#OpenDays25

Herman Kathryn Herman Randi & Steve Herman Sally Herman

Since 1995, Open Days have been made possible by the generosity and enthusiasm of thousands of volunteers and partners nationwide, including garden hosts, regional ambassadors, nonprofit partners, public garden partners, and many thousands more volunteers who serve as greeters and organizers. Together with more than 1.3 million Open Days visitors, they have created a vibrant community of people sharing ideas and expertise, learning from each other, and fostering a shared love of nature, art, design, and horticulture.

Robert R. Hermann Jim & Rita

Garth & Peggy Hetz Marcia Heuer Mrs. Victor G. Heuermann

Hewett

J. Hill Robert Hill Mrs. Melville C. Hill, Jr. Mrs. A. L. G. Hill,

Thomas &

Hewitt

H.

&

Stockton-Hicks & Steve Hicks Barbara Hiestand Mr. & Mrs. John Higgason, Jr.

E.

The endsheets in the front and back of this book list more than 4,000 Open Days hosts and ambassadors from 1995 through 2020; names gathered from 25 years of records. To anyone we may have missed, our sincere apologies. Our special thanks to you and to everyone else for being part of this journey and this community!

& Marsha Hylton Barbara Iaffaldano Sharyn Iannuccilli Rachel Ikenberry Richard Iltis Gerald Incandela Charles Ingersoll Frances D. Inglis Richard Ingraham Jake & Pam Ingram Nancy & George Ingram Mary Irish Mrs. David M. Irwin Maurice & Ellen Coster Isaac Carol Isaacson-Rawn Billie Jean Isbell Sallie Iselin Jason Isenberg Barbara Isgur Sally Ann & George S. Isham Barbara & Tom Israel Jeff Jabco Cathy & Chip Jackson Mr. & Mrs. Ewell Jackson Tom Jackson James Jacob Annette Jacobs Ashley Jacobs Debbie Jacobs Mr. & Mrs. Benjamin

& Mrs. Tom Jacomini Andrea & Toby Jaffe Dick & Mary Jaffe Kathleen Jaffe Mr. & Mrs. John P. Jagger Laurie Jake Robert Jakob David James Mary & Ron James Mr. & Mrs. Thomas James Jimmy Jamieson John & Curry Jamison Richard & Dolores Jamison B. Jane Borek Janik Margaret & John Janisch Deborah R. Jannotta Ilga Janson Robin & Jane Janssen Carol Janssens Mary Jasch Mrs. Robert Jaunich Pam & Marshall M. Jeanes Mar Jennings Anni Jensen Julius & Daintry Jensen Jackie Jeppe Dr. & Mrs. Andrew Jessiman Craig Jessup Susanne Jett Jonathan Jewett Elizabeth Jimenez Holly Jobe Mr. & Mrs. Henry Jobmann Bonnie Jochim Mr. & Mrs. Robert Joffe Carol & Gene Johanson Nancy & Paul John Amelia Johnson Dan Johnson Dr. & Mrs. Eugene Johnson Jim & Nancy Johnson Lane Johnson Larry & Charlene Johnson Mrs. Howard B. Johnson Norm Johnson Pam Johnson Pat & Bob Johnson Patrick Johnson Robert E. Johnson Susan & Ray Johnson James & Elizabeth Johnston Mr. & Mrs. Eugene H. Johnstone Michael & Ruth Jolliffe Kim & Warren Jolly Anne-Lise Auclair-Jones & Hal Jones Barbara Jones Barbara & Harvey Jones Carol Jones Charles & Gail Jones Debby & Barton Jones Ginny & Buddy Jones Jake Jones John & Glennis Jones Lib Jones Marion & George Jones Millicent A. Jones Peggy & Walter Jones Sid Jones Mr. & Mrs. Herbert E. Jones, Jr. Margaret Joplin Michael & Barbara Jordan Randy Jordan Julie Jordin James Joseph John Joseph Eli Joseph-Hunter Mr. & Mrs. John P. Josephs Richard Josephson Mary Coker Joslin Judith Joy Lauren Joy Nicole Juday Michael & Ashley Judd Rhett Judice James & Loraine Juliano Susan Junta W.C. Justice Mary & Bill Kahl Charles & Edna Kahn Richard Kahn Mr. & Mrs. Edward L. Kainer La Vierge Kaiser Sharon Kaito Mr. & Mrs. Constantine Kallas

Open Days is an educational program of the Garden Conservancy, whose mission is to preserve, share, and celebrate America’s gardens and gardening traditions for the education and inspiration of the public. www.gardenconservancy.org

Marsha L. Fader Henry & Mollie Fair Elizabeth Faith Terry & Cathy Fancher Anthony Fant Ellie Farbstein David & Christine Farguson Alice & Richard Farley Mary Nell Farmer Tommy Farmer James & Marina Farr Sybil & Blair Favrot Gail Fawcett Martha & Joseph Fazzano Emer Featherstone John Fecondo Peter Feder Scott & Kathy Federighi C.S. Federman Mr. & Mrs. Lee Fegelman Chris Feibusch Virginia Feibusch David Feix Diana Felber Paul & Karlene Feldker Sam Feldman Derek Fell Marianne&Bruce Feller Jamie Fellner Walter Thomas Felter Elise Felton Judy Fender G. K. Fenderson George K. Fenn Jr. Richard Fenster Kate & David Fentress Bob & Jan Fenwick Joan & Henry Ferguson Mrs. David L. Ferguson Anita & Anthony Ferrante Jennifer Ferrante Donna & John Ferries Mr. & Mrs. John Ferring Dianne Ferris Rick Ferris Howard Fertig Judith Fetterley Kate Feuille Sarah Darnton Fiegen Karen Fielding Sarah Fieldon Candy & Achilles Filios Andrea Filippone Mary & Tom Finan Stephen Finch Mr. & Mrs. Howard Finkelstein Mrs. William C. Finkenstaedt Mrs. Thomas Finley John Finneran Susan Finocchio Matt & Holly Finstrom Carolyn Finzer Paul & Kay Fireman Jo Anne Fischer Leah Fischer Mrs. Frank Adam Fischer Timothy Fish Alease Fisher Dr. & Mrs. John R. S. Fisher Lauren Fisher Mary & Lewis Fisher Maverick Fisher Mr. & Mrs. James A. Fisher Joy Fishman Jim Fitterling LuAnn & Craig Fitz Chas Fitzgerald Judith Fitzgerald Libby Fitzgerald Jane Fitzpatrick Margie & Michael J. Fitzsimons Betsy Flack Jay & Nanie Flaherty Mr. & Mrs. William E. Flaherty Eric T. Fleisher Paul & Susan Fleming Ronald Lee Fleming Scott Fleming Dr. Chris Fletcher Mr. & Mrs. Russell S. Fling Marion M. Flook Tina & Jeff Flook Roberto Flores John & Roseanna Floyd Frederick K. Flugel Barbara Flynn Mr. & Mrs. Robert Flynn Mrs. James T. Flynn Mr. & Mrs. David Foerster Judy & Jim Fogel Alice R. Fogg Mikel Folcarelli Janet Foley Katherine Follin Carol Folse Nancy & Richard Forbes Mrs. John B. Ford Tom Fornoff Cevan Forristt Donald & Ingrid Forsberg Donald Forst David Forster Robert P. Forte, DDS Deanne&Doug Fortnam Nancy & Bob Fortner Lamona Foster Mary Howard Foster Starr Foster Pierre Fournier Mr. & Mrs. Michael M. Fowler Isabel & J. Winston Fowlkes III Cheryl B. Fox Jamie Fox Shirley Fox Susan Fox Virginia B. Fox John Foy Michelle Fracasso Fran Fraenkel Dorothy Francis Beverly Frank Holley Frank Doreen & Richard Frankel Scott Frankel Dan B. Franklin Eric & Harriet Fraunfelter Sondra Freckelton William H. Frederick Ann Free Kenn Freed Dr. & Mrs. John Freehafer Dr. Elsie Freeman Ivor & Barbara Freeman Wayne Freeman Mr. & Mrs. Richard Freeman, Jr. Harvey Freer Christopher Freimuth Mr. & Mrs. Jason French Robert Frenzel Kate Frey Susan & Eric Friberg Richard Friedberg Eleanor Friedlander Barbara Friedman Don Friedman Joanna Friedman Kate & John Friedman Steve & Barbara Friedman Susan Friend Melinda & Henry Frierson Susan Fries Mr. & Mrs. Eugene Friley Kelly Frink Kim & Rob Frisbie Rebecca Frischkorn Jerry Fritz Jack Fritzsche Mr. & Mrs. Howard A. Fromson Jeremy Frost Pamela Frost Sean Frost Stanley & Cheri Fry Michael Fuchs Joanne Fuller Ward & Judith Fuller Lynn Fulton Lise Funderburg Lee & Dorothea Fuqua Beliza Ann Furman Elizabeth Furse Bill & Ilse Gaede Jim Gafke Joel & Sarah Gagnon Joan Gaines Ryan Gainey Patricia Galagan Richard Galef Kathleen & Kevin Gallagher Bob&Mary Gallant Mrs. Wayne Galloway Elizabeth Galvin Zeke & Jenifer Galvin Lois Gamble Mary Gamble Molly Gamble Tony Gampetro Bruce Gangawer Alden Gannon Brooks Garcia Sonny Garcia Chrys Gardener Mr. & Mrs. Robert M. Gardiner Dorothy & John Gardner Mr. & Mrs. John L. Gardner Tom Gardner C. J. Garland Jane Garmey Nancy Garrison Ted Garrison Judy Garry Sam & Christine Garst Ina Garten Marcia Garton Susan Garwood Anthony Garza Mrs. E. Stack Gately Mr. & Mrs. Stephen Gates Betty Gatewood Dixie Friend Gay Joe & Ginger Gearheart Bill Gedale Callae

John

Mr. & Mrs. James

Bob & Louise Gunn James

& Mrs.

