garden visit

Logee’s Greenhouses

There’s nothing like a trip to Logee’s Greenhouses in Danielson, Connecticut, to banish the winter doldrums. The large greenhouse complex always has something exciting blooming and today was no exception.

The greenhouses are not like other greenhouses. The structures are pure vintage, old-school, Secret Garden-esque structures stuffed cheek to jowl with greenery and flowers to create a seamless mass of verdure. Citrus grows in them, as do camellias and bougainvillea. And the houseplants!

There. Are. So. Many. And succulents, too! If you are a plant lover living in Connecticut, Rhode Island, or Southern Massachusetts, Logee’s is well worth a trip!

At Logee's Greenhouses

Broken Arrow Nursery

We had the pleasure of taking a tour of Broken Arrow Nursery in Hamden yesterday. What better way to spend a sleepy August morning than among plants, yes? Founded in 1947, Broken Arrow is one of the few garden centers in Connecticut that grow their own nursery stock. This allows them to offer a tremendous diversity of trees and shrubs, including those you’re unlikely to find anywhere else. You also know you’re getting a plant that will be hardy in Connecticut. If you love perennial woody plants, this is definitely the place to go.

A variety of conifers
Love the different textures in this photo.
Pinus strobus 'Mini Twists'
Pinus strobus ‘Mini Twists’
Viburnum lantana 'Wavecrest' fruiting.
Viburnum lantana ‘Wavecrest’
A cascade of golden-green grass
Hakonechloa macra
silver-green globe thistle with a bee friend
Echinops and friend

While I took many photos and lots of notes, I did not make any purchases as our garden won’t be ready for plantings before next spring. When it is ready, however, I shall certainly include a variety of conifers!

PHS Meadowbrook Farm

On our way home from the PHS Philadelphia Flower Show, we stopped to visit the gardens at PHS Meadowbrook Farm. I’d made reservations a month in advance, fearing many other PFS visitors would have the same idea, but it was raining and we had the gardens to ourselves.

And such gardens! Each a perfect jewel box, opening onto another.Every plant, shrub, tree, and decorative object placed to harmonize with the whole or draw the eye to a particular point. Gardening as a fine art.

Meadowbrook was built in 1936 by J. Liddon Pennock, Jr. and his wife, Alice. Pennock, Jr. was known for decades as “Mr. Flower Show” and was heavily involved in the Philadelphia Flower Show right up until his death in 2003. The house and the gardens are both clearly influenced by English architecture and design, but still manage to seem fresh and interesting.

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