May 2026
Through the Garden Gate
The Beatrix Farrand Garden at Bellefield
Visits to the Garden
Lynden Miller
Lynden Miller visited us! The legendary garden designer and noted Beatrix Farrand expert will serve as a key consultant on the Garden Rejuvenation Project. During her recent visit, Lynden joined us for a deep dive into Farrand's historic planting plans as we began imagining how "Mrs. Farrand" herself might have approached a refreshed planting design for the garden today. Discussions ranged from clematis varieties and Farrand's love of yellows, blues, and scarlets to "Molly the Witch" peonies and many other fascinating research questions. Lynden also fell head over heels for the Wild Garden. Stay tuned!
Joint meeting with Rejuvenation Committee members, NPS staff, Olmsted Center landscape architects and our dignitary, Lynden Miller.
Lynden Miller enjoys a visit to the Wild Garden with Heather Whitefield, an essential member of the Wild Garden design team.
Nancy Morgan Patterson
Another special visitor! Nancy Morgan Patterson, of the Morgan family who cherished Bellefield as their home for decades before donating the estate in the 1970s to the National Park Service, visited the garden with her husband, Rick. They spent time looking through historic family photographs in the Morgan Room, strolling through the garden to admire the emerging heritage bulbs, and learning with excitement about the rejuvenation plans. Nancy, who now lives and gardens in Virginia, shared many fond memories of her childhood at Bellefield.
Nancy Morgan Patterson, her husband Rick, and Director of Horticulture Ashley Gamell look through historic family photographs included in the NPS Cultural Landscape Report prepared by the Olmsted Center for Landscape Preservation.
Programs in the Garden
Our Director of Horticulture, Ashley Gamell, speaks to a packed room during her popular "What to Plant in 2026" presentation.
Spring and summer are coming alive at the Beatrix Farrand Garden, and we're excited to share a season full of garden walks, hands-on workshops, concerts, art programs, and family activities. Whether you're looking to deepen your gardening knowledge, spend time outdoors, or simply enjoy the beauty of the garden, there's something for everyone this season.
Consider one of our artsy workshops as a wonderful Mother's Day gift — from Ikebana and drawing in the garden to watercolor, photography, and peaceful guided walks through the spring blooms.
Saturday, May 16 · 1:00–2:00 p.m.
Welcome Spring! Plant Walk
Join BFG Horticulturist Ashley Gamell for a guided walk through the Wild Garden at peak spring bloom. Explore native plants, seasonal highlights, and thoughtful design strategies while learning about the ecological value of this dynamic demonstration garden.
Sunday, May 17 · 9:30–11:30 a.m.
Drawing from the Garden Workshop
Professional artist Mira Fink leads a mindful drawing workshop focused on close observation of flowers, vines, and natural forms. No experience necessary. All materials provided.
Sunday, May 17 · 1:00–3:00 p.m.
Twiggy Pollinator Tower Workshop
Create a four-foot pollinator habitat using twigs, vines, pinecones, bark, and hollow stems. Artist and gardener Jessica Williams guides participants in building beautiful, functional structures that support bees, butterflies, birds, and beneficial insects.
Sunday, June 14 · 11:00 a.m.–3:00 p.m.
Artists in the Garden — FREE
Enjoy a special afternoon in the garden watching several local artists working at their easels and throughout the landscape. Visitors are invited to stroll the grounds, observe creative processes in action, and engage with the artists throughout the day.
Sunday, June 14 · 1:00–3:00 p.m.
Ikebana with Lin Workshop
Discover the Japanese art of flower arranging in this hands-on workshop led by certified SOMU Ikebana instructor Meei-Huey Lin. Participants will create their own arrangement while learning the principles and aesthetics of Ikebana.
Sunday, June 14 · 6:30–8:00 p.m.
FREE Brazilian Bossa Nova Concert: BOREAL
Enjoy an evening of Brazilian Bossa Nova in the garden featuring BOREAL, with musicians from Brazil and the Hudson Valley performing classics by Tom Jobim and other celebrated composers. Guests are welcome to bring blankets, food, and drinks.
