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Secret Garden Tour – Annapolis, Maryland

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The Secret Garden Tour began just beyond this banner. The Hammond Harwood House Staff handed out brochures and gave gentle direction to attendees.

Secret Garden Tours are always fabulous and fun. The 2018 Hammond Harwood House Secret Garden Tour was a welcome surprise. When tourist’s come to the Nation’s Capital, the first and sometimes last stop is the National Mall. If you garden and love history, Maryland has something to offer as well. The Secret Garden tour has made a believer out of me.

WHAT IS THE HAMMOND HARWOOD HOUSE?

Built in 1774, the Hammond Harwood House is an Anglo-Palladian home in Annapolis Maryland. Beautifully preserved and built for Mathias Hammond, the Hammond Harwood House is known for its 18th and 19th-century artifacts. Tours are offered that discuss everything from the structure’s history to the enslaved people to the paintings. This National Historic Landmark is open Wednesday through Monday, Noon to 5:00 pm. With a modest fee for the tours, the gardens remain free of charge.

WHY A SECRET GARDEN TOUR?

Homeowners refreshing their landscapes for a worthy cause.

The Secret Garden Tour raises money that goes towards more in-depth educational programming. On the Hammond Harwood House website , one can find the numerous programs that are offered. With support from great companies like Oehme, Van Sweden and What’s Up Magazine, as well as numerous individual donors, I can see how this is a great investment. When I saw the guidebook with a colorful, well laid out design I knew I was in for a treat. With advertisers like Homestead Gardens, Beechbrook Landscape Architecture, Bartlett Tree and Sandy Spring Bank (to name a few) this Secret Garden Tour was just what I needed on a gray Saturday afternoon. I was not disappointed.

WHERE DO I START?

Along the way, one could see the effect of being along the way for a Secret Garden Tour. Every nook and cranny had a spot of color.

There were 15 homes on the tour. Ranging from bungalows to estates in the historic part of Annapolis. Wandering through the private yards and sometimes through low hanging alleyways, each home had a Docent to answer any questions.

Ruth Clausen, Docent on The Secret Garden Tour was amazed I knew the REAL Ruth Rogers Clausen, noted Author and Fellow GWA member.

Some of the Docents shared aspects of the gardens that one might not consider.  Hidden in a quiet nook at the first garden, I discovered an Olive tree. All along the way, the Docents shared special aspects of each garden.

While on the journey of the Secret Garden tour, I also looked at other gardens. One must have open eyes to appreciate the horticultural jewels found in the gardens of Annapolis.

Each garden captured the Patriotic style and spirit of Annapolis gardens.

ALONG THE WAY

You could not ignore this horticultural eye candy as you walked down the street.

Like the Georgetown Garden Tour, the Secret Garden Tour route allowed the attendees to wander through intimate neighborhoods, ducking under low overhanging alleyways and paths narrow enough for one. The anticipation as delightful, as I sought out the floral cutouts defining the exact locations.

Each home on The Secret Garden Tour had a distinctive floral cutout with a number. Keeping track is important when the weather was less than perfect. 15 gardens, looming rain clouds and spotty drizzle, would not stop this die-hard gardener.

I peeked over white picket fences, looked beyond the narrow view and sought out Docents that beckoned me while dodging lite raindrops. I was not sure if I would make it to all of the Secret Garden Tour sites. Each site had eager Docents, willing to share the highlights of each intimate space. Marylander’s are quite friendly and I love a good conversation, but I was on a mission and had to press on.

A basic azalea border can be clean and beautiful. A easy way to prepare for Tour Day.
A colorful combination of Fuchsia, Begonia and Sunpatience. Mounted in dappled shade, by August this container will be quite voluptuous.
Even along the linear walkways, the Hydrangea’s soften the wall, the purple door draws your eye and beckons passersby’s to enter.
This Secret Garden shared a healthy mix of shrubs and perennials. Tastefully done and definitely a Secret Garden. You would not know this was back here…

Approaching the final house, I captured a rabbit posing on the driveway beckoning me to more Hydrangea bushes around the bend.

