Part 4

Probably the oldest garden in New York State is the one at Sylvester Manor, on Shelter Island, between the shores of Long Island and Connecticut. This charming little flower-plot is reached by a short flight of descending steps. Some of its old Boxwood appears in the illustration of the pool which is a part of the garden scheme. The original owners of Shelter Island were the Manhasset Indians. "In 1651 Nathaniel Sylvester came from England with his young bride, and here they planted the Box, still one of the wonders of the place, and erected the first manor-house with its oak doors and panels and mantels fitted in England, and brick tiles brought from Holland. The present house was built in 1737 with enough of the woodwork of the old house to maintain symmetry in traditions, and stands to-day as it has stood the better part of two centuries, filled with its old furniture, paintings, and curios. Here is kept the cloth of gold left by Captain Kidd and many other things that time and space forbid mentioning." The old homestead has always remained in the family in direct descent.

V

NEW JERSEY

It would take much time and long travel to discover the State possessing the greatest number of fine gardens, but there is little risk of misstatement in placing New Jersey as fourth or fifth on the list; New York, including Long Island, in the lead, then Massachusetts, and possibly Pennsylvania or California next. Near the sea the climate is, of course, an especial incentive to flower-growing, and along the Jersey coast, especially in Monmouth County, there are numerous gardens. Many excellent specimens are to be seen at Princeton, Trenton, Short Hills, and Morristown, as well as in the country around Bernardsville, in all of which places garden clubs are rapidly developing the cult. Only about fifty miles separate Trenton, Princeton, and Monmouth Beach, in central Jersey, from Morristown, Short Hills, etc., at the north, so that spring gardens practically begin in both sections at the same time, with possibly not more than three or four days' difference between them. While the south Jersey soil does not always encourage gardening, the northern half of the State may be considered on the whole quite fertile, and the summer temperature is not too hot for flowers. Occasional droughts are to be expected, but the water-supply is usually adequate. In the northern part of the State the usual date for Crocuses is March 25; Daffodils, April 15; Lily-of-the-Valley, May 12; late Tulips, May 10; German Iris, May 22; Oriental Poppy, Columbine, Lupin, and Pyrethrum, May 26; Roses, Peonies, Anchusa, and Sweet William, early June; Delphiniums, June 20; Hollyhocks, July 1. In fact, the climatic condition, as it affects plant life, is very similar throughout the region surrounding New York City--not different enough to require special attention.

The beautiful garden at Glen Alpine is one of prolonged bloom from May 22 until frost, and its planting plans are shown in the author's "Continuous Bloom in America." Both English and Italian inspiration commingle in this beautiful spot. Its setting of old trees on three sides, with the upsloping hill to the rear covered with choice blossom trees and evergreens, as well as the ancient hedge, furnish a background in keeping with the dignity of the place. The pergola is only the beginning of an interesting upper shrub and bulb garden with rambling paths. Other views are given in plates 86 and 172.

At Cherrycroft, the garden also blooms continuously, and some of its plans are likewise given in the book above-mentioned. The pergola and tea-house lead out to a maze formed by a tall Arbor-Vitae hedge. Adjoining is a Rose garden, more or less continually in bloom, and near by a garden for cutting-flowers. The outlook over the formal garden, both from house and pergola, is upon a sea of flowers, possibly unequalled in its profusion of bloom. The four beds encircling the pool are first covered with Pansies and English Daisies, each bed containing one large clump of German Iris, edged with Cottage Tulips. For later bloom, white Petunias fill two beds, light pink Petunias the other two beds. Surrounding the rim of the pool there are Campanula medium, alternating with fall-sown Larkspur, the former replaced by Balsam. The four large beds opposite the pool-beds are planted in predominating tones of yellow, blue, pink, and dark red respectively, with white freely intermixed. The beds on the upper level are treated rather similarly.

At both Glen Alpine and Cherrycroft nurseries of cold-frames abundantly supply the many annuals and perennials required to fill the broad beds. The prevailing colors required in both gardens are pink, dark red, blues, and yellows. Of the latter, the stronger tones are used only in yellow and blue beds. If there is strict adherence to their planting schemes the richness of their bloom will continue through future seasons. But, alas! how uncertain the fulfilment, when the most necessary flowers may disappoint at the eleventh hour, or the gardeners fail to abide by the plans, especially concerning the color scheme!

At Ridgewood Hill the planting is for spring and autumn bloom, and its three-terraced garden is an excellent piece of work, nestling to the hillside with its vista of hills beyond. This lovely nook deserves to rank among the best in terraced gardens.

Mrs. Fraser's garden, enclosed within the semicircle of the house and a curving Hemlock hedge, is veritably a gem in lovely color-blending. All the periods of the garden season are represented here, difficult as it is to accomplish continuous bloom in narrow beds. First Pansies and early Tulips, followed by the later ones, flood the little court with wonderfully tinted tones. Then Lupins, Canterbury Bells, Sweet William, Chinese Delphinium and Lilium candidum, followed by Larkspur, Zinnia, Snapdragon, Scabiosa, Salpiglossis, Heliotrope, Ageratum, and compact Petunias, Gladioli, and September hardy Chrysanthemum. Constant ministration to the needs of this garden keeps it in a state of fresh bloom and order.

