A Year Later
ONE YEAR after installation, our new garden at Westminster Seminary (Glenside, Pennsylvania) is beginning to knit together. The Seminary wanted a space that would serve both for informal gathering and special events, and the new garden was meant to complement the adjacent stone administrative building, which had once served as a private residence. Our design features a network of bluestone walkways, a central lawn, flanking perennial borders and a carved marble basin, which provides a soothing, constant gurgle.
While the garden structure is restrained and architectural, the perennial borders are exuberant and dynamic. Our goal was to establish a dynamic and diverse community of perennials and grasses that would enliven the space and serve as a backdrop for activities on the lawn. We assembled a cool palette of blooms and foliage with silvers, blues, lavenders, magentas and clean yellows.
Mapping out anticipated maintenance with the Seminary during the design phase, we formulated a series of design principles that will guide the Seminary’s maintenance efforts throughout the plant establishment period. These include:
· Embrace a state of flux.
· Allow plants to grow together in a green tapestry.
· Guide succession to maintain layering and overall structure.
· Choreograph staggered bloom-times and four seasons of interest.
· Use “green mulch” filler plants.
· Maintain species diversity over time.
· Adjust as needed.
We are thrilled how the Seminary has been carefully tending the garden. Enjoy these photos from a recent site visit (just before graduation festivities this May).