Last month, for our anniversary, Mrs. P and I took a day off to go to one of our favorite places, Longwood Gardens. Longwood is a horticultural showplace in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania, near the Delaware border. The grounds include an arboretum begun (by another family) on land purchased from William Penn, but the main attractions were all created under the direction of Pierre du Pont, great-grandson of Eleuthère Irénée du Pont, the French-born founder of the du Pont family fortunes. 

Longwood has huge conservatories, which means that a winter visit can soothe the cold spirit with oodles of blooms. But spring and summer are really the best times to visit because then the grounds are bursting with flowers.  

Emerging from the visitors’ center, one of the first things that always catches my attention, though, is not flowers. I’m drawn to the row of noble copper beeches across the lawn. 

We started out by seeing what was planted this year on the Flower Walk. This 600-foot-long brick path is flanked by a mixture of annuals, perennials, and bulbs in a display that ranges in color the same way each year, though the plants used vary. It begins with lavender and purple,

moves to pinks and reds, 

shades to oranges and yellows,

and ends with whites.

The Flower Walk ends at another path through woods that carried us

to a mass of hydrangeas gracing the lower end of a small lake.

Farther up the path, we enjoyed one of Longwood’s elegant weeping willows.

before reaching Mrs. P’s favorite spot, the Italian Water Garden.

Turning back to the west, we glimpsed a stately tree in the middle of the Meadow.

To the other side, within the woods, we spotted a mass of ferns.

Later, we studied a magnificent beech, which had fascinating skin

and roots.

The rose garden was not at peak on this visit, though we did see some notable blooms. 

More dazzling was the Caryopteris Allee, where white hibiscus shone.

We trudged up this walk and then entered the conservatories. While the conservatories are wonderful to see, we headed toward one of Longwood’s summer treasures, the display of water lilies that fills an atrium in the midst of the conservatory buildings. The variety of colors is just amazing. 

Even the colors and textures of the lily pads are delightful.

We did stop into the conservatory to see the orchid display; we could not miss those.

Hope you enjoyed the tour!  I'm betting you're a bit less foot-sore than we were!

Words and pictures © 2009 AtHome Pilgrim.

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