&

Barbara

Annette & Gustavo Gutierrez Janet & Louis Gutierrez Rebecca Guttery Kathy Guttman

T. & Gracelyn

Guzin John Gwynne

& Mrs. Frederick

Hobson

Haan

C. Haas Mrs. James M. Hackman Jim & Connie Haddad Albert Hadley Mr. & Mrs. Robert Hadley Raymond Hagel Mrs. Edward E. Hagenlocker Carolyn & Peter Hager Carol & Lee Haggas Greg Haines Jean Halberstam Mr. & Mrs. Michael W. Haley Beverly Hall Mr. & Mrs. Toby Hall The Honorable Cynthia Holcomb Hall Thomas & Raguet Hall Robert & Harriet Hallagan Nancy Hallman Margaret Hallowell Denise Halvorson Gregg Hamann Mrs. William Hambrecht Robert & Elaine Hameister Eric Hamerstrom Martha Hamilton Mr. & Mrs. Robert Hamilton Mrs. Lewis Hamilton Mrs. Samuel M. V. Hamilton Patricia Hamilton

Hamilton Mr. & Mrs. Alexander Hamilton IV Debra Hammel

Hammer Christina & William Hammond

& Shane Hammond Sarah Hammond Antoinette W. Hamner Raymond Han Carol Hanby Al & Marty Hancock Sue Handley Karen & George Hanford Ben Hannah Mr. & Mrs. Eric Hansen Tom Hansen Beth Hansen-Winter Brad Hanson Mark & Kate Hanson Stillman & Lara Hanson Mrs. Guy M. Harbert Graeme Hardie Lucy & Fred Hardiman Mr. & Mrs. Joseph R. Hardiman

Hardy Amy & Cyrus Harmon Judy & Frank Harmon Ed & Nancy Harold Don & Nell Harrawood Mrs. Charles J. Harrington Barbara Harris Buck & Carolyn Harris Karen & Ted Harris Mr. & Mrs. Henry F. Harris Mr. & Mrs. King Harris Roger Harris Sally Harris Tom Harris Mr. & Mrs. L. W. Harris III Pat Harrison Trish Harrison Adrian P. Hart Florence Hart Lee Hart Dana Hartfield Brooks Hartley-Leonard Jane Hartline Anne Hartman Mrs. H. Rodney Hartman Steve Hartman Andrew Hartnagle Fred & Shari Hartrick Jim & Barbara Hartung Eugene L. Hartwig Dale Harvey Kyrnan Harvey Mrs. William B. Harvey Pamela Harwood Allen C. Haskell Mr. & Mrs. Preston Haskell Olivia & Charles Hasty Ann Hatch Bob Hatcher Patrick & Karen Hatcher Allen & Kandace Hatten Bruce Hatton Theresa Havell Christian Havemeyer Jane Havemeyer Joyce Hawkins Mr. & Mrs. Russell Hawkins Mary Ellen Hawn Constance Haydock David & Julia Hayes Marge Hayes Nicholas Haylett Mr. & Mrs. Peck Hayne Mr. & Mrs. Patrick Haynes Lane Hays Ellen Hayward Gordon & Mary Hayward Katie Hazelwood Beverly Head Jr. Nancy Heaslip Tiffany Heater Ron Hebert Mr. & Mrs. Jack H. Heckenberg Mrs. Benjamin H. Heckscher Corinne Hedrick Peter Hedrick Phyllis & Peter Heerwagen Mark & Lisa Heffernan Dan Heims Gernot & Ava Heinrichsdorff Teresa Heinz Ann Hellings Daisy Helman Carol Henderson Cassandra Henderson Helene Henderson Joe Henderson Rebecca Henderson Richard Hendricks Mrs. Nathan V. Hendricks III Mrs. Brian Henke Lt. Col. Paul G. & Mrs. Ann B. Hennen Greg Henry James & Susan Henry Ron & Linda Henry Suzanne Henry Mary V. Henson Dorothy Herbert Toni & Mike Heren Marilyn Herlihy Catherine

Mrs.

Hermes Sharolyn & Stan Herndon Loren Herold Jane & Carl Herrmann Margaret Hess Francie & Timothy Hester Herb Hethcote

Sally

Bill

Mrs. John

Hewitt Ted

Paula Hewitt James Heyland Heleen Heyning Mrs. William S. Hickey Ann & David Hicks Annie Hicks Bill Hicks Donna

Mrs.

Chipman Higgins Steve & Carol Higgins Patsy Highberg Mrs. Frank Hightower Alonza Hill Freddi & Ken Hill Leonard Hill Marian & Benjamin A. Hill Mrs. Frederick Hill Mrs. George

Sr. Barbara Hillard Louis & Betsy Hillenmeyer Mary Hilliard Dr. Robert & Beverly Hillman Glenn Hillman Sandra Hillman Daniel Hinkley Harvey Hinman Wiebke Hinsch Anna Kate Hipp

Lisa Hirdes Terry & Dianne Hire Meghan & Jerry Hirsch Ira Hirschfield Bobbi & Gene Hirschkoff Christy Hobart Julia & William Hobart Norman & Mary Ann Hoberman Mrs. John P. Hoche Claire Hochschwender Maryellen Hockensmith Marie Clark Hodges Walt Hodges Lynne Hoefer James & Barbara Hoehn Layton Hoel Harris Hoffman Mr. & Mrs. David Hoffman Ron Hoffman Mrs. Robert F. Hoffman Jr. Mr. & Mrs. Clifford Hoffmann Ellen Hoffs Patricia Hofmeister Cindy Hogan Sean Hogan Garth Hokanson Betty & Dick Holden Rick Holden Hilarie Holdsworth Mark M. Holeman Brad Holland Dolores Holland Mr. & Mrs. Charles M. Holland Mr. & Mrs. Chistopher Holland Wendy Hollender Mr. & Mrs. Rob Holman Ruth S. Holmberg Irene S. Holmes Anne Holt Hallie Holtzman Paul Holzman Mary Homans Basil & Rilda Hone Virginia Honea Mrs. Frederic C. Hood Nancy E. Hook Tony & I’Lee Hooker Ian & Madeline Hooper Sue & Dennis Hooper Ruth Hopkins Dennis & Julie Hopper Dennis & Vicki Hopper Peter & Diane Horan Jocelyn Horder Frances Horich Linda B. Horn Kate Horne Deborah Hornickel Ellen Hornig Scott Hornsby Paula Horrigan Alice Horton Judy M. Horton Lou & Nickie Horton Michelle & Regan Horton Sarah & Ozey Horton Carol & Steve Hosdale Cynthia & Calvin Hosmer Linda Hothem Brian Hough Stepheny Houghtlin Pamela K. Houk Patricia Houlihan Mr. & Mrs. Allan D. Housley Mr. & Mrs. Wesley D. Hovey Sandy & Ted How Celeste Howard Mr. & Mrs. A. E. Dick Howard Marcia & William Howell Marianne & Tim Howells Bill & Ann Hozack Mary Nell Hubbard Penney & A.C. Hubbard Frances Huber Mr. & Mrs. Bruce Huber Mrs. P. L. Hubert Patricia & Robert W. Hubner Harry Huchra John Hudak Joseph Hudak Lane & Joseph Hudgins Eldred Hudson Jean Hudson Maitland Hudson Mr. & Mrs. Joseph Hudson Mrs. Gilbert Hudson Steven M. & Janet Huffman Mrs. William Huger Mr. & Mrs. Jim Hughes Ellen S. Hughes-Sonnenfroh Jenny Lee Hughes-Yoxen Philip Hulbert Carrie Hulburd Catherine Hull Leslie & Mark Hull Mrs. P. Hull Beth Hume Ed Hume Susan & Jack Humphreville Joyce & Chet Humphrey Patricia Humphrey Mrs. Walter Hunnewell Douglas Hunt Stephanie Hunt Susan Hunt Joan & Jim Hunter Paul Hunter Dan & Darlene Huntington Wallace Huntington Stephanie Hurtt Sally & Andy Hurwitz Tim Husband Ron Hutchinson Ann & Steven Hutton Gordon & Carole Hyatt Bob Hyland Jack Hyland Walt

Jacobs Chris Jacobson Richard Jacobson Mr.

Richard & Sue Kaminski Robyn & Stephen Kaminski Susan Kandel Katherine Kane Jill Kaneb Susie Kane-Kettlewell DeAnna Kanner Connie Kaplan Gale Kaplan Marion Kaplan Mr. & Mrs. Michael Kaplan S. Jason & Sara Sherlock Karbel John Kardos John Karel Xonia Kargl J. Louis & Beth Karp Terry Karpen Tom Karwin Arthur & Pinky Kase Daniel & Sherry Kasper Betty Kassab Matt Kastell Mrs. Fred Kasten Barbara Katz Michael Katz Florence & Walter Katzenstein Jeri Katzer Felix Kaufman Masue Kawamura Shirley Kay Belinda & Stephen Kaye Debra Kaye Jenni Kayne Suzanne Kayne Hamilton & Edith Kean Mr. & Mrs. Daniel P. Kearney Barbara Keathley Jan L. Keating Tom Keck Monique & Keith Keegan Elaine Keehn Becky Keeler Jeff & Diane Keeler Anne Keesee Leslie Kefauver Barbara Kehoe Tom Keim Susan Keirn Jane Keiter Charles Keith Panayoti Kelaidis Joseph H. Keller Mr.

& Conrad Mahnken Amanda Savage Mahoney Don Mahoney Helena Mahoney

Mahoney

Maihack Doug Mains

Makepeace Steve Maker Brett & Kitty Maloney Sharon & Brad Malt Mr. & Mrs. James L. Mamakos Paula Manchester Bea & David Mandel Carol Mandel Elena Mills Mandin Geary &

Mandrapilias

& Mrs. Charles Mango Murali Mani Marjorie Mann Sharon & David Mann Betsy & Ecton Manning Chris Manning Mr. & Mrs. Larry Mannino Tom Mannion Eddie Mannis Carol & Mike Manno Ann M. Manzano John D. Mapel Susan Marai Linda Marais John & Sally Marchacos Michael & Beverly Marciano Iris Lee Marcus Marlowe Marcus Mark Maresca Mrs. Henry Maresi Susie Marglin Frank Mariani Corrie Marilley Marlene Marko Kenneth Marks Brent Markus Michael Marocco Robert Marquis John Marr Michelle Marra Susan & Jack Marsden Jim Marsh Lorna & Miles Marsh Jo-Anne & Charlie Marshall Leslie Marshall Meredith Marshall Peggy Marshall Jeff & Marcia Reid Marsted Geraldine Marten Mary Martha George Martin Harriet Martin John Martin Judy Martin Mrs. David B. Martin Patty & Eff Martin Charles N. Martin Jr. Diane & Phil Martineau Joyce Marting Tom & Kit Martinsen Louis Marx Wally Marx Marjorie & Nick Masla Dave & Tracey Mason Francis Mason George Mason J. Mason Marianne & Jeffrey Mason Susan & Gene Massamillo George & Pat Matarazzo Mrs. Robert C. H. Mathews, Jr. Judy & Bob Mathey Mr. & Mrs. MacDonald Mathey Mr. & Mrs.