PARTING THOUGHTS…

Discovering the Secret Garden Tour as well as the Hammond Harwood House was such a treat. One of the deals in purchasing a ticket for the Secret Garden Tour was half price membership. I took advantage of this and look forward to exploring more of Annapolis, the gardens. the historic homes and the food.

This was the BEST burger EVER!! The staff was welcoming and allowed me to linger over the Lavender Fields of Kentucky

I paused at Dry 85. The tag line is Bourbon, Beer and Provisions. Not a beer lover, the Lavender Fields of Kentucky was divine. The burger was cooked to perfection and the special local seasoned fries were finger-licking good. So good, I will be back, even if there is no garden tour. I create a garden party wherever I go.

Next year, I will make room on my calendar to attend The Secret Garden Tour of Annapolis and seek out other authentic garden tours throughout the State. Oh those Maryland Gardens, will be my Garden Party battle cry. Some of the best, authentic local gardens I have seen so far in Maryland.

This is the herb garden and grilling area. This way the herbs are a mere few paces away for ease of cooking.

 

To find out more about events like the Secret Garden Tour click here: https://www.hammondharwoodhouse.org/

To find out more about growing Hydrangea’s click here: http://cottageitc.wpengine.com/allaboutthegardenife/success-with-hydrangeas/

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Perspectives – Healing Gardens

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The Schneider Healing Garden. Photo courtesy of the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects. What a serene and peaceful design.

Healing Gardens are the topic of a terrific article in Landscape Architecture Magazine. Mind, Soul, Design focuses on the concept of designing gardens for healing. Virginia Burt, FASLA was seeking more depth and meaning to this topic.  Landscaping that incorporated functionality to help healthy human interaction was something that captured her attention. Healing gardens aid us in the processing of the less than palatable things in life. A garden designed with purpose can certainly help heal what derails our joy.  Already working with this mindset, Virginia’s design work is considered to have a sort of “emotional intelligence”.

Virginia Burt’s work has been celebrated  by receiving numerous awards such as the 2017 National Award of Excellence by the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, 2017 Honor Award by the Ohio Chapter of American Society of Landscape Architects, the 2017 Presidents Award by the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects and the 2017 Acanthus Award by the Chicago-Midwest and Ohio Lake Erie Chapter of the Institute of Classical Architecture & Art, to name a few.

Paying attention to the finer points of how our gardens affect us has allowed Virginia to successfully create healing gardens. While all gardens are healing gardens, she has and continues to practice and support the research which embraces this theory.  The concept of functionality in the garden is key. All parts must work or it is just a pretty design, without purpose. Even when the plants are decided for a design, Virginia has been known to be a zone pusher. Making sure that any plant chosen can not just survive, but will thrive in less than suitable conditions.

I love Virginia’s concept that nonfunctional beauty in the garden, is just good. The real beauty of the garden is discovered when it has a proven function. Virginia Burt understands the importance of how gardens should be designed to include not just people, but art and nature as well. I hope to possibly visit some of the gardens designed by Virginia Burt in the future. To find out more about the work of Virginia Burt, click here.

Looking forward to discovering more women in Landscape, Horticulture, Landscape Architecture, and Design as I celebrate Women’s History Month!

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Southern Sonnet Honoring My Roots

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Memories of Magnolias dotting the Southern landscape linger in my mind…

As I embrace my Southern roots, I tend to think of little ditties to share. Things that perhaps Aunt Lucy or Uncle Willie would have thought as they performed the chores of creating a sustainable existence in Grey Court, South Carolina. Reading these words with a Southern flair, I share the joy of the season. I woke up with these words in my mind….

