Boston Flora

Tag: Glenluce Garden

  • Saturday, May 10, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Glenluce Garden Open Day

    Glenluce Garden is a small, personal, and romantic garden in Stow, Massachusetts. Entering by the western gate, you will find yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions. Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas. A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds. Magnolias, rhododendrons, peonies, and roses abound in Glenluce Garden. The Garden Conservancy Open Day tour takes place May 10 from 10 – 4. $5 for Conservancy members, $10 for nonmembers. Register at www.gardenconservancy.org

  • Saturday, May 10, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Middlesex County Open Day

    The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days program will visit Middlesex County on Saturday, May 10, with five gardens open to the public. Three gardens in Stow, one in Carlisle, and one in Concord will be in full spring display.

    Clark Gardens has been in development for over 30 years. It started with a chance encounter at a parent teacher school event, held during the owners’ first winter in Stow, with a local landscape architect, Yurich Fenigsen-Zieba. When he stated he was a landscape architect, they explained to him their wish to have a waterfall built and the following summer he built a beautiful waterfall with large boulders previously removed from the foundation of our house. And thus began a collaboration which continues to this day. Over the 30 years, many garden “rooms” have been created culminating with the “woodland garden” which has been developing over the last three years and occupies the last section of the two acres of gardens and lawn available. There has never been a formal “plan” to the gardens. Identifying an area and then adding desirable shrubs and plants, has been the only “plan”.

    The Gardens at Clark Barn has been on the Open Days program before. The Ruettgers have been gardening here 45 years, although the house and drying barn date to 1790. Entering the gardens from an arched gate, explore the old barn with trays of dried flowers and herbs harvested from the adjacent gardens. During 1939, these trays were drying digitalis leaves for a WPA project for the war effort while cut off from Europe. The digitalis was used medicinally for the heart. As you exit the first garden, you enter by a Belgian espalier fence of pears which encloses this room with borders of tulip mixture of ‘Lemon Chiffon,’ ‘Explorer,’ and ‘Avant Garde.’ Later, the bed changes to dahlias potted in the greenhouse, as well as seed trays of zinnias and salvias. A grape arbor leads you into a walled garden in four quadrants. In the early season, it is just awakening with antique roses, beds of thyme and lavender, purple fennel, angelica, and lovage. The greenhouses are filled with tender perennials, annuals, and a collection of scented geraniums, over 25 varieties of dahlias, and Abyssinian bananas, all waiting to be planted. The outside cold frames are filled with a mix of soft pink petals of Tulip ‘China Town’ and Tulip ‘Esperanto.’ Looking to the East, you see an orchard of apples and peaches. West of the greenhouse is a tall stand of oaks showing you the way past the children’s tree fort to the woodland garden and pond. This is the garden that appears in April and May. The woodland ephemerals put out a show each day with bloodroot, Erythroniums both white and yellow, trillium, Dutchman’s breeches, Podophyllums, squill mix, anemones and Leucojum. Later in May, alliums pop up between the hosta collection and Japanese Peonies japonica and obovata. Pass through a hornbeam hedge to the Clock Barn. In this barn, don’t miss several spring floral displays in the downstairs space. As you exit the barn, the house is on the left. Step up onto the patio to view the Italian pots and trough filled with bulbs and a collection of dwarf conifers. As you descend the end stairs, you see a border of tulip mixture leading to the secret garden with Japanese fencing on one side.

    Also in Stow is Glenluce Garden, a small, personal, and romantic garden. Entering by the western gate, you will fnd yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions. Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas. A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds. Magnolias, rhododendrons, peonies, and roses abound in Glenluce Garden.

    Rock Bottom Garden is a one acre garden shaped by three decades of collaboration between a woody plant zealot and a perennial gardener. From the 1855 house situated on top of a dry knoll, one enjoys sweeping vistas of the gardens below. When we first started gardening here, the property was a jungle of invasive trees, dying white ash, and multiflora rose. All were cut down, leaving us with a garden as sunny and windswept as the plains of Kansas for some years. We remedied this by planting trees, some of which are now nearly 60 feet tall. At present the garden is shaded in large part, and the perennial plantings are transitioning to reflect that. The garden features many unusual trees and shrubs, including rare magnolias and maples (some grown from seed), an herb garden, gravel garden, and a small vegetable garden. The striking topography makes the garden seem much larger than its actual size, and the trees include beautiful specimens you probably won’t see anywhere else in New England.

    Finally, visit a Wildflower Woodland Garden (pictured below) in Concord. Nearly ten years ago, an uninhabited 1962 modern home and its abandoned garden were revived and reimagined. An indigenous woodland wildflower plant palette is arranged using concepts of midcentury modern garden design. The garden is organized as a stroll garden, with a main path giving access to a variety of experiences and some surprises.