Copyright © 2020 The Garden Conservancy, Inc.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

#OpenDays25: A Quarter Century of America’s Gardeners and Their Gardens

ISBN: 978-0-578-68500-7

Gardens—Gardeners—Garden Visiting—United States

Published and distributed by The Garden Conservancy P.O. Box 608, Garrison, NY 10524 www.gardenconservancy.org

The Garden Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization incorporated in New York State.

Botanical artwork by Marian McEvoy

Photography credits:

Christine Ashburn Photography: Pages 3, 10, 15, 18, 21, 26, 29, 32, 37, 41, 48, 51, 52, and 56

Erica Berger: Page 45

Brian Jones: Pages 9, 12 16, 23, 25, 30, 35, 43, 46, 55, and 58

John Storey: Page 38

Editing and project management by Garden Conservancy communications staff members George Shakespear, Lori Moss, and Stephanie Werskey, in partnership with the Public Programs and Education team, including Patrick MacRae, Kate H. Kerin, Christopher Gow, and Rani Long.

Design by Kat Nemec, studiokatinc.com

Printing by Recycled Paper Printing, Inc., in Waltham, Massachusetts

THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY STAFF

James Brayton Hall

President and Chief Executive Officer

Donna Mortensen Chief Operating Officer

Bridget Connors

Director of Membership & Annual Giving

Pamela Governale

Director of Preservation

Patrick MacRae

Director of Public Programs & Education

Sarah Parker

Director of Development

George Shakespear

Director of Communications

Pruda Vingoe

Executive Assistant to the President

Kyle Beach Events Coordinator

Arie Bram Database Manager

Claire Briguglio

Development Associate

Christopher Gow Open Days Program Manager

Katherine H. Kerin Special Programs & New Region Coordinator, Open Days

Rani Long Open Days Program Associate

Lorraine Mahon Fellows Tours Coordinator

Lori Moss

Associate Director of Communications

Cara Schaffer Administrative Coordinator

Anne Welles

Associate Director of Preservation

Stephanie Werskey Communications Manager Elaine Zanck Business Manager

Visiting Gardens

I am the first to admit that gardens exist in multiple realities. We read about gardens, plan them out on graph paper, drool over them in glossy publications, remember them from our childhood, even imagine them in our dreams. Many of my favorite (sometimes even heated) conversations with friends and colleagues are about gardens. Increasingly, as our culture seems ever more seduced by new technologies, we are introduced to gardens near and far by both amateurs and professionals aided by cellphones, video cameras, or even drones. All of these are good ways to think about, honor, and celebrate gardens.

But none of these activities can ever compare with visiting a garden.

While recently re-reading Andrea Wulf’s excellent book Founding Gardeners: The Revolutionary Generation, Nature, and the Shaping of the American Nation, I was reminded that it was in Wulf’s writing that I first learned that Thomas Jefferson, on an unsuccessful trade mission to London, had left the city on April 2, 1786, to join, as Wulf tells us, “hordes of tourists who traveled the length and breadth of the country to visit England’s landscape gardens.” Visiting gardens and identifying notable gardens as worthy destinations are fine (and ancient) traditions. Included in the seven wonders of the ancient world, along with the pyramids, were the Hanging Gardens of Babylon. Unlike the pyramids, the gardens have vanished without a trace. This may be because of the ephemeral nature of gardens, or because, as some historians suggest, they never existed at all. Either explanation suits me just fine: real or imagined, gardens are special places—truly “wonders of the world”—that beckon to be experienced across time and distance.

Twenty-five years ago, the Garden Conservancy began partnering with gardeners in New York and Connecticut to open their private gardens and welcome other garden enthusiasts on an “Open Day.” A national garden visiting program was born. Long before the advent of the “pop-up” event, these carefully scheduled visiting opportunities made a private garden almost public, but just for one day. It was, in all honesty, a rather improbable proposition. Its success is a testament to the passion and generosity of gardeners. One of the things that I love best about Open Days is the adventure of it. Visiting these private oases is a bit like a treasure hunt or a festival; if it rains, or if you have a conflict that day, you’re out of luck until next year…. or maybe not! Some gardens return year after year, and others close the gates. Like gardens themselves in which a rose may bloom beautifully one day and is gone the next, there is an element of chance and of magic about Open Days that makes it all the more compelling.

A defining characteristic that all gardens share is that they are a creation of human beings. In one way or another, someone has drawn a conceptual line around that special “moment” in the wider landscape that is the “garden.” Irrespective of how we endeavor to blur the line between the man-made and the natural, gardens always delight us precisely because they are “artifice.” They often tell us as much (if not more) about the gardeners who created them as they do about the plants, trees, etc., that first draw our attention. This commemorative book introduces you to some of those gardeners and their stories.

The Garden Conservancy recently reaffirmed that the Open Days program is central to our mission. We will continue to work hard to offer opportunities to visit private gardens, hear from experts, see and explore parts of public gardens that are rarely accessible, to learn about garden history and design, and, increasingly, to tell a broader and more varied story of the many different gardening traditions that inform the richness and importance of America’s gardens.

I am delighted to mark this important milestone in the Garden Conservancy’s beloved Open Days program with this beautiful publication, the culmination of a year’s efforts to explore and celebrate the gardens and the people who have made Open Days possible. In the process, we hope we have also captured, in the portraits that follow, the spirit of the program. The book has come together with a great deal of excitement, generosity, and, of course, hard work.

Beautiful drawings from our good friend, artist, and aesthete Marian McEvoy, whose lovely hillside garden overlooks the Hudson River, grace the cover and pages of this book. Inspired by gardens she has visited around the world, Marian creates gardens on paper, using pen and ink, and also in delightful collages of pressed flowers and leaves.

Photographers Brian Jones and Christine Ashburn traveled across the country last year to capture intimate portraits of passionate volunteers who open their own gardens and search out new gardens for our Open Days visitors to discover. Their beautiful photographs were a joy to receive in our office, as they had been dispatched on their own, with only a name and an address. These two artists became part of the story themselves in the process.

Great credit and thanks also go to our communications and Open Days staff members, who created this important commemorative book based on an idea that I proposed barely twelve months ago. Graphic designer Kat Nemec embraced the idea of the project, working tirelessly and with great good humor to lend her careful and joyous aesthetics to the finished product.

I would be remiss were I to ignore that, as I write this, our world has changed radically. We are celebrating 25 years of the joy of visiting gardens at the very moment that a global pandemic prevents us from doing just that. However, it is the essence of gardens that they remind us of the passage of time and of the promise of a seasonal rebirth. I write these words with every confidence that not only will we return soon to the wonderful adventure and discovery that is an Open Day, but that gardens, and gardening, will show us the way to a brighter and healthier future.

Come join us in the garden!

James Brayton Hall President and CEO

Visiting Gardens, by James Brayton Hall iii

A Conversation with Open Days Co-founder Page Dickey

The Future of Open Days, by Patrick MacRae

PROFILES

Casey Boyter, Austin, TX

Panayoti Kelaidis, Denver, CO

Mikel Folcarelli and John Gwynne, Little Compton, RI

Bruce Gangawer, New Hope, PA

Judith Tankard, Edgartown, MA

Dale Sievert, Waukesha, WI

Shobha Vanchiswar, Chappaqua, NY

Bob Hyland and Andrew Beckman, Portland, OR

Maureen and Mike Ruettgers, Carlisle, MA

Michael Judd, Frederick, MD

Lynde Uihlein, Milwaukee, WI

Frank and Mary Watson, Jacksonville, FL

Craig Bergmann, Lake Forest, IL

Linda Skyler, Bainbridge Island, WA

Barbara Israel, Katonah, NY

Keeyla Meadows, Albany, CA

Edwina von Gal, East Hampton, NY

Gordon and Mary Hayward, Westminster West, VT

Margaret Roach, Copake Falls, NY

Debbie Davis and Marty Whaley Adams, Charleston, SC

Jon Carloftis, Lexington, KY

Bunny Williams, Falls Village, CT

Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith, Mattituck, NY

Cynthia Hosmer, York, ME

Hitch Lyman, Trumansburg, NY

Elena Shoch and Martyn Belmont, Pasadena, CA

A Conversation with Open Days

Co-founder Page Dickey

“We should be doing this in America,” Page Dickey recalls thinking in the early 1990s, after several very personal and charming visits, many complete with tea and crumpets, to gardens that opened to the public as part of the United Kingdom’s National Garden Scheme.

In 2020, Garden Conservancy Open Days, now a thriving program that has opened more than 4,000 private gardens in 41 states across America, marks the anniversary of its first 25 years in the United States, having welcomed more than 1.3 million visitors. To get a perspective on the origins and the evolution of Open Days from its co-founder, Garden Conservancy president and CEO James Brayton Hall chatted with Page Dickey about the program and changes in gardening over the years. Following is a lightly edited version of their exchange.

James Brayton Hall: Envisioning a new national program takes imagination and a certain amount of ambition; making it happen seems rather daunting. How does one even begin to create a national gardenvisiting program?

Page Dickey: In the 1980s I was, for a time, on the board of the Royal Oak Foundation, the American wing of the National Trust, and enjoyed visits to England to see great Trust gardens, as well as some of the private gardens that opened for the National Garden Scheme and were listed in their famous Yellow Book. Of course those visits influenced my own garden, Duck Hill, in North Salem, NY.

Knowing how much I learned in my travels from seeing other people’s gardens, I went one day in the early ’90s to my friend and fellow gardener Pepe Maynard with a question: Why didn’t we have in America a program like the National Gardens Scheme in England where private gardens were opened to the public for a day?

Pepe and I decided to do something about it. Both of us were already on the Advisory Committee that Frank Cabot had created to help him launch the Garden Conservancy. We approached the Garden Conservancy for help, and, thanks to Frank’s adventurous spirit, were given full support to launch a program under the Conservancy’s aegis. That first year, we concentrated on the metropolitan New York and Connecticut region and, with the help of friends who volunteered their time, Pepe and I drew up a list of gardens we thought were special, then asked the owners if they would consider opening. Everything was done by word of mouth. We were initially concerned that garden owners might be worried about security. Much to our delight and surprise, almost everyone said yes and 110 gardens opened to the public in 1995. The small entrance fee helped with the cost of publicity, and the staff at the Garden Conservancy produced its first directory. Open Days was launched.

JBH: I’ve heard plenty of concerns about security related to house tours. That’s understandable: houses have antiques and things of value. It seems to be different out of doors. Why do you think that opening gardens is different from opening houses?

PD: I think gardeners who create a landscape really enjoy sharing it. Not just sharing it, but also exchanging ideas, which is always exciting. You never tire of exchanging ideas and learning things in the garden.

