There are many reasons why I love gardens so much.  I feel confident it’s a gene that’s been passed down to me on my Mother’s side.  My Mom works tirelessly on their property in Pennsylvania.  She has two acres with about ¾ of it being wooded wetland and the rest being garden around the house.  Most of the gardens are wildflowers, to the point where she calls it “Wild Garden”, and it has a very cottage like feel.  Most of my childhood memories are of her being outside trying to find the right way to bring all her gardening visions together.  I think this all stemmed from the fact that her Mother had the most beautiful home with an absolutely breath-taking property that she was constantly “reinventing”.  Going there seemed like we were transcending into another world.  Easter Egg hunting was of epic proportions with an ever-elusive golden egg hidden somewhere on the 5 acres.  It’s been 19 years since my Grandmother passed away, and 15 since my Grandfather sold the home, and I could recreate the complete layout of the gardens and home effortlessly.

There are some places that just imprint into your brain and transform the way you think about things.  Longwood Gardens is one of those places. We moved to Chester County when I was 6 and shortly after that we found Longwood Gardens.  On July 20, 1906, 36-year-old du Pont purchased the farmland that is now Longwood Gardens, primarily to preserve the trees. While it wasn’t his original intention to create Longwood Gardens, within a few years, he had transformed a simple country farm into one of the country’s leading horticultural display gardens.  The Gardens consist of 1,077 acres with a combination of outdoor gardens, some formal and some natural, and 4.5 acres of 20 different gardens enclosed in a Conservatory.   There are Fountains, multiple Children’s Gardens, Concerts, Christmas Light Displays, thousands upon thousands of spring bulbs. 

If you can dream it they have created it.  No matter how many times you go there you will find something different and new.  We ended up getting a membership because it just made more sense fiscally since we go there so often.  Our son loves the indoor Children’s Garden and he could spend all day there.  They have hands on water activities for the kids to get into and a labyrinth of twists and turns to explore; with a multitude of surprises waiting around each corner.   We go every year for the Christmas Display and it’s unrivaled.  They have over a half a million lights on display and a variety of different vignettes to look at in addition to the Conservatory being decked out with Christmas Trees and other amazing decorations.  I can’t possibly go there without bringing something home with me.  Either I’ve bought something in the gift shop or my brain is overwhelmed with all the new ideas I can’t wait to try in my own garden, be it a new plant or new designs.

Recently my Mother and I went for the Orchid Extravaganza sale. I specifically took off work to drive up to PA, just for the day, to go to this sale. Let me tell you, it did NOT disappoint. The place was mobbed with people, but the orchids were only $20 each, plus tax, and I found a beautiful purple/blue one, that I had my eye on from when we went to see them on display, plus 7 others. I have now the interesting task of putting them all in pots and finding them the right places to live in the house. They don’t do this type of sale with any of the other plants they have on display. In fact, they only sell the orchids that they purchase from other vendors. They do this because the varieties they create are often proprietary to Longwood and not something they want replicated.

After the sale we decided to stroll the Gardens and found that since we were there so early we virtually had the place to ourselves. I don’t think we’ve ever been there so early and on a weekday. I was able to get uninterrupted pictures of the Conservatory, which I’ve never been able to do. We were able to wander slowly and purposefully taking in all the sights and smells and my son had the ultimate luxury of having the Children’s Garden to himself! We had an amazing time and I’m sure we will be back again next weekend when we are back in PA to celebrate my son’s birthday. If you are ever in the area or are within a day’s drive of Longwood I cannot recommend it enough. There is something so magical about being there that seems to recharge the internal batteries inside me that I wish everyone would have the chance to experience.