What is that golden glo
In the sky outside my do’

The chirping, tweeting song
Tho winter’s not gone

Let’s not rush the season
Although Spring is teasin’

Winter, Spring, Summer & Fall
Yep…at the Cottage, I Love Them All

As I anticipate sharing “Passionate About My Roots – History, Heritage and Heirlooms” at Magnolia Plantation, I have imagined how my Great Aunt Lucy would feel as the seasons changed. I often think of how any good Southern woman would embrace this time of the year. How would the fields be prepared and what was the planting plan for the season?

As a single woman farmer and the last surviving daughter of Albert S. Hunter, this was her responsibility. Aunt Lucy demonstrated the characteristics of everything I imagined a woman farmer would be. She took in laundry, babysat the little child across the way, balanced her checking account and did whatever odd jobs she could find to stay afloat. The essence of the typical African-American Southern woman was my Aunt Lucy. Only my Mom, knew how much I wanted to be like my Great Aunt Lucy.

Great Aunt Lucy Hunter, My Mom, Willie Belton Herron Speight and Me….oh how I miss and honor them….

I am a Native Washingtonian. A City made up of people who migrated up from the south for better opportunities. The Southern roots embedded in my DNA, speak to me every time I go into the garden.

Passionate About My roots – History, Heritage and Heirlooms shares what I know of my Southern roots. The roots that have continued to grow as I garden. From how I garden to familiar plants that were on the home site, memories keep me forever in a gardening state of mind. Memories enable me to embrace the beauty that surrounds me each and every day.

Click this link for more information about Magnolia Plantation

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Le Primitif – Featured Art at MANTS

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Le Primitif offers unique art for the garden. My inner garden loves the birds in the tree…

Le Primitif is an unexpected pleasure each year at MANTS – The Mid Atlantic Nursery Trade Show. MANTS is an event which takes place every January in Baltimore, Maryland. For those who work in horticulture, MANTS is  THE networking event that starts the seasonal garden party. Vendors come from near and far to reconnect with old friends, make new friends and share what’s new. It truly is like a grand family reunion.

I have visited MANTS for the past 20 years and each year, I rekindle friendships and make new friends.  There is one old friend that I reconnect with every time year. Amidst the plant plugs, tractors, mechanized watering systems, there is my friend David McCabe, Owner of Le Primitif Galleries. Le Primitive Galleries offers Recycled Oil Drum Sculpture in all shapes, sizes, signed, unsigned, painted or in its natural state.

I first became familiar with David while working in Fredericksburg, VA. One of the best winter activities was heading to Baltimore to attend this wonderful trade show. Tucked away in the front corner was a booth that featured art. The raw form of this hammered steel was quite appealing. I admire Haitian art when I visit galleries in DC and New York. I had to hear this man’s story.

David became familiar with the Haitian community in his travels and fell in love with this art form.  One of the first blacksmiths who made this technique popular was Georges Liataud. Intrigued by the natural beauty of this art, David realized that each piece had a story to tell.

Le Primitif Girl On A Bike…This spoke to the freedom of life to me….and the time to garden.

Steel drums are in abundance in Haiti. Reusing them as art was a creative way to secure income to local artisans. To create this art, steel drums are flattened and stories in the form of art are drawn. Each piece is cut out by hammer and chisel finishing a story in the form of art. Proud of their work, each piece carries the artist’s signature. Le Primitif artists each have a unique story which makes each piece special.

My first pieces of Haitian art that have made Le Primitif an integral part of my garden.

The first few pieces I purchased for my garden. The style and whimsical stance of these ladies spoke to me. Their dance spoke to the spirit of my personality as well as my garden. Each year I visit MANTS, I make sure to visit with David. A simple “Hello” just to say hi and to see what I need for my collection.

Over the year’s, I have acquired more pieces from Le Primitif and not just for my garden.

Le Primitif has many different ways to enjoy the beauty of trees and birds.

Each of the pieces that I have purchased from Le Primitif has held up extremely well in my garden with no care at all. The bronzed patina that comes with weather changes has only made my original pieces more beautiful.