Over the years, I have had many kinds of groups come to see my garden. What distinguishes the people who come to visit the garden on Open Days is that they are genuinely interested in gardening and want to share gardening ideas. They are dedicated gardeners, engaged in a process of discovery.

One June morning, for example, when Duck Hill was opening, as the clock struck ten, I thought, oh, no one is going to come because we’re old hat, open year after year. Just then, a van pulled up and out spilled fifteen people from Atlanta, GA. They had decided to do a trip north to see several Open Days gardens. They were all dedicated, serious gardeners and we had such fun talking together.

JBH: It’s a process of discovery and exchange. I’ve always said that gardeners are generous people.

PD: I have found, almost without fail, that gardeners are generous. Some of my favorite plants are ones that people gave me years ago. Sharing of plants and ideas is somehow fundamental to gardening.

I love seeing young people come to visit gardens, but it doesn’t matter how long you’ve been doing it, there’s still more to learn. It’s a little shocking how many plants you kill on the way. I like Thomas Jefferson’s statement, towards the end of his life, that he was “a very old man, but a young gardener.”

JBH: After a couple of years, I understand that Open Days, rather quickly, became a national program. How did Open Days grow beyond its origin in the Northeast?

PD: For the first couple of years, Open Days was regional, very successful, but limited geographically to the New York, Connecticut, and New Jersey area. Then Frank Cabot started thinking he would like to make the program national. I was unable to take that task on myself, given my writing and family commitments, so he asked Janet Meakin Poor in Chicago if she would do it. She took it on, bringing in many contacts from around the country, and Open Days became a success story on a national stage. Our volunteers everywhere were awesome; I especially remember a woman in Austin, TX.

JBH: Most gardens are not complete until they have people in them. They are like a stage. People provide a sense of scale, they interact, they observe and comment. People are the last necessary ingredient to make a garden a success. What brings people back to see a garden year after year?

PD: Gardens change, plants grow, the weather brings new challenges, and gardeners acquire new passions. I also like to see gardens in every season. I wish we could have Open Days in the winter, especially in gardens with great architecture and trees.

JBH: Gardens are an experiential activity, especially these days. They are full of unexpected occurrences and constantly asking to be re-invented. Topics evolve; we hear a lot about invasive plants and native plants these days. What has changed in Open Days and gardening over the years?

PD: There’s a growing, almost revolutionary, interest in growing native plants. Doug Tallamy’s book Bringing Nature Home had a huge influence on me, explaining the many reasons that natives attract the most birds, bees, and butterflies.

How we look at Nature with a gardener’s eye has changed. Gardeners are becoming vibrantly

aware of habitat and landscape. There’s nothing like seeing plants in the native habitat, whether it’s Trillium grandiflora growing in sheets in northern New York State or fields of lavender in Europe. Gardeners have a growing awareness of the importance of paying attention to what plant is happy where.

We’ve become more inclusive about what we consider to be a garden. We’re looking beyond garden walls and realizing that a garden can be more than a bed of flowers; it can be woodland walks and meadows. Who had a meadow garden in the 1950s or 60s?

The author of many gardening books and articles, Page Dickey has been gardening passionately since her early twenties. Co-founder of the Open Days program in 1995, she has served on the board of the Garden Conservancy since 2004. Page’s next book, Uprooted: A Gardener Reflects on Beginning Again, will be released in September.

GARDEN CONSERVANCY OPEN DAYS 1995 – 2020

1995

First Open Days season, with 110 gardens open in New York and Connecticut

First annual edition of the Open Days Directory printed

First meeting of Open Days regional ambassadors held in Cold Spring, NY 1997

First Open Days in western US: Carmel, CA, and Honolulu, HI

1998

Janet Meakin Poor becomes first chair of Open Days and leads a national expansion of the program

Meeting of Open Days regional ambassadors in Birmingham, AL Sara Lee Corporation begins four-year sponsorship of program 2000

The Garden Conservancy launches a website and the Open Days schedule goes online 2001

W. Atlee Burpee & Co. sponsors Open Days program

2003

Fine Gardening magazine becomes national media sponsor for next three years

2005

James deGrey David becomes second national chair of Open Days

Launch of regional Open Days email announcements and reminders

Meeting of Open Days regional ambassadors in Newtown, CT

2006 Burpee returns as national sponsor and continues support through 2009

In October, Hicks Garden in Austin, TX, attracts 2,452 visitors on one Open Day 2007

Meeting of Open Days regional ambassadors in Austin, TX 2008

Open Days Directory becomes complimentary to Garden Conservancy members

Open Days preview program and reception at Chicago Botanic Garden 2009

Open Days preview program and reception at Denver Botanic Gardens “Limestone & Water” symposium at Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center held with Open Day in Austin, TX 2013

First Open Day in Charleston, SC, in partnership with Charleston Horticultural Society and Spoleto Festival USA

2014

An advisory committee of key Open Days participants from around the country meets in Cold Spring, NY, to explore future directions for the program

2015

The Garden Conservancy awarded the Wilfred J. Jung Distinguished Service Medal by the Garden Writers Association (now Garden Communicators International) for the Open Days program

Digging Deeper educational series launches to supplement Open Days self-guided garden visits 2016 Printed Open Days Directory returns by popular demand after one-year hiatus

2017

After 23 years of directing the Open Days program, Laura Mumaw Palmer departs for new adventures 2018

Patrick MacRae joins Garden Conservancy as director of public programs and education, including Open Days

2020

Twenty-fifth anniversary of Open Days Garden Conservancy board of directors forms an Open Days Committee

1995 OPEN DAYS GARDEN HOSTS AND GARDENS STILL PARTICIPATING

Join us in thanking and celebrating the private gardens and the intrepid garden owners in New York and Connecticut who were among the first group of 110 gardens in 1995, the program’s inaugural year, and are still active participants in Open Days today! Some of the original gardens, such as Rocky Hills and the Sara Stein Garden, continue to open under the stewardship of new owners. Some of the original hosts now share new gardens in new locations and some now participate in the program as Digging Deeper presenters. To all of them, thank you for your continuing dedication and participation!

Broccoli Hall, Maxine Paetro

Brush Hill Gardens, Charles Raskob

Robinson & Barbara Paul Robinson

Susan Cohen

Page Dickey

Hollister House Garden, George Schoellkopf

Barbara & Thomas Israel

Belinda & Stephen Kaye

Vivian & Edward Merrin

Lynden B. Miller

Ellen Peterson

Rocky Hills

Anne Spiegel

Sara Stein Garden

Michael Trapp Phillis Warden Bunny Williams Peter Wooster

The Future of Open Days

Audrey Hepburn famously declared that “to plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.” Literally and metaphorically, what we do today impacts us tomorrow, next month, and next year. In our gardens, we nurture and build the soil; we sow seeds; we prune and rejuvenate; we trade favorite plants with friends who share our curiosity and passion. Everything that we do today is in anticipation of the bright and beautiful future that we know is to come. Likewise, the foundation that Open Days has built over 25 years has prepared us wonderfully for the next 25.

We are deeply grateful to the nationwide Open Days community of gardeners and enthusiasts who have made the Garden Conservancy a leading voice championing the cultural significance of gardens. Much has changed in the world over 25 years, and much is certain to change over the next 25. What has not changed is the human desire to learn and explore; to discover and create community; and to do our part to make the world a better, more hospitable, and healthier place. Now more than ever before, there is a global understanding that gardening indeed can help change the world.

We now understand better than ever that gardens are much more than just beautiful places. In an increasingly fragmented world, our gardens are places that celebrate the natural world and where we have an opportunity to help heal the damage done to the planet. Scientific understanding of the environment, soil ecology, hydrology, and the complexity of nature has grown by leaps and bounds. Gardening practices increasingly reflect our appreciation that actions we take on our plots of land have an observable impact on the health of the environment. As the gardening public becomes more informed, our gardens in turn have become vital sanctuaries for birds, pollinators, and native plant species and we are better equipped to make a positive difference.

Gardening also has positive impacts on our physical and psychological health. Working outside with plants can help to cure “nature-deficit disorder,” especially in children. We know that in times of crisis, people turn to their gardens or start a garden for the first time, in order to develop a sense of permanence, optimism, and hope. There is mounting evidence that routine access to the outdoors has a positive impact on lifestyle diseases including heart disease, diabetes, and obesity, and that gardening is one of the most accessible ways to connect time spent outdoors to a sense of purpose. The act of gardening—of pruning and digging and planting—develops and maintains our fine motor skills. Gardening—and garden visiting—also stimulates our creativity and inspires us to learn more and to develop our abilities as artists and craftspeople. It helps keep our minds sharp and contributes to our sense of intellectual fulfillment. Those of us who garden in order to grow some of our own food also understand the benefits to our health from eating food grown directly in our backyards or in containers on our terraces. Any child can tell you that a berry never tastes better than when it’s picked straight from

the bush. And eating that berry, warmed by the sunshine, creates a lifelong memory in the mind of a young person.

Gardening benefits our society, too. Over the past two decades and more, we’ve seen an enormous uptick in the prevalence of community gardens. We’ve seen abandoned lots in urban food deserts transformed into spaces where fresh, healthy fruits and vegetables become readily available. Interesting and unusual plants that would never be found even in the most well-stocked grocery store are grown in many community gardens. The gardens are places where complex and diverse cultural relationships to plants and to food are celebrated and nurtured.

We’ve also seen an explosion in the popularity of houseplants, particularly in young urban populations without access to a garden plot. We’ve witnessed an increase in “guerrilla gardens,” gardens that are cultivated, often without explicit permission, adjacent to sidewalk strips, in medians, and in public rights of way. All of these break the mold of the traditional garden, while they profoundly contribute to the fabric of America’s diverse gardening traditions. Those houseplant-obsessed young people are gardening, and they are likely to continue to garden throughout their lives, perhaps in ever-more sophisticated and innovative ways. The gardens cropping up in the medians are often carefully designed and expertly tended, and speak to the human desire to grow something wherever and however we can.

Open Days is, above all else, a celebration of how and why we garden. The Garden Conservancy recently adopted a new mission: to preserve, share and celebrate America’s gardens and diverse gardening traditions. Together with our newly adopted vision that the Garden Conservancy will be the champion and steward of the vital role that gardens play in America’s history, culture, and quality of life, we are challenged to rethink and expand the notion of the outstanding American garden.

Throughout the history of Open Days, we have shared gardens of exceptional quality in terms of design, horticultural merits, or unique character. We remain committed to the value of excellence. However, a garden need not have an incredible design to be outstanding. A garden need not have a deep collection of important plants to be worthy of sharing through Open Days. Outstanding gardens are gardens that touch the soul; gardens that contribute to the vitality of the community in which they exist; gardens that connect people to their culture and history. In a food desert, a community garden that provides fresh fruit and vegetables to its neighbors is nothing if not outstanding.