    Admission to each garden is $10 for nonmembers, $5 for members, and pre-registration is now open at www.gardenconservancy.org.

  • Saturday, May 20, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Middlesex County Open Day

    The Garden Conservancy hosts the Middlesex County Open Day on May 20 with three gardens, one in Weston, two in Stow.

    The Spencer-Scott Garden in Weston is a sun-drenched site with deep loam. The owners set out to create a garden to satisfy their varied interests in flowering trees, shrubs, vines, ground covers, perennials, and bulbs. They designed, created, and maintain the garden. Included are rock gardens, partial shade gardens, dwarf evergreens, and perennial beds with walking paths, all set against an open meadow. Of special interest are many varieties of peonies, species of old roses, iris, hardy geraniums, alliums, lilies, wildflowers, clematis, daylilies, azaleas, and rhododendrons. They have collected more than 1,500 varieties over the years.

    The Rock Bottom Garden in Stow is a one-acre garden has been shaped by three decades of collaboration between a woody plant zealot and a perennial gardener. From the 1855 house situated on top of a dry knoll, one enjoys sweeping vistas of the gardens below. When they first started gardening here, the property was a jungle of invasive trees, dying white ash, and multiflora rose. All were cut down, leaving them with a garden as sunny and windswept as the plains of Kansas for some years. They remedied this by planting trees, some of which are now nearly 60 feet tall. At present the garden is shaded in large part, and the perennial plantings are transitioning to reflect that. The garden features many unusual trees and shrubs, including rare magnolias and maples (some grown from seed), an herb garden, gravel garden, and a small vegetable garden. The striking topography makes the garden seem much larger than its actual size, and the trees include beautiful specimens you probably won’t see anywhere else in New England.

    Also in Stow is Glenluce Garden, a small, personal, and romantic garden. Entering by the western gate, you will find yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions. Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas. A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds. Magnolias, rhododendrons, peonies, and roses abound in Glenluce Garden.

    Access to each garden is $5 for Garden Conservancy members, $10 for nonmembers. Tickets must be purchased in advance – no tickets will be sold on site. https://www.gardenconservancy.org/open-days/open-days-schedule/middlesex-county-ma-open-day-5

  • Sunday, June 1, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Worcester Area Open Day

    The Garden Conservancy Open Days schedule has been published, and the Worcester area is featured on Sunday, June 1 from 10 – 4.  Admission to each garden is $5.

    Brigham Hill Farm is located at 128 Brigham Hill Road in North Grafton. This 225-year-old colonial house and barn were purchased in 1975 by the present owners. Mature sugar maple and tulip trees encircle the house. The first thirteen years were spent in dealing with the ailments of an old house and in the rebuilding of old stone walls on the property. After all this work was finished, the gardens were planned and planted one by one. The herb garden was planted in 1996 off the south side of the kitchen wing. In 1997 a woodland water garden was started on the hillside to the west of the barn…this has become an ongoing project! In the fall of 1998, the perennial bed by the swimming pool was redesigned using most of the original granite and perennials. In 2007 and 2008, off the north side of the house, a large bluestone terrace was installed for entertaining with many large container pots for plantings. Down the broad steps from this area is a high-walled vegetable garden with a rill and granite-raised beds. Warren Leach of Massachusetts designed and planted all the above gardens. There is another large vegetable bed to the north of the barn which holds raspberries, strawberries, asparagus, cutting gardens, and various slow-growing annual vegetables. Eight chickens occupy a hen house there with a roof planted with “hens and chicks.” We just finished a new arboretum of one and one half acres. It has been planted mainly with native trees and shrubs from New England. Allow forty-five minutes to one hour for your visit.

    Directions: From Route 90/Massachusetts Turnpike take Exit 11/Route 122 and turn right onto Route 122 South. Go about 2.1 miles and turn right onto Brigham Hill Road. Brigham Hill Farm is 1.4 miles on right.

    Maple Grove is at 16 School Street in Boylston. Designed around a late-eighteenth-century Cape Cod-style house, Maple Grove is framed by mature sugar maples. Located within the historic district of Boylston, the garden is adjacent to an eighteenth-century cemetery, giving it charming borrowed scenery. A true collector’s garden, Maple Grove has a wide assortment of choice woody and herbaceous plants in a connected series of borders, beds, and islands, with sculpture and water features. (Photo below by Rob Zeleniak)

    Directions: From I-290, take Exit 23A/Route 140 North. Go 1.8 miles to first traffic light and turn right onto Route 70. Go 1 mile to historic Boylston Center. Make sharp right, circling around old cemetery, and turn onto School Street.