Le Primitif had this one just for me. I will place this beside my door that leads to my garden.

MANTS has continually given me the gift of connecting with Le Primitif every year.

Here is a link to see what else can be found at Le Primitif Galleries

Click MANTS to find out more about the Mid Atlantic Nursery Trade Show.

 

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Beatrix Farrand, Landscape Gardener

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Beatrix Farrand, Landscape Gardener, and well-known Landscape Architect is a woman who has certainly left her mark on many landscapes around the country. If you admire Dumbarton Oaks, Beatrix designed this very special estate garden for the Bliss Family. This is a woman in landscape architecture that deserves to have her story told.

Beatrix Farrand, a truly unique visionary who forged her own path in Landscape Design

Karyl Evans took the time to actually document this story from Maine to California. Using interviews and footage of over 50 remaining gardens that Beatrix Farrand designed, we have a great story of her life. Beatrix started as a Landscape Gardener and by the end of her life, had become a highly respected Landscape Architect.

As an avid admirer of Beatrix Farrand, I had to seize the moment and attend this showing at Greenspring Gardens in Virginia. Karyl takes the viewer on a trip that gives us insight on how passionate Beatrix was for plant material and design. Beatrix Farrand’s finished landscapes had lots of color, form, heights, and texture.

Karyl Evans speaking to the attendees of her film on Beatrix Farrand at Greenspring Gardens, Virginia.

Karyl Evans placed us in the midst of some of the finest gardens that have survived the test of time. A documentary film has never existed about Beatrix Farrand. A six-time award-winning documentarian, Karyl has captured the story of a young woman who initially grew up in a well to do family. Beatrix Jones father was a well to do industrialist and her Mother was a Social Worker. The marriage was an unhappy one and unfortunately, her parents divorced. Beatrix had to figure out how to make a living to help support herself and her mother.

Employed by her Aunt Edith Wharton and mentored by Dr. Charles Sprague Sargent, Beatrix found herself doing quite well as a Landscape Gardener. With clients from coast to coast, Beatrix made a name for herself as she pursued this career. Not a traditional career choice for women, Beatrix Farrand excelled in Landscape architecture. A career that included being one of the Founders of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Conversations shared with Scholars like Diana Balmori, Landscape Historian Judith Tankard, and Shavaun Towers, Landscape Architect are peppered throughout the film. These conversations give a bit of information on how Beatrix Farrand is an integral part of the conversation on Landscape Architecture to this day.

This film can be purchased by clicking: http://www.beatrixfarranddocumentary.com

There is an opportunity to see this film at the National Building Museum in Washington, DC. On November 1, 2017, from 6:30 – 8:30. Karyl Evans will share this long overdue documentary called The Life and Gardens of Beatrix Farrand. Joining Karyl will be Darwina L.Neal, FASLA and Maureen Joseph, ASLA, National Park Service.

Tickets are $20.00 for non-members of the National Building Museum, $12.00 for Members and pre-registration is required.

Walk-ins will be allowed if there is room.

To purchase tickets click here:

http://go.nbm.org/site/Calendar/1848501233?view=Detail&id=122563

Earning a coveted award as Most Outstanding Director, Karyl Evans is someone to get to know as well. She is on the Speakers List for the Garden Club of America and has had a 30-year career in public television, producing historical documentaries. A Fellow at Yale and a degree in Horticulture/Landscape Architecture, Karyl Evans saw a need for this story to be shared. It is truly a labor of love.

Thank you to the Darwina L. Neal Cultural Landscape Fund for recognizing the need for programming like this. As a Garden Writer, I hope to see more programming like this. It will help encourage other women to consider the garden as a place of beauty as well as a career. Thank you, Karyl Evans, for pursuing – from Maine to California – the story of Beatrix Farrand and documenting it on film.

To find out about a quick trip I took to Bellefield click here

Click for more information on the National Building Museum 

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