Over the course of the next several years, we anticipate that through Open Days, we will champion more gardens of different sizes, styles, and character than before. We will make more inroads into urban environments and seek out pocket gardens and rooftop gardens and gardens that otherwise reflect the new ways in which people are connecting with the land. We will seek out gardens that support the environment, that contribute to our sense of

To plant a garden is to believe in

wellness, and that positively impact our society. We will forge new and vibrant partnerships with like-minded organizations and individuals who share our conviction that access to gardens is a fundamental component of the human right to access greenspace. In doing so, we will expand the impact of Open Days in ways that we’ve just begun to realize.

Open Days is and will remain focused on sharing and celebrating America’s wonderful private gardens. Our partnerships, like the one we’ve recently developed with the Southside Community Land Trust in Providence, RI, will create opportunities to showcase the amazing creativity happening in peoples’ backyards as well as the life-affirming and community-empowering work happening in more public spaces. Open Days isn’t an either/or program, it’s a both/ and program. We can do more, and we will do more. Our work is only beginning.

We face the future with bright eyes and enthusiasm. As we seek to build and diversify our coalition, we are also deeply grateful for our community of dedicated supporters who have been with us from the beginning. We invite you to join us and to bring along your friends, family, children, and grandchildren. Share your own garden, and join us in visiting even more gardens. Open Days is a program that belongs to everyone, always. We’ve planted our proverbial garden; over 25 years, we’ve watched Open Days grow into something we are immensely proud to share. We certainly believe in tomorrow.

Patrick MacRae Director of Public Programs and Education

tomorrow.

Open Days Garden Visitors: Forming a Dynamic Community and Exchanging Ideas

We would not have Open Days without garden visitors! They support our programs and share their ideas with hosts and other participants. Open Days garden visitors—more than 1,350,000 of them across the country since 1995—are an essential part of our nationwide community of gardeners and garden enthusiasts teaching and inspiring each other.  Here are just a few of the things they say about Open Days.

“To be immersed in all of this beauty, if only for an hour, was an incredible treat.” “This is my tenth year of enjoying incredible private gardens through the Garden Conservancy. Thank you so much for this wonderful program!” “Spending time with family and friends amongst all this beauty has created some wonderful memories. Thank you for all you do!” “A spectacular tour of private gardens! The color palette was beyond words. A visual experience I will never forget…a lasting memory in my mind and a forever flower dream.” “You make the world a better place.” “I have been a member of the Garden Conservancy for five years. Each season, I try to attend as many garden tours as I can. I can never thank the hosts enough for all of their generosity!” “Garden Conservancy Open Days are the best thing ever!” “Open Days… is your passport to a spectrum of garden delights.” “The Open Days program has evolved into a forum for the valuable exchange of ideas and information, as well as a celebration of a mutual respect and love for nature and gardening.” “You will be energized; you will be dizzy with ideas to bring back to enhance your own garden. You will discover that no two gardens are alike, or even similar, and that each area of this country is rich in gardens.” “I gather ideas for my own gardening adventures—and leave some of my own teachings behind.” “It’s a feeling of being inspired by a private paradise that drives us to see what other gardeners have

created.” “In the garden our senses meld into each other: smell, vision, hearing, and touch. We arrive at a state of sublime synesthesia, where our sense flow into each other.” “A visit to a great garden never fails to inspire and delight. It is where we realize that all gardens, including our own, are the result of dedication and devotion bestowed upon the land by the garden’s creator.” “There is something incredibly festive about Open Days, something memorable. Most gardeners have a bit of the introvert in them, but when you bring us out of our shell, please do so among other gardeners!” “As the Dallas area representative for Open Days and a landscape designer, I get to see many gardens others may not. What I really love to do is plan vacations around Open Days throughout the country. I enjoy entrée to local gardens but the real treat is seeing what else is happening around the country.” “Amazing tours, talks, and events!” “Es maravilloso tener la oportunidad de apreciar tanta belleza.” “Last year’s Open Days gardens in Jacksonville, FL, were simply superb! It was a joy to see thoughtful and lovely gardens and learn from other homeowners. And we were pleased you included the gardens at the Cummer Museum; even though badly damaged by Hurricane Irma, they gave us an idea of their structure and beauty.” “Spent a delightful day with my better half touring three gardens yesterday. They were all incredible and inspirational.” “I have not only seen great gardens, but met many delightful fellow gardeners at the Open Days.” “Great people, great gardens!” “This organization has granted me access to hundreds of great gardens across this continent. It’s a great way to meet passionate people and get a little inspiration of your own.” “I have had some really lovely adventures over the years visiting Open Days gardens. Our garden today is a lot better because of the beautiful gardens we have visited and learned from.” “That’s what is so cool about Open Days. It’s the perfect marriage: visitors pick up ideas for their own gardens, meet lots of like-minded garden enthusiasts, and talk to designers.” “We visited two gardens in New Hampshire. It was wonderful! We were so inspired that we’ve embarked on a big landscaping upgrade at our own home.” “Beautiful and educational!”

CASEY BOYTER Austin, TX

Casey owns Casey Boyter Gardens, a multidisciplinary landscape design/build firm that collaborates with clients to create beautiful outdoor living spaces that integrate seamlessly and respectfully with both architecture and the natural world. Green roofs are integral to her practice. Casey believes they provide effective answers to many of Austin’s environmental issues, so in 2006 she also founded Growers, a nonprofit green roof education and networking group for professionals and the general public. On her own bunkhouse, she created a 250-squarefoot intensive green roof, incorporating soil deeper than usual to support more diverse plantings, provide better insulation, and more drought resilience. This roof boasts waterwise cascading roses, perennials that attract wildlife, and even a tiny lawn. Casey worked on Austin Open Days with Patrick Kirwin, a former regional ambassador, and became our regional ambassador in 2019. Several gardens she designed have been featured in Austin Open Days.

“Green roofs can help ameliorate the urban ‘heat island’ effect and other urban environmental issues, while also improving water quality and flood control.”

QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

PANAYOTI KELAIDIS Denver, CO

Panayoti, senior curator and the director of outreach at Denver Botanic Gardens, has lectured in twelve countries and 150 cities and serves as a spokesman for Denver Botanic Gardens as well as for Denver’s extensive regional green industry. He began his current high-altitude garden in 1994; since then, almost every square inch has been reworked. It contains more than 6,000 kinds of plants, from giant trees to tiny alpine cushions, and is home to the widest spectrum of biodiversity one can shoehorn into a half acre. It sits on a hill and has magnificent views of the Front Range mountains, from Pikes Peak to north of Longs Peak. Panayoti has been an Open Days garden host several times and has served as ambassador for Denver Open Days. In conjunction with Garden Conservancy Open Days in 2009, 2010, and 2012, he also coordinated special lectures at the Denver Botanic Gardens.

“A certain amour-propre (dare we not say braggadocio!) inspires one to show off and share their garden. To put it more generously, when you find something marvelous and beautiful, you can’t help but want others to share in the experience.”

MIKEL FOLCARELLI and JOHN GWYNNE Little Compton, RI

John Gwynne trained as a landscape architect and is a designer of exhibits that bring people closer to nature; Mikel Folcarelli is an independent global brand designer. Together, they created Sakonnet Garden, an exotic cottage garden embedded within a native coastal-fields landscape. Sakonnet is an ongoing experiment in design, scale, and plantings, an experiment spanning many decades. The acre-size main woodland garden is subdivided into a series of fourteen spaces separated by high windbreak hedges and stone walls. Each space has its own mood and horticultural objective. The whole has been described as an outdoor folly.

In 2010, John and Mikel began participating in Open Days and have created a convivial garden fair atmosphere for guests and invited outside vendors, all of whom celebrate the transformative power of gardens. Admissions also help support local wild meadow restoration efforts.

“When you pass through a hedge or open a door, an unexpected whole world is revealed on the other side.  Gardens should be fun.”

BRUCE GANGAWER New Hope, PA

Bruce Gangawer is a tireless and talented horticulturist, garden designer, nursery owner, and community supporter. He has been an Open Days garden host since 2014, hosted an early Digging Deeper, and serves as a regional ambassador for Bucks County, PA. Fellow Open Days host Barbara Tiffany confided in us that, “Bruce is a genius!” He describes himself as a “garden geek.” His 32-acre Paxson Hill Farm includes imaginative gardens, an extraordinary plant collection, a thriving plant nursery, and a host of rescued animals including sheep, mini-donkeys, turkeys, and peacocks. Winding paths lead visitors through ever-evolving gardens inspired by Bruce’s world travels and keen eye for design: elaborate ponds, a hedge maze, a conifer garden, formal and “not so formal” gardens, a Hobbit House, and more. Bruce hosts a free program each fall, “Art in the Garden.” This exhibit and sale has been showcasing local artists and their work for twenty years.

“I prefer meandering. I don’t want to take the same path every time. I like different views.”

JUDITH TANKARD Edgartown, MA

Judith Tankard is one of the most significant landscape historians in America today. Her ten books on late nineteenth and early twentieth-century American and British gardens and designers are considered definitive texts. She shares her passion and expertise with the Garden Conservancy in various capacities. For a decade, Judith has been serving as regional ambassador for our ever-popular Martha’s Vineyard Open Days. Occasionally on the roster is the charming cottage garden she and her husband, John, share in the center of historic Edgartown, MA. Surrounded by a fence draped in New Dawn roses, this garden features a stunning espalier of Viburnum plicatum ‘Mariesii’, a main garden just roomy enough for two Donald Wyman crabapples, a  Viburnum sieboldii, various lilacs, and a garden shed covered with roses and Clematis montana ‘Rubens’. Judith has presented several lectures around the country for the Garden Conservancy, as well as Open Days Garden Extras programs. She is a long-time member of the Garden Conservancy Society of Fellows.

“There is an awesome array of gardens and landscapes on Martha’s Vineyard: traditional town gardens filled with climbing roses and hydrangeas as well as striking contemporary gardens hidden on private lanes in rural farmlands.”

DALE SIEVERT Waukesha, WI

Dale Sievert’s passion is moss. Also a talented landscape photographer and a retired college professor, he has visited 106 countries and found ideas for his own garden in many of them. His one-acre property in Wisconsin includes several shade gardens containing 700 hostas and other perennials selected for their foliage. He has many moss gardens, some in containers or on mossy rocks, and three water systems in the water garden. There is also a Japanese-style garden, a cactus and succulent garden, a sunken garden, a hillside garden, and a Williamsburg-inspired formal garden. Five thousand antique bricks and 2,000 antique cobblestones were used for walks and planters. All trees are deciduous in order to blend with nearby wooded areas.

