Wednesday, April 6, 2011

Philly Area Gardens You Can Visit

An arboretum is defined as a place grown with trees or a place where trees, shrubs and herbaceous plants are cultivated for scientific, educational and/or aesthetic purposes.  A lot of the arboretums feature more than just trees, a great many have herb gardens that would be worth a visit and some of them even sell plants.

Awbury Arboretum

Awbury Arboretum
One Awbury Rd, Phila, PA 19138
215-849-2855
http://awbury.org/

Fifty-five acres of beautiful scenery including 140 species of trees with a pond & stream located in the Germantown section of Philadelphia


Bartram's Garden
5400 Lindbergh Blvd, Phila., PA  19143  -  215-729-5281
http://www.bartramsgarden.org/

Just minutes from the Liberty Bell, Independence Hall, and the Betsy Ross House is America’s oldest living botanical garden, a pastoral 18th century homestead surrounded by the urban bustle of Philadelphia. You won’t believe you are in the city when you see the wildflower meadow, majestic trees, river trail, wetland, stone house and farm buildings overlooking the Schuylkill River, and, of course, the historic botanic garden of American native plants.

The eight-acre botanic garden was once the 18th century home of John Bartrum, Naturalist, Botanist & Explorer.  It is free and open to the public year-round except on City-observed holidays.  


Bowman's Hill Wildflower Preserve
1635 River Rd (PA Rte 32), New Hope, PA
http://www.bhwp.org/index.htm

The 134-acre Preserve features more than 800 species of native plants in a naturalistic setting, ready for you to discover. Explore picturesque woodlands, meadows, a pond and Pidcock Creek set amidst a changing collection of wildflowers, birds and wildlife.


Brandywine River Museum Wildflower Gardens
U.S. Rte 1, Chadds Ford, PA 19317 - 610-388-2700
http://www.brandywinemuseum.org/gardens.html

Wildflower and Native Plant Gardens at the Brandywine River Museum feature indigenous and some naturalized plants of the greater Brandywine region displayed in natural settings.


 Chanticleer - A Pleasure Garden
 786 Church Rd, Wayne, PA 19087-4713  -  610-687-4163
http://www.chanticleergarden.org/index.html
Thirty acres with several different and beautiful types of gardens; seasonal.   Open to the public Wednesday through Sunday from 10 am until 5pm.  The 2011 season begins on March 30 and ends on October 30.


Ernesta Ballard Healing Garden
at Temple Ambler
The Ambler Arboretum of Temple University
580 Meetinghouse Rd,
Ambler, PA 19002   -   267-468-8000
http://www.temple.edu/ambler/arboretum/gardens.htm

There are several theme gardens here including an herb garden filled with culinary, dye, medicinal, and aromatic plants, and a lovely healing garden that features a central labyrinth for meditation surrounded predominately by native plants. There is also a woodland garden, formal native plant garden, a formal perennial garden, with dwarf evergreens and Japanese maples and much more.

You may visit the Ambler Arboretum for a self-guided tour any day between dawn and dusk. Arboretum maps are located in kiosks around the gardens and may also be picked up inside the Administration Building (8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday).


Governor's Mansion Gardens
2035 North Front St,
Harrisburg, PA 17102   -  717-787-1192

The recently renovated gardens now include three of the Residence's landscaped areas: the Susquehanna Gardens, Penn's Woods (an educational showpiece featuring the finest and most historically significant plants, shrubs and flowers native to Pennsylvania) and the West Lawn.  A rose garden showcases over 250 roses of thirteen different cultivars.


Graver Arboretum of Muhlenberg College
2400 Chew St., Allentown, PA 18104-5586  -  484-664-3100
http://www.muhlenberg.edu/main/aboutus/graver/

Sixty-acre arboretum displays wildflowers, ferns, mushrooms, mountain laurels, rhododendrons, azaleas, giant grasses, and native and rare trees including 200 species of conifers.  The arboretum is open seven days a week during daylight hours. The trails may be closed during severe weather and are not maintained in the winter. 


Grumblethorpe
5267 Germantown Ave.
Philia, PA 19144 
215-843-4820

Grumblethorpe, located in Philadelphia's Germantown section, is one of the country's leading examples of early 18th century Pennsylvania-German architecture.

Built by Philadelphia merchant and wine importer John Wister in 1744, Grumblethorpe displays a re-created historic garden.   The best part of the house is the large garden. Wisteria, the flowering vine, is named after Charles Wister (John's grandson), who was an avid botanist and amateur scientist, and there is plenty of it in the garden. There are also an enormous hundred-year-old rose bush, a peony alley, a two-story arbor with climbing clematis and a grape vine working its way across its base, and a number of tulips.  Cost: $5, $12 per family.