The garden at "Onunda," Madison, attracts many visitors and has long been famous for its beauty and order. It is ablaze with color from May to October. Annuals in richest massing fill all the small beds, and perennials with annuals are closely grouped in the wall beds. The color effect is unusual and the adjoining Rose garden is complete with choicest bloom.

The planting at Blairsden, near Peapack, is probably the most perfect in the State. The accompanying pictures give a limited idea of its beauty. The hill covered with wild shrubs sloping to the lake, the formal garden, the water garden and Rose garden, with the long inclined pathway seeming to lead out to space immeasurable into the green Garden of Everyman, combine with the scenery to make it a place of remarkable beauty. The formal garden with vine-covered brick wall is like the villa, Italian in design.

The numerous gardens of Short Hills must be represented by one charming glimpse of Brooklawn, an idyllic spot embodying the creative sense of a poet. Its design is quite unusual in the garden world, and perfect in its simplicity. Informal rather than strictly formal, with beds of curving lines and grass paths it may be considered the most original plan in this collection.

Old Princeton, with its picturesque university, is additionally favored in possessing gardens worthy of such associations and equalling the best in our country. The one at Drumthwacket is probably more reminiscent of English gardens than any other. The broad beds, profuse in glowing yet orderly bloom, are especially lovely in June. The garden has the benefit of ancient trees as a setting and the richness of its planting combined with the white balustrade lends a noble effect, comparing favorably with many of those abroad. The beautiful water garden, reached by a winding stone stairway, is encircled by willows and forest trees which fill the little lake with green reflections.

A winter garden is a luxury so rare that one dwells with keenest pleasure upon the view from Thornton--a most perfect specimen of its kind. This evergreen planting is the central scheme of an elaborate plan and divides the perennial and Rose garden on one side from the "cutting" garden on the other. The best of the evergreens in clipped forms, Barberry with its bright winter berries, Laurel, and Rhododendron foliage unite to enliven the winter scene in this pleasant space, when outside all is gray and lifeless.

Mrs. Seabrook's garden belongs to still another distinctly different class, illustrating a planting which appeals strongly to the many Americans who ardently admire simplicity in outdoor art. Here we find a sweet place in which to live in idle hours, with favorite flowers well-kept, a pool, and shaded retreats from summer sun.

VI

PENNSYLVANIA

The most zealous advocate of gardening in the early days was William Penn, the original proprietor of the State, who persistently urged his Quaker followers to plant gardens around the homesteads. With numerous old ones and an ever-increasing number of new gardens the State stands among the foremost as a garden centre. In olden times the Quaker ideas against extravagant appearances resulted in the making of simpler places than those built by the people who settled in the Southern States; but these modest Pennsylvania gardens did not suffer the ravages of war, and many of them have lived serenely through the years.

Andalusia came into the possession of the family of its present owners in 1795, and a village has gradually grown around the place. The garden is about one hundred years in age, and has been long noted for its trees and hedges, its fruits and old-fashioned flowers. The simplicity of its plan, so characteristic of the early gardens, detracts nothing from its charm, but rather is it filled with picturesque features that are truly American.

At Fancy Field the formal garden is made somewhat on the plan of a type of small English garden that is becoming familiar to us through the English prints. This formal view is but one of a group or series of lovely enclosed and connecting gardens, all seemingly bound together by a long pergola bordering their rear;--a most pleasing study, as is also the garden at Edgecombe, with its old Box and perennials, shut in peacefully from the outer world and suggesting the type so dear to the heart of the lady of the olden time.

Krisheim was the name given by some early German settlers in 1687 to a locality where is now a famous garden. This beautiful enclosure, in its spring garb, so unique in style, and with an adjoining flower garden, has its place among the best of the many that adorn the State.

The garden at Willow Bank is a charming home of flowers, and its attraction is enhanced by the spacious green court surrounding it, giving double privacy to the flowery sanctum within.

Typical of some of the splendid newer gardens of the State is the one at Timberline, rich in its background of old trees, gracefully designed and planted. It is one of the best productions of a celebrated architect.

The Ballygarth garden, a section of which is shown in this chapter, is beautifully situated on one of the oldest estates near Philadelphia, and is of the kind so evidently the creation of a garden lover.

Near Philadelphia the climate is slightly warmer than in north New Jersey, to which spring bloom comes at least a week later. In this vicinity German Iris appears about May 15, Sweet William, May 28, and Delphiniums, June 10, Hollyhocks, June 18. The time of the first frost is as variable as it is elsewhere. Pansies are usually wintered in the open, with a certain amount of covering. Tender annuals are set out about May 10. The soil is mostly fertile enough for good results in the garden. The best-known gardens lie chiefly in the neighborhood of Philadelphia.

VII

MARYLAND

Flower gardens adorn many of the places in Maryland, most of them of the old-fashioned kind so characteristic of the Southern States, and others of a more recent date. The latter, though less elaborate than those of New England, are quite as attractive in the studied simplicity of their design.