“I want visitors to my garden to discover how mosses can give them a whole new repertoire of plants to use in their own gardens. It took me until age 62 to discover that; I hope others can find it earlier in their lives.”

Shobha is a molecular biologist, artist, poet, and garden designer. As the ultimate nexus of science and art, Shobha’s garden, she says, “permits me to indulge both sides of my brain.” Her modest-sized and organically maintained garden features a cottage garden of bulbs and perennials, a Belgian espalier of fruit trees, a grape arbor, an herb garden, a checkerboard garden, and a “meadow” with naturalized bulbs, native plants, a Domenico Belli sculpture, and a greenhouse. There are many European touches, such as rose arbors, window boxes, a fountain, and Anduze pots. There is also a terrace with a wisteria-covered pergola for outdoor dining. Shobha has also been involved with the HIV/AIDS children at the orphanage at Mukta Jeevan in Shahpur, India; creates sustainable home goods made with fabrics that use watercolors inspired by her garden; and has a weekly garden blog.

“I

“We spread the gospel of four-season gardens. Winter is an important season; many plants offer winter stem color and bark interest. In Portland, winter bloom starts early, in mid-to late-January, with witch hazels, hellebores, and winter honeysuckles.”

BOB HYLAND and ANDREW BECKMAN Portland, OR

Bob Hyland and Andrew Beckman’s gardening adventures in the Hudson Valley as well as in the Pacific Northwest have made them highly attuned to climate and zone differences and climate-adapted plants. Their backgrounds in professional horticulture and landscape architecture don’t hurt, either. They were Open Days garden hosts at their former home in Hudson, NY, where they created the acclaimed Loomis Creek Nursery. In 2011, they gained three hardiness zones, with shorter winters but much drier summers, by relocating to Portland, OR. Andrew had joined Timber Press as publisher the year before and Bob opened Hyland Garden Design, a design practice and specialty shop. Bob was one of our regional ambassadors for the Portland area through our local Open Days nonprofit partner, the Hardy Plant Society of Oregon. He has also served enthusiastically on the board of the Pacific Horticulture Society and continues to organize PLANT-O-RAMA, an iconic horticulture trade show and symposium held annually at the Brooklyn Botanic Garden.

MAUREEN and MIKE RUETTGERS Carlisle, MA

Within their Gardens at Clock Barn, outside of Boston, MA, Maureen and Mike Ruettgers have created a haven for family in the very broadest sense. Here, treated to a host of special activities, Open Days visitors experience the same genuine care that Maureen and Mike lavish on generations of relatives, young students from Rwanda they mentor, the community they work to enrich, and nonprofits they actively support. In this remarkable garden where their children grew up having “walking picnics,” finding and devouring whatever was ripe, Open Days guests experience a veritable wonderland designed to ignite curiosity and delight in gardeners of all ages. The inviting, very chic design overflows with choice plants, both edible and ornamental. An inventive children’s garden and magnificent tree house are irresistible. In all they do, Maureen and Mike seek to inspire and educate. At home, they seek to connect people to nature through gardens and gardening. Finding common purpose, they are generous supporters of Garden Conservancy Open Days.

“I love the Chinese proverb, ‘He who plants a garden plants happiness’ but, today, for me, it’s also ‘She who plants a garden creates mindfulness.’”

QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

JUDD Frederick, MD

Designer, author, and educator Michael Judd is a passionate activist for edible gardening and the environment. His firm, Ecologia, creates edible and ecological landscapes, and he offers workshops, webinars, and talks. In the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains, Michael and his family live at Long Creek Homestead, a living laboratory and classroom he has been sharing through Open Days since 2018. The homestead embodies the ideas of permaculture (productive agricultural ecosystems that are sustainable, self-sufficient, and modeled on nature) and is designed to harvest rainwater, build soil, and balance insect populations while providing ample crops. Surrounding the family’s straw bale house are more than 100 varieties of fruits, nuts, vegetables, and useful perennials growing in food forests, mixed woodlands, and gardens, plus an on-site nursery. Michael wrote Edible Landscaping with a Permaculture Twist (Ecologia, 2013) and For the Love of Paw Paws (Ecologia, 2019) and hosts an annual “Paw Paw Fest” celebrating America’s largest native fruit.

MICHAEL

“Our diverse permaculture landscapes offer a natural cornucopia of fruits, nuts, and useful plants.”

QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

UIHLEIN Milwaukee, WI

Lynde’s grandparents Joseph and Ilma Uihlein established Afterglow Farm in 1929 as their country residence. A Germanic-style timber-and-fieldstone cottage, evidence of her grandfather’s creativity and pride in his German heritage, is set amid large informal country gardens, begun by her horticulturist grandmother. Afterglow now features long-blooming, deer-resistant perennials anchored by specimen trees and bears the imprint of four generations. The property includes a maple, beech, and ash woodland, wooded ravines and paths, two ponds, native prairie gardens, two small orchards, and ornamental stone and ironwork on approximately 120 acres along the spectacular Lake Michigan shoreline. In 1989, Lynde founded the Brico Fund, a feminist nonprofit organization that builds the collective capacity of people and organizations

actively and sustainably improve civic, cultural, and natural environments. The Brico Fund’s current focus is water and climate crisis.

to

“My grandparents had a German proverb painted at the entrance to their house at Afterglow Farm that you can still see today. It translates, “This house is mine, and yet not mine. Who came before, it was not his. Whoever comes after must also leave. Tell me, dear friend, whose house is this?”

LYNDE

28 A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

FRANK and MARY WATSON

Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, Jacksonville, FL

Frank and Mary Watson, in partnership with the Cummer Museum of Art & Gardens, have served as regional ambassadors for Jacksonville Open Days for many years. Frank has also served as Cummer board chair; Mary has served on several boards, including that of the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center in Austin, TX. Longtime friends of the Garden Conservancy, the Watsons were also active in the Friends of Rocky Hills, which worked with Henriette Suhr and the Garden Conservancy to establish the Rocky Hills Environmental Lecture Series to honor the legacy of William and Henriette Suhr and of Rocky Hills, their garden in Mt. Kisco, NY. The Watsons garden at both their home in Linville, NC, and in Florida. Both Frank and Mary work with St. Johns County Parks to maintain the Butterfly Garden in Bird Island Park, a native plant park in Ponte Vedra Beach, FL, which opened in 2010. The Garden Conservancy is exploring opportunities for further collaboration with the Cummer Museum, thanks largely to the continuing support and efforts of the Watsons.

“The variety of gardens in our Jacksonville Open Days inspires us, as does how thrilled visitors are to see each garden. It’s all thanks to nearly 30 volunteers, most of whom work willingly every year. And the Cummer Museum presents a pictorial and film history of its gardens and of the local area.”

@craigbergmanndesign

32

QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

CRAIG BERGMANN Lake Forest, IL

Craig Bergmann has been an Open Days garden host since 1997, sharing both his own gardens and those he’s created for clients. He served as a regional ambassador, is a member of the Garden Conservancy Society of Fellows, and hosted a sold-out Garden Masters Series event in 2019. His firm, Craig Bergmann Landscape Design, has won critical acclaim for intertwining design, horticulture, and architecture in a way unique to northern Illinois.

The Gardens at 900, Craig’s current garden, is a sensitive renovation of the historic entry building complex and gardens at Elawa Farm. Originally designed in 1917 by prominent Chicago-area architect David Adler, the buildings had been abandoned for nearly a decade before being acquired by Craig and interior designer Paul Klug and now serve as both their private residence and design office. Craig and Paul’s work respects the history of the site while also incorporating and fostering today’s creativity.

“In

Island, WA

Linda became our Open Days regional ambassador in the horticultural mecca of Bainbridge Island, WA, in 2009 and has opened her own garden for Open Days every year since, with the exception of one year. Surrounded by waves of cedar pickets and an iron gate made by Linda, her third-of-an-acre site sits at the end of a quiet cul-de-sac. Her garden has been a work in progress for more than thirty years and is nestled among tall firs, vine maples, rhododendrons, azaleas,  Viburnum, and magnolias. Each pathway leads to a different garden room, in which there are endless groupings of Hosta, Helleborus, Hebes, barberries, Spirea, Farfugium, Euphorbia, and more than 100 varieties of ferns—this gardener’s passion.

“What inspires me to share my garden are the visitors themselves. I enjoy chatting with them about plants and sharing thoughts and ideas about their own gardens and possibilities from things I have in mine.”

LINDA SKYLER Bainbridge

QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

BARBARA ISRAEL Katonah, NY

Barbara is one of the world’s leading experts on garden antiques, but this path began by chance when she found (and impulsively acquired) a major collection of antique garden ornaments. She now runs Barbara Israel Garden Antiques, offering an array of period garden ornaments from Europe, America, and Asia. To share her passion, she’s written several books on garden antiques and publishes a free, scholarly newsletter, Focal Points. Her historic property includes formal box-hedged perennial borders, a meditation garden, an orchard within a meadow, a rose garden, and many specimen trees, creating a remarkable setting for her collection of fountains, statues, sundials, urns, furniture, fencing, and wellheads dating from the fifteenth through the mid-twentieth centuries. Barbara was one of the original Open Days garden hosts in 1995 and has continued to share her enchanting garden over the years. She also hosted a sold-out Digging Deeper on siting garden ornaments.

“Ornaments draw your eye and lead you around the garden. Benches offer comfort, a place to sit and contemplate... fountains combine art and nature, interacting together to create the sounds and sights of splashing... a marble panther on a rock tells a tale.”

A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

@keeylameadows

38 A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

KEEYLA MEADOWS Albany, CA

Keeyla Meadows is a painter, sculptor, garden designer, and environmentalist who sees gardens as full-scale works of art that you can walk into and be a part of. Keeyla is a pioneer in weaving the colors of the hardscape materials with the colors of the plants and making painterly expressions. Her gardens in San Francisco’s Bay Area are vibrant in every sense of the word: color is used to invite, delight, and sustain people as well as local pollinators, including “hummers,” bees, and butterflies. Through her practice and her books, Fearless Color Gardens (Timber Press, 2009) and Making Gardens Works of Art (Sasquatch Books, 2002), Keeyla shares her ideas for creating deeply personal gardens, even on a small-scale, by filling the garden “frame” with meaningful and considered detail. These expressive environments incorporate painterly pavings, wavy walls, mosaic benches, sculptures, and lush, colorful plantings. Keeyla has been an Open Days garden host since 2010, is a regional ambassador, and has hosted several Digging Deeper programs, on topics including habitat gardening, fearless color, and situating art in the garden.