    From I-290 West from Boston, take Exit 24. Turn right at end of exit ramp and go to blinking traffic light. Turn left onto Route 70. Travel 0.25 mile to center of Boylston (gazebo on left). At fork in road, bear left at cemetery. Go to first house on right. Please park along street.

    The Glenluce Garden is located at 18 Marlboro Road in Stow. Glenluce Garden is a small, personal, and romantic garden. Entering by the western gate, you will find yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions. Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas. A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds. Glenluce Garden is the home of at least twenty-two magnolias, eighty-eight rhododendrons, about a hundred peonies, and more than a hundred old garden roses.

    Directions: From I-495, take Exit 26 to Route 62 East. Go 4.4 miles and turn right onto Old Marlboro Road at traffic island that contains “Little Hello Garden of Rock Bottom.” Glenluce is second house on left, small honey-colored Victorian with iron picket fence. Entrance to garden is just beyond house.

    From east, take Route 2 West. Turn left onto Route 62 West; go through West Concord and Maynard. After Route 62 turns left at traffic light in Stow, go 2.5 miles to left onto Old Marlboro Road at traffic island that contains “Little Hello Garden of Rock Bottom.” Proceed as directed above.

    Rock Bottom Garden is designed by Rosemary Monahan and Stefan Cover. This one-acre garden has been shaped by two decades of collaboration between a woody plant zealot and a perennial gardener. From the 1840s house situated on the top of a dry knoll, one can enjoy sweeping vistas of the gardens below. These include mixed borders, a woodland garden, an herb garden, a bog garden, cactus garden, and rock garden. The gardens feature numerous unusual woody plants including many rare magnolias. On June 1, some of the big-leaf magnolias may be in bloom, with their dinner-plate sized white flowers!

    Directions: At the request of the Garden Host, directions to this garden are provided through the Open Days Directory, at additional gardens open on this date, or by calling the Garden Conservancy office toll-free weekdays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., 1-888-842-2442.

    The final garden on the tour is, naturally, Tower Hill Botanic Garden at 11 French Drive in Boylston. You may read all about Tower Hill at www.towerhillbg.org.

  • Saturday, July 20, 10:00 am – 4:00 pm – Worcester County Open Day

    Five gardens will be featured in the The Garden Conservancy’s Open Days Program on Saturday, July 20, from 10 – 4.

    Rock Bottom Garden, owned by Rosemary Monahan and Stefan Cover, is a one-acre garden shaped by two decades of collaboration between a woody plant zealot and a perennial gardener.  From the 1840’s house situated on top of a dry knoll, one can enjoy sweeping vistas of the gardens below. These include mixed borders, a woodland garden, an herb garden, a bog garden, cactus garden, and rock garden.  The gardens feature numerous unusual woody plants including many rare magnolias. Damage to the trees from the 2011 “Halloween storm” has allowed the perennials to flourish now that they have sunlight again, although this is a temporary situation since the woody plant zealot has been hard at work planting more trees.

    Glenluce Garden, 18 Marlboro Road, Stow, (below) is a small, person, and romantic garden.  Entering by the western gate, you will find yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions.  Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas.  A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds.  Glenluce Garden is the home of at least twenty-two magnolias, eighty-eight rhododendrons, 100 peonies, and more than 150 old-fashioned roses.

    A Secret Garden is sheltered by tall maples that grew from old stone walls.  This garden leads you from sun-washed beds through a picket fence into a quiet place apart.  The surrounding trees and shrubs, both native and exotic, buffer against the outside world and provide year-round interest.  Ferns, shade-loving wildflowers and herbaceous plants soften the understory.  Stone stairs at the front of the mid-nineteenth century house lead to an intimate patio, screened by a variety of shrubs and trees.

    Brigham Hill Farm is located at 128 Brigham Hill Road in North Grafton. This 225-year-old colonial house and barn were purchased in 1975 by the present owners. Mature sugar maple and tulip trees encircle the house. The first thirteen years were spent in dealing with the ailments of an old house and in the rebuilding of old stone walls on the property. After all this work was finished, the gardens were planned and planted one by one. The herb garden was planted in 1996 off the south side of the kitchen wing. In 1997 a woodland water garden was started on the hillside to the west of the barn…this has become an ongoing project! In the fall of 1998 the perennial bed by the swimming pool was redesigned using most of the original granite and perennials. In 2007 and 2008 off the north side of the house, a large bluestone terrace was installed for entertaining with many large container pots for plantings. Down the broad steps from this area is a high-walled vegetable garden with a rill and granite-raised beds. Warren Leach of Massachusetts designed and planted all the above gardens. There is another large vegetable bed to the north of the barn which holds raspberries, strawberries, asparagus, cutting gardens, and various slow growing annual vegetables. Eight chickens occupy a hen house there with a roof planted with “hens and chicks”. Allow forty-five minutes to one hour for your visit.

