Garden News

The restored historic Formal Garden, designed by Marian Cruger Coffin, is coming alive now that Spring is here. Each quadrant has been designed to bloom at a different time. The Rose Garden, at its peak in May and June and filled with the original antique roses, has been made possible through a contribution by the Helen Frick Foundation. Museum horticulturist Cynthia Vonderage has researched all of the flowers in the Formal Garden. As a result, all now have signage. The restoration of the Formal Garden has been made possible through the generosity of the Peggy N. Gerry Foundation and the New York State Environmental Quality Bond Act as well as through the fundraising efforts of Friends of the Gardens. The Gardens as Art Landscape Spectaculars and support from Peter Tilles, Peter Schlick, Garden Advisors, Garden Tour Committee and volunteers.

Ecologist and botanist, Dr. andrew N., Greller has identified and named more than 100 specimen trees on the museum grounds. Many thanks to Dr. Greller for the contribution of his time and expertise.

You can help support the gardens with a Garden Membership and with naming opportunities in the following manner:

• Buy a four-foot teakwood bench ($1,000) - Buy Now
• Contribution to the maintenance of the Pinetum ($2,500) - Buy Now
• Restoration of the Historic Milliken-Bevin Teak Trellis ($20,000) - Buy Now

Garden benches have been donated by Dr. Margaret Cuomo Maier and Howard Maier in honor of Sandy and Howard Tytel, Peggy and Bruce Tucker in honor of Judy and Donald Rechler, Emma Goldberg for Hasmeta Rajkovic and the Regan Family for Patrick and Tara Regan. The museum docents have donated azaleas in memory of Muriel Poster and elm trees in honor of Lorraine & Irving Zweifler. The Zweiflers children and grandchildren have donated a garden bench in their honor. Jane Malakoff and her late husband have donated rows of Okame cherry trees. Mr. & Mrs. Duke Saganich have donated an Okame cherry tree.

Last Fall, we were the happy hosts for 100 members of the Long Island Arboricultural Association (LIAA), a group that, each year, selects a site, and then volunteers horticultural services to restore or maintain that site. Equipped with bucket gtrucks, saws and chippers, LIAA members worked on our historic specimen trees. Many thanks to them for their extraordinary contributions.

This spring presents an ideal time to visit NCMA's gardens to see for yourself what a treasure these grounds are for the people of Long Island and beyond.