“Many areas of my life, from food presentation to a spiritual visualization practice, center on the wonders of plants. My paintings and sculpture result from a dynamic exchange with the garden. I have even composed piano music while observing a photograph of a California redbud.”

EDWINA VON GAL East Hampton, NY

Edwina is a landscape designer and environmentalist whose goal is to create beautiful gardens without synthetic chemicals. In 2013, she founded Perfect Earth Project, a nonprofit dedicated to raising consciousness about the dangers of synthetic lawn and garden chemicals and to promoting toxic-free techniques that provide beautiful, safe results at no extra cost. Edwina’s property, Marsh House, is her laboratory and demonstration space, as well as an ecological refuge of sorts, as it is on a protected salt marsh. The rest of the four-plus acres contains a variety of natural restoration and garden areas, all works in progress: two types of meadows, vegetable and flower beds, and a moss garden. She does not remove any biomass from the property; rather, she finds various uses for materials generated, creating log walls from invasive trees and haystacks from meadow cuttings. Her collaboration with professor and author Doug Tallamy, the “Two-Thirds for the Birds” initiative, focuses on inspiring people to plant more native plants in their gardens to provide habitat, increase biodiversity, and help reverse rapidly declining bird populations.

@edwinavongal

“Through Open Days, it is great to know that there are so many others who share my interests and want to share them with me.  No one seems to mind that my garden is not pristine. It is about ideas and experimentation.”

A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

GORDON and MARY HAYWARD Westminster West, VT

Gordon Hayward is a self-taught garden designer, lecturer, and author of ten books and nearly 100 articles for Horticulture magazine. In 2019, Gordon was made an honorary member of the Garden Club of America. Gordon and his wife, Mary, have been Open Days garden hosts, off and on, since 1998, as well as Digging Deeper presenters. Their one-and-a-half-acre garden surrounds their 1790 farmhouse in southeastern Vermont. Over the past 37 years, they have developed a hybrid of “Old England” and New England gardens, reflecting Gordon’s growing up on an orchard in northwestern Connecticut and Mary’s growing up on a farm outside Chipping Campden in the North Cotswold Hills of England. The garden, the subject of their book The Intimate Garden (WW Norton, 2005), is comprised of fourteen garden rooms.

“A 100-year-old St. Lawrence apple tree was here when we bought our 1790 farmhouse. It’s my favorite plant in the garden; I prune it as my father taught me as a boy in our orchard in Connecticut.”

Thirty years ago, journalist Margaret Roach began gardening on a steep 2.3-acre site in the rolling Taconic Mountains. She has been sharing her wide-ranging curiosity and growth as a gardener and naturalist ever since, leading the way out-of-doors for many Americans. In her inspiring green universe, A Way to Garden, which includes her award-winning public radio show, podcast, website, and books, Margaret explains, “I’m all about the horticultural how-to and ‘woo-woo.’” Just like Open Days! Featured on Open Days since 1998, Margaret’s garden is impossibly chic, lovingly tended, and alight with life and ideas year round. She considers what her plant choices do visually (she loves plants with great foliage) both within the garden and from her house (important in climates like the Northeast). She also selects plants for wildlife interest and their impact on her garden as a habit, and grows most of her own food. She always says “no to chemicals and yes to great plants.”

MARGARET ROACH Copake Falls, NY

“Gardening offers a lens into all dimensions of science, not just botany, but also geology, ornithology, entomology, and on and on. It is a brilliant teacher. It also leaves no doubt who is in charge (hint: not you).”

CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

DEBBIE DAVIS and MARTY WHALEY ADAMS

Charleston, SC

Debbie Davis is the program director at the Charleston Horticultural Society, our organizational partner, along with Spoleto Festival USA, in planning Charleston Open Days since 2013. The daughter of a gardener and granddaughter of Carolina farmers, Debbie is a sculptor and ceramicist and has taught art for several years. She combines a flair for organization with a love of education and the arts. She has been instrumental in helping us share with the public more than 45 private gardens in Charleston’s famed horticultural mecca.

Debbie is shown in the garden of Marty Whaley Adams, a Charleston Open Day garden host and artist who draws inspiration from the colors, textures, and rich nuances of her native city. Marty is the daughter of the late noted Charleston gardener and author, Emily Whaley, creator of the classic “Mrs. Whaley’s Garden,” which has participated in our Open Days program in Charleston for five years.

CARLOFTIS Lexington, KY

A tenth-generation Kentuckian, Jon Carloftis moved to New York City in 1988, planning to stay for a single summer. Jon went on to spend 25 years designing and installing rooftop gardens all over Manhattan, including gardens for many celebrities.

After living in Manhattan for a few years, he bought an 1850s farmhouse in Bucks County, PA, which he shared through Open Days. In 2012, Jon relocated to Lexington, KY, and purchased Botherum House, an 1851 Greek Revival house in deep disrepair. Within a year, Jon and his former partner, Dale Fisher, received the highest honor in Kentucky for the historic restoration of a house and garden. Starting with an overgrown mess of honeysuckle, the property is now a series of defined outdoor rooms, including a vegetable and herb garden, woodland garden, courtyard, walled garden, and restored formal garden. In 2014, Jon shared the garden at Botherum through Open Days.

“Everyone learns something on an Open Day, from the owners to the visitors. Visitors see what someone can do with absolutely nothing to start with and I appreciate that my down-to-earth approach to gardening resonates with them.”

JON

BUNNY

WILLIAMS Falls Village, CT

A world-renowned interior designer and author, Bunny Williams has received House Beautiful’s Giants of Design award, among other prestigious honors. Her latest book, Love Affairs with Houses, describes “affairs” with fifteen properties from the most recent phase of her career. Her own intensively planted fifteen-acre estate has a sunken garden with twin perennial borders surrounding a fishpond, a seasonally changing parterre garden, a year-round conservatory filled with tender plants, a large vegetable garden with flowers and herbs, a woodland garden with meandering paths, and a pond with a waterfall. There are also a working greenhouse, an aviary with unusual chickens, and an apple orchard with mature trees. Bunny’s garden has been participated in Open Days every single year since our program began in 1995. She also founded Trade Secrets, a rare plant and garden antiques sale and festival held every year in Lakeville, CT, with proceeds benefiting victims of domestic violence.

“I would love for visitors to my garden to leave knowing the importance of good bones, good structure. It all starts with the plan, the drawing, the concept. The greatest gardens are a combination of great design as well as great plants.”

DENNIS SCHRADER and BILL SMITH Mattituck, NY

In 1982, Dennis Schrader and Bill Smith founded Landcraft Environments, a design/build landscape firm specializing in outstanding seasonal plantings. In 1992, they moved the business to an abandoned farm on the East End of Long Island and started a wholesale greenhouse operation. In the heart of the North Fork’s wine region, their four-plus-acre garden surrounds a restored 1840s farmhouse. There are hundreds of container plantings and many perennial and mixed shrub borders; garden rooms hedged in by hornbeam and boxwood; vegetable/herb, formal knot, and meadow gardens; several bog plantings, and a woodland shade area. Plantings include tropicals, subtropicals, tender perennials, and annuals. The house and garden are encircled by ten acres of fields with mowed paths for viewing native plants and wildlife. Dennis is the co-author of Hot Plants for Cool Climates (Timber Press, 2000) and Extraordinary Leaves (Firefly Books, 2008). In 2020, Dennis and Bill established the Landcraft Garden Foundation, which is dedicated to inspiring, educating, and promoting gardening, horticulture, and the preservation of our natural environment.

“Since we first opened our garden in 1998, a dedicated couple, now living out of state, has been coming to our Open Days every year. This dedication and interest in our garden informs us that we are doing the right thing by establishing a foundation.”

CYNTHIA HOSMER York, ME

Cynthia Hosmer has been an Open Days garden host since 2003. Brave Boat Harbor Farm, her property on the coast of Maine, is 300 years old and listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It has been in Cynthia’s family since 1949 and the gardens have been evolving over the last 50 years. Her mother-in-law established the original “bones” of the garden and Cynthia describes her own role as “nurturing, enhancing, and preparing it for the next generation.” Formal and informal borders, a vegetable garden, orchards, and collections of various flowering trees and shrubs surround and complement a Georgian-style stone house. Apples and pears are espaliered on the house and along the walls of the formal front garden. Water plays a key role, too. There is a newly expanded pond in the woodland garden, a farm pond with rustic bridge, and majestic views of the Atlantic Ocean.

LYMAN Trumansburg, NY

Garden designer, nurseryman, and artist Hitch Lyman is a true collector. His garden features more than 500 varieties of snowdops (Galanthus)—one of the largest collections in the US—which typically begin blooming while snow still covers the region. Launching the nationwide season, Hitch’s Open Day has been a pilgrimage for galanthophiles (snowdrop lovers) since 2006. One club drives six hours each way for the event. Like members of some ancient sect, Open Days galanthophiles convene with fellow (chilly) enthusiasts around a bonfire Hitch lights. He lives in a Greek Revival farmhouse and built a “Greek temple with a Venetian chandelier” as a dining pavilion, but, too far from the house, it now serves as his potting shed. Hitch also runs a mail-order business selling snowdrops “in the green” (just after blooming), the best time to move snowdrops for ready flowering the next year.

“My garden tells the story of obsessive compulsive behavior!

It is a collector’s garden, the result of passion. I’ve gotten a lot of plants. I’ve also killed a lot of plants. It is all experimentation and this is my laboratory.”

HITCH

SHOCH and MARTYN BELMONT Pasadena, CA

Elena Shoch and Martyn Belmont, long-time friends since prep school days, have been our Open Days regional ambassadors for the Pasadena area since 2007. In 1996, Elena and her husband, Jamie, purchased a 1924 Mediterranean-style home, which she named Casa Favorita because, as she says, “It is OUR favorite house.” With the help of landscape architects James Yoch and Thomas Cox, Elena completely redesigned the gardens, inspired by memories of Casa Alvarado, her historic childhood home in Mexico City. Together, Elena and Martyn have enabled the Garden Conservancy to share more than 70 private gardens in Pasadena, often timed to coincide with peak rose bloom. The homes and gardens on Pasadena Open Days are carefully selected to represent a variety of different architectural styles, along with their complementary gardens, and to showcase drought tolerant and water-wise gardens. Elena and Martyn are active members of the Garden Club of America. Elena’s garden at Casa Favorita was recently documented and accepted in 2020 by the Smithsonian Archives of American Gardens.

