All things grow with love
The words, below right, are those of Harriet Beecher Stowe, author of Uncle Tom’s Cabin, in 1855. Almost two centuries later those words continue to resonate, perhaps now more than ever with the turmoil springing up throughout the world like an errant weed.
After spending months in lockdown, stuck indoors because of the coronavirus pandemic, a stroll in a garden would definitely soothe the soul, including the gardens at the Harriet Beecher Stowe Center in Hartford. “The gardens around the house reflect Stowe’s fondness for and knowledge of the plantings of the Victorian era,” according to the Connecticut Historic Gardens website.
Even those who don’t have a green thumb may appreciate a chance to drink in the alluring color of the summer season and the intoxicating fragrance of perennials and annuals at dozens of gardens throughout the state. Many, if not all, have reopened, and health officials espouse the benefits of spending time outdoors, so long as people practice social distancing and follow other safety guidelines set by the Centers for Disease Control.
“Gardens have always been a source of respite and pleasure, and, especially now, they provide a place to breathe fresh air and to appreciate the scents and beauty of nature as well as the charm of well- designed outdoor spaces,” says Susan Cohen, a landscape architect in Old Greenwich and author of The Inspired Landscape, Timber Press.
Connecticut’s gardens range from those encouraging natural growth — such as Topsmead State Forest in Litchfield, which has a 40- acre wildflower preserve within its 500- acre estate — to parterre, or formal gardens, like those at also at Topsmead and Wickham Park in Manchester. The Bellamy- Ferriday House and Garden in Bethlehem features a formal parterre garden with chains of connected flowerbeds. There are seaside gardens — like those at Harkness Memorial State Park in Waterford, and a woodland setting at Bartlett Arboretum in Stamford. Topsmead also boasts the Orintas Butterfly Garden, while Harkness has an Alpine rock garden overlooking Long Island Sound.
“The garden at the Florence Griswold Museum in Old Lyme is really extraordinary and the vistas that go down to the Lieutenant River are gorgeous,” says Ellen Gould, who is on the Preservation Connecticut Board of Trustees. This estate was considered one of America’s most important summer art colonies.
“Connecticut is home to many beautiful and unique gardens, both public and private,” according to the website for Connecticut’s Historic Gardens, which comprises 15 historic gardens. “These delightful places offer visitors an opportunity to explore a variety of garden styles and time periods,” the website says.
The gardens on that list alone are “very special and lovingly cared for,” each one special for a different reason, according to Gould. Not among the 15 but a historic garden worth visiting is the Dooryard Kitchen Garden at Fairfield’s Ogden House, a carefully researched and reproduced herb garden typical of the mid- 18th century, maintained by the Fairfield Garden Club, of which Gould is a member.
Author Mark Twain, a. k. a. Samuel Clemens, didn’t have gardens when he lived in Hartford but on the grounds of the Mark Twain House, located in the state capital, there are plantings that would have grown during the Gilded Age, says Grace Belanger, assistant manager of interpretation at the Mark Twain House. There are also heritage roses. “Libby Clemens, Sam’s wife, loved roses,” Belanger notes.
Alice Eckerson, a principal of Eckerson Design Associates Landscape Architecture in South Norwalk, along with her husband Bruce, recommends a trip to the Caroline Black Garden on the campus of Connecticut College in New London. Eckerson calls it, “a beautiful, designed garden, an intentional garden,” with stone walls, paths, and collections of holly and viburnum. This garden is a member garden in the international organization Gardens for Peace, a not- forprofit organization seeking to promote and achieve peace in the world “through the universal language of gardens.”
Eckerson also suggests a stroll through the Hollister House Garden in the town of Washington in Litchfield County. “I love the different ( outdoor) rooms and the levels, and the different types of gardens in one setting, on one property. There are natural areas and much more formal areas,” says Eckerson, who is also an instructor at the New York Botanical Garden.
Cohen is the coordinator of the Landscape Design Program and also a member of the New York Botanical Garden Board of Advisers; the gardens are expected to open to the public soon. “We have missed much with the closing of our local public gardens ... ( but) there is still so much to see when this magnificent 250- acre garden opens later this month: the outstanding perennial beds, the Native Plant Garden, the Azalea Garden, the Conifer Collection, the Daylily Walk, the summer- flowering trees and the Forest,” she says.
Don’t overlook more contemporary gardens, such as the Sculpture Grounds in Old Lyme. Visitors are encouraged to explore the grounds and interact with the more than 100 sculptures woven throughout various gardens and courtyards, “perhaps turning kinetic elements or wandering through open pieces.”
Those who prefer not to wander too far from home even to enjoy gardens have another option, according to the garden experts.
“It seems to me that home gardeners are putting special efforts into their own front yards this year, and it has been delightful to observe suburban plots filled with lovely plantings and colorful pots of flowers. These spaces may be private, but in walking or driving by, the public can enjoy them too,” Cohen says
“I try to make my garden as special as possible so people can enjoy it,” says Gould of her Southport property.
Wherever you end up, visitors must honor social distancing requirements, and remember that COVID- 19 is not likely to control every aspect of our lives forever. In the words of Lady Bird Johnson, “Where flowers bloom, so does hope.”
“A garden is a place of healing to the soul.”