Conspicuous often are the Ivy-edged paths sometimes replacing the low Box border, and the great growths of Box and rare shrubs, once imported luxuries from old England, speak the prosperity of early days.

In the low country of the interior the midsummer climate is humid and hot enough to discourage the flowers of this season, but when certain annuals are kept sufficiently moist and mulched they may pass unscathed through the trying season and join the few fall perennials for several weeks of bloom.

Winter protection is not a matter of importance and Pansies need but an ordinary covering of leaves. An extreme of cold, which is rare, might bring disaster to the leaf-covered Canterbury Bell in the open, but this is one of the gambles in garden life.

In Maryland, as generally elsewhere in this section, spring and June gardens prevail. The Crocus season opens in early March; Daffodils follow a little later; late Tulips and German Iris come near May 1; Sweet William and Peonies about May 20; and soon after the Delphiniums and Hollyhocks appear. Spring work begins three weeks earlier than in the latitude of Long Island, and frost may finish the persistent Marigold near November 1; but, as elsewhere, by that time green life has had its day, vitality has been spent, and nothing satisfactory can be expected of any but the hardy late Chrysanthemum.

There is another region of this State to be separately accounted for that has been more or less overlooked, and where the climate is more inviting to summer gardening. From near Snow Hill, on the narrow peninsula south of Delaware, a resident writes in part: "As to this eastern shore, its flowers, climate, etc., too much cannot be said in its praise. The wonder is that this section has been overlooked by wealthy people seeking homes. With proper planting one can have flowers in the garden ten months of the year. During the winter Holly and other choice evergreens give plenty of color for the lawns." The distance across between the Chesapeake Bay and the sea is about thirty-five miles. Near the shore the place has a climate of its own, and summer gardens need not wilt as they do inland, providing they can at times be moderately sprinkled. Usually the summer climate is pleasant with an evening sea-breeze in hot weather; sometimes a prolonged dry spell causes many things to suffer, but as a rule all sorts of flowering plants succeed--Roses, China Asters, and bulbous plants especially grow to perfection.

The illustrations representing Maryland are gathered from the vicinity of Baltimore, the particular garden region of the State. Hampton is the oldest of them all, being an entailed estate and one of two old manor-houses in Maryland still extant. A severe cold snap a few winters past did great damage to the Box, which in consequence had to be cut back, but time, it is hoped, may restore its original form and beauty. The spring view of one of Hampton's gardens was taken recently prior to the period of fullest bloom. This charming Box-edged parterre, with its fine surroundings and associations, is possibly the best-known in the South.

Evergreen-on-Avenue is delightfully located on the outskirts of Baltimore, where many old country-seats abound. The lower garden only is discernible in the illustration, showing the dignity and charm of an evergreen garden, relieved by a massing of color in narrow beds which form a setting to the clipped Box and other shrubs. The upper garden is full of bloom and kept chiefly as a place for cutting-flowers. Some of the paths on this estate are edged with broad bands of Ivy.

The wild garden at Roland Park is a work of art too intricately devised to be treated satisfactorily by picture or pen. The eye can only absorb and memory retain it, but description will ever fail to present it. At every turn there is a delightful surprise, at every season it is lovely; even January finds it so dressed in evergreen that winter seems far away. A few years ago the hillside was a wooded and abandoned stone-quarry until purchased for the purpose of creating a place of beauty out of chaos. An inspired imagination only could have wrought this miracle.

The old Indian name for the Cylburn plantation was Cool Waters; it covers two hundred acres, about five miles beyond Baltimore. Cylburn House is of stone with broad verandas, and stands majestically on a high plateau, surrounded by gardens, shrubbery, and an extensive lawn, which is fringed by a beautiful primeval forest that stretches away on three sides to the valley below. The garden is one of the old-fashioned rambling kind, made lovely with a combination of tall shrubs and flowers and occasional trees.

The fair little glimpse of a section of the garden at Ingleside breathes of spring perfume and color, with that indescribable sense of peace pervading especially a little enclosed garden where good taste and harmony prevail. So great is the impression of seclusion produced by the attractive picture that the farmer's cottage in the near background seems almost disconnected from this inviting spot. The four white standard Wistarias are remarkable enough to demand special attention. The beds are early filled with the Tulips of both periods, blooming in company with the Wistaria. Annuals follow, and the place is kept in long bloom under the careful supervision of the owner.

At The Blind, Havre de Grace, on the Chesapeake, is a charming and typically Southern garden with ancient Box hedges for a background, and filled with the bloom of many old-fashioned hardy plants and shrubs. The property of two hundred acres is partly under cultivation and partly covered with Holly and ancient trees. Around the gray stone mansion in springtime the place is like a fairy-land, with hundreds of blossoming shrubs and fruit trees. Originally the land belonged to the Stumpp family, who acquired it by grant from one of the early English governors. It is now in the possession of a New Yorker, who keeps it as a shooting-preserve and stock-farm.

VIII

VIRGINIA