Saturday, June 20 · 10:30–11:30 a.m.
Wild Pollinators: Diversity, Natural History, and Conservation
Kyle Bradford of the Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Ecology Project explores the fascinating world of wild pollinators, from native bees to other essential pollinating species, highlighting their diversity, ecology, and conservation.
Saturday, June 27 · 2:00–4:00 p.m.
Storytelling through Garden Photography Workshop
Learn how to create compelling botanical photographs with exhibiting artist and photographer Lori Adams. Open to all skill levels; bring your preferred camera or phone.
Members Remember the First Thirty Years
In the mid-1990s, the National Park Service charged the newly formed Beatrix Farrand Garden Association (BFGA) with the restoration and care of this unique garden, designed by the pioneering landscape gardener Beatrix Farrand. Since the 1990s, members have become deeply invested in the Garden's restoration and its value to the community, helping in countless meaningful ways.
Sarah remembers the earliest members as an eclectic group, which made the experience especially fun. The common thread among these varied members was a love of gardening and a desire to preserve this unique historic treasure. Florence, or "Flo," was famously known for weeding in pearls, while another member gardened with her infants cooing nearby. Doris remained a "force" well into her eighties.
Helen has enjoyed being a member through both participation and volunteering in the garden. "Twenty years ago, I met Allelu Kurten at an auction fundraiser for the garden at Bellefield. She asked if I was interested in joining a group of 'weeders' on Tuesday mornings. I did so and encountered energetic, interesting, talented women who did more than weed; they even mowed the lawn! Allelu was the backbone of the group, a visionary who saw what this little garden could become. I remember meeting one of the original members, Florence Fried, who gardened in a big straw hat with a Hermès scarf and a strand of pearls around her neck! Not only did I learn so much about gardening, but friendships were made that I cherish to this day."
BFGA membership continues to grow and remains vital to the financial and logistical stability of the Garden. Help us meet our goal of welcoming 20 new members this spring!
Longest Bloom Award
The tulips have come and gone, and most of the magnolias have already shed their petals, but the Pasque flower (Pulsatilla vulgaris) is still going strong! Taking the prize for longest spring bloomer in the garden this year, these delicate flowers first opened on April 7 and continue to brighten the garden weeks later.
Native to Europe, the Pasque flower is covered in silky silver hairs that help protect the blooms from cold spring weather while also giving the plant its distinctive soft, plush appearance.
Volunteers
Volunteers spent an April morning cutting back the east side of the Wild Garden and constructing a "bug snug." This sculptural stack of last year's stems echoes the neat, rectangular forms of Farrand's design while keeping garden debris on site so that insects overwintering in the hollow stems can emerge right where they belong — ready to pollinate, control pests, and add to the hum of life in the garden.
Rejuvenation Update
Heather Whitefield of Organic Matters generously volunteered with her crew this spring to help salvage peonies, irises, and clematis from the White Bed ahead of invasive Bishop's Weed treatment. These beloved plants are being carefully preserved as part of the ongoing Garden Rejuvenation effort to restore the health and integrity of Farrand's historic planting spaces.
Announcing the Annual Plant Sale!
Our annual plant sale is returning this spring! The online store will go live later in May, with plant pickup scheduled for June 14. BFGA Members will enjoy a one-day head start on ordering, but all gardeners will be excited to shop a curated selection of Farrand favorites, proven garden performers, and regional native plants chosen for beauty, resilience, and ecological value.
"It is work, it is hard work, but at the same time it is perpetual pleasure... it seems to me all the arts are combined in this."
— Beatrix Farrand, speaking of her career
This living jewel of Arts and Crafts design was created in 1912 by Beatrix Jones Farrand. One of this nation's most important landscape designers, Farrand was a pioneer in her approach to design, education, and horticulture; professionalizing her discipline as a founding member of the American Society of Landscape Architects (1899); and paving the way for more women to become professional landscape architects and designers.
Farrand's Hyde Park garden is open free of charge every day from dawn to dusk. It is located at the Home of Franklin D. Roosevelt National Historic Site. Park at the Henry A. Wallace Visitor and Education Center (see site map).