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The Gardens at Elm Bank, home of
Massachusetts Horticultural Society
The Massachusetts Horticultural Society, sometimes abbreviated to MassHort, is an American horticultural society based in Massachusetts. It describes itself as the oldest formally organized horticultural institution in the United States. In its m ...
, occupies of Elm Bank Reservation,
[ a ][ recreational area of woodlands, fields, and former estate property on the ]Charles River
The Charles River ( Massachusett: ''Quinobequin)'' (sometimes called the River Charles or simply the Charles) is an river in eastern Massachusetts. It flows northeast from Hopkinton to Boston along a highly meandering route, that doubles b ...
managed by the Massachusetts Department of Conservation and Recreation
The Department of Conservation and Recreation (DCR) is a state agency of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, situated in the Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs. It is best known for its parks and parkways. The DCR's mission is ...
.[ The estate's entrance is located at 900 Washington Street ( Route 16), ]Wellesley, Massachusetts
Wellesley () is a New England town, town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. Wellesley is part of Greater Boston. The population was 29,550 at the time of the 2020 census. Wellesley College, Babson Col ...
, United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
, with the major portion of the grounds located in the neighboring town
A town is a human settlement. Towns are generally larger than villages and smaller than cities, though the criteria to distinguish between them vary considerably in different parts of the world.
Origin and use
The word "town" shares an ori ...
of Dover
Dover () is a town and major ferry port in Kent, South East England. It faces France across the Strait of Dover, the narrowest part of the English Channel at from Cap Gris Nez in France. It lies south-east of Canterbury and east of Maidstone ...
. In 1987, the entire site was added to the National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
as Elm Bank.
History
Property records date back to 1732 when Thomas Fuller owned the tract on land then known as the Natick Plain.[ The property earned the sobriquet Elm Bank after Colonel John Jones acquired the land in 1740 and planted ]elm trees
Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...
along the riverside. After being occupied by families named Loring, Broad, and Otis, the property was sold for $10,000 in 1874 to Benjamin Pierce Cheney, a founder of a delivery company that became American Express
American Express Company (Amex) is an American multinational corporation specialized in payment card services headquartered at 200 Vesey Street in the Battery Park City neighborhood of Lower Manhattan in New York City. The company was found ...
. At the time of Cheney's death in 1895, the property contained over 200 acres (80 hectares), and passed to his eldest daughter Alice in 1905.[ In 1907, Alice and her husband, Dr. William Hewson Baltzell, engaged the architectural firm of ]Carrère and Hastings
Carrère and Hastings, the firm of John Merven Carrère ( ; November 9, 1858 – March 1, 1911) and Thomas Hastings (architect), Thomas Hastings (March 11, 1860 – October 22, 1929), was one of the outstanding American Beaux-Arts architecture, Be ...
to design a Neo-Georgian manor house. They also commissioned the Olmsted Brothers
The Olmsted Brothers company was a landscape architectural firm in the United States, established in 1898 by brothers John Charles Olmsted (1852–1920) and Frederick Law Olmsted Jr. (1870–1957), sons of the landscape architect Frederick Law ...
firm, the most prominent landscape design
Landscape design is an independent profession and a design and art tradition, practiced by landscape designers, combining nature and culture. In contemporary practice, landscape design bridges the space between landscape architecture and garde ...
ers of the era, for the estate's site planning
A site plan or a plot plan is a type of drawing used by architects, landscape architects, urban planners, and engineers which shows existing and proposed conditions for a given area, typically a parcel of land which is to be modified. Sites plan ...
and to design new garden
A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...
s and improve existing ones. In the 1940s, the property became a seminary
A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...
housing a group of Stigmatine Fathers, who constructed a school building and ran a summer camp in the 1960s and 1970s.[ The Commonwealth of Massachusetts purchased the property in the mid 1970s.][ It then served as the home of the Quinobin Regional Technical School.][
In 1996, an effort was successfully undertaken by Dr. John C. Peterson, President of the Massachusetts Horticultural Society to secure a new educational and garden site for Mass Hort in the suburbs of Boston, a long time dream of the organization. Peterson undertook intense studies and collaborative investigations with various agencies of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, including the Metropolitan District Commission (MDC) to develop a project plan and business plan that would justify and enable Mass Hort to secure a long term lease for the Horticultural Society. Due to the efforts of Dr. John C. Peterson, support was gained from the MDC, Department of Environmental Management, the Secretary of the Environment and the Governors office to propose legislation that would shortly thereafter be enacted into law by the State Legislature to authorize a land lease of 36 acres of the Elm Bank Reservation / formally the Cheney Estate to The Massachusetts Horticultural Society for a term of 100 years.][
The Horticultural Society, under Peterson's direction, then undertook a multi-year design and planning effort working with a world renown botanical and garden landscape architect from the Netherlands, Pieter van Loon, President of Eurolandscapes in Morekapella, The Netherlands. John Peterson and Pieter van Loon collaboratively develop a site Master Plan for The Elm Bank Horticulture Center gardens and facilities. This Master Plan and vision for the future facility components, established and solidified the Mass Hort Society site as a garden and educational program site based facility for the first time in its 125+ year history. Next, significant fund raising efforts were launched and donations and grants were secured, under the direction of Peterson and Chief Fundraising Officer, Kathleen Sharkey, that enabled the Mass Hort organization to commence with significant site development and improvement projects. Historic gardens and building renovations were completed, educational gardens and plant growing facilities were constructed, and educational and operational building facilities were developed to accommodate Master Gardener training programs, as well as educational programs and events for Society members as well as the general public.