Haverford College Arboretum
370 Lancaster Ave.,  Haverford, PA 19041  -  610-896-1101
http://www.haverford.edu/arboretum/index.php

A mere ten miles from Philadelphia is the 216-acre campus is a blend of century-old oaks and maples, rare specimen trees, small flowering trees, natural woodland areas and the Penn Treaty Elm, planted in 1915, is the descendant of the original American Elm under which William Penn signed his treaty with the Native Americans.

There are over 1,500 trees are labeled with their scientific and common names.  and over 300 mature conifers,  labeled and arranged by family groupings in an area of exceptional beauty first planted in 1928.  These colorful and diverse gardens include the Denis Asian Garden and Teaf Memorial Zen-style Garden, both with plants originating in the Orient; and mixed border gardens.


Henry Foundation for Botanical Research
801 Stoney Lane, Gladwyne, PA 19035  -  484-678-6200

Fifty natural acres of a surprisingly remote site in the steep hills of Gladwyne near the Schuylkill River.  Many rare & endangered species with varieties of rhododendrons, holly, magnolia & more.  Founded in 1948 by botanist and plant explorer Mary Gibson Henry to showcase the plants she collected on her expeditions through remote areas of the West, Midwest and Southeast.


Henry Schmieder Arboretum - Delaware Valley College
700 East Butler Ave., Doylestown, PA 18901  -  1-800-2-DelVal
http://www.delval.edu/pages/arboretum

A large preserve with several special gardens plus the Kerr orchid collection & mature specimen trees.  The Arboretum is open for public admission at no charge. Arboretum and grounds are open daily from dawn until dusk. The campus-wide Arboretum encompasses 60 acres of Delaware Valley College.  Plantings in various parts of the Arboretum change with the seasons.


Hershey Gardens
170 Hotel Rd,  Hershey, PA 17033  -  717-534-3492

Hershey Gardens opened in 1937 with Milton Hershey’s request to “create a nice garden of roses.” Through the years, the 3 1/2 acre rose garden has blossomed into 23 acres of botanical beauty.    Its brilliant assortment of 5,600 roses representing 275 varieties includes an interesting mix of heights, colors and flower forms of Hybrid Tea, floribunda, shrub, and miniature roses.

The collection also contains an arboretum and oak grove, butterfly house and 11 other distinct theme gardens including an Herb Garden, with medicinal, aromatic, household, culinary, and dye-making plants, a seasonal display garden, memorial garden featuring the American flag and red, white, and blue flowers, perennial garden, rock garden, Japanese garden and children's garden filled with surprise hideaways, creatures and whimsical characters. 


The Highlands Mansion and Gardens
7001 Sheaff Lane, Fort Washington, PA 19034  -  215-641-2687
http://www.highlandshistorical.org/

The Highlands Mansion and Gardens is a 44-acre historic site with a late 18th century Georgian mansion and two-acre formal garden.  The site features statuary, reflecting pools and specimen trees, nine outbuildings, including a bank barn, springhouse, greenhouse, smokehouse and Gothic Revival gardener's cottage.  The grounds are open from dawn to dusk year round.


Jenkins Arboretum
631 Berwyn Baptist Rd, Devon, PA 19333 
610-647-8870
http://www.jenkinsarboretum.org/

Forty-six-acre preserve with collections of azaleas, rhododendrons, daylilies & wildflowers & test gardens for woody ornamentals & daylilies.  As a botanical garden, the Arboretum maintains a collection of native trees, shrubs, wildflowers and ferns in a tranquil, naturalistic landscape. In addition, the Arboretum features a diverse collection of rhododendrons and azaleas from around the world. The unique landscape and diverse plant collections provide sanctuary for a variety of native birds, insects and other wildlife.

Longwood Gardens
1001 Longwood Rd, Kennett Square, PA 19348  -  610-388-1000
http://www.longwoodgardens.org/

There are 1,050 acres with 20 indoor and 20 outdoor gardens; formal gardens, fountains, idea gardens, meadows & woodlands with a nearly 4-acre conservatory, 11,000 different types of plants, a topiary garden, rose garden, wildflowers, lily ponds, etc., one of the premier gardens in North America.


