Swiss Pines is a
arboretum and
Japanese garden
are traditional gardens whose designs are accompanied by Japanese aesthetics and philosophical ideas, avoid artificial ornamentation, and highlight the natural landscape. Plants and worn, aged materials are generally used by Japanese garden desi ...
that is located on Charlestown Road in
Malvern, Pennsylvania
Malvern is a borough in Chester County, Pennsylvania. It is west of Philadelphia. The population was 3,419 at the 2020 census. The borough is bordered by Paoli Pike on the south, Sugartown Road on the west, Willistown Township on the east, an ...
.
History and notable features
Swiss Pines was established by Arnold Bartschi (1903-1996), who was a native of
Switzerland who was, by the mid-1930s, owner of the J. Edwards Shoe Company. In 1957, he purchased the of the former Llewellyn estate; during the next thirty years, he developed the Swiss Pines site. It became a nonprofit foundation in 1960.
At present, Swiss Pines displays a
Japanese
tea house
A teahouse (mainly Asia) or tearoom (also tea room) is an establishment which primarily serves tea and other light refreshments. A tea room may be a room set aside in a hotel especially for serving afternoon tea, or may be an establishment wh ...
and garden, a stone garden, statuary, streams, lake, stone lanterns, and bridges set among naturalistic plantings. Plant collections include the Glendale
Azalea Garden (150 varieties); the
herb garden (100 species), the
groundcover garden (28 varieties), and the
pinetum (over 200 types of
conifers).
Per the
Charlestown Township website, Swiss Pines was closed for the foreseeable future as of 2013. In 2023 Charlestown Township assumed ownership of the property and has begun planning to make the property available for public use.
Swiss Pines continues to be closed to the public during the restoration period.
See also
*
List of botanical gardens in the United States
References
External links
*
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1960 establishments in Pennsylvania
Arboreta in Pennsylvania
Botanical gardens in Pennsylvania
Japanese gardens in the United States
Parks in Chester County, Pennsylvania
Swiss-American culture in Pennsylvania