The Trustees of Reservations (Trustees) is pleased to announce a multi-year rejuvenation at The Stevens-Coolidge House & Gardens (formerly Stevens-Coolidge Place) in North Andover. The gardens and house are currently undergoing work to create new garden rooms which complement the core historic gardens and house while also providing new experiences for visitors. The project also reorients the site with a new entrance on Chickering Road removing the need for pedestrians to cross Andover Street in order to enter the site. The Trustees created a master plan with Mikyoung Kim Design landscape architects and Maryann Thompson Architects for the historic garden site. The major features of the new plan includes a Gateway to the Garden from Chickering Road, landscaping which makes the historic house more accessible, and garden designs.
The plan builds upon the work done on this 91-acre property in recent years first by volunteers and more recently by a dedicated staff. The previously restored gardens—including the rose garden, greenhouse, potager, perennial garden, and cutting garden—provide the estate’s primary link to the past. 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—as well as creating native shrub and wildflower displays, and nature trails through the woodlands, fields, and meadows of the historic Ashdale Farm property.
As visitors approach the property twenty-two American lindens (Tilia americana ‘Redmond’) will flank the new entry lane, eventually lending shade to this now open expanse. In keeping with the flavor and feel of the historic gardens The Trustees is incorporating hedges as a space defining feature in new garden spaces. Between the wetland garden and the Cutting Garden a hedge of Winterberry (Ilex verticillata ‘Sparkleberry’). This small, but prolific, fruited cultivar will be maintained as a hedge of 4-5’ tall providing a backdrop for the wetland garden and a sense of enclosure for the Cutting Garden. Additionally, this hedge will provide both winter interest and repast for overwintering birds.
The new entrance and visitor orientation and the expanded garden displays will improve the Stevens-Coolidge House & Gardens as a gathering garden space for North Andover and surrounding communities. For history lovers, the spaces will also reveal more of the importance of the Stevens and Coolidge families in local and regional history.
A Spring Spectacular, running April 21 – May 16, 2021, launches the rejuvenation celebration. More than 165,000 bulbs will light nine display gardens with the exuberant colors of spring. In addition to the display gardens, visitors will enjoy a series of programs and events staged amidst the garden’s beauty.