    Maple Grove can be found at 16 School Street in Boylston. Designed around a late-eighteenth-century Cape Cod-style house, Maple Grove is framed by mature sugar maples. Located within the historic district of Boylston, the garden is adjacent to an eighteenth-century cemetery, giving it charming borrowed scenery. A true collector’s garden, Maple Grove has a wide assortment of choice woody and herbaceous plants in a connected series of borders, beds, and islands, with sculpture and water features.

    For complete information, directions, and ticketing, visit www.gardenconservancy.org.

    http://farm2.staticflickr.com/1303/4699208423_a7c01a65f3_z.jpg

  • Saturday, June 6, 10 a.m. – 4 p.m. – Garden Conservancy Open Day in Worcester County

    Glenluce Garden 18 Marlboro Road,Stow, Massachusetts

    Glenluce Garden is a small, personal, and romantic garden. Entering by the western gate, you will find yourself on a mound with green paths beckoning in seven directions. Explore these paths to discover a grove of paperbark maples, an island of tree peonies, or a border of fragrant native azaleas. A pergola covered by climbing roses leads to a frog pond shaded by heptacodium and a courtyard with raised vegetable beds. Glenluce Garden is the home of at least twenty-two magnolias, eighty-eight rhododendrons, about 100 peonies, and more than 150 old-fashioned roses.

    Rock Bottom Garden, Stow, Massachusetts

    This one-acre garden has been shaped by sixteen years of collaboration between a woody plant zealot and a perennial gardener. From the 1840s house situated on a dry knoll, one can enjoy sweeping vistas of the gardens below—these include mixed borders, a woodland garden, an herb garden, a bog garden, two rock gardens, and a sizable propagation area. The gardens feature numerous unusual woody plants including many rare magnolias. With any luck, the bigleaf magnolias will be in bloom. Their dinner plate-sized flowers are a striking garden feature in early June.

    Maple Grove, 16 School Street, Boylston, Massachusetts

    Designed around a late-eighteenth-century Cape Cod-style house, Maple Grove is framed by mature sugar maples. Located within the historic district of Boylston, the garden is adjacent to an eighteenth-century cemetery, giving it charming borrowed scenery. A true collector’s garden, Maple Grove has a wide assortment of choice woody and herbaceous plants in a connected series of borders, beds, and islands, with sculpture and water features.

    The Garden of John D. Mapel and Stephen J. Libuda, 95 Brigham Hill Road, Grafton, Massachusetts

    After two decades of gardening at this location, original plantings have begun to mature. Visit Brigham Hill Farm’s horticulturist’s garden whose philosophy is to gently guide nature to take its own course. Perennial borders have given way to lower maintenance shrub borders and container plantings that keep in tune with the naturalistic surroundings. A water garden, meadow, terraced spaces, and walking paths encompass the two-acre property. A passion for plants has developed into a retail nursery and greenhouse space with a unique selection of annuals, perennials, herbs, and vegetables. There is something for everyone at this one-of-a-kind plant collector’s garden.

    Brigham Hill Farm, 128 Brigham Hill Road, North Grafton, Massachusetts

    This 200-year-old colonial house and barn were purchased in 1975 by the present owners. The first thirteen years were spent in dealing with the ailments of an old house and in the rebuilding of old stone walls on the property. After all this work was finished, the gardens were planned and planted one by one. The herb garden was planted in 1996 off the south side of the kitchen wing. In 1997 a woodland water garden was started on the hillside to the west of the barn…this has become an ongoing project! In the fall of 1998 the perennial bed by the swimming pool was redesigned using most of the original granite and perennials. In 2007 and 2008 off the north side of the house, a large bluestone terrace was installed for entertaining with many large container pots for plantings. Down the broad steps from this area is a high-walled vegetable garden with a rill and granite-raised beds. Warren Leach of Massachusetts designed and planted all the above gardens. There is another large vegetable bed to the north of the barn which holds raspberries, strawberries, asparagus, cutting gardens, and various slow growing annual vegetables. Eight chickens occupy a hen house there with a roof planted with “hens and chicks”. Allow forty-five minutes to one hour for your visit.

    To register, link to www.gardenconservancy.org/opendays.