

    Located in the wooded terrain of Greenwich, CT, is the Slice House, a two-acre site re-imagined from the rocky ground up. The property was occupied by an older residence that the homeowner chose to remove in favor of a new construction to better suit their family.  Extreme variation in elevations across the property combined with an abundance of challenging, yet beautiful natural resources created an exciting opportunity for the design team, Joeb Moore & Partners and Kathryn Herman Design, to create an engaging and dynamic experience in the landscape while integrating a new contemporary home with the native character of the land. 

    The Cultural Landscape Foundation will host a Garden Dialogue at the Garden on September 25 from 1 – 2:30. A driving force of the design was to respect as many of the existing mature trees on site as possible, such as an incredibly large oak and a triple trunk hemlock – a particular favorite of the family. Other challenges included dramatically sloping topography leaving minimal level area to accommodate the house and pool, an abundance of stone outcropping, and wetlands that surround half the property. Working closely with the architectural team in siting the house to preserve and incorporate these existing natural features while reducing the envelope of disturbance was imperative. The main wing of the home was oriented parallel to the natural slope of the land – maintaining the existing higher grade on one side and lower on the other. The large glass walls of the contemporary house provided for a comprehensive dialogue between the interior and the exterior environments, allowing for unencumbered views of the terraced garden spaces, long slender pool, native plantings, and existing woodlands beyond.

    A T-shaped design creates three distinct outdoor spaces: an arrival court to the north, a pool and entertaining terrace bermed between the house and a high knoll at the east, and a stepped dining terrace perched above a rocky slope to the west looking towards a reservoir. 

    The house itself is organized into three wings: formal living, informal living and support spaces, anchored to the site by a masonry wall. The void space between these three wings utilizes light and reflection to connect vertically between each story of the house as well as laterally to each wing and to the landscape beyond. Apertures function as gaps or slices to reinforce the transition between the three wings of the house. Windows and openings are lined with reflective metal panels that bounce light and landscape views into the interior spaces, while indexing the surrounding temporal environment on the building facade. 

    All events will be subject to local guidelines on gatherings, including social distancing, wearing face coverings, and stay-at-home orders. Attendance is limited, not only to maximize the safety of those attending but to promote an intimate learning experience. If this event needs to be postponed to comply with local ordinances, registrants will be notified directly.   $125. Register HERE.

  • Saturday, July 22, 10:00 am – 11:30 am – Bedrock Gardens

    Bedrock Gardens is a twenty-acre sculpture park, botanical garden, and cultural center, and also the private home of Jill Nooney and Bob Munger. It is situated on an abandoned dairy farm at 45 High Road in Lee, southern New Hampshire. It began as a private sanctuary, where Jill could experiment with garden design and fabricating outdoor art. It became a garden experience designed as a journey along a ¾ mile path with places to go, a path to get there, and many stops along the way, such as two long intersecting vistas, a pond, Tea House, 100-foot-long Wiggle Waggle (shown above), rock garden, GrassAcre (an acre of ornamental grasses), Torri, and Parterre garden. Many pieces of sculpture occur along the way, including some hung from the tree canopy and one under the water.

    The works are made predominantly from old farm equipment, disassembled and reconfigured. Historically, New Hampshire was a farming region and that forms the bedrock motif for much of the work. Equipment that may have worked this property appears again as art on the property. Rust is the color of dirt. Join The Cultural Landscape Foundation on Saturday, July 22 for a Garden Dialogue. Thanks to the generosity of our hosts and sponsors, tickets ($95) for Garden Dialogues are tax deductible and proceeds benefit the educational programs of The Cultural Landscape Foundation. Purchase online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/garden-dialogues-2017-bedrock-gardens-tickets-33820189096

  • Saturday, September 17 – Garden Dialogues: Connecticut

    The Garden Dialogues program began five years ago at Manatuck, the Stonington, Connecticut home of The Cultural Landscape Foundation Board Member Barbara Dixon and her husband Chris, inspired by a casual conversation between Dixon and her landscape architect Douglas Reed, a founding TCLF Board Member, as they walked the property. The September 17 Dialogue at Manatuck will anchor a rich exploration of the cultural and environmental landscape of Stonington through the lens of an up-close and intimate tour along the town’s North Main street corridor.

    At the Dixon estate, with its unprecedented panoramic views of Stonington’s natural land form and breathtaking pastoral coastal views that connect farm to ocean, attendees will first hear about the town’s natural and cultural history from a renowned local historian. Next, Reed and the Dixons will elaborate on their on-going twenty-year collaboration, and the story of the project to open up the landscape and reconnect it with the earlier historic farmland.

    A short walk through the inner fields, meadows, woodlands and wetlands that parallel North Main street will lead to the historic Stone Acre Farm property (picture below courtesy of www.oldhouseonline.com), one of the state’s oldest farms. Attendees will be treated to lunch and a talk about the future of Stone Acres Farm, which will become a “Farm to Community Table” campus for sustainable living and practices conceived through a deep and abiding commitment to connecting the local community to its local, natural and human resources.

    The final stop is a mid-century Modernist residence once owned by John Lincoln, an architect and co-inventor of the Quonset and former chair of the Rhode Island School of Design’s architecture department. Here Joeb Moore, another TCLF Board Member, and Reed will present the recent major renovations and on-going transformations of the property and house.