The Society, under the direction of its President, Dr. John C. Peterson, cultivated and solidified collaborations with a wide range of Plant Societies, Garden Clubs and commercial horticulture firms to expand upon the scope and character of the Elm Bank Horticulture Center features, gardens, programs and facilities. These advancements and improvements strengthened the role of the Massachusetts Horticulture Society as a key site and leading entity that provided educational and information and training programs to plant enthusiasts throughout Massachusetts and the New England Region. The new gardens, office, educational program, event and meeting space solidified the Massachusetts Horticulture Society as a year-round powerhouse in the public horticulture, display, demonstration and educational and horticultural information centers in the New England Region. As the overall site and individual garden spaces matured and grew in significance, the society began to charge non-member visitors an entrance fee in 2010,][. The gardens' maintenance is supported through entrance fees, special events, and private usages such as garden weddings.][
]
Gardens
The distinct gardens featured at Elm Bank include:[
;Weezie's Garden for Children
A series of small spiraling gardens, each giving visitors the opportunity to plant, water or interact in some way with the garden's elements. Children's classes are held throughout the spring, summer and fall in this special garden.][
;Mass Hort Trial Garden
A cooperative effort between the University of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Flower Growers’ Association and Massachusetts Horticultural Society. Breeding companies from all over the world contribute Annuals for viewing by amateur and professional ]Gardener
A gardener is someone who practices gardening, either professionally or as a hobby.
Description
A gardener is any person involved in gardening, arguably the oldest occupation, from the hobbyist in a residential garden, the home-owner suppleme ...
s. This garden also tests unreleased varieties competing for All-America Selections
All-America Selections (AAS) is an American organization which tests new varieties of seed for use in gardening, and promotes those judged to perform best through an awards scheme ("AAS Winners"). The testing program involves horticulture profes ...
awards, displays previous winners, and grows hundreds of cultivar
A cultivar is a type of cultivated plant that people have selected for desired traits and when propagated retain those traits. Methods used to propagate cultivars include: division, root and stem cuttings, offsets, grafting, tissue culture, ...
s submitted for evaluation by commercial plant breeders.[
;Italianate Garden
Restoration of the 1926 Italianate Garden was based on the original plans from the ]Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site
Frederick Law Olmsted National Historic Site is a United States National Historic Site located in Brookline, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. Frederick Law Olmsted (1822–1903) is recognized as the founder of American landscape architecture ...
, together with a numbered plant list - and even receipts - for the original trees and flowers planted in the garden.[
;Display Gardens
The Noanett Garden Club, the New England Chapter of the ]Herb Society of America
In general use, herbs are a widely distributed and widespread group of plants, excluding vegetables and other plants consumed for macronutrients, with savory or aromatic properties that are used for flavoring and garnishing food, for medicinal ...
, and the American Rhododendron Society
The American Rhododendron Society (ARS) is a non-profit organization whose mission is to encourage interest in, and disseminate information about, the genus ''Rhododendron''. Members' experience ranges from novice to expert. The society provides a ...
maintain collaborative demonstration and display gardens at Elm Bank.[ The Day Lily Society installed a garden in 2004.][
]
See also
*
* Hunnewell Estates Historic District
The Hunnewell Estates Historic District is an historic district between the Charles River and Lake Waban in Wellesley and Natick, Massachusetts, about 17 miles west of Boston. It consists of the large group of 18th to 21st century agricultural a ...
* Arnold Arboretum
The Arnold Arboretum of Harvard University is a botanical research institution and free public park, located in the Jamaica Plain and Roslindale neighborhoods of Boston, Massachusetts. Established in 1872, it is the oldest public arboretum in N ...
References
External links
Massachusetts Horticultural Society
Elm Bank Reservation
Department of Conservation and Recreation
*
{{authority control
Botanical gardens in Massachusetts
Gardens in Massachusetts
Dover, Massachusetts
Wellesley, Massachusetts
State parks of Massachusetts
Protected areas of Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Historic districts in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Tourist attractions in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
National Register of Historic Places in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Landforms of Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Houses in Norfolk County, Massachusetts
Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Massachusetts
Protected areas established in 1987
1987 establishments in Massachusetts