ELENA

58 A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

“My mother’s love for roses inspired my selections and planting of over 150 roses in my own garden. She always told me I must ‘bloom where I am planted,’ sound advice I have lived by wherever I have made a home.”

With deep gratitude to the following donors for their transformative support to the Open Days program over the past 25 years:

W. Atlee Burpee & Company

Ruettgers Family Charitable Foundation

Leon Levy Foundation

Sara Lee Corporation

Barbara Whitney Carr

Mr. and Mrs. Charles E. Schroeder

J.M. Kaplan Fund

Fine Gardening magazine

William and Henriette Granville Suhr Fund for the Environment

And to our most committed advertisers:

Longshadow Planters & Garden Ornaments

SavATree

Garden Design magazine Seibert & Rice

The F.A. Bartlett Tree Expert Co.

Rodney Robinson Landscape Architects

Charleston Gardens

Cultivating Place

Oliver Nurseries

Filoli Historic House and Garden

Colorblends

Rosedale Nurseries

John Scheepers

Southport Marketing Group

Kettelkamp & Kettelkamp Landscape Architecture

White Flower Farm

A QUARTER CENTURY OF AMERICA’S GARDENERS AND THEIR GARDENS I THE GARDEN CONSERVANCY

David Mathis Sarah & Paul Matlock Kemble S. Matter Neil Matteucci Mrs. Peter Mattheissen Churchill & Muffy Matthews Mr. & Mrs. William Matthews Susan W. Matthews Juliet Mattila Mrs. George Matyas Sara Mauritz James Mauseth Janet Mavec Erica Max David & Joan Maxwell Peter May Paul Mayen John Mayer Marlene & Edward Mayes Doug Mayhew Connie & James Maynard Penelope & John Maynard June & Joe Mays Janine Mazur Joe Mazur Mr. & Mrs. Tom McAdams James McAlister Suzanne H. McAuliffe Susan McBaine Dr. & Mrs. J. Greer McBratney Blossom McBrier Edward McCabe Nancy McCabe Mr. & Mrs. Lawrence McCaffrey Lani McCall Marc McCalmon Dr. Alice R. McCarthy Sharon McCauley Mr. & Mrs. Philip McCaull Jean & Tom McCausland Thomas G. McCausland Philip L. McClain Guy & Peggy McClellan Al & Margie McClurg Jamie & Mary McConnell Marilyn & John McConnell Kenton McCoy Geoff & Sue McCreary David McCrory Nick & Allison McCullough Dorcas McDonald Mark McDonald Mr. & Mrs. Michael McDonnell Mrs. T.M. McDonnell Jim McDonough Roger & Judy McElhaney Fiona & Bob McElwain Tom McFadden Ellen B. McFarland Janet McFarlane Tom & Ellen McFaul Diane McGauran Evelyn McGee John McGee Ambassador & Mrs. George C. McGhee Joe & Barb McGoldrick Mary Ann & Fred McGourty Anne McGrath Joh & Mary Philpotts McGrath Ellen McGrew Tina & John McGuire Georgia & Dan McGurl Elizabeth McHenry Terri McIlraith Susan Gerbi McIlwain Rosina McIvor Joan De Witt McKean John & Cynthia McKean Alan & Sharon McKee Tahnia McKeever Bill McKenna Kathleen McKenna Martha & Bill McKeon John & Eleanor McKey Ambassador & Mrs. Robert M. McKinney Bob & Terri McKinnon Mark McKinnon Doreen McLaren Theron & Olga McLaren Mr. & Mrs. William McLean III Wink McLeod Patricia McLoud Jim & Kathy McMahon Tom & Beth McMahon Dr. & Mrs. Thomas M. McMillan Mrs. James A. McMullan Jacqueline McMullen Patricia Ann McNamara Peter McNaull Mr. & Mrs. James McNerney Tom & Ila McPeters Mr. & Mrs. John McPheeters Dian McPherson Cathy McWilliams Jack & Nancy Mead Clare Meade Mary & Steve Meadow Keeyla Meadows Isabel R. Means Marcie Meditch Paula Kent Meehan John Meeks John & Dorothy Meggitt Janice Meisel Susan & Louis Meisel Jane Meiser Peter Melczer Renee Melody Mr. & Mrs. Robert Meltzer Donna Menard Aaron Mendelsohn Carol Mendelson Mrs. Lee Meneice Elaine & Bob Menter Joan Merboth Albert B. & Robin Mercer Carol Mercer Rita Mercer Sherry Merciari Anthony & Ann Merck Eugene Mercy, Jr. Catherine Merkel Denise Lynn Merkle Rosemary Merlo Debbie Merriam Peter & Diana Merriam Tag Merrick Mr. & Mrs. Thomas Merrill Vivian & Ed Merrin Mrs. Rolf Merton Philip Metcalf Chris Metlesen Mrs. James T. Metz Mrs. Richard Metz Mrs. W. H. Metz Barbara & Richard Metzler Charles Mewshaw Bruce & Susan Meyer Daniel John Meyer Doug & Marka Meyer Frederick Meyer Karen K. Meyer Laurie Meyer Mrs. Anthony Meyer Mrs. H. Theodore Meyer Paul W. Meyer Deborah Meyers Susan Meyers Jennifer Staub Meyers Dawn & Ted Michael Mary Anne Michael Peter & Eileen Michael Peter Michaelis Dr. & Mrs. John Mickel Alrie Middlebrook Georgia Middlebrook Matthew Midgett Emil Miland Don & Cele Milbier Sharon Milder Sarah & Gary Milek Mr. & Mrs. William Milford Anne Miller Christopher John Miller Cliff Miller Dick & Jane Miller Dorothy L. Miller Ed Miller Fred Miller Kate Miller Lynden B. Miller Marion Miller Melissa F. Miller Mr. & Mrs. Eugene Miller Mr. & Mrs. John Miller Iris Miller, ASLA Roger Milliken Bill Mills Elizabeth Mills Tish P. Milroy Dennis Milstein Lynne & Frank Minard Sally Minard Mr. & Mrs. Peter Minor Christine Mitchell David Mitchell Guy & Kacy Mitchell Jason Mitchell Jean Mitchell Mr. & Mrs. Edward L. Mitchell Mr. & Mrs. Richard E. Mitchell Roger Mitchell William Mitchell Jerald & Elizabeth Winston Mize Angela Moench Nancy & Pierre Moitrier Toby Molenaar John Mona Rosemary Monahan Tom & Therese Moncrief Lanis & Thomas Monfried Mr. & Mrs. Scott Monroe Judith Monteferrante-Salisbury Bill Montgomery Noelle Montgomery Pru & Clark T. Montgomery Robert Montgomery Judy Montoure Gordon & Helen Moodie Beth Moore Clement Moore Gerald Moore Glenn & Marcella Moore Jim & Sharon Moore Mary Moore Mr. & Mrs. Richard A. Moore Mr. & Mrs. Thomas F. Moore Mrs. Gene Moore Randal J. Moore Robert E. Moore Nancy Moorman Bill & Judy Moran Bill & Linda Moran Russell Morash Douglas Moreland Alan & Janet Morell Roseanne & Joe Moresco Maura & Robert Morey Richard S. Morgan Sandy & Ewell Morgan Sara S. Morgan Susan & Bob Morgenthau Jim & Linda Morice Tait Moring Johnathan Morley James & Kris Moroney Arvia Morris Gail & Andrew Morris John Alan Morris Mr. & Mrs. William H. Morris Peter Morris Philip Morris Victoria Morris Mrs. Lloyd Morrisett Charie Morrison Debbie Morrison Mrs. Thomas S. Morse Susan C. Morse Laura Morton Laura & Bill Moseley Mrs. Christopher L. Moseley Susan Moseley Mark Moskowitz George Moss Robert Moss Elizabeth & Tim Mount Silas R. Mountsier Chris Moyer Bill Moyes Jerry & Vicki Moyes Patricia Moynihan Bettina Mueller Nancy Mueller James & Linda Muir Sue Mulcahey Arnold & Gretl Mulder Zarinna Mulla Caroyln Mullet Peter Mullins Joe & Elaine Mulrean Ruth Ann & Peter Mummey Heidrun Mumper-Drumm Bob Munger Molly Munger Alexandra Munroe Enid Munroe Paul & Margo Munson Mike Munsterman Tom & Liz Munz John Murphey Ann Murphy Margie Murphy Mary Murphy Suzanne Murr Charles Murray Joe Murray Louellen Murray Mike & Becky Murray Morgan J. Murray Mr. & Mrs. Robert A. Murray Valerie Murray Sara Muspratt Robert Mussey Tanner Musso Susan Muszala Catherine S. Muther Joseph Myers Lafe H. Myers Mrs. E. M. Myers Wayne L. Myers Pegg Nadler Vanessa Nagel Antony Nagelmann Jim & Catherine Nail Mr. & Mrs. John Nakaki Hiroshi & Maria Nakazawa Mary & Patrick Nally Susan Narizny Mark & Gayle Nash Merrill & Donivee Nash Mrs. Robert Nash

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William Redfield Nicholas Reding Sylvia Redwine Diana Reeck Frank & Ann Reed Mr.

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Barbara Palmer Stern H. Peter Stern Judith Stern Karen Stern Eric Sternfels George Sternlieb Steven Steven Ruchefsky Alex Stevens Barbara Stevens Jere Stevens Missy Stevens Mrs. Lem Stevens Mrs. Norton Stevens Roger & Karen Stevens Ruth Carter Stevenson Susan Stevenson Alfred Stewart Eric Stewart Joly Stewart Marlene Stewart Mary Caroline & Steven Stewart Mr. & Mrs. C. Van L. Stewart Mrs. William Stewart David Stickel Marie Stiefel John Stiteler John & Ellen Giddins Stiteler Carol Stocker Donald & Lillian Stokes Allan & Clare Stone Barbara H. Stone Debra Doud Stone Gregory Stone Linda Stone Mr. & Mrs. Radford Stone Steve Stone Mr. & Mrs. David Stoner Ann Stookey Isabelle & Jim Storey Wayne Stork Jim Stott Jon & O’Malley Stoumen Mr. & Mrs. Samuel Stout Mrs. John Stout Sean Stout Mrs. Frank G. Strachan Norm Stranczek John Strawhorn Mrs. Henry S. Streeter Joanne Strevy Brian Stroffolino Mrs. Peter W. Stroh Teresa Strong Stanley Stroup Lisa & Harry Strouse Dr. & Mrs. William King Stubbs Hunter Stubbs Joan & Kenneth Stubenrauch