    Thanks to the generosity of our hosts and sponsors, tickets for Garden Dialogues are tax deductible and proceeds benefit the educational programs of The Cultural Landscape Foundation.  $300.  Register online at http://www.tclf.org.

  • Saturday, June 18, 10:00 am – 1:00 pm – Garden Dialogues: Connecticut

    On June 18 from 10 – 1, get exclusive access to Langhorne and Steeple Chase in Greenwich, Connecticut, as part of the Garden Dialogues series from The Cultural Landscape Foundation.

    Conte & Conte Landscape Architects specializes in creating projects that maximize each client’s functional and aesthetic requirements. Langhorne Lodge, the private residence of John R. Conte and his wife Kimberly, is located on a wooded glen nestled in backcountry Greenwich, CT. This ideal setting with its rustic, yet elegant country homestead features more than a dozen, unique spaces to explore. John used fallen branches from the property to design and build an operational chicken coop and a relaxing gazebo. There are birdhouses scattered around the property as well as a meadow for wildlife to flourish. The tranquilly beautiful rose/vegetable garden provides the family with fresh, organic produce throughout the summer. The most recent addition is the party barn (functionally a three-car garage) with attached covered terrace for entertaining family & friends; spacious and inviting yet made delightfully intimate with the blazing outdoor fireplace. The cozy feel compliments the spectacular views of the contrasting wide-open lawn & surrounding woodlands.

    Steeple Chase Farms, a thirteen-acre private residential horse farm also in Greenwich, includes a 7,000 sq. ft. home, stables, indoor riding arena, grazing paddocks, run-in sheds and an equipment garage with groom’s quarters. The goal was to create a working equestrian facility for this client and her family while incorporating all of the comforts of home and respecting the residential character of the neighborhood. The house was placed in such a way as to preserve a large stand of trees, setting it high atop a rolling hillside. This allowed for sensational seasonal views of its verdant setting. Siting was also important for the recreational areas, circulation, and building sites all of which were positioned in order to reduce the impact of views for neighboring properties. The equestrian buildings were set down, lower on the property and arranged to fit into the topography instead of overpowering it.

    Thanks to the generosity of our hosts and sponsors, tickets for Garden Dialogues are tax deductible and proceeds benefit the educational programs of The Cultural Landscape Foundation.  $200.  Purchase online at http://tclf.org/event/garden-dialogues-connecticut-2016

  • Saturday, June 14, 10:30 am – 4:00 pm – Garden Dialogues: Connecticut

    On Saturday, June 14th, get exclusive access to private gardens and landscapes in Connecticut through the Cultural Landscape Foundation, and hear directly from the designers and their clients about their collaborative process.

    How do clients and designers work together? What makes for a great, enduring collaboration? Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small groups to visit some of today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the most accomplished designers currently in practice.

    From 10:30 – 11:30, visit a Greenwich residence with Landscape Architect Susan Cohen. This recently built waterfront home in Bellehaven, positioned to save an old magnolia tree, is reached by a sinuous drive that rises to offer refreshing views of Long Island Sound. Once a rugged hillside, this site has been redesigned to be in quiet harmony with the setting, and multiple landscape walls of native stone echo the stone facade of the house. Features include a crabapple orchard, a cutting garden, and a small terrace overlooking the Sound. Rough-hewn stone steps and a lawn path lead down, through sweeps of perennial grasses, to the gazebo at the water’s edge.

    From 2:00 – 4:00, Janice Parker will take you to a Garden within a Garden in New Canaan (pictured below, in a picture by Neil Landino.) Inspired by a sunny memory of an Italian vineyard, this five-acre landscape successfully integrates an entertaining terrace, vegetable garden, tennis court and prominent pool. The vegetable gardens and fruiting trees were laid out on a strong grid intertwined with masonry. Each space is bordered with broad fences softened by rose bushes and perennials to complete this Bella Italia landscape.

    More gardens will be added. Each separate garden tour is priced at $45. Register online at http://tclf.org/event/garden-dialogues-connecticut.

  • Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15, 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm – Garden Dialogues: Connecticut

    The Cultural Landscape Foundation will provide exclusive access to private gardens in Connecticut on Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15.  Hear directly from the landscape architects and their patrons about the design process.  How do patrons and designers work together?  What makes for a great, enduring collaboration?  Garden Dialogues provides unique opportunities for small groups to visit some of today’s most beautiful gardens created by some of the most accomplished designers currently in practice.  On Saturday, July 14,  from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm, see Twin Maples Farm, owned by Douglas and Wilmer Thomas, designed by Larry Weaner Landscape Associates.  This 450-acre northwest Connecticut estate features dramatic vistas, more than 40 acres of seeded meadow and shrubland, and an environmentally sensitive integration with the surrounding woodlands.

    Sunday, July 15, from 2:00 pm – 4:00 pm, see Diamond Hills Gardens in Redding, designed by Richard Hartlage, AHBL (see his book Bold Visions for the Garden below.)  This eight-acre estate garden features native meadows, a sunken garden, woodland walks, sculpture and beautiful water features.  The garden artfully balances rustic and sophisticated through the use of local stone and salvaged barn wood.  Register for either or both tours ($35 per person) at www.tclf.org.