Tropical terraces, color, and meadow at Owl Creek Farm

One of my favourite backstage gardens astatine the Philadelphia Area Fling backmost successful September was Steve and Ann Hutton’s Owl Creek Farm. It’s not truly a farm, truthful acold arsenic I could tell. The Hutton plot is sizeable, though, and its agrarian mounting successful West Chester, Pennsylvania, gives the owners plentifulness of country to play. I was wowed by a melodramatic instrumentality plot of tropicals connected the backmost terrace, which segues to flowery perennial gardens astir the location and extends to a tall-grass meadow and ample rootlike garden. Steve, a erstwhile nurseryman and retired CEO of Star Roses and Plants, knows however to make a infinitesimal with plants and color.

Terrace garden

The terrace plot extends retired from the backmost door, similar different surviving room. Generously sized, it’s outlined with artfully arranged containers showcasing tropical oregon subtropical foliage plants. Three vine-swagged, rectangular arbors connection framed doorway views to different parts of the garden, completing the feeling of enclosure.

The backmost steps of the location pb to a ceramic landing successful a adust gravel garden. On either side, yearly flowers and colocasias ka-pow with colour and large leaves.

This is intelligibly the plot of idiosyncratic who loves each antithetic kinds of plants and finds a mode to turn and show them. I did wonderment wherever helium crams each these pots travel winter.

A panorama changeable amended conveys the standard of this showy space. The statement of pots and melodramatic foliage reminded maine a spot of Longwood Gardens — and that’s saying something!

There’s a reddish banana, which everyone successful the Philadelphia country grows, seemingly. And nary wonder. Those paddle-shaped leaves adhd specified drama.

I adored the rectangular metallic arbors astatine each of 3 doorways into this space. Even successful wintertime they indispensable adhd operation to the garden.

Another view, with a pedestal of guara and sedum successful the foreground

A wider view

A sago thenar — an aged Texas modular — is fixed pridefulness of spot successful a beauteous statement of pots.

In different cluster, it’s Bismarck thenar that’s the prima of the show.

A brace of spring-green ligament chairs accents different cookware grouping.

The plan of a 2-dimensional metallic arbor is charming with rectangles and spirals.

More ligament chairs adhd different dash of colour and other seating.

Outer garden

The arbor connected axis with the backmost doorway leads to a tract mildly terraced with granite steps.

Twin urns with alliums are cleverly accented with garden-art alliums.

A wider view

A ample bamboo arbor — similar thing retired of King Kong — beckons from the lawn, starring to…

…deep mixed borders with conifers, dark-leaved shrubs, flowering perennials, and — hello! — different banana.

I emotion the banana with reddish dahlias and yellowish sunflowers.

Dahlias are truthful beauteous successful a late-season garden.

Steve and Ann diagnostic respective pieces of abstract ironwork successful their garden, which I truly liked.

A fewer cute frogs too

Big tropical pots and a gangly birdhouse adhd verticality to a perennial bed.

Black-eyed Susans, sunflowers, and dahlias were stealing the amusement successful precocious September.

Happy color

Love those reddish dahlias

A stripey writer adds a small zing to the mix.

One more

French doors connected the broadside of the location unfastened up to this question of color.

A Zen frog amid silvery ferns

Meadow garden

The outer portion of the spot is devoted to a grassy meadow. Wire spheres successful the tract adhd a playful element, and colorful flags lasting gangly wrong the meadow impulse you to explore.

This sphere-and-grasses vignette reminds maine of Cornerstone Sonoma successful California.

The grasses stood chest-high successful precocious September, and I hoped it was nary longer tick season, though the proprietor did suggest we bash a tick cheque afterward. Pennsylvania is Lyme Disease country, aft all, though folks who unrecorded present don’t look to interest excessively astir it. At immoderate rate, it was beauteous to research the meadow on the mown path, with grasses gracefully leaning connected either side.

Goldenrod and plants gone to effect adhd their ain autumn beauty.

A snag near lasting for wildlife

The flags gully you to a mown clearing with a metallic arbor and seating — a hidden plot room!

Asters and grasses

Vegetable garden

A ample fenced rootlike plot is person to the location for casual access.

Even its entranceway is fixed a flourish with a pedestal planter and decorative arbor.

And an excited bamboo chap waving a flag!

Up next: Exploring caller nationalist plot Stoneleigh: A Natural Garden. For a look backmost astatine the Asian plot and ponds astatine WynEden, click here.

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