As I begin to write about the garden, the word that springs to my mind is “full.”  But full doesn’t do it. A thesaurus is helpful to find words to describe the lush color of azaleas, primroses and peonies:  abounding, chock-full, extravagant, lavish, saturated and voluminous are good descriptors of the garden today.

1) The peony garden is coming into full bloom. My favorites are the single pink peonies near the summer house. If you catch them in just the right light, they seem to glow.

2) The lower March Bank, especially looking at it from Icewell Terrace is fabulous right now. Azaleas in pink, white and purple. I recommend a picnic lunch on Icewell Terrace in the cool shade of the magnificent trees.

3) The Reflecting Pool Garden sports lavendar azaleas and puffy white viburnums. My daughter, who will (hopefully) be married there on June 27th, asked if I could freeze the garden just as it looks today. Is the power of the mother-of-the-bride that strong?

4) The Quarry Garden is as pretty as I’ve ever seen it in my 11 years at Winterthur. The candelabra primroses in sweet candy-shop colors must  like this spring’s weather. I suspect staff and volunteers have been working very hard to make the Quarry Garden look “like it just happened.”

5) In Azalea Woods, most of the azaleas are done for the year. Don’t dispair – following close behind the azaleas are the triumphantly bold rhododendrons. Love the lavender ones with deep purple centers.

6) In the Pinetum, bright orange and yellow native azaleas brighten the shade as the conifer walls capture their sweet fragrance. Ferns and lillies of the valley carpet the soil. Well-placed benches invite you to take a break and enjoy a perfect spring day in the Winterthur Garden.

Enjoy!

I have often heard the phrase: “In the garden; every day is a good day”. Sunday, May 3rd, in cloudiness and drizzling rain, I saw an example of how true this is in the Winterthur garden.

It was a day that might be described as being dull, dreary, dingy and dismal. It might have been that way somewhere else but we were in the Winterthur garden where beauty and color and fragrance were vibrant.

The pinks, reds, and purples of the azaleas were radiant. We saw a blue bird that had a deeper blue hue than I have ever seen on a so called “nice” day.  The eastern red buds were more brilliant than they had been the day before in the sun light. The different shades of the lilacs showed more contrasting than they had the day before. Yes, the scent of the lilacs and peonies was much more intense because of the wonderful humidity.

It was the perfect day to see the quarry garden, as the primroses are more profuse than I have ever seen them with bright reds, yellows and purples mixing with the remaining Virginia blue bells.  Blue bells were also on the quarry ledges, looking down on the other flowers. The gray of the quarry rocks was grayer making for more vivid floral color. The floor of the quarry with its large number of flowers, and lack of shadows resulted in giving the appearance of a beautiful quilt.

My artist wife explains to me that sunlight removes or washes out color. With sunlight we have shadows that actually hide the beauty at times. The gloominess also has a flattening effect which brings the colors closer together as in the quarry garden quilt.

There were several enthusiastic and advanced photographers joining me in the grayness. I think they know something. Come see for yourself; the beauty on a dismal day in the spring.

The wisteria at the visitor center has been over-the-top this year; seemed to pop overnight with last weekend’s warmth.  Near the stone underpass, ferns unfurl. In the peony garden, azaleas are in full bloom while ancient tree peonies begin the colorful sequence.  The azaleas in Azalea Woods have turned the corner towards full bloom. I expect by the end of this week, there will be acres of bright pink, coral, white and red azaleas there. Don’t miss it!

Check out our Flickr account – see the bar below right – for more photos of the Winterthur Garden.  Post your photos for others to enjoy!

Come for a stroll through the azaleas with horticulturist Susan Sibley. Learn their history and see the color combinations that make Azalea Woods such a special place.

For more garden lectures and walks in 2009, take a look at this link:

http://www.winterthur.org/calendar/garden_programs.asp

A quick walk through the Reflecting Pool garden today revealed a couple ideas I might use in my home garden. I’d never noticed that the burgundy leaves of the filbert match the coloration in the stone walls. We’re thinking about adding a stone wall in the backyard; this observation could inform our stone selection. 

I walked to the top of the staircase and looked back on this garden area. The lushness of the new spring foliage surprised me—seems just last week bare stems were the norm. Beyond the farthest stone wall I spied bright pink azaleas. They add a punch and a beacon that pulled me into the garden’s beauty, hoping to avoid an afternoon in my windowless office.  

A bonus: for inspiring garden photos, take a look at Jeannette Lindvig’s collection. She travels the world enjoying great gardens and includes Winterthur among her favorite places.  Jeannette is a Winterthur garden and museum guide. http://web.mac.com/jeannettelindvig/Gardentravelpix.com