Louise Arnold Tanger Arboretum
230 North President Ave., Lancaster, PA  17603  -  717-392-4633
e-mail: info@lancasterhistory.org

This 5 acre arboretum is open to the public as a place of rest and relaxation. and freatures 104 varieties of trees including American chestnuts, beeches, firs, and 3 Franklinia trees.


Malcolm W. Gross Memorial Rose Garden
2700 Pkwy. Blvd., Allentown, PA 18104  -  610-437-7628

Allentown's old-fashioned Rose Garden, with many beautiful flowers and ponds filled with water lilies, is known for its All America Rose collection.


Marywood University Arboretum
2300 Adams Ave, Scranton, PA 18509 
570-348-6211 | toll free: 1-TO-MARYWOOD
http://www.marywood.edu/arboretum/

This 115 acre arboretum at Marywood University has 42 species of trees that contain 103 varieties, and a comparable number and variety of shrubs, as well as ornamental grasses, perennial, biennial and annual blooms.  The Arboretum may be enjoyed free of charge daily from sunrise to sunset. Marywood University is closed on all major holidays, but self-guided walking tours are still possible on those days.


The Scott Arboretum of Swarthmore College
500 College Ave, Swarthmore, PA 19081  -  610 328–8025  
http://www.scottarboretum.org/

Collections of rhododendrons, daffodils, azaleas, hollies, flowering cherries, witch-hazels, crabapples, tree peonies, lilacs, hydrangeas, magnolias & conifers, plus a rock garden, woodland garden & rose garden.  Plants are labeled with their scientific and common names and often grouped in collections to make easy comparisons. They represent the horticultural diversity of the Delaware Valley region and provide an attractive landscape for the college community.  The Arboretum grounds are open every day dawn to dusk; admission is free.


Stonehedge Gardens
51 Dairy Rd, Tamaqua, PA  -  570-386-4276

Six acres of lovely gardens featuring a Perennial Garden, Formal Culinary Herb Garden, Exotic Tropical Spice and Flowering Specimen Garden, Bamboo Grove, Chile Pepper Garden, Water Garden, Koi Pond and Hosta Garden.   The mission of Stonehedge Gardens is to provide a healing, sacred, inclusive environment for the cultivation of personal and community transformation and wellness through the gardens and nature, the arts and holistic education.  Open every day and Free to the Public!




Taylor Memorial Arboretum
10 Ridley Dr, Wallingford, PA 19086  -  610-876-2649
http://taylorarboretum.org/

Thirty acre arboretum includes Anne's Grotto (a former quarry site with mosses, ferns, wildflowers, and azaleas), the millrace and waterfall and the Bald Cypress Pond (with cattails, rushes, and iris). Plant collections include azaleas, dogwoods, magnolias, junipers, lilacs, viburnums, witchhazels, Japanese maples, boxwoods, and arborvitae. Three Pennsylvania State Champion Trees (a giant dogwood, a needle juniper, and a lacebark elm) are also featured.


Tyler Arboretum
515 Painter Rd, Media, PA 19063  -  610-566-9134
http://www.tylerarboretum.org/

Tyler Arboretum encompasses 650 acres of horticultural collections, butterfly house, meadow maze, rare plant specimens, ancient trees, rhododendrons, azaleas, dogwoods, swarf conifers, crabapples, cherries, magnoliashistoric buildings and 20 miles of trails. The Arboretum is open year round, except for Thanksgiving Day and Christmas Day. The Arboretum offers workshops, classes, and tours for adults and children throughout the year. Tyler Arboretum is open daily at 9am. And closes between 4pm and 8pm depending on the time of year.


Welkinweir
1368 Prizer Rd, Pottstown, PA 19465  -  610-469-7543
http://www.greenvalleys.org/welkinweir.html

Welkinweir has become a popular arboretum in the Delaware Valley, featuring many trails, walks, and ponds plus five rare Franklinia trees (Franklinia alatamaha).  A 197-acre oasis of natural beauty featuring a 55-acre arboretum and historic estate house, as well as, ecologically diverse wetland, meadow, and woodland habitats. The grounds are open daily, with hours varying seasonally. Call for hours.


Wyck
6026 Germantown Ave, Phila, PA 19144  -  215-848-1690
http://www.wyck.org/

Originally 50 acres in the Germantown section of Philadelphia, Wyck's grounds today include a nationally known garden of over 30 varieties of old roses, flower borders, spring bulbs, herb and vegetable gardens.
Free self-guided tours are available on Friday afternoons, 1 p.m. - 4 p.m. during our Farmers Market, June through November.






















No comments: